Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Today

Bush, Blair Meet; Suburban Safari

Aired June 07, 2005 - 10:31   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN: We are right at the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's a look at what's happening "Now in the News."
The search for a missing Alabama student in Aruba turned up a bloody man's shirt and a pair of women's sunglasses. But police can't say for certain whether those items are linked to Natalee Holloway's disappearance. The 18-year-old has been missing for eight days. Two security guards detained for questioning could appear in court tomorrow.

A new armored military sweep in northwestern Iraq. U.S. forces backed by Iraqi troops conducted door-to-door searches in Tal Afar today. The city, near the Syrian border, is said to be infested with insurgents. About two dozen suspects have been arrested so far. One U.S. soldier was killed in action.

On Capitol Hill right now, a live picture for you as the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding a confirmation hearing for Zalmay Khalizad. He is President Bush's choice to become ambassador to Iraq. He would move from another site in the war on terrorism. Currently he is U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan. Senators will be questioning him over the status of the fighting in both countries.

Bolivia's president went on nationwide television last night to announce his resignation. Carlos Mesa said he would step down as soon at the Bolivian congress chooses his successor. Weeks of protests nearly paralyzed the capitol of La Paz. The protesters have called for the nationalization of Bolivia's energy resources. Mr. Mesa offered to resign in March, but lawmakers refused to accept it.

President Bush offers a key ally to the White House this afternoon. British Prime Minister Tony Blair will seek Mr. Bush's support in two priorities. Yet despite his unwavering support of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, Mr. Blair may leave Washington disappointed.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux sets the stage for the meeting. And then we'll check in with our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson. He has the view from London.

Suzanne, we start with you. Good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Daryn.

Well, British Prime Minister Tony Blair arrived last night at Andrews Air Force base amid a harsh storm. But expect nothing but sunny statements from these two men and that, of course, is by design. The two of them will announce a joint initiative when it comes to providing some $674 million for aid, hunger aid, in Africa, to feed some 14 million people.

Now, this is not the same initiative, the G-8 initiative that Blair has been pushing to double aid in Africa in ten years. The United States, the Bush administration, has made its position clear as recently as just last Wednesday, when Mr. Bush was meeting with South African president Thabo Mbeki. He said that this is not something that the United States is willing to sign off on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've made our position pretty clear on that, it doesn't fit our budgetary process. On the other hand, I've also made it clear to the prime minister, I look forward to working with Great Britain and other countries to advance the African agenda that has been on the G-8's agenda for -- ever since I've been the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So, Daryn what is this all about? Essentially, it is a compromise. This really allows -- this joint initiative, this announcement, allows them to take the sting out of the U.S. refusal to go along with that proposal, at least shelve it for the G-8 Summit that is taking place in July. Of course, it's the result of some negotiations between the Bush administration and the United Kingdom.

As recently as just this past weekend, I was told national security adviser Stephen Hadley, as well as a U.S. sherpa and their British counterparts were negotiating on just how to move forward with that aid announcement.

And of course, Daryn, there will be some other items that they'll be talking about. Most notably, the Iraq mission. Both of them will say despite the insurgency that they need to move forward, that training Iraqi troops ultimately will mean success in that country and in that region.

They'll also touch upon some other things. They have some differences when it comes to approach in protecting the environment, as well as establishing a nuclear-free Iran. They will say despite those differences in approach, they are both committed to making that happen.

And, of course, Daryn, all of this is in preparation of that July meeting, the G-8 Summit. That is when Tony Blair actually takes over the chairmanship of that international organization. The two of them are meant to present a united front to get some things done -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Suzanne Malveaux at the White House. Suzanne, thank you. And now let's get some British reaction. Our Nic Robertson standing by in London. Hello, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, that $674 million does fall short of what Tony Blair wanted. He was hoping to get millions. For example, members of the European Union recently committed themselves to spending seven cents in every $10 towards aid in Africa. Right now, the United States is spending about 1.5 cents in every $10 towards aid in Africa. That is part of -- as a fraction -- as a denomination, if you will, of their national wealth.

That's something Tony Blair would like to see the United States do. That's the level of commitment he is looking for. But there is an agreement on Bush and Blair on the fact that there should be debt relief for the poor countries in Africa. So there will be some points of agreement.

But the really important point here for Tony Blair is to have a political legacy that he can leave behind after his long term in office here in Britain. He is expected to step down in the next few years. He would like to see Africa and poverty relief in Africa as a political legacy.

He has not done particularly well with his European initiatives. He has lost a lot of political support here in Great Britain for his -- for allying Britain with the United States in the war on Iraq. And if anything, that's where he'd like to see and the reason why he'd like to see payback from President Bush at this time. So there will be some disappointments, but there are areas of agreement, as well -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Nic, let's talk about some of the scuttlebutt from over there in London. Prime Minister Blair's wife Cherie is here in States, as well, planning to give a speech and receive quite a bit of money for that. Apparently that's not going over so big back home.

ROBERTSON: It's not. It's being used, if you will, as a political whip to beat Tony Blair with at this time. His wife, Cherie Blair, a barrister, a mother of their four children, speaking on those issues in the United States. According to the press officer at 10 Downing Street, Cherie Blair's trip had been planned many months ago. Tony Blair's trip, much more recently organized. A bad coincidence, if you will, according to 10 Downing Street.

But the political opposition in the conservative party here saying that Cherie Blair -- and it's reported in the British media -- she may be making as much as $54,000 for her speaking engagement. They say that she should contribute this money towards charities -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Thank you. Nic Robertson, live from London.

Well, President Bush and Prime Minister Blair will hold a joint news conference this afternoon. CNN will carry it live, beginning at 4:45 Eastern, 1:45 Pacific.

Let's take a look at other stories making news coast to coast. Police in Santa Fe, New Mexico say they're investigating the apparent beating of this man, a whistle-blower who works at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Tommy Hook is scheduled to testify later this month before a congressional committee. And his wife and a lawyer say that a group of men attacked him to keep him quiet. The FBI is conducting a preliminary investigation to look into those claims.

Here's that daring smash and grab. Kansas City, Missouri. Police searching for the four men who crashed into this grocery store and, as you can see on the surveillance tape, loaded an ATM into the back of the SUV. The three men seen in on the tape are wearing matching blue jumpsuits.

The Detroit Pistons will defend their championship. They defeated the Miami Heat 88-82 last night. A great game, game seven, as they captured the NBA's Eastern Conference. The Pistons will face San Antonio in the title series..

So you're planning your summer vacation. How does a trip to your own backyard sound? Before you turn up your nose and say you don't want to go there, we're going to tell you how your own lawn can be a wild safari adventure.

Plus, do you really want to go wireless? We'll tell you about the top ten most unwired cities in the U.S. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: When you look out at your lawn, you're probably deciding whether it needs to be mowed, but Hannah Holmes is much curious about her patch of grass. She's spent a year on her lawn and discovered a teeny world of plants and animal life. That lead her to write a book. It's called "Suburban Safari." I spoke with the very entertaining Hannah Holmes last week I think it was.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Hannah Holmes, there is a lot of drama happening in your front yard in Portland, Maine.

HANNAH HOLMES, AUTHOR, "SUBURBAN SAFARI": There's a lot of drama happening in every suburban yard across the country, and even in urban yards. They're really busy little ecosystems.

KAGAN: So why did you book a trip all the way to your front lawn? It wasn't just gas prices, I know.

HOLMES: I had been traveling the world for magazine's and for Discovery Channel, writing about the world's most famous ecosystems. You know, the rain forests, the jungles, the deserts, and I had always felt a little guilty that I knew much more about these places than I did about my own backyard, and after September 11th, I was looking for a project that was a little closer to home.

KAGAN: It couldn't get much closer than that, could it? HOLMES: Yes, it couldn't. And it was a very short commute to work every day. The material costs were very low. So I spent a year in my yard just getting to know what guess on, who lives there, how they get through the winter, how my behavior affects their happiness and health.

KAGAN: Interesting. OK, let's talk about some of that drama. First of all, you found out that there are plants waging war right in the front of your house.

HOLMES: I was so amazed by the ability of plants to kick butt.

KAGAN: You go, plants.

HOLMES: The oak tree is not a helpless stick there in the backyard. They actually put their little oak tree heads together, and they conspire to starve squirrels. It's amazing. They also can tell each other when there's a pest coming to attack them, and the one who's being attacked will send out chemical signals to its neighbors, and those neighbors will actually boot up their immune systems to defend themselves.

KAGAN: Let's talk about those squirrels. Their little con artists. A little shell game happening in the front yard.

HOLMES: The fellows are little geniuses. Amazing what squirrels can remember, but also what they can determine from sniffing an acorn. They can tell if it's fertile or not. If it is fertile, they're going to want to kill the embryo before they bury it so it doesn't sprout, so that their winter food doesn't go bad. And they'll actually bite out the living part, the little sprouty part of the acorn, and bury it, now that it's sort of neutered, and they can tell which acorns need this treatment and which ones don't, and they nip out the bud of the ones that need it, and then store them safely for the winter.

KAGAN: Every bestseller has sex, a lot of them do. Yours has bug sex.

HOLMES: I was sitting on the back deck one day, and I heard crickets right close by. Usually when you try to find a cricket, they shut up. In this case, they kept going, and that's because the boys were calling the girls. And you know, there's not much more important than that.

KAGAN: I guess not.

HOLMES: So they kept going. And I was able to follow what they were doing, and it was a very, very tough guy advertising to a whole field of girls. They were busy eating old tomatoes and really didn't care much. But the other boys cared deeply, and they would come and take him on and do this fantastic little head-butting warfare, and the winner would then swagger out among the girls, and sort of advertise the toughness and prowess, and theoretically, win the right to reproduce. Although, as I said, the girls were not wildly impressed by the whole thing.

KAGAN: Final question for you, you dedicate your book to Cheeky, or in memory of Cheeky. Who's Cheeky?

HOLMES: A darling little guy. This little chipmunk came in to my yard, and I didn't want to mess with him, because you can really screw up an animal's cover if you climatize it to humans. So I let him hang out for a couple of weeks and decide on his own terms if he wanted to live there, and then I started feeding him sunflower seeds from hands, and I did this one day. The next day it was in my kitchen, and a little coppery blur went past, and it was the chipmunk. He just sauntered in the backdoor on his own volition, as he did every day for the next few months. He would come all the way upstairs to my office and hop up on my desk and get some sunflower seeds. He was a dear little friend.

KAGAN: But he's no longer with us?

HOLMES: Well, this brings us to the touchy subject of cats.

KAGAN: Oh, well. I have one. So...

HOLMES; They're a part of the urban dynamic, and the suburban dynamic, and they are a very powerful influence on the other animals in the backyard, the birds, and mice, and chipmunks and other small animals.

KAGAN: I have a three-legged cat, and he has managed to do damage to chipmunks, and birds out there.

(CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: Yes, they're amazing. They're amazing animals.

KAGAN: Hannah Holmes, thank you for not just introducing us to your yard, but giving us a clue that some of the most fascinating trips we might be able to take, right out our own front door. The book is called "Suburban Safari: A Year on the Lawn."

HOLMES: Thank you, Hannah.

KAGAN: Thanks, Hannah.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Fun talking to her.

Let's check the time around the world, 10:53 in New York City, where hopes of winning the Olympics are fading after plans for a new stadium have been sacked.

It is 7:53 in Santa Maria, California. That's where Michael Jackson waits for a jury's decision.

Stay with us. We'll be back with a quick check of your morning forecast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: It is in the cards. The game being played by more and more people across the country. We're talking poker.

CNN.com's Veronica De La Cruz looks as the craze that is poker fever.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: SI.com examines the poker across the country, from college campuses to the Internet, in a special report, Poker Nation.

With poker's popularity booming, Web sites are cashing in. The sites make their money through tournaments and ring games. Most tournaments have an entering fee, while ring games are raked, meaning a fixed percentage of the pot is taken out.

According to a tracking service, pokerpolls.com, players pour nearly $200 million a day into online ring game pots.

With a potential for huge profits, making sure no one cheats is a major concern. At Party Poker, the industry's largest site, more than 50 investigators monitor for suspicious activities.

Aside from the Internet, poker clubs are popping up across college campuses, like the Penn Poker Club at the University of Pennsylvania, which receives an average of $1,000 every semester from their student activities council.

For more on the game's popularity, you can log on to si.com/poker.

From the dot-com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(WEATHER REPORT)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired June 7, 2005 - 10:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN: We are right at the half hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's a look at what's happening "Now in the News."
The search for a missing Alabama student in Aruba turned up a bloody man's shirt and a pair of women's sunglasses. But police can't say for certain whether those items are linked to Natalee Holloway's disappearance. The 18-year-old has been missing for eight days. Two security guards detained for questioning could appear in court tomorrow.

A new armored military sweep in northwestern Iraq. U.S. forces backed by Iraqi troops conducted door-to-door searches in Tal Afar today. The city, near the Syrian border, is said to be infested with insurgents. About two dozen suspects have been arrested so far. One U.S. soldier was killed in action.

On Capitol Hill right now, a live picture for you as the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding a confirmation hearing for Zalmay Khalizad. He is President Bush's choice to become ambassador to Iraq. He would move from another site in the war on terrorism. Currently he is U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan. Senators will be questioning him over the status of the fighting in both countries.

Bolivia's president went on nationwide television last night to announce his resignation. Carlos Mesa said he would step down as soon at the Bolivian congress chooses his successor. Weeks of protests nearly paralyzed the capitol of La Paz. The protesters have called for the nationalization of Bolivia's energy resources. Mr. Mesa offered to resign in March, but lawmakers refused to accept it.

President Bush offers a key ally to the White House this afternoon. British Prime Minister Tony Blair will seek Mr. Bush's support in two priorities. Yet despite his unwavering support of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, Mr. Blair may leave Washington disappointed.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux sets the stage for the meeting. And then we'll check in with our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson. He has the view from London.

Suzanne, we start with you. Good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Daryn.

Well, British Prime Minister Tony Blair arrived last night at Andrews Air Force base amid a harsh storm. But expect nothing but sunny statements from these two men and that, of course, is by design. The two of them will announce a joint initiative when it comes to providing some $674 million for aid, hunger aid, in Africa, to feed some 14 million people.

Now, this is not the same initiative, the G-8 initiative that Blair has been pushing to double aid in Africa in ten years. The United States, the Bush administration, has made its position clear as recently as just last Wednesday, when Mr. Bush was meeting with South African president Thabo Mbeki. He said that this is not something that the United States is willing to sign off on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've made our position pretty clear on that, it doesn't fit our budgetary process. On the other hand, I've also made it clear to the prime minister, I look forward to working with Great Britain and other countries to advance the African agenda that has been on the G-8's agenda for -- ever since I've been the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So, Daryn what is this all about? Essentially, it is a compromise. This really allows -- this joint initiative, this announcement, allows them to take the sting out of the U.S. refusal to go along with that proposal, at least shelve it for the G-8 Summit that is taking place in July. Of course, it's the result of some negotiations between the Bush administration and the United Kingdom.

As recently as just this past weekend, I was told national security adviser Stephen Hadley, as well as a U.S. sherpa and their British counterparts were negotiating on just how to move forward with that aid announcement.

And of course, Daryn, there will be some other items that they'll be talking about. Most notably, the Iraq mission. Both of them will say despite the insurgency that they need to move forward, that training Iraqi troops ultimately will mean success in that country and in that region.

They'll also touch upon some other things. They have some differences when it comes to approach in protecting the environment, as well as establishing a nuclear-free Iran. They will say despite those differences in approach, they are both committed to making that happen.

And, of course, Daryn, all of this is in preparation of that July meeting, the G-8 Summit. That is when Tony Blair actually takes over the chairmanship of that international organization. The two of them are meant to present a united front to get some things done -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Suzanne Malveaux at the White House. Suzanne, thank you. And now let's get some British reaction. Our Nic Robertson standing by in London. Hello, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, that $674 million does fall short of what Tony Blair wanted. He was hoping to get millions. For example, members of the European Union recently committed themselves to spending seven cents in every $10 towards aid in Africa. Right now, the United States is spending about 1.5 cents in every $10 towards aid in Africa. That is part of -- as a fraction -- as a denomination, if you will, of their national wealth.

That's something Tony Blair would like to see the United States do. That's the level of commitment he is looking for. But there is an agreement on Bush and Blair on the fact that there should be debt relief for the poor countries in Africa. So there will be some points of agreement.

But the really important point here for Tony Blair is to have a political legacy that he can leave behind after his long term in office here in Britain. He is expected to step down in the next few years. He would like to see Africa and poverty relief in Africa as a political legacy.

He has not done particularly well with his European initiatives. He has lost a lot of political support here in Great Britain for his -- for allying Britain with the United States in the war on Iraq. And if anything, that's where he'd like to see and the reason why he'd like to see payback from President Bush at this time. So there will be some disappointments, but there are areas of agreement, as well -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Nic, let's talk about some of the scuttlebutt from over there in London. Prime Minister Blair's wife Cherie is here in States, as well, planning to give a speech and receive quite a bit of money for that. Apparently that's not going over so big back home.

ROBERTSON: It's not. It's being used, if you will, as a political whip to beat Tony Blair with at this time. His wife, Cherie Blair, a barrister, a mother of their four children, speaking on those issues in the United States. According to the press officer at 10 Downing Street, Cherie Blair's trip had been planned many months ago. Tony Blair's trip, much more recently organized. A bad coincidence, if you will, according to 10 Downing Street.

But the political opposition in the conservative party here saying that Cherie Blair -- and it's reported in the British media -- she may be making as much as $54,000 for her speaking engagement. They say that she should contribute this money towards charities -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Thank you. Nic Robertson, live from London.

Well, President Bush and Prime Minister Blair will hold a joint news conference this afternoon. CNN will carry it live, beginning at 4:45 Eastern, 1:45 Pacific.

Let's take a look at other stories making news coast to coast. Police in Santa Fe, New Mexico say they're investigating the apparent beating of this man, a whistle-blower who works at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Tommy Hook is scheduled to testify later this month before a congressional committee. And his wife and a lawyer say that a group of men attacked him to keep him quiet. The FBI is conducting a preliminary investigation to look into those claims.

Here's that daring smash and grab. Kansas City, Missouri. Police searching for the four men who crashed into this grocery store and, as you can see on the surveillance tape, loaded an ATM into the back of the SUV. The three men seen in on the tape are wearing matching blue jumpsuits.

The Detroit Pistons will defend their championship. They defeated the Miami Heat 88-82 last night. A great game, game seven, as they captured the NBA's Eastern Conference. The Pistons will face San Antonio in the title series..

So you're planning your summer vacation. How does a trip to your own backyard sound? Before you turn up your nose and say you don't want to go there, we're going to tell you how your own lawn can be a wild safari adventure.

Plus, do you really want to go wireless? We'll tell you about the top ten most unwired cities in the U.S. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: When you look out at your lawn, you're probably deciding whether it needs to be mowed, but Hannah Holmes is much curious about her patch of grass. She's spent a year on her lawn and discovered a teeny world of plants and animal life. That lead her to write a book. It's called "Suburban Safari." I spoke with the very entertaining Hannah Holmes last week I think it was.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Hannah Holmes, there is a lot of drama happening in your front yard in Portland, Maine.

HANNAH HOLMES, AUTHOR, "SUBURBAN SAFARI": There's a lot of drama happening in every suburban yard across the country, and even in urban yards. They're really busy little ecosystems.

KAGAN: So why did you book a trip all the way to your front lawn? It wasn't just gas prices, I know.

HOLMES: I had been traveling the world for magazine's and for Discovery Channel, writing about the world's most famous ecosystems. You know, the rain forests, the jungles, the deserts, and I had always felt a little guilty that I knew much more about these places than I did about my own backyard, and after September 11th, I was looking for a project that was a little closer to home.

KAGAN: It couldn't get much closer than that, could it? HOLMES: Yes, it couldn't. And it was a very short commute to work every day. The material costs were very low. So I spent a year in my yard just getting to know what guess on, who lives there, how they get through the winter, how my behavior affects their happiness and health.

KAGAN: Interesting. OK, let's talk about some of that drama. First of all, you found out that there are plants waging war right in the front of your house.

HOLMES: I was so amazed by the ability of plants to kick butt.

KAGAN: You go, plants.

HOLMES: The oak tree is not a helpless stick there in the backyard. They actually put their little oak tree heads together, and they conspire to starve squirrels. It's amazing. They also can tell each other when there's a pest coming to attack them, and the one who's being attacked will send out chemical signals to its neighbors, and those neighbors will actually boot up their immune systems to defend themselves.

KAGAN: Let's talk about those squirrels. Their little con artists. A little shell game happening in the front yard.

HOLMES: The fellows are little geniuses. Amazing what squirrels can remember, but also what they can determine from sniffing an acorn. They can tell if it's fertile or not. If it is fertile, they're going to want to kill the embryo before they bury it so it doesn't sprout, so that their winter food doesn't go bad. And they'll actually bite out the living part, the little sprouty part of the acorn, and bury it, now that it's sort of neutered, and they can tell which acorns need this treatment and which ones don't, and they nip out the bud of the ones that need it, and then store them safely for the winter.

KAGAN: Every bestseller has sex, a lot of them do. Yours has bug sex.

HOLMES: I was sitting on the back deck one day, and I heard crickets right close by. Usually when you try to find a cricket, they shut up. In this case, they kept going, and that's because the boys were calling the girls. And you know, there's not much more important than that.

KAGAN: I guess not.

HOLMES: So they kept going. And I was able to follow what they were doing, and it was a very, very tough guy advertising to a whole field of girls. They were busy eating old tomatoes and really didn't care much. But the other boys cared deeply, and they would come and take him on and do this fantastic little head-butting warfare, and the winner would then swagger out among the girls, and sort of advertise the toughness and prowess, and theoretically, win the right to reproduce. Although, as I said, the girls were not wildly impressed by the whole thing.

KAGAN: Final question for you, you dedicate your book to Cheeky, or in memory of Cheeky. Who's Cheeky?

HOLMES: A darling little guy. This little chipmunk came in to my yard, and I didn't want to mess with him, because you can really screw up an animal's cover if you climatize it to humans. So I let him hang out for a couple of weeks and decide on his own terms if he wanted to live there, and then I started feeding him sunflower seeds from hands, and I did this one day. The next day it was in my kitchen, and a little coppery blur went past, and it was the chipmunk. He just sauntered in the backdoor on his own volition, as he did every day for the next few months. He would come all the way upstairs to my office and hop up on my desk and get some sunflower seeds. He was a dear little friend.

KAGAN: But he's no longer with us?

HOLMES: Well, this brings us to the touchy subject of cats.

KAGAN: Oh, well. I have one. So...

HOLMES; They're a part of the urban dynamic, and the suburban dynamic, and they are a very powerful influence on the other animals in the backyard, the birds, and mice, and chipmunks and other small animals.

KAGAN: I have a three-legged cat, and he has managed to do damage to chipmunks, and birds out there.

(CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: Yes, they're amazing. They're amazing animals.

KAGAN: Hannah Holmes, thank you for not just introducing us to your yard, but giving us a clue that some of the most fascinating trips we might be able to take, right out our own front door. The book is called "Suburban Safari: A Year on the Lawn."

HOLMES: Thank you, Hannah.

KAGAN: Thanks, Hannah.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Fun talking to her.

Let's check the time around the world, 10:53 in New York City, where hopes of winning the Olympics are fading after plans for a new stadium have been sacked.

It is 7:53 in Santa Maria, California. That's where Michael Jackson waits for a jury's decision.

Stay with us. We'll be back with a quick check of your morning forecast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: It is in the cards. The game being played by more and more people across the country. We're talking poker.

CNN.com's Veronica De La Cruz looks as the craze that is poker fever.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: SI.com examines the poker across the country, from college campuses to the Internet, in a special report, Poker Nation.

With poker's popularity booming, Web sites are cashing in. The sites make their money through tournaments and ring games. Most tournaments have an entering fee, while ring games are raked, meaning a fixed percentage of the pot is taken out.

According to a tracking service, pokerpolls.com, players pour nearly $200 million a day into online ring game pots.

With a potential for huge profits, making sure no one cheats is a major concern. At Party Poker, the industry's largest site, more than 50 investigators monitor for suspicious activities.

Aside from the Internet, poker clubs are popping up across college campuses, like the Penn Poker Club at the University of Pennsylvania, which receives an average of $1,000 every semester from their student activities council.

For more on the game's popularity, you can log on to si.com/poker.

From the dot-com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(WEATHER REPORT)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com