Sure, I'm kind of bummed that summer is winding down—no more lazy days at the beach or Saturday afternoon veggie barbecues. But then I remember how awesome fall can be—long walks under canopies of changing leaves, followed by warm apple cider. Bring it on.

For this week's "Win It" Wednesday, we've got just the prize to help you ease back into work and back to school—PETA stencils that will help you jazz up that plain T-shirt, boring school binder, or blank wall—virtually any flat surface—with a lifesaving message for others to consider. Add a little fabric paint, spray paint, or Sharpie strokes, and you've got instant style and action for animals.

You can win a stencil set by sharing your favorite simple way to get others to think about animals. Maybe you've got an animal-friendly message on your car's vanity plate, or maybe you rock a different PETA shirt every time you go to the gym. Share in the comments section below.

We've got one set to give away. The contest ends on September 23, 2009, and we'll choose the most inspiring comment on September 25, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting. Good luck!

Posted by Karin Bennett

You don't have to blog for PETA in order for your posts to help us help animals.

Users of Blogger and WordPress can now earn donations for their favorite charity (hint, hint) without actually spending any money.

That's because Blogger and WordPress have teamed up with SocialVibe—a social-networking site with a cause—to help people educate others about animal rights issues and contribute to PETA campaigns.

If you don't use SocialVibe yet, it's easy to do. All you have to do is sign up, and then create and post your customized badge to generate that first $1 donation to PETA. Then, each time you or one of your blog readers completes a SocialVibe activity, a microdonation is made to our organization.

Also, if you sign up right now, you can help PETA's youth division, peta2, meet its goal of raising $3,000 before September 14 for its "Animal Testing Breaks Hearts" campaign.

Don't forget to tell all your blog-inclined friends too!

Posted by Heather Drennan

The adorable peta2 mascot, Not a Nugget, is out to educate people about an issue that is near and dear to his heart: the abuse of chickens killed for McDonald's Happy Meals. To alert young and old alike to the suffering that goes into every McNugget, Not a Nugget is embarking on a tour of the U.S., tirelessly handing out free Unhappy Meals to each and every McDonald's customer who crosses his path.

Our Unhappy Meals include a menacing "Ronald McDonald" cutout, a "blood"-filled packet, a "bloody" plastic chicken, and a "McCruelty" T-shirt wrapped in such a way that it resembles a chicken sandwich.

Our Unhappy Meal just might be the first toy for this couple's impending bundle of joy.

These kids were quick to pick up our posters once they learned how chickens are killed for McDonald's Happy Meals.

Who's cuter? Tough decision.

McDonald's has lost a lot of customers because it hasn't acted to eliminate the worst abuses of chickens killed for its restaurants.

Want to know when Not a Nugget is going to be in your town? Sign up for our Action Team today and find out about demonstrations in your area.

Posted by Liz Graffeo

The following is a guest post from peta2's Shan.

If you don't already track Blink 182's Mark Hoppus' every move through his Twitter page, allow me to fill you in on something awesome that one of our Blink-loving staff members spotted last week:

Ask and ye shall receive, Mark!

Mark made the compassionate choice to use a plastic prop rather than a real octopus for his photo shoot, so peta2 is giving him a Compassionate Citizen Award. He'll also receive a framed certificate and a card signed by peta2 staffers.

Octopuses are intelligent and sensitive animals who have been observed communicating with each other. They're able to grasp objects with their tentacles just like we can with our hands, and some have even been taught to unscrew jar lids in order to retrieve food inside.

Here's to Mark for showing that "all the small things" deserve compassion and respect!

Posted by Shan Philips

Do you ever think to yourself, "I wish I could do more to help animals, but I'm flat broke"? Yeah, we've all been there. Lucky for the animals (and our wallets), SocialVibe.com and peta2 have teamed up to give you an easy way to donate without spending a dime! All you have to do is post a badge on your site. Really. That's it.

Here's how to get started:

1. Sign up here. If you're already signed up, you can just switch your cause to peta2.
2. Pick a sponsor. Choose your favorite company from the list (M.A.C. Cosmetics, American Apparel, etc.).
3. Create your own custom badge. You can put it on your MySpace page, Facebook profile, personal Web site, or blog.
4. Post the badge. As long as you post the badge, you will be earning money to support our work.
5. Invite some friends. The more friends you invite, the more points you accumulate—which means more money donated to your cause!

We're encouraging people to have a heart for neglected animals before Valentine's Day, and your support will help us reach our goal.

Piece of cake, right? You can effect change without affecting your bank account.

Posted by Lianne Turner

She may have a funny name, but she's no classroom cut-up. Just in time for Cut Out Dissection Month (October), PETA intern Jennifer Thornburg has officially changed her name to CutOut Dissection.com. Latin for "compassionate frog lover" (I might have made that up), CutOut Dissection.com is on a mission to cut dissection out of school curriculums.

Why is Ms. Dissection.com hopping mad about dissection? Any way you slice it, dissection is cruelty in the classroom. Millions of frogs, cats, dogs, pigs, worms, mice, rats, rabbits, and fish are killed each year for student dissections. Breeding facilities that supply animals to schools rip animals from their natural homes, and some even use stolen or abandoned animal companions. PETA went undercover at one such supply house and caught employees embalming cats and rats while they were still alive!

Animals deserve to be left in peace, not pieces. CutOut Dissection.com couldn't agree more. Read our interview with this dedicated activist to get the lowdown on her name change and much more.

PETA: What made you decide to change your name?
CutOut Dissection.com: I changed my name in order to raise awareness about the 6 million animals who are killed and processed for dissection each year. These animals suffer painful deaths and their bodies are then used in labs, when computer stimulations, diagrams, or 3D models could be used instead. Cutting up animals in school sends the message to students that an animal's life is worthless. I don't think that's a message teachers should be sending. With so many cheaper, more educational, and humane ways to learn, there is no reason for students to be dissecting in high schools today. I hope to raise awareness on this subject, and to cause teachers and students to say "No" to dissection and "Yes" to alternative ways to learn anatomy.

PETA: Did you dissect in high school?
CutOut Dissection.com: In middle school I dissected a chicken. I wasn't into the idea of dissecting an animal, but when I asked my teacher for an alternative, he said that I could only have it if I went vegetarian for the two weeks leading up to the dissection. I thought that was crazy at the time, so I went through with the project. Looking back, I can't remember much from the actual dissection; I know now that using an alternative would have been much more educational, and I also know that it's definitely not crazy to be a vegetarian too.

PETA: What do people call you now?
CutOutDissection.com: My fellow interns call me CutOut, but my family still calls me Jenny. My favorite thing to do is to introduce myself to people as CutOut Dissection.com, which always raises a few questions. This gives me a chance to explain a few facts about dissection—such as how cats are sometimes pumped with formaldehyde while they're still conscious.

PETA: What have people's reactions been to your name?
CutOut Dissection.com: CutOut is one of those names that you have to say three times, spell out, and use in a sentence before people process it. Once people get my name down, they normally want to know why I changed it. This gives me a chance to tell them about the estimated 6 million animals used in high school dissection labs throughout the United States every year. Once people learn how the animals are gassed, pumped with formaldehyde, drowned or otherwise inhumanely killed for dissection, they are shocked and want to know what they can do to help.

PETA: You're obviously very passionate about educating people about dissection. Why is that?
CutOut Dissection.com: Two years ago, I was an active peta2 Street Team member. I was trying to rake up some points to trade in for a shirt, and I got an e-mail saying that anything that I did relating to dissection during the month of October would be worth double the points. Because of this, I decided to work on getting a dissection-choice policy passed at my high school. When I started to research policies and why dissection is bad for the school, students, and animals, it became an obsession of mine. My senior exit project and my junior year were both dedicated to getting a dissection-choice policy passed at my high school. I was shocked when I read about how much more educational the alternatives to dissection can be, how much money they can save for the school, and how many lives could be spared. It's shocking to me that schools still use dissection as a part of their science lessons when there are so many humane and equally educational alternatives out there that will also save schools money.

PETA: I know you got the policy passed at your school. Congrats! How excited were you?
CutOut Dissection.com: I was super-excited, to say the very least!

PETA: I can imagine. What did the DMV say when you got your new license?
CutOut Dissection.com: It took me two tries to get my license. On the second try, the DMV worker looked very amused and confused, but also looked like she was afraid to ask for an explanation. When she finally did ask about it, I had a good conversation with her, explaining that CutOutDissection.com is a real Web site and then explaining why I'm against dissection. She seemed repulsed by the thought of animals being drowned, pumped full of formaldehyde, and gassed as a way of death. She also looked shocked when I told her that it affects 6 million animals per year. When she called over another worker to be a witness to my paperwork, the other worker grinned and said, "Oh, I remember her!" (It happened to be the worker I had talked to on my first attempt to get my license). Overall, it was a great opportunity to start a conversation about alternatives to dissection!

Whether you are a student, parent, teacher, or concerned taxpayer, you can act to end dissection in your town's school system. Visit CutOutDissection.com (the Web site, not the person) for tips on what to do and help getting started.

Posted by Amy Elizabeth

The people from peta2 are hitting the road, just as they do every summer. They're going to concerts, festivals, and all the other things that hip, young people (read: not I) attend. This year, peta2 is rolling out its cutest campaign ever: WOOF!

The idea is pretty simple: Tests show that pigs are actually smarter than dogs, and it's obvious that they can feel complex emotions and experience pain, just as dogs do. So why on earth do folks (rightly) love their dogs so much but turn a blind eye to the pigs who are beaten and butchered on factory farms to make meals for people?

To help the peta2 crew turn heads as they road-trip it across the country, we've gone so far as to get their RV detailed with a sweet (that word is still "in," right?) campaign banner, which is certain to inspire thought—and choruses of "Aww"—from all who see it. If you want to see the RV in real life, check out the peta2 MySpace page to find out when the peta2 road crew will be at a venue near you!

Posted by Sean Conner

When my friend Marta sent me an email last week asking me if she could have some of my hair, I didn’t even blink. Marta is one weird chick, and I’ve come to expect stuff like that from her.* But it turns out she actually had a logical (albeit somewhat disturbing) reason for the request: Those convention-flaunting pranksters over at peta2 have arranged for a very, very special birthday gift for our old arch nemeses the Olsen Twins.

And this isn’t one of those token gifts that just adds to the clutter—it’s something they can really use! Thanks to my colleagues at peta2, and the hundreds of peta2 Street Teamers who are chipping in to donate their hair, the Olsens will have enough genuine, certified “people fur” on their birthday to make their own fur coats for the rest of the year! And they won’t have to harm a single animal in the process.

If you want to get involved, you can check out our Trollsen Twins site for more information. And while you’re at it, take some time to watch Full House of Horrors again. Just because.

PopCrunch has the story.

*That’s what you get for refusing to take a tea break with me this morning, Marta.

--Jack

Posted by Jack Shepherd

Back when I was coming up, we didn’t need all these whistles and bells to enter a good, ol’ fashioned video contest. We’d just throw on our Sunday best, cue up the Kodak Super 8, and make ourselves a video. And a damn fine video it would be. But apparently that’s not good enough for kids today. They won’t do a video contest unless there’s a famous pop star standing by to judge it. And if there’s no chicken costume for a prize, well, they turn their noses up at it. Is what they do.

Actually, this is starting to sound pretty sweet. More details at peta2.com.

I probably don't mention my colleagues in peta2 as much as I should on this blog. This is primarily because I am jealous of their youth, their vivacity, and their general "too-cool-for-school" attitude. But sometimes they put something together so good that it can't be ignored (no matter how hard one might try), and their new "Fur Is Dead" campaign definitely falls into that category.

They've partnered with the folks at Skelanimals to help garner support for their "100,000 strong against fur" petition, and judging by the number of signatures so far (38,631!), the whole thing's going pretty well. You can check out the site here. The photo gallery of kids wearing the peta2 "Fur Is Dead" bunny ears is more or less fantastic.

A badger from the famous animation, modified slightly by our legal department

If you were alive and had access to the Internet a few years ago, someone probably sent you an annoying, yet utterly mesmerizing, Flash animation starring dancing badgers, a mushroom, and a snake slithering across the desert. The badger video has spawned countless imitations since it was released, driving legions of hapless Internet trawlers insane with its infuriating refrain. Well, those punk-rock, hopelessly in-touch trendsters over in PETA's youth division, peta2, recently put together their own little tribute to the badger phenomenon, featuring peta2's own Nugget, a KFC box with an X through it, and a friendly asparagus character instead of the snake. I'd love to show you the Nugget video now, but its release last week caused such an uproar over at Badger HQ in London, that we decided to take it down rather than anger the powerful British badger interests even more. I would have been kind of pissed at them about the whole thing (I really liked the parody peta2 made), if it weren't for this video that they put together to document the whole saga. If you're going to be this hilarious about it, badger dudes, how can I be mad atcha?

The first time I saw Steven Glover, more commonly known as Steve-O, was in the opening credits of Jackass: The Movie. Steve-O and about eight of his best friends had all climbed into a shopping cart and pushed off from the top of a massive hill to see how long it would take before they smashed into a wall, flying onto the concrete and sustaining various potentially career-ending injuries. I would never have dreamed that it was possible for Steve-O to do something even awesomer than that—until the other week when he sat down with those wild, fun-loving hipsters in PETA's youth division, peta2, to talk about his experience at Ringling's clown college, and his thoughts about the circus's treatment of animals. Yes, I know "awesomer" isn't a word, but if anything merits it, this interview does. Definitely check it out if you haven’t seen it yet.