Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting Do you have any pets? I have a goldfish named Richard. Any hobbies? He likes to swim. Driving by Bruce’s drive I have a wonderful neighbor named Bruce. Whenever I pass his drive, thoughts occur to me. On March 19, we were blessed with thundersnow. That’s when a thunderstorm produces snow instead of rain. Actually, we had a thunder blizzard, complete with the trifecta of snow, wind and thunder. I feel sorry for those people who live where they never get to experience such a thing. What do they have to look forward to? Someone said thundersnow was a rare weather phenomenon, but I’ve encountered no locals who were shocked to see or hear it. The closest to being shocked was an 84-year-old guy who claimed to have the body of an 83-year-old. He said, and I quote, “Well, that’s something you don’t see every day.’ I’ve learned I love walking to the mailbox. It’s a pleasant break. Breaks are important. We used to take a break each year to watch “The Wizard of Oz” on an ancient black-and-white TV, with the snowy part of the picture providing much of the white part. We endeavored to pause each day to listen to Paul Harvey on the radio. The edges of cities, once they grow to a specific size (I’m not sure what that population is) become a carbon copy of one another. It’s my friendly wave when someone allows me to merge that matters, not another driver’s wave. I taught a community ed class on building bat houses. I started with the basics. I held a hammer and said, “This is not a drill.” I watched a loved one play basketball. I stood and applauded in appreciation at the game’s conclusion. It was a claps in judgment. In conclusion, there are 10 letters. Bad jokes department I have a dog to give away to a good home. It’s a cute, little terrier that doesn’t eat much, but barks a lot. If you’re interested, let me know and I’ll jump over the neighbor’s fence and get it for you. Two tourists were driving through Louisiana. As they approached Natchitoches, they argued over the pronunciation of the town’s name. When they stopped for lunch in Louisiana’s oldest city, they asked a restaurant employee, “Before we order, could you settle an argument for us? How do you pronounce where we are?” The employee leaned over the counter and said, “Burrrrrrrr, gerrrrrrr, Kiiiiing.” Nature notes The black around a raccoon’s eyes is an occupational hazard. It comes from working nights. The black mask helps reduce glare from lights, making it easier for the little bandits to see during their nighttime escapades. It’s much like the black stripes athletes put under their eyes during sporting events, which absorb light and reduce glare. The raccoon gets its English name from the Powhatan word “aroughcun,” which means “one that scratches with its hands.” It gets the name trash panda or masked bandit from people who deal with them. Raccoons cover their eyes when they’re scared or trying to hide. Small children exhibit this same behavior. Scientists discovered that young children with their eyes covered acknowledged their bodies, arms, hair, feet and legs could be seen, but insisted they couldn’t be seen. Pheasants roost in trees, dense shrubs, forested wetlands, farm fields, cattail wetlands, weed-grown fence lines, weedy areas like stands of giant ragweed and small farmland woodlots. Dense vegetation near foraging sites is necessary as escape cover. The pheasants that winter in my yard roost in evergreen trees. During extreme winter weather, pheasants can go up to two weeks without feeding by reducing their metabolism and energy. Yet, there is no “Diet Like a Pheasant” book on the New York Times Best Sellers list.    Birds have to hear well because they can’t read lips and their ears don’t accommodate hearing aids. Our range extends from a low of 20 cycles per second to a high of 20,000 cycles per second. The range of frequencies heard varies among birds according to species. Starlings hear nearly as well as we do at high to mid-range, but their hearing fails on the low end. While they may not hear as wide a range as we can, birds are about 10 times as sensitive to rapid changes in pitch and intensity. Birds hear shorter notes than we do. Where we hear one sound only, a bird may hear 10 separate notes. Generally, nocturnal birds, like owls, have more sensitive hearing than diurnal birds. Meeting adjourned Keep kindness off the endangered list by sharing a kind word. The post Al Batt: Not small children, but raccoons appeared first on Austin Daily Herald. ...read more read less