Outside

The new world of electronic communication we live in is nothing short of spectacular. There isn’t anything you can ask that you cannot become enlightened about by asking Google. But beware, some of the so-called “knowledge” that comes back to our monitors should be taken with a grain of salt. And that includes information about nature, too.
It’s the same with the gobbly-goop that comes to us via email. The political stuff fills my monitor more than I like, but the people who send it are sincere in their point of view, and feel I should be as well. Many of the people who send these political messages are good friends, so I glance at the stuff (to be polite) and then usually dump them in the world of “delete” – especially those that claim my big toe will grow to the size of a watermelon, or my first-born son will develop a mysterious rash on the end of his nose if I don’t send it on, or back to the sender.
But what really knocks me out is the gross misinformation that leaps on my MacBook monitor; it often elicits laughter or groaning, depending on how much damage the junk does.
The first one that comes to mind is the nonsense that hit the Internet about three years ago regarding Mars coming so close to the earth that it was going to appear, “as large as the full-moon.” That was a corker! Unfortunately, gullible computer geeks keep circulating it – I got it again just last week, in fact. The people who submit this goofy stuff – and forward it to everyone they know – mean well, but to save time and sanity, it should have gone into the “delete” or “junk” file when it first appeared.

It isn’t every day that someone with the credentials for caring about our good Earth comes to town. But last Saturday afternoon, Dr. Jane Goodall, primatologist and planet Earth activist, wowed more than a thousand people – including several hundred parents with their young children – who came to hear her talk at the Hooker Creek Events Center at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond. And as is her way, she had everyone greet her in chimpanzee grunts and hoots.
It was a sell-out audience that not just came to hear Dr. Goodall speak, but to show their steadfast appreciation and support for all she has done for those beautiful mammals that share so much of our DNA, chimpanzees in particular. One teacher brought along her entire class to hear Dr. Goodall, and it wasn’t even a school day.
This wonderful program would not have been possible without the dedicated and active group of volunteers from Chimps, Inc. of Tumalo. They all greeted the audience with big smiles, positive assistance that helped to make Dr. Goodall's presentation the overwhelming success that it was.

My wonderful and curious neighbor, Chuck Stahn, who has a magnificent greenhouse and garden, delivered a magnificent bug (pictured above) to Sue and I the other day in a cranberry juice jug. Chuck was gassing up his car at a lighted Madras gas station when suddenly a woman in the next bay let out a scream while pointing to a very large “bug” on the gas station pavement.
“Whoa!” Chuck exclaimed, and with a chuckle, added, “I’ll bet it ran out of gas,” and scooped it up, not realizing what was going to happen next. Before he could get it into a container, he discovered (painfully) that it had its sharp, hypodermic-like mouthpart shoved into his finger. He let out a yell, disconnected the beast, and then – using marvelous self control – put it in the juice jug without killing it.