Geo.: 'Morning E(a)rnest. What's up?
Ern.: Well, you're taking notes and...hey, is that all I get, 3 letters in my name?
Geo.: Same as I get. Why are you chewing bark?
Ern.: No toothbrush. What's your real question?
Geo.: Where are all the treefrogs? They're not out this morning.
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I followed his instructions, went out back and withdrew the tarp.
Dar.: I'm on the left, Geo., with somebody's butt on my head.
Geo.: 'S'ok, happens to all of us sometimes. Are you guys all right?
Dar.: I think so. After 5 months of hot nights, we thought summer was permanent, then it suddenly got cold!
Geo.: Surely, not that cold.
Dar.: Geo., we have brains the size of nonpareils --those little sugar-specks moms used to sprinkle on party cupcakes. We teeter on the very edge of reason and all it takes is a slight breeze to knock us into chaos.
Geo.: My species has big brains, Darwin, but we suffer the same problem. Weather change makes humans bananas.
Dar.: Well, we treefrogs haven't the intelligence to go mad, or minds to be out of, so we get under covers and huddle up.
Geo.: A most sensible solution.
Dar.: Sense, we have in combination, piles in fact --as evidenced by your investigation...
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Geo.: G'night Ernest, and best wishes from the clutch of treefrogs --right where you told me they'd be.
Geo.: Are there no exceptions?
Ern: Oh, certainly. Go back and take note of the treefrog who has Buddha's ear:
Ern.: Good, and I hope you did not tell them what "nonpareil" means.
Geo.: It is French for peerless, isn't it?
Ern.: Indeed, but don't tell them. A few scraps thrown to any species --even humans-- makes a cosmic joke of them. Work from nature, the language of the universe.
Smiling broadly. On so many levels. I am so glad that E(a)rnest knew and told you where to find the tree-frogs and that from it you were able to create a philosophical and unparalleled post.
ReplyDeleteMost kind, EC, and encouraging. We've had some sadness here and getting back to the garden, and its inhabitants, has been most comforting. Thank you.
DeleteA philosophical bilingual squirrel!
ReplyDeleteHere in the shadow of downtown in the city, the squirrels barely speak one language and end up electrocuted on power wires. And their English is mostly monosyllabic and insulting.
Hi Harry! Yes squirrels delight in scolding everybody --but, strangely, Norma can get close to them with her camera and they don't mind.
DeleteWhen we are sad, comfort can often be found in nature. Take care, dear Geo, and if need be, follow the example of the tree frog and cover up.
ReplyDeleteDear Arleen, the earth has been teaching itself to us for a long time, but people still need each other's counsel. Thank you for yours.
DeleteA clever post, as always.
ReplyDeleteAt least when faced with climate change, the little frogs know enough to come together to find a solution. Beats trying to pretend the climate isn't changing at all...
Delightful Susan, there is no room in a naked, hairless treefrog for pretense. Their solution is valid and I'm happy for them.
DeleteNo surprise Ern knew where the frogs were....squirrels get into everything.
ReplyDeleteThey sure do, Delores, but they're such funny little rodents that liked them since childhood. Never knew they were so well-informed until recently.
DeleteThe suirrel community has vast networks of communication all around the world. E(a)rnest was definitely the one to ask.
ReplyDeleteEmma, squirrels' knowledge of comings and goings in the yard --indeed, the world-- is encyclopedic. They know everything, except maybe what an encyclopedia is.
DeleteWhat great adventure and wisdom there in your yard. I just learned the name of those little sugar sprinkles. (Sprinkles-what we called them in the mid-west seems so classless compared to nonpareils.) And until now I didn't know that tree frogs bundled like that or perhaps engage in group rituals best conducted under a tarp.
ReplyDeleteDear Tom, out west they were called "sprinkles" too, as well as nonpareils. My favorite was the silver ones. As to treefrog bundling habits, I think they might have learned that from teenagers in the '60s, or vice versa.
DeleteI'm the same as Darwin D. A little cool weather and I'm huddling under a blanket. Until SWMBO says "is the A.C. on? Gawd, it's hot!" So it goes with tree frogs and with desert dwellers.
ReplyDeleteI understand completely. My wife (not quite so despotic as Haggard's Ayesha) is descended from Nordic folk but I am Portuguese-American. While compatible in every other way, we differ in comfort temperatures. After 47 years together, we are near accord on A.C. settings. Don't despair!
Delete"Dar.: I'm on the left, Geo., with somebody's butt on my head.
ReplyDeleteGeo.: 'S'ok, happens to all of us sometimes."
I laughed myself silly at this. Especially as I woke up with our cat's butt on my head just a few nights ago. I guess she was cold, too.
I'm sorry to hear you've had some sadness there. I, too, have found nature to be a great healer. Best wishes for better times.
.Jenny, thank you. I feel better times are forthcoming. Admittedly, nothing is certain but some things are more certain than others. We call these "probabilities". I feel very probable tonight and trust you do too. These are good times --wiser garden creatures than I have assured me of this.
Delete"We teeter on the very edge of reason and all it takes is a slight breeze to knock us into chaos." That is a great line!
ReplyDeleteKind Lori, it was the best I could do to express my take on political and social toxins blowing around these days. We'll weather it out; we always do.
DeletePeerless brains or not, those tree frogs appear to be conspiring-maybe they sent an emissary with a question for Buddha and are taking bets on what the answer will be.I'll bet the answer is "Indeed".
ReplyDeleteDear Chicken, great to hear from you --in thought and deed. Thanks!
DeleteHi, Geo! Here I am in beautiful Victoria! I burst out laughing the moment I saw E(a)rnest Squirrel! I've been chasing squirrels with my camera here, but I'm not as successful as Norma because I shoot off sparks of energy rather than an aura of calm.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you found a bundle of treefrogs wisely huddled under a tarp. I've seen hardly any frogs this year, and I've been looking for them in all their usual places along Piney Creek.
I'm sorry to hear that you have been experiencing sadness in your life, and I hope that it is easing for you,
Right now I feel like we are teetering on a knife edge of reason, but somehow E(a)rnest Squirrel, Darwin Doorbooger, and jumbled pals are cheering me up and giving me hope.
Take care, my friend, and please tell Norma I admire her ability to take great squirrel photos!
Dear dear Louise, Thank you. Things are normalizing here, and yes I did convey your compliment to Norma (without whom I could not Norma-lize).
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