critters, wildlife and a regional delicacy

Well the day finally arrived -- my first open water swim of the year; though I'm not sure I will be heading back to Martha Lake anytime soon -- unless it is cold outside and there will be no 'huffers' on the beach taking dibs on my stuff the minute I hit the water. Seriously, the wildlife tonight was huffing --- aerosols.

No less, I was recently reading in my neighborhood's local rag that this year the muskrat population has gone through the roof, and now it's 'buyer beware' if you plan on swimming. I guess with the cold spring and late run off the growing conditions are perfect for the typical muskrat diet of cattail roots, lily roots, and stems. As well, there was a late autumn ban on trapping in the Pacific Northwest and that has allowed the populations to flourish. So now they are warning beach goers (do 'beach goers' in Washington really have a 'beach' to 'go' to in the standard sense of the word?) to pay extra attention in the calm, shallow waters along the lakeshores. Just what all of us need.

Seems folks in Erie, MI will have a good crop of meat for their next 'Muskrat Dinner' to be held at the VFW Erie Post 3295, date TBA. Here's a couple of links for anyone interested in more information: http://www.erievfw.com/
http://www.blogsmonroe.com/food/2008/01/26/eat-this-blog-muskrat-dinner-at-erie-vfw-post-3295/

BTW newsletter clip:
Notice: The renovation committee is in the process of replacing and modernizing the ceiling and walls. A handicap unisex bathroom addition is also planned.

The Gun raffle: Went well.

5-16-08: Howard is at home recovering. He goes to therapy 3 days a week. He was promoted from a walker to a cane yesterday

I think this calls for an original haiku:

furless so naked
flanked by mashed and sweet cream corn
muskrat swims no more