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Crows, Ravens and Rooks
Corvids (not covid—notice the “r) are birds in the crow family. There are over 120 species in this family that includes crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, and others. Corvids are remarkably intelligent and even play games and remember human faces. They have also been known to bring shiny gifts to people in exchange for food. They are found everywhere in the world except for the very bottom of South America and the polar ice caps.
We have many corvids around my house in Southern California, mostly crows and ravens. I find both of them fascinating. But sometimes I wonder which bird I’m looking at. How are crows different from ravens?
To start with, ravens are larger than crows. Their bills are thicker and their legs stronger. They have longer wings and can soar for a long time, unlike crows. Usually ravens hang out with only one other raven and rarely with more than 100. A group of ravens is called a “conspiracy.” Ravens have deep, hoarse caws.
Crows are smaller than ravens. Their bills and necks are shorter than a raven’s. Their wings are shorter and rounder. Crows can sometimes flock together with more than 1,000 individuals. A group of crows is called a “murder,” and this term probably came from superstition or folktales. Their call is higher pitched than a raven’s.
When trying to figure out what kind of shiny, black bird you are looking at, compare and contrast them:
How are they alike? Both are black, smart, widespread, playful, and clever.How are they different? Ravens are larger, less social, bigger-billed, strut and hopping, soaring birds. Crows are smaller, smaller-billed, very social walkers.
Happy birding!
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Whiskers and Horses
Do horses have whiskers?
Oh yes, around their mouth, nostrils and eyes. Whiskers are sensory organs with their own nerve and blood supply. They provide sensory information that helps protect horses, helps them navigate their world—for instance, in the dark, whiskers help prevent them from bumping into things and injuring themselves—and even helps them while they graze. They are very much like an extra set of eyes, or hands.
For instance, horses use the whiskers on their muzzle (mouth and nose) to tell them how close their lips are to water. You’d think that if the water is right in front of a horse’s nose or eyes she could see it, right? Wrong!
Here’s why. Horses are prey animals. That means that Nature placed their eyes on the sides of their heads, giving them almost a complete view of everything around them—except right in front of their face and nose.
When a horse lowers her nose to investigate something new, people might think she is smelling the object, and if her nostrils are flared, she might be. But she’s also using her whiskers to receive special signals that help her figure out what it is, including information about texture and temperature.
Have you ever tried to look down and see your own lips? That’s pretty hard for most people to do, and that’s what it’s like for horses when they look down their nose. I bet you tried it just now!
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Calling All Kids Looking For Adventure
Are you looking for adventure, intrigue, and laughs when you read a book? Well, if you do I’ve got four authors you will want to check out if you haven’t done so already.
The first is the writing duo of Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver. They write the Hank Zipzer series of books.
Hank, if you don’t know him already, is the world’s best underachiever. He’s smart, He’s creative. He’s funny. His pencils are sharpened. His binders are bound. He wants to do well in school – he really does. He tries not to be lazy, like his parents claim he is. So why is he always getting into trouble?
Jody Feldman is another author you’ll want to check out if you’re not already familiar with her work. Jody wrote the puzzle series The Gollywhopper Games. But she’s got a more intriguing book you definitely want to check out called The 7th Level. The hero, Travis Raines, gets pulled into the super-secret society – The Legend. No one knows who is in it. Or how they pull off the spectacular school-wide events they are known for.Travis is given a mind-bending puzzle to solve. If he does he could become legendary among his middle grade classmates. That is – if he can stay out of trouble. Then comes the biggest puzzle of all: what if the messages aren’t from The Legend? Could someone want to take Travis down?
And the last author you’re going to meet today is Mac Barnett. Mac has a lot of books out for you to read if you like a lot of action with your adventure. One of his series is Mac B Kid Spy, starring Mac when he was a kid – and a spy. You have to read the books to see how that came to be.Another series is a Netflix original series called The Last Kids On Earth by Max Brallier.
Thirteen year-old Jack Sullivan was just an average kid till the monster-zombie apocalypse occurred. Alone, he’s no match for the zombies. If he’s going to take back his town he’s going to have to build a team of whatever kids he can find. And find them he does – all three of them. Along with he own pet monster he names Rover.
Check out Jack and his friends and tell us what you think of Max Brallier and the other authors.
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Why Do We Say That?
Are you an expression-curious person? Curious about words and phrases you might use all the time, but have no idea why we say them or where they come from? I have always loved to investigate wacky etymologies. Etymologies–now there’s a word!
Etymology is the study of the origins of words. Most words that end in -ology mean “the study of.” Etym comes from the Greek word for, well, “word.” I looked this up in a dictionary I have had since I was a freshman in college, Webster’s New World Dictionary. I still use it today.
Here are a few more mysterious words and how we came to write and say them:
When pigs fly means pretty much never, because pigs don’t fly. It is called an adynaton, or a way of saying something that won’t happen. The phrase has been around since the 1600s and is an early form of sarcasm. It was spoken by the Duchess in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Keep your eyes peeled means to keep a close lookout. Peeled in this sense means to keep your eyelids wide open. The phrase used to be, “keep your eyes skinned,” but I think it sounded too gross to keep saying.
I call dibs! My old dictionary says that a dib is another word for a dibble, a small pointed tool to make a hole in soil to plant seeds. Children in the 19th century played a game called dibstones using dibbles, and to call “dibs” meant they went first in the game.
Raining cats and dogs is a very old term for heavy rain. It’s not clear how it started, but it might have to do with Norse mythology, ancient superstitions, or clever writers in the 17th century. A famous writer, Jonathan Swift, used it in his satirical writings (satirical means writing that calls attention to silly or pompous people in a funny way).
Hold your horses means you are doing something too fast, so slow down. There are lots of ideas about how this phrase started, all the way from Greek times to the 19th century when men worked on the Erie Canal hauling freight using horses. It was a common phrase when horses were used in all kinds of jobs and making sure they were under control was very important.
Don’t be afraid to look up words that you find intriguing, funny, odd, or nonsensical. It’s a fun game to find out where they came from.
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How Buster Came To Live With Us
The Buster the Very Shy Dog series was inspired by my real pets and their relationships with one another. Not all of my pets have been book-worthy, but I have had a number of dogs and cats with big personalities.
I already had one dog and four cats when I went across the street to visit the neighbor dog’s litter of puppies. I had no intention of bringing one home. At the bottom of the pile of scrabbling furballs was a small, shy, tailless puppy that took my heart. But how would my other pets treat him? I asked my neighbor if I could take the little puppy home for a minute to see how he would fit in to the household. She had eight puppies to give away and was more than happy to allow it.
I plunked the puppy down in the middle of the livingroom. He seemed relieved to have a break from his siblings climbing all over him. The cats circled him and left, apparently deciding that since he was smaller than they were, he posed no threat. Phoebe sniffed him thoroughly while he watched her with admiring eyes. She strolled back into the kitchen with a glint in her eye. No doubt, she was ready to relish the role of big sister and was already thinking of ways to trick him into doing what she wanted. He had been accepted into the family. I named him Buster, after Buster Keaton, my favorite actor.
Even when he grew up to be bigger than all of them put together, Phoebe and the cats always bossed him around. I think Buster still felt like the tiny puppy he was when he first arrived.
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Long in the Tooth
Did you ever wonder where the saying “long in the tooth” originated?
Why, from horses of course!
Horses are born with baby teeth, just like us, which usually fall out by the time horses are five years old. After that, their incisor teeth grow in length as they age—the older the horse, the longer their teeth.
Back in the day, many horses didn’t have registration papers that recorded their date of birth, so horse traders judged a horse’s age by the length of their teeth. Thus, there’s another saying—“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” meaning, if someone gives you a gift, be grateful and don’t examine it too closely.
There’s some great information on the internet about dental care for horses. Do horses have dentists? They sure do!
Here’s some photos to help see the difference.
1. JJ displaying his baby teeth at around nine months old.
2. JJ’s teeth at age 7 years.
3. Cappy’s teeth at 20 years.
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Your Secret Talent
Did you know that everybody has a very special secret talent? And that is that everyone is born a storyteller – a book whisker. Some people figure this out for themselves. But others need a little reminder that they have this talent.
“But,” you say. “Nothing interesting ever happens to me.”
Sure it does. You just need to turn on your writing radar and put on your writer’s cap.
People are always doing and saying interesting things all around you. You just need to pay attention.
To help you discover your secret talent as a writer here are four tips to help you become a real life book whisker:
- Every story is about someone or something who wants something. They are the hero – or protagonist – of the story. What they want is known as the goal. But something or someone – the villain – doesn’t want them to reach their goal and this creates conflict. Conflict is what moves the story forward.
- To start a story ask yourself the following questions:
- What happened to start the story?
- Then what happened?
- What did the villain do to try and stop the hero?
- How did the hero defeat the villain?
- How did the hero feel and act throughout the story?
- Pay attention to how and what people say in your story – this helps you create snappy dialogue.
- The most important thing to remember about writing a story is this – always, always believe in yourself and your writing.
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Hello Fellow Book Lovers
Some people think you have to choose your favorite way of reading. Some say a “real” book, that is, one you can hold in your hands is best. Others think a digital book, one you can read on your phone or pad or computer, is best. I’m here to say, “Why not both?”
Stories, after all, are magical creatures that jump from a writer’s mind into you, the reader’s, mind. How they make that jump doesn’t matter so much.
But I do have say, I have always loved the texture and smell of a real book. I love old, musty ones and new crisp ones. I love the covers and the heft of them. I recently discovered a way to make my own tiny book, and I want to show you how. I’ll do it like a recipe for a tasty dish!
Ingredients:
1 piece of regular paper 8.5” x 11”
1 pair of scissors
Coloring pens, markers, crayons
Your writer’s brain
Method:
Fold your piece of paper like this:
Now you can draw pictures in your book, create a story, send a message to your friend, use a secret code, or even write a real recipe for your favorite food. You can make a whole bunch of little books about different animals or games or flowers. The most important ingredient is your imagination!
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Simone LaFray Book Review
Simone LaFray and the Chocolatiers’ Ball
Steve O’Farrell, author
Simone LaFray had never questioned one thing – the character of her father. A fourth generation chocolatier and owner of a world famous patisserie, in her eyes he could do no wrong. However, her eyes were trained to see everything that was wrong. A covert agent with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this extraordinary 12-year-old was living a double life, walking in the veiled footprints of her mother, icing eclairs, dusting pastries, and darting between the shadows. What could be sweeter? When a notorious thief returns to Paris seeking revenge against her mother, a series of unforeseen and potentially devastating events ensue, leaving Simone to question everything. Her father can’t be the man they say he is, can he? Her concealed life is evaporating, the store hangs in the balance . . . and did I mention she needs a ball gown? Life in a French patisserie may not be as sweet as you thought. Simone LaFray and the Chocolatier’s Ball pulls the invisible girl out of the shadows and into the spotlight. Is she ready?
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Welcome Blog
Once upon a time…our very favorite words of all time and the start to so many adventures.
Once upon a time
…a girl who loved horses had to solve a mystery to save one
…a brother and sister stepped through a magical door into a story and lost their way
…a brave boy helped his alien friend hide from dangerous marauders
…a boy switched places with his math teacher
All stories ask, what if? The answers bring magic and possibilities into our lives. You will never be able to meet every interesting person in your lifetime (and all people are interesting in their own way), so long ago, clever people told stories. As time went on, these stories were written down and passed around.
Now, we are so fortunate to have this incredible tool—books—so we can meet and go on adventures with people all over the world and all over time—even into the future.
We are writers here. We want our stories to light a fire of imagination in your mind and offer a chance to explore the world. Come with us as we find new places and new people. Solve mysteries. Find treasure. Make friends.
Create your own, Once upon a time.
Jody Feldman is another author you’ll want to check out if you’re not already familiar with her work. Jody wrote the puzzle series The Gollywhopper Games. But she’s got a more intriguing book you definitely want to check out called The 7th Level. The hero, Travis Raines, gets pulled into the super-secret society – The Legend. No one knows who is in it. Or how they pull off the spectacular school-wide events they are known for.
And the last author you’re going to meet today is Mac Barnett. Mac has a lot of books out for you to read if you like a lot of action with your adventure. One of his series is Mac B Kid Spy, starring Mac when he was a kid – and a spy. You have to read the books to see how that came to be.
