February 2015
Dear CEBC Members and other Humans, Birds and Elephants,
First I must explain why our program is so different this month. Besides the fact that I think that elephants are the most important, beautiful, incredible, endearing, sensitive, intelligent and otherwise wonderful life form on earth, Dr. Valerie Freer, who was supposed to be our speaker this month and will be here next month, suggested I should do this. I didn't need much coaxing; I do a similar program in schools and thought that the opportunity to share my knowledge and passion with the bird club was a good idea. Our board supported me in this endeavor and so you are in for something other than our usual subject matter tonight. It is also my birthday tomorrow, February 13th,. I love my birthday and figured I can treat myself to something I love, have been studying elephants all my life and whose story, I feel, needs to be told desperately before it is too late. Elephants are on the verge of extinction and the understanding, compassion and realization that it is wrong to eliminate a life form because of greed, might just help prevent that from happening. I can agree with Matt when he claims that nothing is indispensable and the world goes on without elephants or any other species, but it goes on with a very big lack and it goes on much uglier and emptier.
Now to the birds: Aristophanes was great yesterday. We hung out and played and cuddled and he took lots of treats without grabbing my fingers in their stead. Emma was really friendly too, enjoying chunks of my sandwich while we lunched together. With Zeke trying to pull whatever he could from the corner of my mouth and flying onto my plate, made for a really super cool bird time!
THEN came this morning.........I offered Aristophanes his bagel and cream cheese and he decided that my fingers looked much tastier than the bagel and I was lucky to get away without bleeding. He is so moody and, actually, so is Emma. I wish that I was lucky enough to have a bird that really enjoyed my company and did not want to mangle me every so often.
If anyone knows of anyone who would love a cockatoo that needed lots of attention and work, have them call me. I seem to have a run on them right now.
Next month Dr. Valerie Freer, noted biologist and ornithologist, will be our guest speaker. That should be a very interesting and educational talk about wild birds. Her erudition on all things avian is astounding. April will bring back Craig Russell, president of the Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, as per the request of many of our club members. May is still open and I am trying hard to find someone really interesting for that, let me know of your ideas and requests. June is going to be the month when David Oehler, curator of ornithology at the Bronx Zoo/ Wildlife Conservation Society, will be our speaker. I am looking for someone to be our program for our 29th anniversary in July, anyone have any thoughts about that?
Once again, I hope you all enjoy the elephant presentation tonight and maybe come up with ideas for saving their lives from the ivory trade or how to help them have a better, less lonely and more interesting life for those sad souls in captivity.
Happy birthday to me................
LOVE,
SIR RICHARD OF THE ELEPHANTS
First I must explain why our program is so different this month. Besides the fact that I think that elephants are the most important, beautiful, incredible, endearing, sensitive, intelligent and otherwise wonderful life form on earth, Dr. Valerie Freer, who was supposed to be our speaker this month and will be here next month, suggested I should do this. I didn't need much coaxing; I do a similar program in schools and thought that the opportunity to share my knowledge and passion with the bird club was a good idea. Our board supported me in this endeavor and so you are in for something other than our usual subject matter tonight. It is also my birthday tomorrow, February 13th,. I love my birthday and figured I can treat myself to something I love, have been studying elephants all my life and whose story, I feel, needs to be told desperately before it is too late. Elephants are on the verge of extinction and the understanding, compassion and realization that it is wrong to eliminate a life form because of greed, might just help prevent that from happening. I can agree with Matt when he claims that nothing is indispensable and the world goes on without elephants or any other species, but it goes on with a very big lack and it goes on much uglier and emptier.
Now to the birds: Aristophanes was great yesterday. We hung out and played and cuddled and he took lots of treats without grabbing my fingers in their stead. Emma was really friendly too, enjoying chunks of my sandwich while we lunched together. With Zeke trying to pull whatever he could from the corner of my mouth and flying onto my plate, made for a really super cool bird time!
THEN came this morning.........I offered Aristophanes his bagel and cream cheese and he decided that my fingers looked much tastier than the bagel and I was lucky to get away without bleeding. He is so moody and, actually, so is Emma. I wish that I was lucky enough to have a bird that really enjoyed my company and did not want to mangle me every so often.
If anyone knows of anyone who would love a cockatoo that needed lots of attention and work, have them call me. I seem to have a run on them right now.
Next month Dr. Valerie Freer, noted biologist and ornithologist, will be our guest speaker. That should be a very interesting and educational talk about wild birds. Her erudition on all things avian is astounding. April will bring back Craig Russell, president of the Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, as per the request of many of our club members. May is still open and I am trying hard to find someone really interesting for that, let me know of your ideas and requests. June is going to be the month when David Oehler, curator of ornithology at the Bronx Zoo/ Wildlife Conservation Society, will be our speaker. I am looking for someone to be our program for our 29th anniversary in July, anyone have any thoughts about that?
Once again, I hope you all enjoy the elephant presentation tonight and maybe come up with ideas for saving their lives from the ivory trade or how to help them have a better, less lonely and more interesting life for those sad souls in captivity.
Happy birthday to me................
LOVE,
SIR RICHARD OF THE ELEPHANTS