tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post957695583130852007..comments2024-03-11T05:03:14.020-07:00Comments on Ernie's Place: Ground Hog DayErnie Branscombhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06391160783604462511noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-36267888256859454492009-02-04T22:07:00.000-08:002009-02-04T22:07:00.000-08:00i meant to say mongolian "boodog", not boondog. le...i meant to say mongolian "boodog", not boondog. lest ekovox search in vain for a recipe, please allow me to post a how to make marmot boodog. it involves a lot of vodka, stuffing the carcass with hot rocks, using a blowtorch to get rid of the hair and watching as <A HREF="http://www.hcn.org/issues/361/17432/" REL="nofollow"> Marmots inflate as they cook - "It can get as big as a basketball with these four little legs sticking out,"</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-38478916063882564742009-02-04T21:09:00.000-08:002009-02-04T21:09:00.000-08:00Thanks Ol’ Man River. That covers the subject pret...Thanks Ol’ Man River. That covers the subject pretty well. I did notice in his later years Ol' Punksutawny Phil got pretty punctual. He must have hired a manager to get him up in the morning.Ernie Branscombhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06391160783604462511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-76407007886434999152009-02-04T18:56:00.000-08:002009-02-04T18:56:00.000-08:00Since I have taken this thread off the beaten trac...Since I have taken this thread off the beaten track, I probably should re-rail to more Feb 2nd pertinent stuff. Sadly, no pagans chipped in to state the obvious… the Celts worship this day as Imbolc, or the Feast of Brigid day. Fires were lit and cakes baked to welcome Her as She traveled the country blessing the fields, animals and people. It is the midday between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, and held by some to be the first day of spring. The Christians took over this day with Candlemas or the <A HREF="http://www.nyaoh.com/StBrigid.htm" REL="nofollow"> feast of St. Brigid</A>, and the Germans brought Groundhog Day to America, though they watched the badger in their home country. The <A HREF="http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ASaints/Brigit.html" REL="nofollow">Irish</A> love Brigid second only to St. Paddy and have a similar weather reading from the emergence of the a hedgehog tradition. <BR/>Now I should stop whilst I am ahead, but as usual, I am drawn to the oddities. From the <A HREF="”" REL="nofollow"> Catholic Encyclopedia</A> we read that : “When dying, St. Brigid was attended by St. Ninnidh, who was ever afterwards known as "Ninnidh of the Clean Hand" because he had his right hand encased with a metal covering to prevent its ever being defiled, after being he medium of administering the viaticum to Ireland’s Patroness.” <BR/>Having had a sunny Feb. 2nd, <A HREF="http://www.stormfax.com/ghogday.htm" REL="nofollow"> a few sayings might be in order</A>: <BR/>“From Scotland: If Candlemas Day is bright and clear,<BR/>There'll be two winters in the year.<BR/>And from America: If the sun shines on Groundhog Day;<BR/>Half the fuel and half the hay.<BR/>From the above link, we read that Punxsutawney Phil is only batting 39% for accuracy.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-87532107187789477172009-02-03T17:31:00.000-08:002009-02-03T17:31:00.000-08:00the occasional plague outbreak amongst the marmot ...the occasional plague outbreak amongst the marmot family in the rocky mountains, maybe it is good we dont have any marmot-kind here.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-15903024170673529092009-02-03T17:28:00.000-08:002009-02-03T17:28:00.000-08:00because there are no whistle pigs in the area, i a...because there are no whistle pigs in the area, i am going to segue the thread to some mongolian marmot bullshistory:<BR/>my research on the marmot family started when my sister went to mongolia where bubonic plague amongst the marmots is not uncommon. marmots are highly valued for fur and flesh, and 'boondog' is considered a great delicacy. the mongolians have evolved a hunting technique to sort out the non-plagued from the plagued that really caught my eye. they wear all or mostly white clothes, with big white bunny ears, and a tassel on a hat. this allows them to sneak up on the marmot slowly, shaking the tassel and wiggling the ears to get the marmot to sound alarm as only the healthy ones will do.<BR/> the top picture here is of a <A HREF="http://knuttz.net/hosted_pages/Assorted-Images-20081121" REL="nofollow">of a troop of marmot hunters listening to a frenchman reading excerpts from camus' The Plague</A>, no doubt geting inspired for the hunt. here is a more <A HREF="http://www.pilotguides.com/%20destination_guide/asia/mongolia/%20marmot.php" REL="nofollow">detailed description of the hunt</A> for the skeptic, or potential mongolian traveler.<BR/>together with the plague inAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-76959068813344816892009-02-03T08:01:00.000-08:002009-02-03T08:01:00.000-08:00Ben, somewhere I read that the males are bigger. Y...Ben, somewhere I read that the males are bigger. <BR/><BR/>You are one up on me, I've never seen a woodchuck.Ernie Branscombhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06391160783604462511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-48879852051199741942009-02-02T22:25:00.000-08:002009-02-02T22:25:00.000-08:00Visiting my aunt in Asheville, NC, I saw a woodchu...Visiting my aunt in Asheville, NC, I saw a woodchuck amble along the fence line one morning. I was amazed as I had never seen one and when I asked my aunt, she said: "OH him, He does that every morning." How did she know it was a guy? I never asked. My wife says I never ask the really important questions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-11635459773146447812009-02-02T20:29:00.000-08:002009-02-02T20:29:00.000-08:00They have to decide whether They are most starving...<I> They have to decide whether They are most starving, or whether hey are most horny.</I><BR/>you are spot on ernie... one article i read stated it was sex first then food, others insisted it was food first.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-27156385820312637222009-02-02T20:05:00.000-08:002009-02-02T20:05:00.000-08:00many of us learned how to type with a pangram (a s...many of us learned how to type with a pangram (a sentence using every letter of the alphabet) such as 'The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog'.... <BR/>few remember the lesser used pangram... 'The sex life of the woodchuck is a provocative question for most vertebrate zoology majors'.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-21924932063242524522009-02-02T15:05:00.000-08:002009-02-02T15:05:00.000-08:00no need to apologize...i have seen us both and i a...no need to apologize...i have seen us both and i am a lot sorrier.<BR/>thanks for filling in the dots with your usual depth of insight and interpretation of the facts!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-23801243050618465522009-02-02T10:22:00.000-08:002009-02-02T10:22:00.000-08:00welcome back!welcome back!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-66240139138220310382009-02-02T08:50:00.000-08:002009-02-02T08:50:00.000-08:00welcome back! your blogging hiatuses are sort of l...welcome back! your blogging hiatuses are sort of like my giving up coffee crusades...but we did miss all the pertinence you are now bringing again.<BR/>the humble woodchuck has an amazing ability to hibernate, the facts of which may fascinate this audience; perhaps as much for what scientists are willing to do as for the facts: "A hibernating woodchuck is coiled into a tight ball with the head resting on its lower abdomen and the hind parts and tail wrapped over the head. During this deep sleep, respiration and heartbeat are greatly decreased, and body temperature is considerably lower than when the animal was active. In general, the metabolic rate of animals in hibernation is between 1/30 and 1/100 of the "resting" metabolic rate of non-hibernating animals. During hibernation, the breathing rate may be reduced to only <A HREF="http://www.discoverlife.org/nh/tx/Vertebrata/Mammalia/Sciuridae/Marmota/monax/" REL="nofollow">one breath every five or six minutes</A>, while the woodchuck's heartbeats may be as few as three beats per minute, in contrast to the normal rate of 80 to 95 beats per minute. Rectal temperature reaches a low of 3°C(38°F) during hibernation, while the normal summer reading is 32°C(90°F)." <BR/>this deep hibernation also has hidden benefits....it is a weight loss program allowing the woodchuck to eat all summer long, get good and fat and then... <BR/>during hibernation males will lose about 47% of their body weight and females about 37% of their body weight. this higher loss rate in males is thought to be due to energy consumed by spermatogenesis during hibernation. (so that is why i was skinny when i was younger!) <BR/>the male groundhog wakes up first, starving and horny. and that is what we base our "weather report" on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-24937841469947484962009-02-02T07:57:00.000-08:002009-02-02T07:57:00.000-08:00I got a chuckle out of the hiatal Ernia but I'm gl...I got a chuckle out of the hiatal Ernia but I'm glad you're back popping your head out of the hole to see if spring has arrived. I only hope the sunny weather won't have you scurrying away for another month.Kymhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04724133309876710731noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-15468939835278986712009-02-02T07:35:00.000-08:002009-02-02T07:35:00.000-08:00Deja Vu!Deja Vu!Rosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14023852057418281003noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-924013241079711992.post-17343007073067918782009-02-02T07:17:00.000-08:002009-02-02T07:17:00.000-08:00So, if you see your shadow today, does it mean you...So, if you see your shadow today, does it mean you go back on hiatus for six weeks?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com