Whenever we travel or visit relatives in another part of the country, I always look at the trees and birds to see how they are different. And of course, I have done that here as well. My younger son and I saw a beautiful bee moth or hummingbird moth. After seeing it, we rushed home to look up what kind of creature it was and found out they are actually common in both America and 
Europe. In America, they are called Hummingbird Moths because they actually look very much like a tiny hummingbird. Instead of using their long beak, however, to get the nectar, they use their proboscis. But otherwise, they look almost identical, even in the way they fly and hover, to a hummingbird. In Europe, this is called a Bee Moth. I had never seen one before, so it was a surprise to know they were common in the US. Just like a bird, it is also a migratory animal. Can you find out its scientific name?
Most of the trees look common with many varieties of oaks and maple. But there was one tree whose nut had me curious to find out what it was. The tree is called a Horse Chestnut, and the nut is poisonous to humans, but deer and squirrels are immune to the poison and can eat the nut once it is out of its shell. It is the shell that had me so curious, though. It is a tennis ball sized spiky covering. I wouldn't want to be under it when it falls, that's for sure. This nut is called a conker (question of the day for yesterday.) But in doing my research (Wikipedia came to the rescue on all of this today), I also discovered a game by the same name that actually uses these nuts. It seems to be very popular in the UK. It involves people finding their perfect conker, preparing it by drilling a hole in it that won't crack at the edges, and threading a string through it. They then let the nut sit f
or a year to finish drying out and hardening. Some participants cheat a little by (without cheating by soaking it in vinegar, baking it or painting it with nail polish) soaking it in vinegar, baking it or painting it with nail polish, but in a real game, this will get you disqualified. Once the nut is ready, two players then smash the nuts together from their strings, and the person whose nut breaks last is the winner. For more details, check out the listing in Wikipedia. It sounds like a lot of fun. Can you think of other games that have been made up using things found commonly found in nature?
Today's question of the day is "Does Germany have National Parks?"
Today's word of the day is "Homework" - die Hausaufgabe (pronounced house-ouf-gah-buh.) Bet you are looking forward to Friday without any homework!!!
Auf wiedersehen!!
Frau Spitzer
Europe. In America, they are called Hummingbird Moths because they actually look very much like a tiny hummingbird. Instead of using their long beak, however, to get the nectar, they use their proboscis. But otherwise, they look almost identical, even in the way they fly and hover, to a hummingbird. In Europe, this is called a Bee Moth. I had never seen one before, so it was a surprise to know they were common in the US. Just like a bird, it is also a migratory animal. Can you find out its scientific name?As we approach October and start to think of Halloween, you may also want to read a little story about ravens by Edgar Allan Poe. Think of me. We have lots of ravens! But the ravens are not to be outdone by the pigeons. Here the pigeons come in all colors. It will be interesting to see if they stay for the winter or if they too move on. Many of the other birds look the same as in the Carolinas, however.
Flowers are also mostly the same, except they have a beautiful variety of Geranium that cascades with flowers. T
his is the plant most commonly seen in the countryside window boxes that hang from the porches that make the houses so picturesque. They are also found here in the city hanging from the balconies.
his is the plant most commonly seen in the countryside window boxes that hang from the porches that make the houses so picturesque. They are also found here in the city hanging from the balconies. Most of the trees look common with many varieties of oaks and maple. But there was one tree whose nut had me curious to find out what it was. The tree is called a Horse Chestnut, and the nut is poisonous to humans, but deer and squirrels are immune to the poison and can eat the nut once it is out of its shell. It is the shell that had me so curious, though. It is a tennis ball sized spiky covering. I wouldn't want to be under it when it falls, that's for sure. This nut is called a conker (question of the day for yesterday.) But in doing my research (Wikipedia came to the rescue on all of this today), I also discovered a game by the same name that actually uses these nuts. It seems to be very popular in the UK. It involves people finding their perfect conker, preparing it by drilling a hole in it that won't crack at the edges, and threading a string through it. They then let the nut sit f
or a year to finish drying out and hardening. Some participants cheat a little by (without cheating by soaking it in vinegar, baking it or painting it with nail polish) soaking it in vinegar, baking it or painting it with nail polish, but in a real game, this will get you disqualified. Once the nut is ready, two players then smash the nuts together from their strings, and the person whose nut breaks last is the winner. For more details, check out the listing in Wikipedia. It sounds like a lot of fun. Can you think of other games that have been made up using things found commonly found in nature?Today's question of the day is "Does Germany have National Parks?"
Today's word of the day is "Homework" - die Hausaufgabe (pronounced house-ouf-gah-buh.) Bet you are looking forward to Friday without any homework!!!
Auf wiedersehen!!
Frau Spitzer
