LLA and MA

By ANI...on assignment from Wild Writings Press...Planet Earth

Believe I'll call Lou ~ a wild beast enthusiast

whose knowledge, so amazing, is 'par to-none.'

She's been to Bolivia, Peru and Chile where inhabit these 'camelids'.

When in South America several years ago,

we did see Llamas, these gentle beings,

roaming the meadows, pastures and forest edges.

The first local Llama I saw was in Hamilton's Christmas in Gore Park.

Displaying winter animals ~ there were reindeer, alpacas and a llama.

In Ontario, two places I recommend where llamas can be seen.

Serendepity Farm: Alpacas and Llamas

whose mission is to raise healthy, happy breeds.

(for quality fibre and maintaining blood lines).

Located in Lanark Highlands ~ in Ottawa's vicinity.

Puddicombe Farms, Stoney Creek, on Hamilton's Regional 8,

this working Alpaca farm is great for families, grandparents and kids.

It's a petting zoo and a train station where can ride.

For more than 20 years, Puddicombe Estate Farms & Winery

has offered baked products ~ and activities for all.

Christmas 2018

The Llama's face, this holiday season:

sweaters galore and pyjamas with Llama logos;;

coffee mugs, oil paintings, Christmas ornaments ~

even Llama notebooks in which to write.

Llamas ~ it's the theme for Christmas 2018.

“Llamas and Alpacas boost income for farmers in Central and South America

providing work that can be sold or made into blankets, clothes and more,”

said Lou when she arrived.

“Their hooves are especially gentle on Environment,” she added,

“Another big plus for farmers there ~ and in Ontario!”

LLA, about his lovable Llamas, relayed history and lifestyle.

“In Andean culture, they were used as meat and pack animals.

These South American 'camelids' are relatives of Vicunas and Guanacos

living mostly on the continent's west side

in the Andes Mountains ~ mainly Bolivia and Peru.

Guanacos and Vicunas live 'in the wild' ;

Alpacas and Llamas exist only as domesticated animals.”

“The height of a full-size Llama (like me),” said LLA, “ is 5 ft. 6 to 5 ft. 9

At birth, a baby Llama (called a cria) weighs 20 to 31 pounds.

We Llamas, typically live 15 to 25 years.

Very 'social' we live with other llamas as a herd.

The wool produced by Llamas is very soft ~ and lanolin-free.”

MA inserts that 'we Llamas are intelligent and can learn simple tasks.

When wearing a 'pack' we carry about 30% of our body weight

for 5 to 8 miles. “

And asking MA about appearance and colour, she replied:

“The ears are rather long and known as 'banana-shape'.

We have no dorsal hump and our tails are short.

Our fibre is long, woolly and soft.

Our coat is often white~ yet can be brown or pie-bald...even grey or black.

The Guanaco (now endangered) and vicuna being wild, are light brown

and passing to white below.

“The vicuna, being smaller, also live in herds

on the bleak mountain range, bordering a snowy region

amid precipes of rocks throughout Peru and southern Ecuador.

Alpacas are descended from wild Vicunan acncestors

while the domesticated Llamas have descended from the wild Guanaco ancestors.”

Reproduction ~ as told to me by MA;

“Through the act of 'mating' the female releases an egg

(often fertilized on the first attempt.)

Llama males and females (like humans) mature sexually at different rates.

Males mate with females in a kush (a lying down position).

They mate for 20 to 45 minutes; and gestation about 350 days.

Unable to lick their babies when born (due to tongue-shortness),

we mothers, nuzzle and hum to our crias.

While standing to give birth, the herd's females gather around

in attempts to protect 'gainst the male Llamas and potential predators.

(Llamas, well-socialized and trained to 'halter and lead' after weaning, are very friendly and pleasant. Llamas, bottle-fed or over-socialized as youth, will become extremely difficult to handle when they will begin to treat humans as they treat each other ~ which is characterized by Bouts of Spitting, Kicking and Neck Wrestling.When correctly reared, Llamas Spitting at a Human is a rare thing!)

Asking MA about Hierarchy...this is her reply:

“Llamas can always move up or down in the 'social ladder'

by picking small fights ~ which is usually done between males

to see which will become dominate.

They live as family, taking care of each other.

When threatened, a warning 'bray' is sent out ~ all others becoming alert!

As a form of friendly communication, they often 'hum' to each other.”

A motherly Llama confided in MA:

"I saw a kid ~ napping today, but decided not to awaken him."

 

To respond:  mbairdkerr@bell.net

Written by Merle Baird-Kerr...July 3, 2018

Toronto Raptors Capture NBA Championship!

Along with thousands of other Canadians, I am now a RAPTOR FAN!

A few days ago, I sent a writing about being a Sports Fan ~ more or less. Today, basketball is on my list of sports games to follow. Sports writers have noticed with immediate interest how we Canadians have quickly responded with unsurpassed interest in this basket-ball-sporting game.

NORTH red-shirted Kawhi Leonard celebrates after the buzzer ~

that gave Toronto Raptors their first NBA championship ~

setting off a country-wide celebration.

His photo was centered on many, many Sports Pages everywhere across Canada...with outstretched arms diagonally above his head...his huge 'victory smile'...all expressing wide-open joy and elation. We honour his #2 red and white shirt ~ along with all his team-mates who fastidiously fought for every basket scored...in each of the 6 games played against Golden State from Oakland, California.

So compelled was I,
 every game I watched, often until 11 p.m. and up to midnight.

Kings of a Global Game

(Excerpts from Tim Reynolds' report to The Associated Press)

The Canadian flag, soaked in beer and champagne, was waved in the Toronto locker-room.

Pascal Siakam wore the flag of Cameroon around his shoulders.

Marc Gasol was yelling some happy phrase in Spanish.

Every team that wins an NBA title, calls itself “world champions”!

These Toronto Rapters might actually be worthy of the moniker.

The new kings of the NBA are the first outside of the U.S. to wear the crown ~

and they come from all corners of the globe.

Team president, Masai Ujiri was born in England and raised in Nigeria.

Serge Ibaka is from the Congo.

Gasol will play again in his native Spain this summer in the FIBA World Cup.

Coach Nick Nurse won his first championship in Britain

where reserve OG Anunoby comes from.

Even the team's superfan, Nav Bhatia comes from India.

It's a global game.

It's a global team.

They're the global champions!

It means a lot, just having guys from different countries

and speaking different languages,” Siakam said.

I think it kind of got us closer together. And you kind of need to have all those little kinds of friendship with guys that you can speak the same language with, and from Spanish to French to English ~ different cultures. I think it kind of respresents Toronto in general, having that diversity.

Jeremy Lin, an Asian-American, speaks Mandarin.

The assistants on Nurse's staff have backgrounds from stints as players or coaches in France, England, Germany, Italy, Australia, Israel and more. The director of 'sports science' is Scottish. The head trainer is from Ontario. Jamaal Magloire, who has been on the staff since his playing days ended, is a Toronto native.”It means a lot,” Magloire said as he watched champagne spray all over the Raptors' locker room in Oakland's Oracle Arena.

“Canada and Toronto especially are very diverse places.

And this team ~ all the diversity that we have, it served us well.”

There's a parade coming to Toronto's downtown on Monday. The red and white flag with the giant maple leaf will wave. And a few Americans will be on that route as well ~ like NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and the longest-tenured Raptor player, Kyle Lowry. They are a worthy champion!

“I'm very happy for them,” Steve Kerr, head coach of the defending champion,

Golden State Warriors, said, tipping his hat to the Raptors.

“Winning a championship is the ultimate in this league ~ and they have got a lot of guys who have earned this. So, Congrats to Toronto...to their organization...to their fans.They are a worthy champion!”

Noteworthy Fact

Basketball Without Borders is the vehicle that basically helped Siakam start his journey to the league seven or so years ago. Today, there are NBA academies popping up in Africa and Asia.

The league is helping to establish a new pro-league in Africa that's set to begin play in early next year.

The sport takes every opportunity it gets to promote

what it bills as the Jr. NBA Global Championship ~ a tournament for kids.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said before the series that the league is aware of

700 million cellphones in use in Africa ~ more than half of them smartphones.

The NBA wants people watching on these phones

and the infrastructure is such now in many places,

that it is actually possible.

“As a kid,” Pascal Siakam said, “I didn't have the opportunity

to dream about this moment.

I didn't think I could make it.

I didn't think this was possible as a kid.

And I think a lot of kids don't think that it's possible.

Today, I can say to them: Hey! Look at me!

I was a little scrawny kid from Cameroon...

but here I am...as a champion!

The Toronto Raptors and their fans can truly say:

“Today, They are World Champions!”

Compiled by Merle Baird-Kerr...June 15, 2019

Views and comments welcome: mbairdkerr@bell.net

Sports Fan ~ I Am!

(to a degree, I confess)

Since way-back-when - I've followed the Toronto Blue Jays

when originally they were affiliated with the International League

and known as The Toronto Maple Leafs ~ playing in Maple Leaf Stadium.

While pursuing post-secondary education in Toronto, I attended a few games.

Today, with reference to my TV Guide, I watch the games televised.

Perhaps my interest ignited, when in my teens, Dad took me see Brantford Red Sox games. Locally, in High School, I played 'fielder' for the 'Burford Blue Birds' ~ a small league of farm girls.

The Olympic Games I thoroughly follow

(especially our Canadian teams)

And when our teams so proudly enter the stadium,

I get all 'teary-eyed' when O Canada welcomes them in.

On a recreational level, I played badminton...tennis...bowled on a few teams...and during my teaching years, skied every winter weekend. With avid friends, we hit the slopes locally...often to Collingwood's Blue Mountains... or Buffalo's Kissing Bridge.' When time permitted, immensely were thrilled with ski weeks in the Laurentian Mountains.Tennis I enjoyed over the summer ~ these sports conducive to my health and strength. With my son, I enrolled him in ski lessons and taught him to golf. My daughter would have nothing to do with winter sports...her love was gymnastics, dance, music ~ and of greatest pleasure was 'equestrian' ~ a sport in which for several years, she excelled.

When first hearing about Toronto's basketball team,

I considered their team name most appropriate: “The Toronto Rafters”!

(shooting high to score points)

The sports page enlightened me: they are Toronto Raptors!

(What a great team name!)

First time, ever, a Canadian team in the NBA vied for the playoffs!!!

Best of 7 games Toronto Raptors are competing with Golden State Warriors ~
from Oakland, California.

Miraculously, our Raptors won the first game, losing the second game by a few points.

.

The Golden State Warriors' head coach enthusiastically stated,

"Hearing the Ontario crowd sing to O Canada, 

it was beautiful." 

Hamilton Will Have a Jurassic Park After All

Core Entertainment which runs Hamilton`s First Ontario Centre

on Wednesday, hosts The Hamilton Honey Badgers who

are making their 7 pm game against the Guelph Night-Hawks.

This game free...with the Raptors Game to be shown on screens in the arena when it`s done.

As of late Friday afternoon, there were 37 cities and towns across Ontario, creating their own version of Jurassic Park for the NBA finals, ranging from Windsor to Kingston...to Thunder Bay...to Ottawa.

There are 33 or more  Cineplex Theatres showing the games on their screens.

Plans for viewing of Games 4 through 7 will be announced later.

Today, my heart is with ~ and for our Raptors!

Compiled by Merle Baird-Kerr...June 5, 2019

Your views welcome: mbairdkerr@bell.net

Old Story -Teller and The Sad Young Woman

In a little town far, far away, there was a little old woman whose years were beyond counting. This old woman was famous as a wise story-teller ~ and many would make the trip to this little secluded place, just to ask for her advice.

One day, a young woman, her beautiful face twisted

by sadness and tears, approached the old story-teller.

“May I ask a question?” she asked her, as they sat in the market square.

It was a quiet, early morning, and only they were there.

“Of course, child,” said the story-teller as she carefully marked her place in her book.

“Tell me, what brings such hurt to your eyes.”

“My problem,” said the young woman painfully, “is that I am good-for-nothing, I just don't ~ fit in with anything. I”ve tried so many careers ~ and wasn't suitable for any of them.”

The wise old woman slowly nods and stokes her pipe.

“I've lived in many places and never did I feel I belonged.”

The old woman smiles.

“I've dated many men but have never found my true love. I've....

“Let me stop you there,” said the story-teller, lifting a hand to halt the onslaught of worried words, “and tell you a story. Isn't that why you came here?” She smiled and took a puff on her pipe.

“It may surprise you, perhaps hard to even imagine looking at this old face, but a long time ago, I was in a similar situation as yours. I too felt different to everyone else ~ and nowhere did I seem to belong. But I did not have a wise old story-teller to ask for advice; and so, I went on a long journey to find the answer that my soul sought. Long indeed, was the journey.

“I crossed streams and rivers...hiked up hills and mountains...

found forgotten places...and wondrous creatures and men...

but never did an answer I find....until one day!...”

“On that day, whle walking through a field next to a village; there was a little brick wall, perhaps 5 foot tall, next to a little house. What caught my eye were three archery practising targets on the wall~ and in the exact ''bullseye' of each of them was an arrow, stuck as firmly as could be.”

The old lady stopped for a little puff on her pipe

while the young lady did a little jig of impatience with her feet.

“In all my journeys, I have seen many great archers, so I know it to be a hard discipline. I was amazed to find such talent at such a humble place. Then I noticed a little girl peeking at me from the cottage door. Come, I bade her and she did. And I asked her, Dear Child, do you know who is the archer who put these arrows in those targets? She blushed and answered that she was the archer.

“I was even more amazed and asked her how she became such an extraordinary shot at such a young age. She blushed further and in a whispering voice, admitted that she had stuck the arrows in the wall and then painted the targets around them....”

The old woman chuckled softly while the young woman made a puzzled face.

“I don't understand...”

“That was the moment I learned about the essence of things, my child.

“You cannot find a place to own you, before you own yourself. You must recognize who YOU are ...and build a place around you that suits you. In other words, find what you truly wish and build a life around it. Make life work itself around you ~ instead of trying to find where you belong. Perhaps the place you belong to, is a place you are yet to create.

The young woman thanked her for her wisdom...dried her eyes...

straightened her back...and walked purposely away.

We can all learn a lot from that old woman's tale.

Stop and Think

Recently, Dilu forwarded to me essential guidelines to engage a healthier and happier life. As an agenda, akin to lighthouses along rocky shores, there are 'lights' that will guide us safely

to embark on a successful and fulfilling life.

“Time has a way of moving quickly and catching us unaware of the passing years.”

It seems just yesterday that I was young and embarking on my new life ~ and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then with all my hopes and dreams. But, here it is: the winter of my life and it catches me by by surprise...how did it get here so fast? Where did the years go? Where did my youth go?

“I remember seeing older people through the years ~ and thinking that those older people were years away from me ~ and that winter was so far off, that I could not fathom or imagine fully what it would be like. But here it is! My friends are retired and getting gray...they move slower and I see an older person now...some are in better and some in worse shape than me...but I see a great change! Not like the ones I remember who were young and vibrant...but like me, their age is beginning to show...and we are now those older folks that we used to see...and never thought we would be!

Each day now, I find that just like getting a shower

is a real target for the day!

And taking a nap is not a treat anymore: it's mandatory!

Cause, if I don't on my own free will ~ I just fall asleep where I sit!

And so ~ now I enter into this new season of my life, unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done, but never did!

But, this I know ~ that when it's over on this earth, it's NOT over.

A new adventure will begin!

So, if you're not in your 'winter' yet, let me remind you, that it will be here, faster than you think. So whatever you would like to accomplish in your life, please do it timely! Don't put things off too long!

Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your 'winter' or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life ~ so live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember ~ and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past.

Life is a gift to you. The way you live your life, is your gift to those

who come after. Make it a fantastic one!

Live it well! Enjoy today! Do something Fun! Be Happy! Have a Great Day!

Remember: It is health, that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.

Lastly, consider the following: “Today is the oldest you've ever been,

 yet the youngest you'll ever be! So, enjoy this day while it lasts!”

It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter 
That Tells What Kind of Winter, Yours is ~ or Going to Be!

Enjoy life before 'winter'!

(Author Unknown re the foregoing)

Merle Baird-Kerr...written May 23, 2019

To comment: mbairdkerr@bell.net

Haida and War Planes

HAIDA and WAR PLANES...

Mark McNeil recently reminded us of the solemn role

Canada played in World War II...how quickly, we can forget.

Published in The Hamilton Spectator, he wrote:

“The HMCS Haida and the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum aircraft

will take part in D-Day 75^th anniversary ceremonies Wednesday and Thursday.

“Beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Parks Canada will host a commemoration at the Tribal-class destroyer on Pier 9, at the foot of Catharine Street North to recognize and remember the Canadian soldiers who volunteered to serve our country and saw action in the Normandy Campaign.

“Demonstrations and programming will take place through the evening until 12:30 a.m. EST (6:30 a.m.in Normandy, France) the exact moment when the first troops made shore in Normandy 75 years before.

The ceremony will be a poignant one

as the Haida took part in D-Day and the Normandy invasion

by helping to guard the English Channel from German counter-attacks. Pilots from the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum will take to the sky Thursday at noon, flying all types of vintage aircraft

that could have taken part in the June 1944 invasion.

A Douglas C-47 Dakota ~ that was actually part of the D-Day assault 75 years ago, ferrying British paratroopers behind German lines ~ along with B-25 Mitchell and Hamilton's famous Avro Lancaster

will take off from John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport at noon. The planes will gather over Caledonia and then fly to the Ancaster area where they will meet up with RCAF aircraft from 8 Wing Trenton ~ a CC-150 Polaris, CC-177 Globemaster and up to two CC-130J Hercules planes.

The six or seven planes will fly in formation

over the RBC Canadian Open at the Hamilton Golf and Country Club

at approximately 12:10 p.m.

All play in the tournament will be stopped as the planes fly overhead.

“The aircraft will then head to Dundas over the McMaster Children's Hospital...along the escarpment to Stoney Creek...back along King-Barton to the Skyway...and then back to Hamilton airport.

The route incorporates flying over a number of schools involved in The Spectator's Newspaper in an Education project. More than 125 schools in the province, including dozens in the Hamilton area

have been following an eight-week D-Day-based curriculum

developed as a legacy component for the 75^th anniversary.

“Museum officials say there could be some last-minute route changes due to weather or other reasons.

“Our commemorative fly-past is an opportunity

to recognize the veterans for their service...their duty...and their sacrifice

which protected our values...our freedoms...and our way of life,”

said CEO and president David Rohrer.

“At 3 p.m. at the museum site at Hamilton Airport, parachutists from the Dakota

will perform a jump to remember paratroopers who took part in D-Day.

During theTiger Cats/Argonauts pre-season game in the evening, the C-47 will make a fly-over as part of the 75^th anniversary commemoration at the game.”

May we always remember D-Day ~ a Day of Liberty and Freedom for us all!

Merle Baird-Kerr...June 5, 2019

Your views, most welcome: mbairdkerr@bell.net

10 Things You Might Not Know About D-Day

On May 24^th ~ The Hamilton Spectator published a page of historical information on this topic.

A black and white photo of military personnel, having just been deployed from an off-shore ship, as they approach the beach, remind us of the heavy price paid to protect their shores and ours.

Possibly you read it. Unknown to me were several facts ~ perhaps, also to you.

Seventy-five years ago, tens of thousands of people

risked their lives to save the world for democracy

during the Allied invasion of France's Normandy coast in World War II.

War photographer, Robert Capa, who said, “If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough,” landed at Omaha Beach on D-Day. He took more than100 pictures, but when the film was sent to London, a dark-room technician dried it too quickly and melted the emulsion, leaving fewer than a dozen pictures usable. Even so, those shaky and chaotic photos tell the story of Omaha Beach. A decade later, Capa got too close: He died in 1954 after stepping on a land mine in Indochina.

In the weeks before D-Day, British intelligence was highly concerned about crossword puzzles. The London Daily Telegraph's recent puzzle answers had included Overlord and Neptune (the code names for the overall operation and the landing operation), Utah and Omaha (the two American invasions ( beaches) and Mulberry (the code name for the artificial harbours planned for the invasion). Agents interrogated the puzzle-maker, a Sunday School headmaster, named Leonard Dawe. Turned out, it was just a coincidence.

The people who planned D-Day were bigots. That was the code word ~ bigot ~ for anyone who knew the time and place of the invasion. It was a reversal of a designation ~ 'to Gib' ~ that was used on the papers of those travelling to Gibraltar for the invasion of North Africa.
Among those who landed at Normandy on D-Day were J.D. Salinger (who went on to write 'Catcher inthe Rye').Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (the president's son who died of a heart attack a month later) and Elliott Richardson (attorney general under President Richard Nixon.

The allied effort to hoodwink Adolf Hitler about the invasion was code-named Fortitude, and it was nearly detailed as the invasion itself. The Allies went so far as to parachute dummies, outfitted with firecrackers that exploded on impact, behind enemy lines as a diversion. Under an effort, code-named Window, Allied airplanes dropped strips of aluminum foil, cut to a length that corresponded to German radar waves. The effect created two phantom fleets of bombers out of thin air and ingenuity.

D-Day secrets were almost exposed in Chicago. A package from Supreme Headquarters in London arrived at a Chicago mail-sorting office a few months before D-Day and was accidentally opened. Its contents ~ including the timetable and location of the invasion ~ may have been seen by more than a dozen unauthorized people. The FBI found that a U.S. general's aide of German descent had sent the package to “The Ordnance Division G-4” but had added the address of his sister in Chicago. The FBI concluded that the aide was overtired and had been thinking about his sister, who was ill. But, just to be safe, the Chicago postal workers were put under surveillance and the aide confined to quarters.

In a 1964 interview, Dwight Einsenhower said a single person 'won the war for us.” Was he referring to Gen. George Patton? Gen. Douglas MacArthur? No ~ Andrew Higgins, who designed and built the amphibious assault crafts that allowed the Allies to storm the beaches of Normandy. The eccentric boat-builder foresaw not only the Navy's acute need for small military crafts early on ~ but also the shortage of steel. So he gambled and bought the entire 1939 crop of mahogany from the Philippines. His New Orleans company produced thousands of the unimpressive-looking~ but vital ~ boats for the war effort.

Woe be unto a politician who commits a gaffe during a D-Day remembrance in 2004: Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin referred to the 'invasion of Norway' when he meant 'Normandy'. Years later, at an event with President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Brown cited 'Obama Beach' when he actually meant 'Omaha Beach'.

While U.S. forces were conducting a training exercise off the southwestern English coast to prepare for the landing on Utah Beach, German torpedo boats ambushed them. More than 700 Americans were killed. ~ a toll far worse than when U.S. forces actually took Utah Beach a few months later.

France wasn't the only theatre of action in early June 1944. On June 5, the B-29 Superfortress flew its first combat mission; the target: Bangkok. The day before that, U.S. forces were able to capture a German submarine off the African coast because they had broken the Enigma code and learned a sub was in the vicinity. On the eve of D-Day, the U.S. couldn't risk that the Germans would realize the code was cracked. So, they hid away the sub and its captured crew until the end of the war ~ and the Germans assumed: the vessel was lost at sea!

The foregoing was previously posted

in The Chicago Tribune.

June 6, 1944

The Allies invade occupied France

Some175,000 British, Canadian, French, Polish, Norwegian

and other nationalities participate in the first 24 hours

of the Normandy invasion.

Below the above war endeavours, a broad map depicts

the locations of war troops along the coast of France:

Utah..Omaha...Gold...Juno...Sword Beaches

facing Germany's Army and Corps.

Compiled by Merle Baird-Kerr...June 1, 2019

To respond: mbairdkerr@bell.net