Minnie Mouse, Pomeranians, Bats and travel ..

Dear Mr Postman .. this is another letter for my mother on my travels and the connections that I make with aspects of life ...

Flying through Philadelphia .. and wandering 'lost' through the airport's myriad of cross sections .. I had plenty of time .. and certainly walked around. Finally deciding that I was going to see if a tip regarding jet lag would work for my trip home .. so I settled at some take away for a fairly disgusting spaghetti and meat balls .. as I needed something to sustain me

for the next 9 hours.

When I travelled out .. a couple of guys on the train up to Gatwick had suggested that to counter jet lag, if Ihad just water during the last flight and once at my destination settled into the normal meal regime of the day .. I'd feel fine. I thought I'd try it - it certainly seemed to work for the Charlotte - San Diego leg going out.

As I'm settling in to this 'meal' .. up come a mother, Maude, and her daughter, Lauren (aged 12) to share the table .. and what an interesting half hour we had. Lauren is a special child and was so lovely and willing to share her stories re her dogs .. so this is for her:

Dear Lauren .. it was a pleasure to meet you - and I'm so pleased that your special 'Minnie' can travel with you, whenever you take a flight .. it must make the journey and the waiting around so much more pleasant for you? You can talk to her, sing to her - I guess? and walk her around in her special carrier .. showing her the shops - though I know you like to be in position and ready to go at the airline gate .. not window shopping like the rest of us?!

I hope you had a safe journey home .. and are now reunited with Sophie - your family dog, whom I know you were missing. Have a good rest of the term and enjoy your holiday time - lucky you .. wish I had that!

Minnie doesn't look like Micky Mouse's "Minnie" .. though she is small, but not as small as Minnie mouse! Your Mum said that Minnie is a 'Pom Shih' .. but I can only find Pomeranians .. I'm sure she's a special Pomeranian. Would you mind if I shared some information with my readers on Poms, and also on bats .. Mum's suggestion that Minnie looks like a wingless fruit bat .. is a bit unfair, I think .. though I know you both laugh - but I thought I'd look up some information for us all: I hope that's ok? Here goes ...

Minnie seems true to form .. as Poms are friendly and playful, while being protective of their owners; it seems that they are very easily house trained. Did you know that pictures of Poms can be found on stone or bronze sculptures dating back to the Egyptian age .. over 4,000 years ago! They are named Pomeranian after the slavic word 'Pommorze' or 'Pommen', which means "along the sea" .. by the Baltic Sea on Poland's north coast.

Poms have had notable owners .. for instance Michelangelo had a Pom who would sit and watch him paint the Sistine Chapel; Sir Isaac Newton had a Pomeranian who once upset a candle on his important papers, which contained more than 20 years of research. Queen Victoria is said to have made them stylish throughout Europe. These Poms were not as small as those of today (now 3 - 4 pounds) .. where they've been bred for their diminutive size, ease of care and general demeanour .. being loved by children such as Lauren!

Bats ... I found this story .. and I'd love to share it ..

For the Love of Bats:
A boy's fascination becomes a family affair . . .
Bert Grantges' room in Arlington, Texas, looks like that of any other typical 14-year-old, but for the sign on the door: "Knock. Bats are in my room." Another sign taped to the refrigerator, "Feed bats!," gives any visitor a further clue that this is not a typical household.

... it goes on: To feed them, Bert has a standing mail order for 1,000 meal worms that arrive every three weeks. The fruit bats consume a total of about 28 apples, oranges, and bananas in a week, along with heaping servings of cottage cheese, monkey chow, molasses, and Jell-O. How does Bert's mother cope with her son's unusual pets? "I suppose it's not much different than a frog in his pocket," Carol says. "Except they eat more."

Golden crowned-flying fox bat

I don't want to disappoint you .. but Bert has now to be in his 30s I'd guess .. but the story is well worth reading .. or for passing on to children or grandchildren .. Bert was from a tot absolutely determined to look after bats!

There are different sorts of bats .. the most prolific (70%) are the insect eating bats, the fruit bats make up 20%, while the carnivorous - I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear - make up less than 10%. The insect eating bats use echolocation .. and Giovanna of Imperfect Action did a wonderful post a while ago entitled "See Without Eyes" on Ben Underwood, 14, who can do amazing things .. please look! .. by using echolocation himself = unheard of in humans.

"Chiroptera" (bats) from Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur,
1904

In America bats have become a tourist attraction .. in Austin Texas. The Congress Avenue Bridge is the summer home to North America's largest urban bat colony, an estimated 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats. 100,000 tourists per year visit the bridge at twilight to watch the bats leave the roost .. to eat an estimated 10,000 - 30,000 pounds of insects each night.

I hope you enjoyed all these links .. all these subjects - don't seem to mix do they? .. but here they do ..

Thank you Mr Postman for delivering this letter .. and could you please make sure that Lauren reads it .. I'd like her to know I've kept my word and have done a 'story' for her .. my mother will also be pleased to hear about Lauren and my travels .. Do you think Minnie, the Pom, looks like a wingless fruit bat?!

Hilary Melton-Butcher

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