Back to the Crane Foundation

 

Today was another day at the actual office, but I almost didn't get there in time because I had forgotten to set my alarm and woke up a quarter of an hour late. Fortunately Travalon was able to drive me to work, so I did get there just in time. Then I found that people are sending things to my work email address about activities happening over the weekend, so I don't find out about them until Monday morning. Other people are sending things to an email address I rarely use and often forget I have - I'm not even sure how they got that email address! Seriously, I have had my personal email address for over two decades so you would think that would be the one everyone would use.

Yesterday I was complaining about feeling stuffy, but I said it had to be allergies and not a cold because my eyes were itchy and watery. I sang a couple of lame verses to "That's Amore":

"When some dust hits your eye and it just makes you cry, that's allergic!

When you sneeze without end and alarm all your friends, that's allergic!"

Then Travalon sang:

"When you see a whole pie and you just can't deny, you're a Fat Bear!"

Then we drove out to the International Crane Foundation, since we can go for free whenever we want, as members. Also, we were going to meet Jilly Moose and OK Cap out there. We took the Merrimac Ferry across Lake Wisconsin, and Travalon got some pictures of fall colors from the ferry.

Then we got to the Crane Foundation. The blue cranes were busy preening.

I tried to get them to look up by singing Gallus to them, and this one did look up.

Just then a volunteer came by, so I was a little embarrassed. I hope he didn't think I was harassing the cranes! We moved on to the black crowned cranes.

We never saw the gray crowned crane, because her mate had just died so she was hiding in her house. We did see the demoiselle cranes.

And the wattled cranes, who were busy digging in the dirt.

The female Eurasian crane posed for us.

In the distance we could see Crane City with autumn foliage behind it. This is where they breed the cranes, and usually on Members Day you can get tours of Crane City, but they didn't have them this year. Also, Members Day was when I was hanging out in the corn maze.

The red-crowned crane is always so graceful.

This is a brolga, a crane from Australia.

This photo of the black-necked crane made me laugh. It looks like a big, angry chicken.

Here is a crane fountain right outside where the black-necked cranes and brolgas are. It's right by the prayer wheels.

This is the white-naped crane posing just for Travalon.

The whooping cranes are so beautiful.

I love the reflection in this photo.

Travalon's favorite, the Siberian cranes.

I bought some crane socks in the gift shop, but we never got to meet up with Jilly Moose and OK Cap because they arrived just as we had to leave so I could get to my Irish class on time. 

We had been listening to the Packer game in the car, so we knew that they beat the Washington Football Team, but in the evening we watched the first half of the game. This evening we watched the second half. A radio announcer said the Packers are the least penalized team in the league, which gives me pause, because does it mean that they play politely, or that the referees favor them? I wouldn't have guessed that they were the least penalized, since they get plenty of penalties when I watch them. Some are richly deserved, like when one player tore an opposing guy's helmet right off his head, and other ones I don't get, and often the announcers don't either. Sometimes I swear they are just making new ones up, because they'll come up with something I've never heard of before. How do they know what's a penalty? Do they have a special referee school? I'd rather be a color commentator - Travalon already has to listen to me do that through the whole game, so why not get paid for it?

Famous Hat