A Word Edgewise |
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A Word Edgewise |
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Last Updated 01/20/06
For more literature go
to Clendenin Books
Email: mjclen@our-town.com
It’s truly amazing the valuable information you can find even when you are not really looking. Now an Almanac has been a great source of information for generations. I remember people consulting that wise book to see when to plant their gardens, about the rain and frost for the next year and if the moon was going to be right for courting on given time night.
I
happened to be looking at a 1998 Almanac and couldn’t help but be a little sad at the
opportunities I had missed. Not just any time is pea planting time. A piece of advice says
that southern farmers should plant peas on New Year’s Day--- and pray that it
doesn’t freeze.
But
none of that about planting is valuable to me at this stage of the game. Instead, I turned
to a bit of practical advice: How to Hypnotize a Frog, written by Laraine Howard. I
recommend these clear instructions to you—of course, you must first locate a willing
frog, or the information will be of no use to you. There in may lie the problem since
frogs are nearly scarce as alligators here in dry years. But maybe you have the subject.
Then just follow these instructions:
1. Put your hand out in front of you, palm
forward and fingers together.
2. Start to make small circles in the air
with that hand.
3. Walk slowly toward the frog, bringing
your circling hand closer and closer to the frog’s face.
4. Slowly crouch down as you approach the
frog, keeping circling.
5. Pick up the frog with your free hand.
That’s all there is to it. Most
anyone can do it. The same type of thing
I’ve seen a cat try to hypnotize a bird using a similar method. The cat would
crouch ready to spring, very still, except for his tail which would continually make a
little fanning motion. Maybe it worked. I don’t remember seeing it do so—but
then, maybe the cat hadn’t read the instructions.
Our son Pat, who always liked to investigate things of nature, was trying a
hypnotic trick on a horned toad one time. He caught the toad, and by rubbing its nose with a straw, soon had the horned
toad in a trance, or asleep. About that time Pat’s dog, Sugar Foot, decided to pounce
on the helpless toad. Sugar Foot was not very gentle. He split the toad’s belly with
his teeth. Pat, seeing the panicked toad lying on his back, came in the house for needle
and thread to repair the damage. He used black thread to take a couple of stitches and
left a couple of inches of thread hanging. A few days later he spotted the toad with the
black thread attached, running rapidly across the yard. Evidently the toad had developed
an allergy to being hypnotized.
The person who wrote this renowned article about hypnotism claimed to have used the
method to catch a feral cat. Seems she was working for an animal shelter when a feral cat
got loose in a room. She and several other people had about given up catching the poor
frightened creature, which had found temporary respite on top of a stack of cages. She
employed the valuable steps here quoted, and amidst the laughter of her companions, began
to make circles with her hand as she approached the cat and then reached out and caught it
by the scuff of the neck.
So you see, you never know when a piece of seemingly worthless information may come
in handy to make you look like a master of some type. If you have access to an Almanac,
whatever date, perhaps you should seriously consult it for bits of wisdom. If you do not
have one, I could loan you mine, but only for a short time. I may want to re-read the
article about how wooly bear caterpillars predict hard winters, instructions about where
to position an out-house.