On another note, this flooding in Iowa is getting really scary, isn't it? I just read that a levee in Des Moines was breached last night. Luckily, the river has already crested, but the cleanup down there is going to take months.

The Common Loon.

A most fascinating species of bird.

Enjoy reading all about them.

11.

The eerie yodel of the Common Loon is a symbol of the wild North. The territorial call of the male loon can be heard from lakes across Canada to the very northern United States.
Cool Facts

* The Common Loon swims underwater to catch fish, propelling itself with its feet. It swallows most of its prey underwater. The loon has sharp, rearward-pointing projections on the roof of its mouth and tongue that help it keep a firm hold on slippery fish.

* Migrating Common Loons occasionally land on wet highways or parking lots, mistaking them for rivers and lakes. They become stranded without a considerable amount of open water for a long takeoff. A loon may also get stranded on a pond that is too small.

* Loons are water birds, only going ashore to mate and incubate eggs. Their legs are placed far back on their bodies, allowing efficient swimming but only awkward movement on land.

* The Common Loon is flightless for a few weeks after molting all of its wing feathers at the same time in midwinter.

Description
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* Size: 66-91 cm (26-36 in)
* Wingspan: 104-131 cm (41-52 in)
* Weight: 2500-6100 g (88.25-215.33 ounces)

* Large waterbird.
* Long pointed bill.
* Long body slopes to rear.
* Sits low on water.

Breeding adult (Alternate Plumage): Head, neck, wings, and sides black. Back has large white checkered markings. Chest white. White neck ring with vertical black bars; patch of smaller stripes below throat. Stripes on side of chest. Bill black. Eyes red.
Nonbreeding adult (Basic Plumage): Upperparts gray to gray-brown. Underparts and throat white. Irregular border of dark and light along neck. Wedge of white extending from throat to back of neck. White crescents around eye. Bill silvery-gray with black upper edge. Eyes dark.
Sex Differences

Sexes alike in plumage, male larger.
Immature

Juvenile similar to nonbreeding adult, but head more uniformly dark with more distinct edge between light underparts and dark upperparts. Back feathers edged with light, giving a scaled appearance. Bill paler, but still with dark upper edge.
Similar Species

* Cormorants have longer necks and blunt-tipped or slightly hooked bills and are not white on chest or throat.
* Yellow-billed Loon has ivory-yellow bill with dark only at the base of the upper edge. In winter, neck is paler with dark ear patch.
* Red-throated Loon has more slender bill usually held more upward, paler face in winter, and neck without pale collar.
* Pacific Loon is smaller with even division between gray and white on side of neck, lacks pale collar. Lacks the Common Loon's white around the eye.

Sound

Call a tremulous wail.
»listen to songs of this species
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Range
Range Map
Common_Loon_AllAm

© 2003 Cornell Lab of Ornithology
About the map
Summer Range

Breeds across Alaska and Canada, southward to northern United States and Yellowstone region. Also in Greenland, Iceland, and rarely in Scotland.
Winter Range

Winters along both coasts and inland on large lakes from Alaska to southern Mexico, and Newfoundland to eastern Mexico. Also winters in Europe from Iceland to the Mediterranean.
Habitat

* Breeds on clear freshwater lakes with rocky shorelines surrounded by forest; also on subarctic tundra lakes.
* Stages for migration on large lakes and rivers.
* Winters primarily in coastal marine areas near shore; also in large freshwater lakes.

Food

Fish; some other aquatic vertebrates and invertebrates.
Behavior
Foraging

Pursues fish underwater, grabs with bill.
Reproduction
Nest Type

A large wet mass of plant material near the surface of the lake, sometimes on top of muskrat mound. Placed along shoreline or on floating island.
Egg Description

Brown with dark splotches.
Clutch Size
Usually 2 eggs. Range: 2-4.
Condition at Hatching

Downy and active; leaves nest within one day.
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Conservation Status

Numbers decreased across the south part of the range in the early to mid-20th century, but increased in the last third of the century. Poisoning by mercury in aquatic ecosystems and by lead from fishing sinkers can be significant caues of death.The North American Loon Fund is a nonprofit conservation organization that sponsors research, management, and educational programs throughout North America in an effort to check the population decline of the Common Loon and other loon species.

Making Delicious Cinnamon Toast.

I made the most delicious cinnamon toast for breakfast this morning. It's pretty trickym but if you follow the recipe exactly, you can share this wonderful treat with your loved ones, too.

First you will need some kind of toasting device. I like to use the oven... yes, the oven because it slow toast the bread. Use the broiler but don't get too distracted or your delicious bread will burn. If you are in a hurry -- say on a Monday or a Tuesday or a Wednesday or a Thursday or a Friday -- then using the toaster is perfectly acceptable. But on a weekend, you should use the oven. Take your time. Savor the moment.

Choose a nice artisan bread. I find ciabatta a little too chewy -- great for sandwiches though -- so I usually will make it with either foccacia or french or italian long loaf bread -- like what you might use to make garlic bread. Sourdough is also a delicious choice. The tangy flavor of the bread blends delightfully with the crusty sweetness of the cinnamon topping. Raisin bread is another favorite. Cranberry nut is good too. I find banana bread already sweet enough, so I don't use that. In situations where you are pressed for time, use good old white bread or whole wheat breat. I love the many variations of whole wheat or whole grain store-bought (When I was a child, I used to know a little girl who called it "boughten bread." I wonder what she's doing today?)

Next you need butter. Not margarine. Not that imitation stuff, but good creamery butter. If you really want to splurge, use European butter: Irish, Danish, French even German. They are very rich and add an exotic zing to your toast. Mostly because they came from overseas. But you can also get that fancy "super-gourmet" feeling by using small dairy butter from Wisconsin or Vermont, or a great local dairy in your area. If you're feeling particularly industrious, make your own butter. Heavy cream in a butter churn and some arm-building churning and you'll have delicious homemade butter.

Of course you need something sweet to carry the cinnamony goodness. I tend to like sugar, either white or light brown. Now you should get pure cane sugar and not sugar made from sugar beets. Some people say you can taste the difference between cane sugar and beet sugar. I can't. But I buy the cane stuff just in case. Do not use the artificial stuff. It might blow up. You do not want to be rebuilding your house because you thought you'd save a couple of calories with some stuff in the pink, blue or yellow packet, and then all of a sudden, "BOOM!" Your house blows up. Use the sugar.

Finally, you need cinnamon. You cannot grow this yourself. You must get it in the grocery aisle. Make sure you get it from a reputable spice merchant. If anyone approaches you on the street with cinnamon for sale and wants you to take a sniff, run. Run straight home and do not come out for three days. (Of course that might screw up your plans for making cinnamon toast, but better safe than sorry.)

Turn on the oven. Sometimes I'll use the broiler, but you have to stay right with the oven otherwise your toast will burn. The "bake" mode on the oven is slower, but more predictable. (Oh, and make sure the oven light comes on so you can see your toast turn golden brown.)

Slice bread as thick as you like, but not too thick or not too thin. Too thin makes crackers. We want toast. Spread slices with a layer of butter. Yummy. Make the butter layer not too thick, but just enough to give the sugar mixture a place to cling to.

Mix some sugar with some cinnamon. This is a matter of your personal taste. I like mine cinnamony, but not too much. But do not forget the cinnamon otherwise you'll just have sugar toast, which is a treat unto itself.

Sprinkle the sugar cinnamon mixture on the buttered slices. Go all the way to the edges of the bread. Put the bread in the oven. I like to use a baking tray but I have seen people put the bread directly on the oven racks. But be careful, if your bread falls through the racks, you might have to start over.

Wait and watch the bread toast. When it is a golden brown as you like, carefully remove the delicious cinnamon toast from the oven. Use oven mitts. I like to put them on right when I put the bread in the oven and while I am waiting for the bread to toast, do the famous cinnamon toast dance. I do not have time to teach it to you now, so just improvise your own dance. Wear your oven mitts. Safety First!

When the toast golden brown and crispy, bubbly goodness, remove from oven and serve. Be careful if you eat it right out of the oven standing over the kitchen sink as it will be hot. But the crumbs will fall in the sink, so clean up is a breeze.

Enjoy your delicious cinnamon toast with your favorite morning beverage. I like mine with hot coffee now, but I used to like ice cold milk. Sometimes hot tea is good, because when you are sick, it can calm an upset stomach. By the way, did I mention that cinnamon is good for your arteries? Who knew? I read it in Dr. Oz's book.

Well, that's today's recipe. Enjoy, everyone!

A better (healthier and tastier) Chicken Salad:

1 part diced cooked chicken breast
1 part vegetables & fruit -- in approximately equal parts: diced celery, diced onion (preferably red or green--including green parts), halved seedless red grapes, and diced red bell pepper.

To season -- to each pint of chicken salad: 1 t dried parsley, 1 pinch garlic powder, 1 pinch paprika, 2 t lemon juice, 1 packet Sweet and Low, black pepper to taste, and 1 T sweet pickle relish

Dressing: 1 part low-fat mayonnaise, 2 parts low-fat sour cream.

Combine ingredients and chill for at least 4 hours.

Enjoy.

My testicles itch. Anyone have any advice?

As I keep telling everyone, I am from Vermont. Now I am curious to know, since I don't really know myself, if Bernie Sanders is of the Jewish faith? His father I believe was Jewish. Since people at TPM keep talking about Joe Leiberman and him being a Jewish person, and I think someone said he was the only Jewish senator. Well, what about Bernie? Doesn't he count? I certainly don't mean any offense to anyone. Just wondering.