A Few Announcements

 Good frosty morning! 

It got down to 31F here at my house last night - and was likely colder in some spots. I had brought in my only tender plants (two of them) but I haven't looked at the forecast for tonight so I'm not sure it's worthwhile to put them back out. It may be better to let them stay safe in the garage for another night or two. Looks like a chilly weekend ahead.

For Joe's Ponders - the JPA meeting is tomorrow, Saturday, at 10 a.m. at the pavilion. President Joe Hebert and the Board of Directors stated on the Events Schedule in the newsletter: Masks and Social Distancing Required if not fully vaccinated. Please keep that in mind. Some people may want to wear their masks even if vaccinated - it depends on how crowded it gets and whether the side curtains are up for free air flow or down to keep us warmer. Your choice, use common sense. Also, remember that it is going to be definitely on the cold side at the meeting, especially if the wind is blowing - and when does it NOT blow at Joe's Pond? Wear warm clothing and be prepared.

There have been reports that kayakers have been going very close to the floating platform where the loons are already nesting. Please stay away from that area. There is a sign to warn people away from the platform, but apparently some people are ignoring that and going close to the platform. This could spook the loons so they might abandon the nest or an egg could be accidentally knocked out of the nest if the loon was frightened off - it's just not something we what to see happening to our loon family. Stay away. Take your binoculars and watch from a distance or take photos with you zoom camera. There are enough predators in the wild that threaten the loons without humans adding to their misery.

One of those threats has been mentioned by Gretchen Farnsworth who tells me there is an eagle in the area again this year. The eagle has been suspect in past years when loon chicks have suddenly disappeared - an easy lunch for a watchful eagle, probably. There are also large fish that can threaten the loon chicks, as well as a few other animals. That we have a possibility of two nesting pairs being successful in raising chicks again this year, one between the first two ponds and the other at the platform off Sandy Beach Road, is an exciting prospect. We will be watching both families carefully - from a respectful distance!

I also want to let you know that the email address given in the newsletter for people can sign up to reserve a copy of the West Danville history book when it is printed later this summer, is wrong. Here is the correct e-mail address to get your name on the list: book@danvillevthistorical.org.  If you still have trouble, please let me know and I'll put  your name on the list. My email is: janebrowncabot@gmail.com.

I was at the historical society yesterday and we were able to iron out a few of the last wrinkles to get the photos and captions done and inserted in the right places. The ladies thought they might be finished with this complicated phase by the end of today. That would mean the complete manuscript can go back to the editor one last time, then Randee will format it into a pdf and it's off to the printer. The editing and formatting will take time, but we are much, much closer to publication now and I'm confident we'll have books in hand by late summer - if not before. I'm always the optimist. The photos in the book will be great - there were many that were not good quality and could not be used. We decided with all the work done on the text of the book, we wanted to be sure the photos were high quality, as well. Some that we wanted to keep would simply not reproduce well and could not be replaced or re-shot. We think we have made good decisions in this respect.

Enjoy your long weekend, stay safe, warm and healthy. I hope to see you at the meeting tomorrow!