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When Pink Elephants Fly!

October 7, 2021 — 17 Comments

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Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

A man is flying in a hot air balloon and realizes he is lost.

He reduces his altitude and spots a man down below.

He lowers the balloon further and shouts: ”Excuse me, can you tell me where I am?”

The man below says: ”Yes, you’re in a hot air balloon, hovering 30 feet above this field.”

”You must work in Technical Support,” says the balloonist.

”I do,” replies the man. ”How did you know?”

”Well” says the balloonist, ”everything you have told me is technically correct, but completely useless.”

The man below says: ”You must be in management.”

”I am,” replies the balloonist, ”but how did you know?”

”Well”, says the man, ”you don’t know where you are, or where you’re going, but you expect me to be able to help. You’re still in the same position you were before we met, but now it’s my fault.”

Interesting Fact:  The Balloon Fiesta grew each year for decades, and today is the largest balloon convention in the world. The number of registered balloons reached a peak of 1,019 in 2000, prompting the Balloon Fiesta Board to limit the number to 750 starting in 2001,[3] citing a desire for “quality over quantity”. The limit was changed to 600 in 2009 — citing recent growth in the city and a loss of landing zones. On any given day during the festival, up to 100,000 spectators may be on the launch field where they are provided the rare opportunity to observe inflation and take off procedures. Countless more people gather at landing sites all over the city to watch incoming balloons.  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_International_Balloon_Fiesta#History )

Lets Get Carried Away!

October 6, 2021 — 4 Comments

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Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

What did the balloon say to the doctor?

“I feel lightheaded!”

Interesting Fact: In 1975 Albuquerque was looking at hosting the World Championships again, but the event was scheduled for October. So the fiesta was moved to correspond with the championships. To maintain interest in Albuquerque’s bid to host the championships, a balloon rally was held in February of that year. Autumn being a far better flying time than February, the event has remained in early October to the present day.  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_International_Balloon_Fiesta#History )

I Never Get Tired Of The Blue Sky!

October 5, 2021 — 14 Comments

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Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

What is a balloon’s least favorite school activity?

A pop quiz.

Interesting Fact: The Balloon Fiesta began in 1972 as the highlight of a 50th birthday celebration for 770 KOB Radio. Radio station manager Dick McKee asked Sid Cutter, owner of Cutter Flying Service and the first person to own a hot air balloon in New Mexico, if KOB could use his new hot-air balloon as part of the festivities. The two began discussing ballooning, along with conversation and help from Oscar Kratz, and McKee asked what the largest gathering of hot air balloons to date had been. 19 balloons in England, Cutter replied. Kratz asked “Can we get 19 here?” Cutter agreed to try. He got commitments from 21 pilots, but bad weather kept some of them from arriving in time. The first fiesta ended up as a gathering of 13 balloons on April 8, 1972, sponsored by KOB. The first event was located in the parking lot of the Coronado Center Shopping Mall with 20,000 spectators and with balloonists from Arizona, California, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada and Texas taking part. McKee, Cutter, and Kratz are the three men who had originally started the balloon races.[2] The first fiesta incorporated a “Roadrunner-Coyote Balloon Race” (a “hare-and-hounds” race elsewhere in the world) with 1 balloon being the “Roadrunner” and the others being “Coyote” balloons (the “Roadrunner” balloon was actually emblazoned with likenesses of both Warner Bros. characters). The winner of the race – the “Coyote” that landed closest to the Roadrunner – was Don Piccard of the noted aerostation dynasty, flying a balloon of his company’s design and construction (his wife also placed in the race). This race has continued as part of the Balloon Fiesta today.  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_International_Balloon_Fiesta#History )

If You Never Let Your Self Go, You Will Never Know How Far You Can Rise!

October 4, 2021 — 11 Comments

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Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

Why can’t you give Elsa a balloon?

She’s sure to let it go.

Interesting Fact: The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a yearly hot air balloon festival that takes place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during early October. The Balloon Fiesta is a nine-day event from October 6th to October 14th, and has over 500 hot air balloons each year. The event is the largest balloon festival in the world[1]. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_International_Balloon_Fiesta )

Hey Bro! Want To Have A Staring Contest?!

March 12, 2021 — 19 Comments

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Sandhill Crane

What did the tie say to the hat?

You go on ahead and I’ll hang around.

Interesting Fact: The elegance of cranes has inspired people in cultures all over the world—including the great scientist, conservationist, and nature writer Aldo Leopold, who wrote of their “nobility, won in the march of aeons.”  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sandhill_Crane/ )

Do You Want To Be Part Of My Pack?

March 5, 2021 — 17 Comments

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Coyote

What do you say when you meet a talking Coyote?

Howl about that?

Interesting Fact: Coyotes are smaller than wolves and are sometimes called prairie wolves or brush wolves. They communicate with a distinctive call, which at night often develops into a raucous canine chorus. ( https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/coyote/ )

I Know You Are Jealous Of My Beak

January 30, 2021 — 7 Comments

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Northern Shoveler ( Female ) 

How do you know if there’s a snowman in your bed?

You wake up wet!

Interesting Fact: Northern shovelers feed by dabbling for plant food, often by swinging its bill from side to side and using the bill to strain food from the water. They use their highly specialized bill (from which their name is derived) to forage for aquatic invertebrates – a carnivorous diet. Their wide-flat bill is equipped with well-developed lamellae – small, comb-like structures on the edge of the bill that act like sieves, allowing the birds to skim crustaceans and plankton from the water’s surface. This adaptation, more specialized in shovelers, gives them an advantage over other puddle ducks, with which they do not have to compete for food resources during most of the year. Thus, mud-bottomed marshes rich in invertebrate life are their habitat of choices. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_shoveler#Behavior )

When Nothing Goes Right… Go Left!

January 7, 2021 — 2 Comments

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Sandhill Cranes

How do you make fruit punch?

Give them boxing gloves.

Interesting Fact: Sandhill Cranes are known for their dancing skills. Courting cranes stretch their wings, pump their heads, bow, and leap into the air in a graceful and energetic dance. ( Sandhill Crane Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )

 

 

A Good Mood Is Like A Balloon, One Little Prick Is All It Takes To Ruin It.

January 4, 2021 — 11 Comments

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Rio Rancho, New Mexico. 

Did you hear the rumor about butter?

Well, I’m not going to spread it!

Interesting Fact: The great majority of Rio Rancho was originally part of the Town of Alameda Grant, which was founded by Spanish settlers in 1710. By the early 20th century, much of the land grant had been sold to land investment companies. Amrep Corporation purchased 55,000 acres (22,000 ha) in 1961 and turned the land into a housing development called “Rio Rancho Estates”, with the first families moving in the early 1960s. Amrep contracted with Ezio Valentini, one of the original developers of Cape Coral, Florida, to design and implement a unique marketing plan to conduct land-sales, dinner-party program in northern states to open offices in 14 states. The population grew ten-fold between 1970 and 1980 and the City of Rio Rancho was incorporated in 1981. The opening of a large Intel Corporation plant in 1981 had a major economic impact on the city. ( Rio Rancho, New Mexico – Wikipedia )

 

 

You Want A Little Bit Of The Top?!

December 8, 2020 — 9 Comments

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Sandhill Crane

A guy walks into a bar with a set of jumper cables…

the bartender says, buddy, I’ll serve you as long as you don’t start anything.

Interesting Fact:  Sandhill Crane chicks can leave the nest within 8 hours of hatching, and are even capable of swimming. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sandhill_Crane/overview )