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w~~- ~ 6.Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, March 6. 1985 For Poorer 4 Column by Viki Bates A HORSE IS A HORSE, Peopy the Palamino. WeII, ed ihe izround. We hÂd - OF COURSE... this lusty Louie mutst have mani rodeo going, the buck- Ever since a smail toddier, hiad too miuch. Next morning ing bronco and the bounicing 1Iwanted a"horse". 1 fancied he was found cross-eyed and beauty. She broke my a sleek. stream-l-ined, princely comatose lying in front of tajibone, 1 boughit a crop. steed, imagining myseif "Kahinkas" door. She herself She threw mie off in Lake On- riding off, movements flow- was inside bUffing hier tario, 1 took away her oats. ing in complete uhisy with hooves. Poor Peppy, pooped She raced to a fence and c ach other and aimost beserk with love threw me over, 1 walked It was a joyous moment, didn't know the fickileness of homne. Somiewhere inbetween th~e day 1 was presented the the femiale. From then onin we both took time out to horse. There she stood. Kalinka ignored oie Peppy; it have a bambino. Hers grew Short, squat, roacbed manie looked like she's had enough up and moved away, mines wthb feet 111cr mantaoie covers. of this willy-niiiy suitor and stili home. She had other lit- SSite resembled a cross bet- kicked him out of her stali. tle tricks toci, like standing Swcen a donkey and a mule or 'd catch ber occasionally perfectly stili while 1 saddied i~whatever. i sifted through scm kngerlsaait her, then letting the air out of Sregistered papers just to make his bars, batting her E.T. eyes her beliy once we were in mid sure "horse" was the right across the barn at him. And canter and have mue ride up- terminoiogy, Sure cnougb, it poor Peppy showered ber side down with the saddle stated "horse" was born on1 with affection ail to no avai. hanging on her belly. Now "hborse" ranch in "horse" Kalinka was a tease, sashay- that takes some doing let me b~arn. Weil, 1 guess that just ing her broach hîps around tell you. i saw a lot of the about settird ber lineage. the barn. road in those days. Let me By scrutininzing ber more We were both green broke. tell you gravel is the best çlosely, 1 reaiized we were go- Me flot knowing how to ride thing for scrubbing the face. ing to get aiong just fine. In and her not liking anyone to Then there was the time that *f act we had things in com- ride fier. There weie some she left saddie and bridie mon. She had-the saine hair probiems. For one thing she bundled near the tree she was as me, extra tbîck and wiry was a huge horse. . .width tied to. Everything was there Sstraight. Same type of wise. Saddles iooked like der- except the horse. She was ,eiongated face with those by bats, girth straps blew back in the barn prancînig in E.T. eyes and even ber body away. She had thîs passion fr-ont of Peppy's stail promis- shape iooked familiar. and it wasn't for the opposite ing hirn sweet nothings. Broad cbest, with flot tOO sex; it was for food. Kalinka is now 15 years mucb up front, narrow waist Anything went into that oid. She's stîli withi me and and barrel 'hips. Further mouth of hers. ..hay, fer- even heavier than before. down, it was tbunçler tbigbs tilizer, dog kibbie, cail 't We're getting too old these and flat feet. Independent, chewable in any shape or days to rip around but she defrant and iberated; she form and you've got a still attempts ta buck every curled ber lip back and gum- customner. Kalinka grew older time i maniage to corne out of mcd yellow teeth at me, so and wider. 1 found bare back hibernation. We've given up wbat could I do? 1 looked her was the easiest way to' ride on saddies ail together, most straigbt in the eye anid knew that nag. fi wasn't easy. She of the time just standing we wouid be friends as long had a one track mind, to get together and reminiscing, as we respected each others that thing off her back using We're both still gourd shaped turf. every trick in her peanut and flat footed, both still de- Tbe first night in ber new brain that she could think of. fiant and obstinate. But we're home, the sassy baggage We sailed in and out of dit- friends. sbowed ber better parts to ches, lawed the sky and kiss- Imagine a group of animais marc bizarre than anything from Star Wars. Some with great, globe sbaped hcads stuck ta the apex of triangular bodies. Others rcsembling hairy. Iegged sausages witb bulbous anten- nae. Still others, with 12 eyes and long, grasping felers that recaîl prehistoric monsters, Ail with built-in self-catapuits, capable of 'fir- ing' the beasts up ta 65 times their length. They'rc reai! More than that, they bave a series of bchaviourai, physical and life cycle adaptations mare fan- tastic than science fiction. Snow ficas are a primitive, wingiess group of insects 2-3 mm. (1/10") lang. They are totally harmlcss - in fact, beneficial- and live al araund us- in meadows, forests, valîcys, mauntain tops, arctic and antaractic - everywhere. They are fan- tastically 'abundant - up ta 45,000/square meter in forcsts. Yt, few of us even know tha! chiey exist. Lacte wintcr provides ani ideal time ta discover this group. Although- abundant and mare active during the summier, they're difficult ta distinguishi from the soif, bark andi leaves on which they roam. During late winter many of these beasts asc.end ta the snow's surface, where, at first glance, they blend with plant debris. But have a dloser look. You'Il often find hopping or gyrating specks under the edges of trees or atop iny mett pools. Snow fleas - also known as springtails - appear in the fossil record as far back as 360 million years. In the en- suing periad, they have evolv- ed into about 2,000 species; somewhat over 300 occur in North America. They aIl show a unique adaptation. An oar-ike, forked projection extends beneath their rear-ends. Spr- ingtails are capable of pulling the outer end of this forked oar forward, and latching it against their abdomen with a special organ. Springtails alto) secrete a remarkable chemical ai the base af the oar. When çompressed, by the Çccjng action, this chemnical deveiops huge internai pressure. 1When the snow flea wishes to move quickiy - to escape, or cover large distances - it mierely releases the latch, launching itself 13 cmn or more. That's like you "firing yourself the length of a foot- ball fied". Other adaptations equip springtails for life in the snow; somnething whieh is alm-ost inconiceivable for cold-blooded animais. Most insects can't cope wvith the cold,and grind to a hiait, hibernating or dyinig outrighit. Snow fleas have developed a natural antifreeze. When the temiperature plummets, these insects produce glycerol, a sugar alcohol, and secrete it into their body fluids'. The presence of glicerol can lower springtails' freezing temperature to as low as -22 degree C. Snow fleas stop eating for the winter - they cani't endure ice in their stomiacli. And, springtaiis head for the right place at the right tiine. During the deptlhs of winiter, they stay below the snow' s blanket. in late wvinter, when the sunt reaches a steeper - stronger - angle, they corne ta the surface, and bask in the suni. Their dark bodiesý - like black objects in Durham offers writer program This Faîl Du,,rhamn College Graduates will have a will be offering a pilot pro- broad technical education, as gram in Technricai Writing. weil as ant understanding of This one-year post-diploma the vocabulary, the func- specializat ion programn is tions, the purpose and the designed to meet the increas- responsibilities of the ing demands for technicai in- technicai communicator. formation in industry and Extensive training will various public sectors. enable the graduate to O.P.P. to use headlights Ail marked and unmarked Ontario Provincial Police vehicles are now being operated with headiights turned on 24 hours a day. OPP Commissioner Archie Ferguson has ordered this move in the interests of safety and increased visibiiity of patroiling. cruisers. "We believe it wiil afford our people t hat extra measure of protection," said Commis- sioner Ferguson. "It will make our vehicles more visi- ble, and we hope people will see the police cruiser and use extra caution." Studies by organizations interested in highway safety have shown that vehicles us- ing headlights during dayiight hours have less chance of be- ing involved in accidents. Those that were involved in accidents suffered less severe damage and injuries. One reason is that a vehicle with headlights on appears ta be dloser ta the other driver. Also, thiey can be seen more easiîy in rear-view mirrors on heavily travelled highways or at longer distances on two- lane hîghways where cars are passing. Bus and truck companies have been using headlights in the daytimie for a numnber of years. The cost Of LuSing headlights in dayiight hours is minimal, SO other Ontario road users could easily follow the OPP example. Commissioner Ferguson said: "Aside from increasing the safety factor for our of- the snow - convert the sun' s radiation to heat. On cloudy or windy days, they dig down a little, b lan ket t ing' themnselves withi snow. Being atop the snaw seems ta provide anr ideal place for snow fleas fo court, and ta breed earIy. On the reaily warm, meit days, spring-taiis congregate around little mnelt pools. The hairs that caver their bodies hold themn atap the water, much the way a feather floats. If you look at a tiny pool, in a footprint or ski trait, you'll often sec a churning mass of springtails. If you look more closeiy stil, you'll sec that it's an elaborate courting dance by many separate pairs. The maie deposits a microscopic packet of spermi on the pool's surface, then takes hold of the female using grasping antennae. And, hie dances lier over the packet, which she puts into her body. The female then begins laying eggs, which flo)at about untiil the pond eventually dries up, leaving eggs stuck to aIl mani- ner of debris. The mnicroscopic hatchlings, came spring, will feed voraciously, growing quickly ta adolt size, 24 hours ficers, we believe that a mare visible cruiser wiIl prevent traffic violations by other highway users. As a result, aur roadways should be sa fer." FOLLOW YOUR HEARI HERTrOE AND TRkE FOUNATO 0F ONTAR[O GIVE WTH YOUR HEAD GKr, to the research that saves more lives. generate and convey technical inforinition through the use of a wide selection of media such as charts, graphs, tables, photographs, blueprints, schemnatics, etc. The graduate wiil be capable of writing clear technical reports, pro- posais, technical and con- sumer manuals, catalogues, brochures and specifications. This program offers good emrpioyment opportunities as well as exciting career possibilities in areas such as autombile manufacturing companies, chemnical manufacturing plants, engineering firms, electronic companies, to name only a few. Co-op placement for in- dustrial experience is an in- tegral part of the program, and current job opportunities and salaries are excellent!I Admission requirements are as follows: applicants should possess a college dipioma, unîversity degree or reiated experience in any technoiogy/enginecring pro- gram or computer science. Applicants with at least ane successfui year in any of the above wili also be considered for this program. For further information regarding the Technicai Writer Programi at Durham Coilege, cali 576-0210 and ask for Rick Kerr in Admis- sions, or Bob Hedley, Department Head in Appiied Arts. Now that winter is drawinig near to, a close, cheer up your home with The APPLE BLOSSOM SHOP Green Trop ical Plants OUR "GREEN" SALE WILL CONTINUE UNTIL ST. PATRICK'S DAY SAVE 2-5% ON ALL TROPICAL P3LANTS IU there is a special plant you need, cati us at 983-5291 and we'il try to get it for you. ALSO SAVE 10%/ on POTTING SOIL and FERTILIZERS OPEN Mon. to Sat. 9 10 6; Fn.ý 9 to 8 Apple Blossom Shop Orono, Ontario Phone 983-5291 Federation of Ontario Naturulists Seen a Snow Flea Lately ANNUAL ORONO FIREFIG HIERS Spring Dance Saturday, March 9, 1985 ai the Community Centre 8 p.m. - 1 a.m. $22.OOlcouple Bar and light lunch included. Tickets available from any fireman or cali 983-5140.