OT -- Tiger Frogs

The Ranger said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"

Wonderful story snipped. A "must read".

Quoted message said:

Dear The Ranger, What a nice Fourth Of July treat! Thank you. Happy
Holiday to you and yours.

In article <[email hidden]>,

The Ranger said:

"ALRIGHT! I get..."

We're on our seventh phone call and it would appear that we're
going to have quite a crowd around the Clan Ranger International
Amphibian Aquariums tomorrow. I guess I'd better make an effort to
clean out my Catch-All-Clutter-Containment Center (aka "two-car
garage"😉.

The Ranger

Fun fun fun. :-)
Tadpoles are only one down from hatching chicks or ducks from eggs on my
list of favorite miracles...

I've done toads, leopard frogs and one bull frog once.
I had the bullfrog for 2 years. Not sure why she died. :-(
--
Peace, Om

Remove _ to validate e-mails.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a Son of a [censored]" -- Jack Nicholson

The Ranger said:

The four of us squatted down around the tank that housed the
remaining eight tadpoles we'd liberated from a nearby creek. I
watched as a prime example of Darwinian Progress climbed out of
the water and onto the side of the tank, almost a frog (except the
remaining nub of a tail.) "Wow..." I breathed. "Cool, huh? You
going to call up your uncles and friends about this?"

The Ranger

Heh. When I lived in Bangkok I got a bunch of slimy goo out of the pond
from our front yard. Much to the maids dismay I confiscated one of her big
steel wash tubs and pile some rocks in the middle and filled it with water
and deposited said goo (frog eggs) into it. After a short while, the eggs
turned into a multitude of tadpoles swimming around. Then the tadpoles
morphed into teeny tiny frogs. They came out of the water, crawling all
over the rocks I'd piled up in the wash tub. They were tiny and very cute!
Most of them didn't survive due to the excessive heat (hey, get back in the
water!) but those that did eventually hopped off (still very tiny!) to live
in the ponds in our front yard. The ponds were naturally fed (klong water)
and had lovely flowering lily pads floating on them. Ahh, memories but no
photos!

Jill

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"

There was no mistaking the tones. They resonated with that edgy panic, the
type that causes parents' hearts to constrict in fear and one's
Imagination to careen out of control envisioning "the worst."

I dropped the onions and knife into the sink with the remaining vegetables
and turned at a dead run to the garage door. As I reached for the brass
knob three excited, yet seemingly unbloodied and unbroken, daughter-units
were jostling to get through the doorway. We all skidded to stops.

"Who's hurt? Where's Miguel? Did you dump something? Why are you acting
like someone got hurt?" I bellowed over their raucous chorus.

My three magpies stopped their chittering and three jaws clacked shut;
clack, clack, clack.

Daughter-unit Beta looking down and scuffing her toe on the tile floor of
the kitchen, her hands clasped tightly behind her back, ventured, "We got
a frog."

"YEAH! YEAH! We gotta uh uh uh FWROG!" Spawn yelled excitedly.

I closed my eyes and started to count quietly. To calm the racing pulse
that was keeping a beat in my temple. I took a deep breath and exhaled it
slowly. "Good. Go out and see if the other seven are ready to morph," and
I turned away to finish dinner.

"But, Dad? You gotta come see him, first."

I turned back towards Daughter-unit Alpha and saw the other two bobbing
their exaggerated affirmations. I sighed again and dropped my chin to my
chest, "Alright. For just a moment."

This experiment in wildlife observation was turning out better than I'd
hoped. We'd started with a capture of over 40 tadpoles, two snails, and
several dozen other assorted creek-dwelling inhabitants. I'd even learned
a valuable lesson on tadpole-ology; the suckers are vicious carnivores and
voracious cannibals!

The four of us squatted down around the tank that housed the remaining
eight tadpoles we'd liberated from a nearby creek. I watched as a prime
example of Darwinian Progress climbed out of the water and onto the side
of the tank, almost a frog (except the remaining nub of a tail.) "Wow..."
I breathed. "Cool, huh? You going to call up your uncles and friends about
this?"

"Can we??" three faces peered up as I walked back inside.

"'Course," I frowned. "I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't serious. Each
decide who calls who and you can start now."

"ALRIGHT! I get..."

We're on our seventh phone call and it would appear that we're going to
have quite a crowd around the Clan Ranger International Amphibian
Aquariums tomorrow. I guess I'd better make an effort to clean out my
Catch-All-Clutter-Containment Center (aka "two-car garage"😉.

The Ranger
--
"Grits are akin to Elmer's Paste with less flavor and more sand."

I love hearing about the kids. But this is a food group and now you have to
tell us what else they eat. Besides that first course... And can we eat
them?
Edrena

margaret suran <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

The Ranger said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"

Wonderful story snipped. A "must read".

Quoted message said:

Dear The Ranger, What a nice Fourth Of July treat! Thank you.
Happy Holiday to you and yours.

/bows low to Dame Suran

I live but to serve.

The Ranger

jmcquown <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

The Ranger said:

The four of us squatted down around the tank that
housed the remaining eight tadpoles we'd liberated
from a nearby creek. I watched as a prime example
of Darwinian Progress climbed out of the water and
onto the side of the tank, almost a frog (except the
remaining nub of a tail.) "Wow..." I breathed.
"Cool, huh? You going to call up your uncles and
friends about this?"

Jill's Bangkok Production elided

That batch is still prodigiously producing every season. Two of my
neighbors have koi and goldfish ponds (wired to prevent the local
mammalian predators from enjoying fresh sushi) which apparently
has provided perfect nurseries for additional salamanders, frogs,
and toads.

The Ranger

The Joneses <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"

There was no mistaking the tones. They resonated
with that edgy panic, the type that causes parents'
hearts to constrict in fear and one's Imagination to
careen out of control envisioning "the worst."

I dropped the onions and knife into the sink with
the remaining vegetables and turned at a dead run
to the garage door. As I reached for the brass knob
three excited, yet seemingly unbloodied and unbroken,
daughter-units were jostling to get through the doorway.
We all skidded to stops.

"Who's hurt? Where's Miguel? Did you dump
something? Why are you acting like someone got
hurt?" I bellowed over their raucous chorus.

My three magpies stopped their chittering and three jaws
clacked shut; clack, clack, clack.

Daughter-unit Beta looking down and scuffing her toe
on the tile floor of the kitchen, her hands clasped tightly
behind her back, ventured, "We got a frog."

"YEAH! YEAH! We gotta uh uh uh FWROG!" Spawn
yelled excitedly.

I closed my eyes and started to count quietly. To calm
the racing pulse that was keeping a beat in my temple.
I took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. "Good. Go
out and see if the other seven are ready to morph," and I
turned away to finish dinner.

"But, Dad? You gotta come see him, first."

I turned back towards Daughter-unit Alpha and saw
the other two bobbing their exaggerated affirmations.
I sighed again and dropped my chin to my chest, "Alright. For
just a moment."

This experiment in wildlife observation was turning out
better than I'd hoped. We'd started with a capture of
over 40 tadpoles, two snails, and several dozen other
assorted creek-dwelling inhabitants. I'd even learned a
valuable lesson on tadpole-ology; the suckers are
vicious carnivores and voracious cannibals!

The four of us squatted down around the tank that
housed the remaining eight tadpoles we'd liberated
from a nearby creek. I watched as a prime example
of Darwinian Progress climbed out of the water and
onto the side of the tank, almost a frog (except the
remaining nub of a tail.) "Wow..." I breathed. "Cool,
huh? You going to call up your uncles and friends about this?"

[snip]

Quoted message said:

I love hearing about the kids. But this is a food group
and now you have to tell us what else they eat. Besides
that first course... And can we eat them?

The tadpoles eat will eat pellets, green or red leaf lettuce,
aquatic plants, each other... They're not particular. It's rather
shocking to have forty one night and half the following morning.
When they morph into air-breathing amphibians, I fed them cut-up
worms (meal and earth), blocks of blood worms, and an unlucky
de-winged fly when Lady Luck allowed. When they become
full-fledged frogs, any insect unlucky enough to fly within range
of their mouth is going to disappear.

Clan Ranger enjoyed a pork stew that night with a warmed loaf of
sour dough and whipped-up honey-butter. The recipe for that is
below:

Pork Stew

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. OO (Olive Oil)
2 lb. Pork Tenderloin, cubed
4 large carrots, cut into 1" pieces
9 "baby" Yukon potatoes, cut in 1/2
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup acorn squash, seeded and chopped
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. marjoram (fresh has more flavor)
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (or a pizza parlor packet
is a convenient amt.)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup brown gravy
(1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups water, boiling)

Method:
Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Brown pork cubes.
In a
large bowl, combine remaining ingredients except for broth and
gravy.
Pour into crockpot.
For gravy, use pan that pork was browned in. Melt butter. Mix
in
flour. Pour in water, stir and reduce.
Combine both broth and gravy, pouring over items already in
crockpot. Cover; cook on Low for 8-10 hours or High for 4-5 hours.
Serve
with a heavy bread, peasant's loaf or asiago. Serves six.

The Ranger

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

The Joneses <[email hidden]> wrote in message

Quoted message said:

[snip]

Quoted message said:

I love hearing about the kids. But this is a food group
and now you have to tell us what else they eat. Besides
that first course... And can we eat them?

The tadpoles eat will eat pellets, green or red leaf lettuce, aquatic
plants, each other... They're not particular. It's rather shocking to have
forty one night and half the following morning. When they morph into
air-breathing amphibians, I fed them cut-up worms (meal and earth), blocks
of blood worms, and an unlucky de-winged fly when Lady Luck allowed. When
they become full-fledged frogs, any insect unlucky enough to fly within
range of their mouth is going to disappear.

Dog food is much cheaper than the pellets and they enjoy it just as much.
We always did our spring time hatch in last year's wading pool. As adults,
the little critters raised such a din that you could barely get to sleep at
night. Alas, we now have a wicked Cruella neighbor that enjoys denuding the
surrounding creekside landscape of any foliage or trees and dumping all yard
waste into the creek. All is silent.
Janet

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

The Joneses <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"
(clipped froggy saga)

Quoted message said:

I love hearing about the kids. But this is a food group
and now you have to tell us what else they eat. Besides
that first course... And can we eat them?

The tadpoles eat will eat pellets, green or red leaf lettuce, aquatic
plants, each other... They're not particular. It's rather shocking to have
forty one night and half the following morning. When they morph into
air-breathing amphibians, I fed them cut-up worms (meal and earth), blocks
of blood worms, and an unlucky de-winged fly when Lady Luck allowed. When
they become full-fledged frogs, any insect unlucky enough to fly within
range of their mouth is going to disappear.

Clan Ranger enjoyed a pork stew that night with a warmed loaf of sour
dough and whipped-up honey-butter. The recipe for that is below:

Pork Stew

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. OO (Olive Oil)
2 lb. Pork Tenderloin, cubed
4 large carrots, cut into 1" pieces
9 "baby" Yukon potatoes, cut in 1/2
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup acorn squash, seeded and chopped
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. marjoram (fresh has more flavor)
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (or a pizza parlor packet
is a convenient amt.)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup brown gravy
(1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups water, boiling)

(clipped tasty Method🙂

Sounds real nice. I've got good marjoram and carrots in the garden, as well
as overgrown green onions that need using. And cilantro. Just a sprinkle.
I've been thinking of doing a pork roast with visions of leftovers, but just
enuf for a batch of stew might be better. I'd just naturally have to add an
ice cube of pico de gallo. Don't need a lot but a little perks stuff up.
Thanks,
Edrena

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Dad!!"

"Dad!!"

"Com'ere! Quick!"

There was no mistaking the tones. They resonated with that edgy panic, the
type that causes parents' hearts to constrict in fear and one's
Imagination to careen out of control envisioning "the worst."

I dropped the onions and knife into the sink with the remaining vegetables
and turned at a dead run to the garage door. As I reached for the brass
knob three excited, yet seemingly unbloodied and unbroken, daughter-units
were jostling to get through the doorway. We all skidded to stops.

"Who's hurt? Where's Miguel? Did you dump something? Why are you acting
like someone got hurt?" I bellowed over their raucous chorus.

My three magpies stopped their chittering and three jaws clacked shut;
clack, clack, clack.

Daughter-unit Beta looking down and scuffing her toe on the tile floor of
the kitchen, her hands clasped tightly behind her back, ventured, "We got
a frog."

"YEAH! YEAH! We gotta uh uh uh FWROG!" Spawn yelled excitedly.

I closed my eyes and started to count quietly. To calm the racing pulse
that was keeping a beat in my temple. I took a deep breath and exhaled it
slowly. "Good. Go out and see if the other seven are ready to morph," and
I turned away to finish dinner.

"But, Dad? You gotta come see him, first."

I turned back towards Daughter-unit Alpha and saw the other two bobbing
their exaggerated affirmations. I sighed again and dropped my chin to my
chest, "Alright. For just a moment."

This experiment in wildlife observation was turning out better than I'd
hoped. We'd started with a capture of over 40 tadpoles, two snails, and
several dozen other assorted creek-dwelling inhabitants. I'd even learned
a valuable lesson on tadpole-ology; the suckers are vicious carnivores and
voracious cannibals!

The four of us squatted down around the tank that housed the remaining
eight tadpoles we'd liberated from a nearby creek. I watched as a prime
example of Darwinian Progress climbed out of the water and onto the side
of the tank, almost a frog (except the remaining nub of a tail.) "Wow..."
I breathed. "Cool, huh? You going to call up your uncles and friends about
this?"

"Can we??" three faces peered up as I walked back inside.

"'Course," I frowned. "I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't serious. Each
decide who calls who and you can start now."

"ALRIGHT! I get..."

We're on our seventh phone call and it would appear that we're going to
have quite a crowd around the Clan Ranger International Amphibian
Aquariums tomorrow. I guess I'd better make an effort to clean out my
Catch-All-Clutter-Containment Center (aka "two-car garage"😉.

The Ranger

Nice story. I'd like to forward it, and gice credit. Do I give credit to
"The Ranger:"? Or another name?

Peter <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:05bji.15050$Io4.14500@edtnps89...
[snip]

Quoted message said:

Nice story. I'd like to forward it, and give credit. Do
I give credit to "The Ranger:"? Or another name?

Thank you. "The Ranger" works just fine.

The Ranger

"The Ranger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Peter <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:05bji.15050$Io4.14500@edtnps89...
[snip]

Quoted message said:

Nice story. I'd like to forward it, and give credit. Do
I give credit to "The Ranger:"? Or another name?

Thank you. "The Ranger" works just fine.

The Ranger

Thank you for the permission, I passed it one to someone who enjoyed it.
Thanks for fixing my typo when quoting my post too ;-)