Happy Father’s Day to all the brave Dads who brought their children over to see our display and took time out of their day to talk about the beavers. Have you ever stopped to consider what great role models beaver fathers are? They fully participate in raising the kids, work close to home, provide for for their family, are gentle, clean and entirely monogamous. I am pretty sure that if beavers had day-time talk shows there would be nothing to discuss.
Descriptions of our newest threesome were particularly popular at today’s Farmer’s Market, as were details of when was the best time was to see them. There were several who had seen more of them on the news than in the water, and I passed along beaver tips for best viewing. We collected some remarkable stories, 53.00 in donations, made new friends and spread the beaver gospel. A few visiting bay area instructors mentioned updating students on the beavers, and one aunt with a nephew in Marin revealed that her son’s elementary school teacher had followed the story with her students and helped them write the city council. There was even one gruff beaver foe who talked with me about his concerns for costs and flooding and left with a much more positive outlook and a thankyou. All in all a successful day in the field.
Oh, and about today’s letter in the Gazette protesting that I had “twisted” the petition writer’s words; allow me to explain that my intent was to “untwist them”. Or rather to “untwist” the numbers the words were referring to. I am surely not the only one who knows those costs were exaggerated to make a particularly persuasive point. (I dare say that the City used the same guestimator to assess the costs of the beavers that they cleverly employed to measure the height of the dam: and with similar accuracy.) The city twisted the numbers to argue that Martinez couldn’t afford to keep the beavers, and some very cooperative people were generous enough to believe them and sign the petition.
They twisted the record: I was merely setting it straight.
