Raise Your Hand

Tim and Tom just got back from Mountain School. Had a great time. Thank goodness Tom went or we would never have known that....

One night the park ranger came and did a fireside program. She showed the skulls ("skull replicas" says Tim) of many intriguing animals, including bear, mountain goat, and cougar. After showing the skulls around, she asked what they all had in common. Tim's hand shot up.

"They're all charismatic megafauna," he said.

After several moments of stunned silence, she asked, "What does that mean?"

"Well," he responded, "they're large--mega--animals--fauna--in which people are unusually interested, so charismatic."

Tom told the story at the dinner table and Tim put in, "We saw some charismatic microflora too. Dad found yarrow root. It was so charismatic that everyone was distracted from the teacher while they chewed it up and discovered how it numbs the tongue."

Tom and Tim were naturally popular additions to Mountain School.