By Wendy Langhans

Sometimes we are stumped by the simplest of questions.  Like what happened earlier this week on our full moon hike at Towsley.  As we were talking about nocturnal hunters like bobcats and mountain lions, a teenager asked me this this question?  "Why do cats have slit pupils instead of round ones?"

Huh?  I was stumped.  My mind immediately flashed back to my training: "If you don't know, admit it and say, 'I don't know but I'll find out and get back to you.'"

By Wendy Langhans

The sideways glance - it can mean so many things - everything from a flirtatious "lookin' good" to a catty "I can't believe she said that" to a threatening "if you do that one more time....."  But not all creatures have the ability to move their eyes side-to side or up-and-down.

By Wendy Langhans

Earlier this week, I was driving along a winding mountain road in the Angeles National Forest, in a hurry to get to my destination.  It was early evening, a time when the sun-drenched colors of midday were fading to sepia.  I could see the tall, white, spiky stalks of Chaparral Yucca across the canyon, as they stood out against an indistinct backdrop of vegetation.

By Wendy Langhans

Last year, we had to have our shower rebuilt (because it wasn't built right to begin with - but that's whole ‘nother story).  The remodeling contractor recommended we replace the original shower floor tiles, using smaller tiles with a higher coefficient of friction, so that there would be less chance of slipping.  We took his advice.