Watermelons

Photo by: Andy Melton

Last Friday one of my Creative Writers, Alex, gave me a watermelon. He also gave me a watermelon serving tray. THANK YOU, ALEX!

Alex inspired me to share one of my favorite MUSES! You’ll never guess what it is…

Cue the Choir in the loft, please…

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!”

 

WATERMELONS!

Watermelons are FESTIVE! They are MAGICAL! They are COLORFUL! They are TASTY! And they happen to be my NAMESAKE!

My fascination with watermelons started a very long time ago in Indianapolis, Indiana. My grandfather let me help plan the family garden. Grandpa showed me where he was going to plant the tomatoes, string beans, peppers, beets, and other vegetables. When we got to the back of the garden, he told me that I could plant whatever I wanted. It didn’t take me long to decide on THREE things…

Popcorn!

Pumpkins!

And WATERMELONS!

We planted a row of popcorn. We planted 8 hills of pumpkins and 8 hills of watermelons. (A “hill” is a gardening term. It is when you mound the dirt into a small hill and plant three seeds in a small triangle at the top. This method is often used for vining plants, like watermelons and cucumbers.)

All summer I watered, weeded and WATCHED my garden grow. And when I saw the tiny swelling of a baby watermelon behind a bloom, I was CAPTIVATED. When the blooms fell off, and the watermelons grew bigger and bigger, I was ENTRANCED!

Photo by: Harsha K.R.

At the end of the summer, Grandpa and I harvested our first watermelon. We took it inside the house and grandma taught me how to cut it open. As soon as I saw the BRIGHT red center, speckled with black seeds, I was EXTATIC!

When Grandma handed me a wedge of that beautiful fruit, I sank my teeth into it and was transported to WATERMELON HEAVEN!

I HAD FOUND MY FIRST MUSE!

At that point I wanted to know everything there was to know about WATERMELONS. And now, I will share what I know with YOU!

Watermelons have a RICH history. The first recorded watermelon harvest was 5000 years ago in Egypt. Yes, EGYPT! Archeologists found paintings of watermelons on the walls of ancient Egyptian buildings. It is believed that watermelons were placed in the tombs of the Pharaohs when they died.

By the 10^th century, watermelons were being grown in China, which is still the largest grower of watermelons in the world.

By the 13^th century, watermelons were being grown in Europe.

And by the 1600’s, watermelons were being grown in America. It is believed that African slaves brought watermelon seeds with them from Africa.

Today, the United States is ranked 4^th in the worldwide production of watermelons.

And watermelons area a huge SLICE of American culture! In fact, many regions have watermelon festivals. Take a look at this watermelon festival in Lulling, Texas.

Did you see the Watermelon Water Tower? How about the Watermelon Queen? Who would like to participate in the Watermelon Eating Contest or Seed Spitting Contest? Me! Me! Me!

Take a look at this video to learn how to spit watermelon seeds!

Not only are watermelons festive and fun, they are also very nutritious! They are chocked full of vitamins and minerals, and they keep your body hydrated on hot summer days. Why? Because they are 92% water!  Maybe that is why they are called… WATERMELONS!

Like I mentioned before, I am CRAZY about watermelons, but this cat might have even ME beat.

HILARIOUS!

I can’t end this MUSE without sharing the world’s largest watermelon. Lloyd Bright of Arkadelphia, Arkansas holds this record for growing a 268.8 pound watermelon in 2005.

Here’s another quick fact: Early explorers used watermelons as canteens.

Yellow Watermelon
Photo by: Le Mai

Okay, one more: The rind of the watermelon is often pickled. Maybe this is because watermelons are the cucumber’s cousin.

Here’s one for the road: There are hundreds of watermelon varieties, but there are five common types: Seeded, Seedless, Mini, Yellow, and Orange.

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF there was a PLANET WATERMELON?

WHAT IF the seeds of the watermelon were creatures and they turned their watermelon into a SPACESHIP?

WHAT IF your main character lived on a watermelon farm? What if he/she grew a watermelon that would not stop growing?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “canteen”. Here is the definition: a small container used especially by soldiers and hikers for carrying water or other liquids.

Garter Snake RELEASED back to the WILD

Creative Writers,

Good evening!

As I had promised, I have released our Garter Snake friend. After a week of being our Creative Writing MUSE, he was certainly ready to go back home. Before I knew it, he had already climbed out of the cage and had slithered towards freedom.

Let's all take a moment to wish him LUCK!

So long, friend.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

Garter Snakes

Common Garter Snake
Photo by: Brian Gratwicke

While mowing my friend’s lawn, guess what I found slithering through the grass? (The key word here is “slither”.)

That’s right, a SNAKE!

I knew right away what I had found – a common garter snake. Since these cute little guys are harmless, I decided to scoop him up.

Creative Writers, we’ve found another MUSE!

GARTER SNAKES!

Garter snakes are the most common snakes in North America. They are mildly venomous but harmless to humans. Even if they do bite you, the toxins in their saliva do not harm people. In fact, a garter snake’s bite hardly ever breaks the skin.

Garter snakes like to live near water. Here, they will find plenty of frogs, tadpoles, earthworms, slugs, and small fish to eat. They use a “grab and swallow” method to catch and eat their prey. Take a look at this video and watch a garter snake devour a worm.

Garter snakes hunt for prey during the day. And while they are hunting, other animals are hunting them. Hawks, eagles, and crows eat garter snakes. So do foxes, coyotes, and raccoons. Baby garter snakes are often eaten by bullfrogs.

Like many other reptiles, garter snakes hibernate during the colder months. They usually hibernate in large groups in a hibernaculum. What a HUGE word! Try sounding it out.

A hi-ber-nac-u-lum is a place where animals go to hibernate. For a bear this might be a cave. Garter snakes look for mild underground dens. Take a look at this video to see the largest garter snake hibernaculum in the WORLD!

One of the most interesting facts I learned about garter snakes is that they give birth to live young. Most snakes lay eggs, but not the garter snake. Sometimes a female will give birth to as many as 85 babies. Another snake that gives birth to live young is the ANACONDA!

A baby garter snake is usually about 5 inches long. An adult garter snake can grow over 4 feet long. They can live up to 15 years.

This is the garter snake that I found. He/she is probably just a year old.

Here’s another interesting fact. The garter snake is the ONLY snake that lives in Alaska.

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF your main character was terrified of snakes and he/she had to go on a field trip to a garter snake hibernaculum?

WHAT IF your main character’s best friend was turned into a garter snake by his/her teacher who was secretly a witch?

WHAT IF the garter snakes had an underground city?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “reptile”. Here is the definition: any cold-blooded vertebrate in the class Reptilia, comprising the turtles, snakes, lizards, crocodilians, and various extinct members including the dinosaurs.

Lobsters



Photo by: Rex Sorgatz

While shopping at the supermarket, I passed the seafood counter and noticed a dead lobster in the lobster tank. As a creative writing professor, I knew I could not let this opportunity pass. I asked the attendant if she would donate the dead lobster to a good cause.

“You want a dead lobster?” she repeated.

“Well, you see, I’m a teacher, and this dead lobster will make the perfect MUSE for my students,” I told her.

“Let me call my manager,” she said.

Eavesdropping on her conversation, I heard her say to the manager, “Sir, I have a very strange request from a man who claims to be a teacher. He wants us to donate a dead lobster for a class project.”

The conversation lasted two or three minutes. When the attendant hung up the phone, she walked back over to the counter.

“You can have the dead lobster,” she said. “But you must write and sign a note stating that if anyone eats this dead lobster you will take full responsibility.”

“Deal!” I said, a little too excited, probably. 

While I wrote and signed the “contract”, the attendant fished the dead lobster from the tank.  We traded lobster for contract, and I thanked her dearly.

JEEPERS CREEPERS, I had found another MUSE!

When I returned from the supermarket, I placed the dead lobster in a Ziploc and packed him in the deep-freeze. It was time for me to research lobsters. Here is what I found:

The lobsters we find in the supermarket or at restaurants are closely related to their freshwater

Crawfish

cousins, the crawfish. I prefer to call them crawdads. In fact, if you look at these creatures, they truly look like miniature lobsters.

Lobsters, crawfish, shrimp, and crabs are all crustaceans. Crustaceans are a group of arthropods that all have exoskeletons (hard outer shells). Humans have “skeletons”, which is the opposite. Our structural foundation is on the inside.

Crustaceans are all set apart from other arthropods because they have two-parted limbs, in most cases “claws”.

When lobsters are not hiding out in a crevice or burrow, they slowly crawl along the ocean floor looking for food. If they are spooked, they flip their abdomen (we call it their tail) back and forth to flee. Sometimes they can reach 11 mph in speed.

Like snails and spiders, lobsters have BLUE blood. This is due to the copper in their blood. Our blood is red, due to the iron.

Lobsters possess a unique ability to produce a special enzyme that repairs their DNA. Some scientists believe that lobster could live almost forever, if they were not hunted, trapped, or if they did not contract a disease.

Lobsters are omnivores, which mean they eat both plants and animals. Their diet consists mainly of fish, mollusks (clams), other crustaceans, worms, and some plant life. Lobsters have been known to be cannibalistic in captivity. Do you know what that means? THEY EAT EACH OTHER! Wowsers!

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest lobster ever caught was 44 pounds. This monster was caught off the shores of Nova Scotia, Canada.

The commercial lobster industry brings in over one billion dollars a year.

Take a look at this video to learn even MORE about lobsters!

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these what if questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF your main character went swimming in the ocean and was encountered by a lobster three times his/her size?

WHAT IF your main character was a lobster trapper and he/she trapped the world’s only rainbow lobster. Maybe this lobster has special powers. What are they?

WHAT IF your main character was a lobster that was trapped and lived in the lobster tank at a supermarket. How does he/she escape?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

P.S. The word of the day is “arthropod”. Here is the definition: any invertebrate in the phylum arthropoda, having a segmented body, jointed limbs, and usually a chitinous shell that undergoes moltings, including the insects, spiders, and other arachnids, crustaceans, and myriapods. 

Pickles

I woke up in the middle of the night very thirsty. I stumbled out of bed and made my way to the refrigerator. I grabbed a jar, unscrewed the lid and took a gigantic chug-a-lug of… PICKLE JUICE!

Pickle Juice is one of my favorite drinks. Yes, I consider it an official beverage.

I went back to bed and had a dream about PICKLES! A very tall man, who was dressed in a PICKLE costume, chased me down the street. On second thought, maybe it was a pickle nightmare. Luckily, the alarm woke me before I found out!

Now that I have revealed how odd I really am, guess what our MUSE is this week…

PICKLES!

Cucumber

While many foods can be pickled, a true “pickle” is a pickled cucumber. People have been pickling cucumbers for nearly 4,000 years.

It all started when people from Northern India took some cucumber seeds to the Tigris River Valley in present day Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. Soon, people learned how to preserve these vegetables by packing them in a salty brine. Eventually this technique would spread into Europe.

During early sea exploration, explorers (and pirates) learned that eating pickles helped prevent scurvy. Scurvy is a NASTY disease that happens when your body lacks Vitamin C. To prevent scurvy, all you have to do is eat fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, fresh fruits and vegetables would not last an entire sea voyage, but PICKLES would!!!

Next time you look at some illustrations of old pirates, check and see how many teeth they have. One symptom of scurvy is spongy gums and the loss of teeth. GROSS!

Some believe that if it were not for the PICKLE, Christopher Columbus and his crew would have died of scurvy before making it to America.

Also, the man that America is named after (Amerigo Verpucci) was not only an explorer but a pickle merchant.

The pickle became very popular with kings and queens throughout the world. Cleopatra , the Queen of Egypt, claimed that pickles were good for health and beauty. The first Queen Elizabeth LOVED pickles and so did George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and uh, The King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley (wink).

So, how is a pickle made?

While there are many different varieties of pickles, ranging from sweet to VERY sour, the dill pickle is the most popular. Take a look at this video and see how dill pickles are made at home.

Pickles are YUMMY by themselves, but you will find many recipes that call for these scrumptious delights, too. One of my favorite recipes that REQUIRES pickles is potato salad. I like both sweet and dill pickles in my potato salad.

Another fantastic way to eat a pickle is to fry them. I LOVE FRIED PICKLES! Take a look at this video and see how it is done. WARNING: If you want to make pickles or fry pickles, make sure to ask an adult for help (smile).

Here is another FUN pickle fact: The average American eats 9 pounds of pickles a year, but Professor Watermelon eats at least double that amount!

Before we start writing, I must show you a book written by one of my favorite friends, Kim Baker!

I wonder what her MUSE was??? Take a look a look at the book trailer below.

If you want to order a copy, ask your parents to follow this link.

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF your main character ate only pickles?

WHAT IF your main character dug up an ancient pickle in his/her backyard?

WHAT IF there was a mad scientist trying to pickle the planet?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “brine”. Here is the definition: a salt and water solution for pickling.

Peafowl

Photo By: Rob Atherton

When I was a youngster, my Mom would take me to a petting zoo. For a nickel we could buy a handful of corn to feed the goats, llamas and ponies. But I was much more interested in the feathers I found on the ground. PEACOCK feathers!

The colors on these feathers sparkled in the sun, and I was truly AMUSED!

Boys, girls, cocks, hens, and chicks… We’ve found our MUSE!

PEAFOWL!

Peahen (Female) Photo By: Hafiz Issadeen

That’s right, PEAFOWL. Peacocks are only the males. They are the ones with stunning feathers. Peahens are the females. And peachicks are the babies. Take a look at the photographs of each and notice their color differences.

Peafowl are native to Asia. In fact, the peacock is India’s national bird. Do you know what our national bird is (USA)?

That’s right, the Bald Eagle!

Today, peacocks can be found all over the world. This is probably because they are relatively easy to take care of, and they are so BEATIFUL!

Take a look at this video to see a peacock fan his plumage.

Amazing, huh? There are a few reasons peacocks display their feathers like this. First, it attracts the ladies (wink). Secondly, those eyes on the peacock’s feathers can scare away predators. And finally, when a peacock fans his feathers, he can hear things better. Have you ever cupped your hand behind your ear so that YOU can hear things better? It works the same way.

Peacocks molt or shed their feathers in the fall. On a peafowl farm, this is when farmers harvest the feathers to sell. Yes, there are indeed peafowl farms. Follow this link to a farm in Minden, Iowa!

Peafowl egg

Not only do people like to buy peacock feathers, some people like to eat peafowl eggs. One peafowl egg is equal to two chicken eggs. Don’t ask me what they taste like. I wouldn’t know.

Since we are on the topic of diet, let’s discuss what peafowl eat. Since they are omnivores, they will eat both plants and animals. This includes grass, seeds, flower blooms, insects, small reptiles and small amphibians.

Peachic, Photo By: Adrian Scottow

And you might be quite surprised that these birds roost high in the trees. With so many feathers, I thought it would be hard for peafowl (especially the males) to carry such weight during flight. While peafowl roost in trees, they build their nests on the ground. A peahen will raise up to six peachicks a year.

Oshun, The Yoruba Goddess of Love

In Asia, the Peacock is highly respected. In fact, the Iranian throne is named the “Peacock Throne”. In the Hindu religion, the God of War and Victory is symbolized by the peacock. And In Africa, Oshun, the Yoruba Goddess of Love and Beauty is symbolized by the peacock.

And if you have ever watched television, I am sure you have seen the NBC logo. Look closely and you will find… a peacock.

White peacock, Photo By: Erik Kilby

Before we begin writing, I want to give you three more quick facts about peacocks. They can live up to thirty-years-old. A flock of peafowl is called “party”. And some peacocks are completely WHITE.

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF your main character woke up one morning and found a white peacock roosting on his/her windowsill?

WHAT IF you wrote a story about a peacock party (celebration)?



NBC Logo

WHAT IF your main character lived on a peafowl farm? What if somebody was trying to steal the peacocks’ feather before fall?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “roost”. Here is the definition: a perch upon which birds or fowls rest at night.

Ladybugs

I LOVE BUGS! And if you have been taking my creative writing classes, following my blog or reading my book, I am sure you have figured that out. Honeybees and Dragonflies have both been a recent Weekly Muse.

We all have certain MUSES that catch our attention more quickly than others, and when I saw these glass ladybugs, my imagination went wild.

So, can you guess our MUSE this week? It wears red with black polka dots… Drum roll, pleeeeeeeease!

LADYBUGS!

Seven Spotted Ladybug

What? I had already given it away? It was too easy to guess? I will try harder and build a stronger mystery next week (wink).

While there are nearly 5,000 species of ladybugs, the most popular is the Seven Spotted Ladybug. This ladybug has a shiny red body with the classic black spots. This ladybug comes from Europe. It was brought to the United States to help with pest control.

Yes, these CUTE little bugs are ravenous aphid eaters. Gardeners and famers love ladybugs and ladybug larvae for this reason. Aphids are very small insects that suck the nutritious juices from plants, leaving the plants withered and lifeless. Within a ladybug’s lifetime, it can eat up to 5,000 aphids. WOW!

Take a look at this video and watch a ladybug eating an aphid. Slimy, yet satisfying!

Many people do not like to use chemical pesticides in their gardens. Yes, pesticides are an easy way to get rid of unwanted pests, but they are also harmful to OUR health. But there is a solution. Home gardeners can BUY ladybugs. Take a look at this video and see how it works.

Ask your parents if they are interested in buying some ladybugs for your garden. Here is a link to a Ladybug Farm.  

Photo By: B. Tristan Denyer

So, if ladybugs eat aphids, what eats ladybugs? Spiders, dragonflies, wasps, frogs and BIRDS! But most birds recognize the ladybug’s bright color and know to hunt for something else. Ladybugs taste NASTY. When threatened, ladybugs secrete a smelly substance from the joints of their legs. Next time a ladybug lands on you, smell it. You’ll know what I’m talking about. Cute, but STINKY!

However, some people believe that if a ladybug lands on you, it means GOOD LUCK!

Ladybugs are most active during warm weather. When the weather turns cold, they will find shelter and hibernate. They will often hibernate together in a colony. Sometimes these colonies grow to thousands of ladybugs! NEAT!

So, I bet you are all wondering if all ladybugs are girls. Nope! There are boy ladybugs and girl ladybugs. Watch the trailer from “A Bug’s Life” to see a funny joke about this. You can fast forward to 1:35 if you don’t want to watch the whole thing.

In fact, ladybugs were named after the Virgin Mary. European famers believed that their prayers were answered when these bugs swooped in and saved their crops from pests. Farmers began calling these miraculous critters “Beetles of Our Lady”. So, there you have it.

With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF the setting of your story was a ladybug farm?

WHAT IF the main character in your story had a pet ladybug? WHAT IF your character could talk with this ladybug and understand its language.

WHAT IF those glass ladybugs are enchanted? Who did they belong to? What is special about these glass ladybugs?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “pesticide”. Here is the definition: a chemical used for killing pests, especially insects and rodents.