Open house at Fish Springs firehouse and croaking frogs

The members of the Fish Springs Volunteer Fire Department would like to invite all of our Fish Springs and East Valley neighbors to come to a special open house at the firehouse on July 22, from 2 to 5 p.m.

We, the volunteer firefighters, would like to meet the neighbors and for them to see their beautiful, expanded firehouse and to check-out all the fire trucks. Have you ever had the chance to drive a BRT? That's a "big, red, truck" and now's your chance. If you join our fire department, you'll be trained and licensed to drive some state of the art fire engines.

We'd like to answer any questions you may have and if you might be interested in becoming a volunteer firefighter for the Fish Springs area. With all the new housing growth we've had lately, we are in need of additional members for our Fish Springs station 9. It's very rewarding to know that you've been able to help your neighbors in an emergency situation. So please come on down to the firehouse on July 22 and get to know your neighbors. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be served.

Croaking frogs: There's a whole lot of croaking going on here in Fish Springs. Do you hear the nighttime serenade of the frogs? It starts after sunset and seems to get louder and louder through the night. We've got lots of frogs in our yard this year. The wet winter and spring kept the little seasonal stream flowing on and off under our driveway. We also get the run-off from the irrigation of the old Finch Ranch across the road. All this eventually leads to frogs, and what comes before frogs? All those exciting little creatures we call tadpoles.

The male frog fertilizes the eggs as the female lays them and they hatch about one to two weeks later. Then a tiny animal with a tail emerges from the egg. This is the larval stage of the frog - the tadpole. Tadpoles aren't completely developed and they breathe through tiny gills. They have a round head joined to their body and a tail that makes them look like a tiny fish. They eat plants that grow in the water and as they grow, four little legs appear. The gills cover up as the tadpole develops lungs. Then it has to come up to the surface of the water to breathe and somehow it absorbs its tail and turns into a frog. And when a frog is growing, he often changes his skin. He pulls his old skin off over his head and often eats it. That's when he can turn into a handsome prince if a princess should happen to kiss him.

And how do you think I know all this? Remember that biology class you took in high school where you had to dissect a frog to learn about its anatomy? I paid attention to it.

Garden Corner: "Knee high by the 4th of July." That old farmer's saying about corn on the cob is right-on this year and it looks like we're going to have a bumper crop of corn. Right now we're eating lots of peas. Most evenings find us sitting on the deck podding peas. We freeze some but eat bunches of them raw, right out of the pod. Umm, so sweet and tender.

n Linda Monohan can be reached at 782-5802.