I’M JUST CURIOUS: A little test for the mind

Hummingbird by Emily Poulin, of South China.

by Debbie Walker

Recently I wrote about an old rhyme called “Mother May I,” and some memories it stirred up for me. At the same time Nana Dee had mentioned a couple of older rhymes, one of those was “As I Was Going to St. Ives”:

As I was going to St. Ives,
I met a man with seven wives,
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats,
Each cat had seven kits,
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives,
How many were there going to St. Ives?

So, figure that one out and I will give you the answer next week.

The history of this appears to have been printed as early as 1730, again in 1779, I believe this one was 1837.

The Hummingbird Story

(The name has been changed to protect the privacy of those involved!)

Recently, I was visiting Kathy’s cottage on Winnecook Lake, on the Burnham side. It was a wonderful, relaxing vacation. While sitting on the deck I saw a hummingbird darting around. I decided I would buy a hummingbird feeder to help the cute little bird with a supply of food.

The food packet made 16 ounces. I mixed it up, put some in the feeder and the rest in an empty Diet Pepsi bottle, taped the instructions to the bottle and put it in the refrigerator.

The next morning, I was leaving so Kathy and I only had a minute to say goodbye. I quickly told Kathy about the bottle in the ‘fridge.

Back in Florida the next afternoon I got a call from Kathy. She was talking about the antics of the birds. She told me they were zooming around, flying upside down and running into each other as though they didn’t see each other.

I told Kathy I had seen two hummingbirds crash into each other while I was there, and I have been told those little things are very territorial. After what I saw I do believe that one!

Kathy laughed and said, “I thought they were acting kind of drunk!” “Say, it was the wine bottle you put the mix in, right?” “No, Kathy, there was still a little wine left. The bottle wasn’t empty.”

“Oh, I thought that was the bird’s food that was in it. Ooops, this might be the reason for the erratic flying!”

I laughed. “Good story, Kath, I almost believed you.” I told Kathy I would have to share this story with The Town Line readers, but I wouldn’t use her name. Kathy was relieved to hear that, isn’t that right Kathy? Oooppps!

I am just curious who will be waiting to read the answer to how many were going to St Ives! So any questions or comments please contact me at DebbieWalker@townline.org.

Mr. Bob, I would like to thank you for the kind words you sent to our editor. It was very appreciated!!

P.S. My little first grandchild is already a month old. I had a wonderful visit with her last Friday and I finally got to rock her. I love rocking babies! Little Addi is growing like a weed! Thank you for all your comments!