Friday, February 22, 2008

Humans and Sheep

Here’s a post that's truly “nature related”. HA! From silly humans to sheep. I don't usually offer anything here on Friday nights as I'd rather lounge on the sofa but I had to share this. It's my 300th post over sixteen months.

At the end of the work week, there’s nothing better than a side-splitting laugh. Agree? We were all tired and dull. Our brains and bodies craved a little relaxation. So we chose the police cadets to give us some entertainment. I talked about their discipline recently. It’s tough. They’re bonding and I can see they’re beginning to relax.

They were in strict formation at 1pm but drill Sgt. Moore was delayed in a meeting. Ah...ha! Major Patty Brown and a few others on the staff had an idea. We wanted to play with police recruits today and lighten up a bit.



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Each are carrying a wooden block in their left hands at all times. It’s mandatory that they have it with them and inscribed on that block is the nickname they earned during their first six weeks in training. Silly nicknames – a name they’ll carry with them for the rest of their lives, if only in sweet memory.

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Major Brown wanted to know the story behind each cadets’ nickname and they had to respond with a serious, respectful reply. If anyone made a sound – muffled laughter or all out hee-haw, they had to get down and push-up.



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This is Scrappy Doo.

Major Brown: That’s a ridiculous name, recruit! What in the hell did YOU do to earn the name Scrappy Doo?

Scrappy Doo: “Ma’am! Everyone thinks when I give commands I sound like a scrappy, barking dog. Ma’am!”

And he does.


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This is Almond Joy.

Major Brown: Tell me about it, ALMOND…JOY? This name is so damned dumb, I wanna know! Now!

Almond Joy: “Ma’am! The sergeant thinks my head shines like the surface of an Almond Joy candy bar. Ma’am!”



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They all fell down. I had tears running down my cheeks and could barely focus the camera.


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Major Brown said she’ll never eat another Almond Joy candy bar and we all agreed. It became a wild party and Sgt. Moore would never know about it. We were breaking the rules...



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Yes, this is Johnson, aka “Nikki Parker” from the sit-com, The Parkers. She’s a born leader and I’m proud of her.

This was an impromptu blessing of angels. We all need such nice surprises and forbidden laughter on an otherwise tense and boring Friday afternoon.

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Every morning on the way to work, I pass the sheep. The sunrise behind them is breathtaking and I moan every time I must pass them because of traffic. Today, the skies were overcast and dull but I pulled into a side street and crossed a busy road on foot to introduce myself to them. Silently giggling…


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Uh-oh. An alien. I got a three-second stare.

Two seconds later,


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I thought, “For goodness sakes, don’t be so darn sheepish! Come back here. Let’s get acquainted.”


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This is what they thought of me.

Well, I’ll have them eating out of my hand soon. And they’ll like it.

28 comments:

Robin (Bumblebee) said...

Before my husband became a big city lawyer, he was in the aviation side of the U.S. Navy for 20 years. The aviation community is famous for the call signs (nick names) they give each other. The idea is that the call sign should be descriptive but in a nasty way. You shouldn't really like your call sign. They follow you for your whole career.

Some of the best ones I remember:

U-haul - For a guy named Trailer.

Bert - Looked like the puppet on Sesame Street.

Pig - Well, he had this nose...

Chunks - Passed flight training despite the fact that he, well, you know.

ZIP - The guy who carrier baggies with him to receptions to bag the extra food.

Gozer - For the guy with the far-away stare.

My husband's call sign?

Weeds. Not only does he mostly exist on lettuce, he has a fine eye for detail.

Robin at Bumblebee

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

Dang May! I cracked up out loud when I saw all those sheep butts running away! The thought of you giggling, trotting across the road to snap photos is too funny. Your police recruits got some much needed laughs and so did I.
Thanks May!

Carol Michel said...

That last picture of the sheep butts... Picture of the Year! It is hilarious. I'm tempted to make it the wallpaper on my laptop.

Anonymous said...

Great post Mary! The sheep story is hilarious and made me laugh. Then when I read Lynne's comment I couldn't help but laugh again just as hard!!

Angie

JeanMac said...

Sheep butts could be a nice header - or would that be "ender"

Susan Gets Native said...

Take that, silly human! We brandishing our fluffy bums in your general direction!

LOVED the cadets' giggle-fest. Can't hurt.

Jayne said...

OH, how I love those photos of the recruits Mary! Especially the ones of them trying desperately hard not to crack up! What a great stress reliever for them!

LOL.... sheep t-hineys shining for you!

Cheryl said...

Another good laugh to start my weekend....love the recruit thing.

I put sheep on one of my posts yesterday and like you I started with a field of 50, they took one look at me, and then there were six. So its a very small flock on the photo. Don't you just love animals and children!

NatureWoman said...

LOL Mary at both of your stories!! Some of those nicknames!! And I love those sheep hineys!!

Kerri Farley said...

Oh I love the recruit story....and those sheep butts....so Funny!
You've made us all smile again, Mary! Thanks!!!

Q said...

Dear Mary,
I love to laugh!!!
Silly humans and sheep make me laugh.
You are getting some nice photos for this class of '08.
Wow, 300th post, congratulations.
May you laugh all weekend.
Sherry

Beth said...

Hoot! What a GREAT post! I love your insights into the lives of the police cadets; wouldn't that make a great reality show? Or maybe a soap opera? "Lives of the Police Cadets"...

Great sheep story, too. You've given me a GREAT way to start my weekend! Thanks!

Anonymous said...

MARY! You know how to capture hilarity, that's for sure. I love this post and the comic relief you pictured. Thank you! (And I have a special place in my heart for your woolly friends)

Cathy said...

OK. I'm cracking up! Sheep butts and Almond Joy. You surely have a rich and diverse life, Mary :0)

The sheep-shun pixes are hilarious. Give 'em time. They're 'shorn' to warm up to you. (Sorry. Best I could give 'ewe' :0)

RuthieJ said...

That was fun Mare. I'm glad you came up with a Friday night post. There aren't too many cadets left compared to your post from a few weeks ago. It was good you helped liven up their Friday afternoon a bit.

I laughed about those woolly sheep butts too! I guess they aren't quite as curious as cows, are they?

Sandpiper (Lin) said...

LOL!! This is one of the funniest things I've read in a long time. My childhood nicknames? Yinna Dinna and Tootsie Roll. Fifty push-ups for me! ;-)
Love the sheep, too. They always give me the tourist view. Perhaps they are trying to tell me something?

Mary said...

Hi Robin, I'm glad all of us don't carry call signs with us. The ones you mentioned are hilarious, though :o) Poor Pig...

Linne, we had a great time. Fifteen minutes of guffaws - then - back to business!

Carol, sheep butts are cute, but I'd rather have seen their faces.

Angie, I see them almost every morning. I'm not giving up yet.

Jean, you know, you're right! I'll remember that photo when I spruce up my blog.

Susan, exactly.

Jayne, stress reliever, YES. For them and the rest of us :o)

Cheryl, your countryside is beautiful, lucky one.

Pam, Almond Joy, Scrappy Doo, Brittney Spears, Bubble Wrap Boy, Grasshopper, Lioness, Kool Aid, etc. Some of them are hilarious.

Kerri, it was a funny Friday, indeed.

Sherry, I can't believe I'd have enough to talk about to produce 300 posts :o)

Beth, hope your weekend is full of smiles...

Anne, don't you just love sheep and little lambs. I'll be visiting them again soon.

Cathy, LOL! Thank ewe.

Ruthie, I don't know how many quit, one or two were missing yesterday but it's still a nice size class.

Yinna Dinna, yeah. I like it better than Tootsie Roll. But Tootside Roll is sweet.

Mary C said...

Now this post is what I call ENTERTAINMENT! Thanks, Mary, for the laughs and giggles. And if there was such an award for ENTERTAINMENT, you would win it hands down! Enjoy your weekend. It looks like we've got a rainy one.

kate said...

Mary,

It looks as if you had a wonderful Friday afternoon. The cadets are a riot ... I'm glad to see Johnson looking so good. The wooden blocks are cute.

The sheep are even better... you get the most priceless pictures woman! I have a hunch this won't be the last we see of these guys.

KGMom said...

Mary--I want to know what you are going to give those sheep to have them eating out of your hand?

Unknown said...

Hey Mary ~
Thanks for the cadet update. It's great to see Johnson still hangin' in there smiling! Go Johnson!!! Congratulations on the 300 posts...here's to 300+ more ;-)

TR Ryan said...

Thanks for stopping by - I've missed you too. I've been stuck underground in Orlando in Disney jail for ten days. I was released yesterday and finally got to the computer. I just missed you by minutes. The good thing about being in jail is curing my Nature Blog addition - having to worry when my status stalled. I loved watching you come from behind and soar, soar, soar. I was your cheerleader there on the sidelines saying go, go, go!

PJ said...

What a nice post describing a side of a story most don't know about...the pet name of police cadets. I can vouch for names people call each other in the Navy (even on the FLEET side!) Those sheep butts remind me of my Golden's butt- ha! I love when bloggers capture very ordinary things, but with flare :)

Unknown said...

I'm late but it's a great post Mary
thanks for the smiles.

dguzman said...

Look at you, trying to get those serious recruits in trouble!

Perhaps you should've tried the "Bah ram ewe" thing from Babe on the sheep?

Cindie Ulreich said...

Thanks for the laugh, Mary. I needed it. I work at a midwestern college and we're getting ready for program review. I've spent my day running reports and pulling data...ick!

Kathie Brown said...

Love the sheep photos, especially the butt shot! Cute!

Larry said...

That was a fun post.-I love the photos where are trying to hold back their laughter.It made me smile.