REMINDER: YOUR SUBMISSIONS ARE ENCOURAGED | | I miss the floating icebergs that I shared two weeks with. | | |
1. Tucson turns 250 next Wednesday, August 20th. The Presidio Museum will be commemorating the milestone with a day of special events next Saturday. Happy Birthday, Tucson!
2. Here at the Flock, I try not to let a bird story slip by. This week, I'm putting my spotlight on the Parrots in Paradise Sanctuary that rehomes parrots on the Big Island of Hawai'i.
3. In Wellness, there is another racquet-based sport that is gaining popularity. It has elements of tennis, pickleball, and squash, and is called padel. I have what you need to know about it.
4. In Volcanoes, I have an online resource that keeps a daily track of volcanic activity around the world.
5. It's back-to-school season across the country, so I've included a special Book Corner this week with a selection of books to help students excel in school.
6. In Bragging Rights, proud mom Divya Shroff sent in some pictures of her daughter Nithya's first day in second grade.
7. Southern Europe has been experiencing a heat wave with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit)that has contributed to numerous wildfires across Portugal, Spain, and Greece.
8. A Tennessee man hiking at Savage Gulf State Park made the fatal decision to pick up a rattlesnake that he encountered on the trail. He was bitten on the hand and later succumbed to the bite. Please never try to pick up a rattlesnake; give it some room and go on your way.
| | Now, to this week's Flock. | | 1. Around Town: Tucson's 250th Anniversary | | Presidio Tucson Museum, portion of a mural by Bill Singleton, 1972 | | Next Wednesday, August 20, marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of Tucson. Dublin, Ireland, born Lt. Colonel Don Hugo O'Connor, who had joined the Irish Hibernia Regiment of the Royal Spanish Army, was tasked with finding a suitable location for a fort to serve as the northern outpost of New Spain. In August of 1775, he selected and laid out the site of the Presidio of San Agustín del Tucson east of the Santa Cruz River at a location that is present-day downtown Tucson. The Presidio was officially established on August 20, 1775. The Presidio Museum, located on the northeast corner of the presidio's original site, is commemorating the anniversary with a full day of activities on Saturday, the 23rd, as part of the year-long Tucson 250+ Celebration. | | August 20th, 2025 is the 250th anniversary of the founding of modern-day Tucson. | | The year 2025 is the official 250th anniversary of the founding of the modern-day City of Tucson. While the Tucson basin has been inhabited for thousands of years, the formal inception date is August 20th, 1775, which is the day when the Presidio San Agustín del Tucson was founded. | | In 2007 a portion of the presidio wall was reconstructed in its original location. | | …We use the date of August 20th, 1775 to celebrate our rich TucSonorense culture. The plus sign in 250+ is to acknowledge our millennial history. Did you know the name Tucson originates from the native O’odham word “s -cuk ṣon” which means “at the base of the black hill”? The black hill refers to what we now call “A” mountain (which didn’t have an A). | | |
The original proclamation of the establishment of the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson:
San Xavier del Bac.
August 20, 1775
I, Hugo O'Conor, Knight of the Order of Calatrava, Colonel of the Infantry in His Majesty's armies and Commandant Inspector of the frontier posts of New Spain, Certify:
That having conducted the exploration prescribed in Article Three of the New Royal Regulation of the Presidio issued by His Majesty on the Tenth of September of 1772 for the moving of the Company of San Ignacio de Tubac in the Province of Sonora, I selected and marked out in the presence of Father Francisco Garcés and Lieutenant Juan de Carmona a place known as San Agustin del Tucson as the new site of the Presidio. It is situated at a distance of eighteen leagues from Tubac, fulfills the requirements of water, pasture, and wood, and effectively closes the Apache frontier. The designation of the new Presidio becomes official with the signatures of Myself, Father Francisco Garcés and Lieutenant Juan de Carmona, at the Mission of San Xavier del Bac, on this Twentieth Day of August of the year 1775.
–Hugo O'Conor, Fray Francisco Garcés, Juan Fernández Carmona
| | Tucson with "A" mountain in the background. | | Tucson celebrates 250 years with downtown murals | |
2. Birds: A Sanctuary for Parrots in Hawaii
| | Lisa Martin, a Flock reader and grandma to Flock student notables Carter and Cayson Martin, tipped me off on this parrot sanctuary. Yes, she's in Hawaii right now! This sanctuary is not far from where I used to live. Parrots are beautiful and full of personality. They can make excellent pets and provide long-term companionship. However, they also require a lot of care and attention, and live a very long time for a pet. Large parrots like Cockatoos and Macaws can live 50 to 60 years. Because of this, some parrot owners realize that they can not keep their parrot and need to find it a new home. That's where Dorothy and Jerry Walsh come in with their Parrots in Paradise Sanctuary to rehome parrots whose owners can no longer care for them. | | Parrots in Paradise Sanctuary | | |
About Us
Founded on the Big Island of Hawaii in 2003 by Dorothy and Jerry Walsh, concerned and caring owners of companion birds. We consider the presence of these intelligent and wild at heart beings a special gift in our lives.
“Our organization is a unique, valuable and lifesaving resource within the local “exotic bird community”. We are committed to support responsible and enjoyable pet ownership and are pro-active avian advocates and caregivers.
Our Approach
So many people that live in Hawaii feel that owning a parrot is a commodity associated with living in “paradise” and therefore seek after the romantic idea of parrot acquisition. Unfortunately, most of these individuals were not educated about the demands of caring for a pet parrot that could very well out-live them. Greedy breeders and pet store giants are all about pushing their sales regardless of the impact that occurs to these innocent parrots.
The Story
For many parrots, they find themselves being moved from home to home or tucked into a dark garage where they will not bother anyone. Even individuals who are properly educated about the demands of a parrot companion find that life’s circumstances change. Health issues, the death of a family member, moving into an apartment or assisted living facility, divorce, allergies, or having finicky neighbors who complain about squawks, all these and more frequently have been heard by us.
| | 3. Wellness: The Sport of Padel | | There's a racquet-based sport called padel that's gaining world-wide popularity at a pace the past few years' pickleball explosion. Padel is played with a ball similar to a tennis ball, a racquet similar to a pickleball racquet with holes drilled tyhrough its face, and on a court smaller than a tennis court with a net in the middle and walls that are in play like a squash court. | | Here's everything you need to know about the sport of padel | | From: Red Bull, By: Jeremías San Martín, March 5, 2025 | | |
What is padel?
Padel is a racquet-based ball sport that could be described as being a mixture of squash and tennis. It is played within an enclosed space like squash but shares similarities with tennis.
So the game is played with a net in the middle like tennis, the court also looks very similar. Like tennis, the players must pass a ball over the net into an opponent's side by hitting a ball with their racquet. However in padel, the walls/fence of the enclosed court are firmly part of the sport's gameplay. Players are allowed to hit a ball after it bounces off a wall/fence in order to keep the ball in play.
Padel is most commonly played by four people in a game of doubles, though it can also be played individually. Playing as pairs harks back to the games social origins.
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The differences between tennis and padel
As mentioned above padel takes its influence from tennis and anyone who watches a game of padel can't fail to notice that everything plays out like a game of tennis. There are differences, the key one being padel is played in an enclosed space. Below are also the difference you'll notice.
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Court size: a padel court is smaller than a tennis court. A padel court doesn't have the same line markings as a tennis court.
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Enclosed walls/fence: they are part of the court and play a part in gameplay
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Racquet: a padel racquet looks similarly shaped to a tennis racquet but is smaller and not stringed.
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Balls: the balls used in padel are smaller in diameter than a tennis ball despite looking the same
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Serving: in padel, the serve is by underarm and not overhead like tennis
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Technique: padel is not so much a power-based game like tennis
| | 4. Volcanoes: Keeping Track of Worldwide Volcanic Activity | | I have a fascination and respect for volcanoes that may be the result of the years that I lived near active volcanoes in Hawaii. I pay attention to reports on active eruptions and regularly include them in the Flock. Earlier this week, while surfing the web, I came across an excellent resource for monitoring volcanic activity around the world: the website Volcano Discovery monitors and reports on active eruptions, minor activity, and warnings. Currently, there are 43 active eruptions, including the Krasheninnikov Volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, which I posted about last week, and the Klyuchevskoy Volcano in the same region. | | Volcano Discovery posts daily maps of worldwide volcanic activity. You may want to zoom in on them by hemisphere and continent. | |
5. Book Corner: Back-to-School Books
| | Here are some great back-to-school book suggestions to help any student excel in the coming school year. The first set of three from Merriam-Webster got me through high school and then college. Let them be your guides. When you start those English classics, research the books to find what others have written about them. You may want to choose another if you have options. | |
Merriam-Webster’s Everyday Language Reference Set Dictionary, Thesaurus & Vocabulary Builder
By Merriam-Webster
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This attractive, affordable reference set is a must-have for every bookshelf and features best-selling references to help build vocabulary and improve language skills.
The boxed set includes the newest editions of:
- The Merriam-Webster Dictionary―over 75,000 definitions for the words you need today
- The Merriam-Webster Thesaurus―over 150,000 word choices, plus usage guidance
- Merriam-Webster’s Vocabulary Builder―learn 3,200 words with quizzes and root words―perfect for test prep!
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The Essential Desk Reference
By Oxford University Press
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What immunizations do you need when travelling to Burkina Faso? Which movie won the Academy Award for Best Film in 1977? What is the mailing address in the U.S. for the Danish embassy? Who is the patron saint of booksellers? The Essential Desk Reference can help you find the answers to these questions--and thousands of others--in a matter of seconds.
Everything is covered–Roman emperors, the books of the Bible, the text of The Gettysburg Address, height and weight standards, mathematical terms and symbols, human anatomy, the rules of the sea, 50 major manned flights into space, and hundreds of other topics. The book provides extensive sections covering science and medicine, arts and leisure, prizes, work, and home.
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How to Become a Straight-A Student
The Unconventional Strategies Real College Students Use to Score High While Studying Less
By Cal Newport
| Most college students believe that straight A’s can be achieved only through cramming and painful all-nighters at the library. But Cal Newport knows that real straight-A students don’t study harder—they study smarter. A breakthrough approach to acing academic assignments, from quizzes and exams to essays and papers, How to Become a Straight-A Student reveals for the first time the proven study secrets of real straight-A students across the country and weaves them into a simple, practical system that anyone can master. | |
The Talent Code
Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown
By Daniel Coyle
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What is the secret of talent? How do we unlock it? In this groundbreaking work, journalist and New York Times bestselling author Daniel Coyle provides parents, teachers, coaches, businesspeople—and everyone else—with tools they can use to maximize potential in themselves and others.
Drawing on cutting-edge neurology and firsthand research gathered on journeys to nine of the world’s talent hotbeds—from the baseball fields of the Caribbean to a classical-music academy in upstate New York—Coyle identifies the three key elements that will allow you to develop your gifts and optimize your performance in sports, art, music, math, or just about anything.
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6. Bragging Rights: Nithya's First Day of Second Grade
| | In most of the country, the school year starts at the end of August or after Labor Day in the first week of September. In Tucson, due to our hot summers, we start a little earlier. This past Monday was the first day of school for K through 12 students. Last week, Divya Shroff shared pictures of her visit to the Fleurs de Villes exhibition in Nashville, TN, with her daughters, Janaki and Nithya, in Flock Friends. This week, Divya's got Bragging Rights with pictures from Nithya's first day of second grade. | | 7. Natural Disasters: Wildfires in Southern Europe | | Please say a prayer for the people of Portugal, Spain, and Greece as numerous wildfires have erupted across southern Europe, compounded by a summer heatwave that is expected to continue into next week. | | Wildfires fanned by heatwave and strong winds rage across Europe | | |
Wildfires caused by arsonists or thunderstorms and fanned by a heatwave and strong winds wreaked destruction across southern Europe on Wednesday, burning homes and forcing thousands of residents and tourists to flee.
Fire has affected nearly 440,000 hectares (1,700 square miles) in the eurozone so far in 2025, double the average for the same period of the year since 2006, according to the EU Science Hub's Joint Research Centre.
Flames and dark smoke billowed over a cement factory that was set alight by a wildfire that swept through olive groves and forests and disrupted rail traffic on the outskirts of the Greek city of Patras, west of Athens.
| | Firefighters work to extinguish a wildfire approaching Trancoso, Portugal. | | |
"What does it look like? It looks like doomsday. May God help us and help the people here,” said Giorgos Karvanis, a volunteer who had come from Athens to Patras to help.
Authorities ordered residents of a town of about 7,700 people near Patras to evacuate on Tuesday and issued new alerts on Wednesday, advising residents of two nearby villages to leave.
| | 8. Snakes: Tennessee Man Dies from Rattlesnake Bite | | This next story is a sad reminder to give poisonous snakes plenty of space if you encounter one while hiking. Unless you are a trained herpetologist, never try to pick up a poisonous snake. Rattlesnakes can vary the amount of venom they inject when biting, so if bitten, you never know how deadly the bite might be. Never take a bite lightly. | |
Tennessee hiker dies after being bitten by venomous snake, officials say
Fatalities by venomous snake bites are rare, according to the CDC.
| | From: ABC News, By: Julia Jacobo, August 15, 2025 | | |
A man has died after he was bitten by a venomous snake at a Tennessee state park, according to park officials.
The victim, who was not identified, was hiking at the Savage Gulf State Park -- about 60 miles northwest of Chattanooga -- when he was bitten on Aug. 8, Grundy County Emergency Management Agency Director Matthew Griffith said in a statement to ABC News.
A witness told first responders that the hiker picked up the snake, which is believed to be a Timber rattlesnake, and was bitten on the hand, Griffith noted.
The Timber rattlesnake is the largest and most dangerous of the four venomous snakes found in Tennessee, according to the state's Wildlife Resource Agency. The species can measure between 3 feet and 5 feet long and prefers mature, heavily-wooded forests with rocky hillsides.
Timber rattlesnakes tend to be "more docile" than other rattler species and is likely to stay coiled or stretched out and motionless when encountered in the wild, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo.
| | Warnings about the dangers of snake bites after Tennessee hiker dies at state park | | It's rattlesnake season in Tucson. Be careful, even around the little ones. I'll have more in the coming weeks. | | These Flock regulars are always here for you: | | Don't Be Shy: Share Your Stories! | | I'm looking forward to sharing more of your personal stories - oral, written, or otherwise, as we enter our third year. I'd so love to present them to The Flock, hit a mailbox below to share your story. | | Subscriptions & Idea Submissions
Reminder: Your submissions are always welcomed. | | |
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Your fan and friend,
Beth
| | | The information and materials contained or referenced in this newsletter are for informational purposes only and not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a physician or other qualified medical professional with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before beginning a new health care regimen. Do not disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical advice or care based on anything contained in this newsletter. | | | | |
