Snow Day, Sunny Crochet and Exotic Animal Training

With another March snowstorm bringing us 18 inches (45 cm!) of snow I was in dire need of something sunny and yellow. At least the forsythia cuttings in my living room were blooming as the storm raged outside.

Luckily, one can always make something sunny and cheerful. And that's all I did on yesterday's gray and snowy Sunday afternoon. A bit of crochet, watching the snow fall and a good read in front of the stove.

Last week I remembered the most emailed article of the NY Times in 2006: "What Shamu Taught Me About a Happy Marriage". Amy Sutherland, author and journalist wrote this highly amusing piece about what she learned from animal training and how she applied it to her husband Scott, whose behavior needed a little tweaking.

"The central lesson I learned from exotic animal trainers is that I should reward behavior I like and ignore behavior I don't. After all, you don't get a sea lion to balance a ball on the end of its nose by nagging. The same goes for the American husband. " The article was so successful, she was offered a book deal. I guess there are more husbands in the world who need improvement.

I don't have a husband who needs much training. But, thinking about it....... Anyway, behavior modification is fascinating to me. The book was in my local library and seems essentially a longer version of the article. If you have a Volkswagen Beetle, but secretly long for a Mercedes Benz, you can read the article here.