This was the week where a solution for removing bats from the Great Hall was thrust upon Cherry when Honest Ernest suddenly showed up in his trademark yellow jumpsuit. Violet confirmed hiring him to remove the bats. Cherry was less than impressed.

Cherry questioned his knowledge and preparedness, even offering him her gloves for protection, since Ernest had no protective clothing on. Naturally, he had the situation under control and declined Cherry’s offer. Ernest retrieved a pest-control sprayer from his work van and entered the Great Hall. Not surprisingly, the bats once again fled, one of them nicking Ernest in the face as it flew out. In spite of his attempts to play it down, the gals insisted on taking Honest Ernest to the hospital for rabies shots.

While this story may not exactly be a barnburner of drama and action, it has the advantage (like other adventures of Cherry’s) of being more or less a slice of daily life, however nutty the people are. Her stories are grounded in the local landscape of her community. I wish Rivera would open up the community even more and expand the cast of characters and storylines. She has made a start with Jeanine, Georgia, her mysterious brother, and Squirrely Sandy. C’mon, Rivera! Don’t sell Cherry or your readers short. Cherry does not need to face off against the same cast every time. New characters simply have to inspire new ideas and storylines.

Anyway, while we wait two weeks to find out what happens, Mark has another Sunday topic to present. Take it away, Mark!

So, Mark focuses on reindeer over Christmas holiday. Seems like an appropriate subject! I listened to an NPR interview the other day that discussed reindeer and covered most of these points with regard to their surviving the cold. Another point the interviewer went into was the sophisticated “heat exchange” setup within their thin legs to them from freezing and breaking off.

Normally, Rivera’s punchlines are like bad “Dad jokes.” But I think this one hit the Funny Bone. Well done.