<html><body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"><div></div><div>Squirrel Appreciation Day!</div><div><br></div><img src="cid:A310D6A1-43D6-428D-AC84-462983B19716" alt="image.jpeg" id="A310D6A1-43D6-428D-AC84-462983B19716" width="400" height="362" apple-original-width="400" apple-original-height="362"><div><br></div><div>Courtesy of Gather News at:</div><div><br></div><a href="http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474981043575">http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474981043575</a><div><div><br></div><div>------------------------------</div><div><br></div><div><h1 class="contentTitle" style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-weight: normal; color: rgb(68, 68, 68); margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 0px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Did You Know It's Squirrel Appreciation Day?</h1><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">It's Squirrel Appreciation Day today--January 21st--the second annual celebration of the worthy event. Created in 2011 by Christy Hargrove, a North Carolina wildlife rehabilitator, it's the perfect day to celebrate your furry, nut-hiding friends.</span></div><div><br></div><div>According to a report from the Huffington Post, there are actually about 200 species of the furry, big-tailed animals throughout the whole world, and they come in a variety of sizes. Some species only grow to be about five inches in length--from their nose to their tail--while others can be as big as three feet long.</div><div><br></div><div>Yes, it may be a holiday for nuts and about nutty creatures, but squirrels really deserve a bit more than they're presently getting. Known for being pests that frequently wind up as road kill, they break into attics, wreak havoc with rooftops and sit up on tree branches, pooping on cars that may have had the bad fortune to be parked just below them.</div><div><br></div><div>The little critters are fast gaining in their popularity, however. If you check out gift stores and web sites, you'll find a variety of items boasting their likeness. You can buy area rugs, nut crackers, t-shirts and refrigerator magnets--all bearing the likenesses of furry little squirrels.</div><div><br></div><div>Got some nuts lying around your house? (Not Grandpa or your lazy next door neighbor who is mooching your big screen TV--but actual nuts in shells.) If so, celebrate Squirrel Appreciation Day by throwing a handful or two outside for your furry little friends to enjoy.</div><div><br></div><div>And try extra hard today not to reduce any squirrels to road kill status. They deserve better than that. At least for today.</div><div><br></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">------------------------------</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"><br></span><div>Seeya later, Moscow.</div><div><br></div><div>Tom Hansen</div><div>Post Falls, Idaho</div><div><br></div><div>"If not us, who?</div><div>If not now, when?"</div><div><br></div><div>- Unknown</div><div><br></div><div><br></div></div></div></body></html>