Turkeys

As bowlers know -- three strikes in a row is not a "hat trick" but instead it is called a "turkey" and Benjamin Franklin was a strong advocate of the USA declaring the turkey as our national symbol but the Founding Fathers opted for the more stately -- bald eagle -- as our symbol.

So I don't know what old Ben would have thought of the road trip that my daughter and I did this weekend to Wabasha, Minnesota - home of the National Eagle Center (NEC)(http://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/) which is focused on ecology and wildlife management to keep the bald eagle off the Endangered Species List.

We really enjoyed the classroom lecture that ended with a feeding of the eagle. The NEC is located on the banks of the Mississippi River in a two story, very modern building complete with classrooms, video presentations, children's activity area, and of course the gift shop. While I did find the NEC educational they are clearly still developing the building since it felt a little thin in terms of scientific and cultural (Native American Indians for example) exhibits. Personally though I love to see that the NEC has chosen to feature Stephen Colbert ("Colbert Report") on their website since he has adopted the eagle as his symbol because as he book title says, "I am American (and you can too)".

If readers find themselves in Southeastern Minnesota I would encourage them to pay the NEC a visit -- especially since your federal tax dollars were used to create it :-)

Todd