When you sit back and wonder what the hell am I saying, or thinking...may I point to this as a bit of, shall we say, "redemption?"
This is the first time I've shared this...but I think you will get it. This is...err, my dad.
www.removepaywall.com
Three words of importance here...anyone's guess?
Oh, Gotta do this.
@musso...do you continue to wonder why I post the things I do at times?
This is the first time I've shared this...but I think you will get it. This is...err, my dad.
By Garret Leiva
Herald staff writer
Just off of U.S. 31 there lurks a small sign with a big warning. It is not, however, a warning to obey the speed limit or to drive with caution. It's about the alligator.
Hung on a chain-linked fence overlooking a swampy sinkhole, the wooden sign would seem an appropriate warning - in Tampa Bay. But 1,427 miles north in Traverse City it seems out of context.
And for Terry Pellman, that is the whole point. A running gag over the last eight years, what seems to be an illogical cautioning continues to catch people's intelligence off-guard.
While the sign continues to be a conversation piece, its origins can be traced back to a rather mundane event: the construction of a fence. Pellman, owner of Wendy's restaurant on U.S. 31, said that city codes required a fence to be built around the marshy eyesore.
But it was not until a young boy's curiosity got the best of him that Pellman struck upon the idea for the sign.
"There was a kid looking over the fence one day and someone hollered out a window, 'Look out for the alligator!'" Pellman said. "Well, the kid jumped back and looked, and pretty soon all the tourists that were out on the tables eating went over to look for the alligator."
Shortly after the incident, Pellman had a sign painted with an alligator lumbering out of a swap. Above the reptile were the words "Beware of the alligator." Nearly a decade later, the search for the elusive creature continues.
"Every year people will park their cars and get out to look for the alligator," Pellman said.
With the sign becoming something of another roadside attraction, customers at the fast-food restaurant aren't inquisitive about whether their burger comes with cheese. Instead they have questions about the 'gator. Lots of questions.
Pellman remains the constant jokester.
"People always ask questions," he said. "We'll have them all this winter:
'Is there really an alligator out there?'
'Well, of course, ma'am, it's the middle of winter.'
'What does it do when it snows?'
'It hibernates.'"
Others ask if the alligator bites, which is usually followed by, "Can we feed it?"
Sometimes the questions are more personal in nature, such as, "Does it have babies?"
Pellman's pat answer: "That usually takes two."
While Pellman remains tongue-in-cheek about the alligators existence, one may wonder if such an animal could exist in Grand Traverse County?
Scientifically speaking, the chances range from slim to none. According to "Crocodiles and Alligators of the World," the range of the alligator at one point extended as far north as Maryland.
Of course, that was a half-million years ago. Habitat and climatic changes have forced the alligator today to reside in tropical regions such as Florida, Louisiana and southern Georgia.
"My first impression is that they could not survive the cold weather," said Fred Tank, a biology professor at Northwestern Michigan College.
Tank also pointed out that alligators lay their eggs in piles of organic material, relying on the warmth of the environment to hatch their young - a form of procreation not conducive to 6-foot-tall snow drifts.
Despite these seemingly insurmountable circumstances, alligators do exist in Traverse City. Just ask Ken Tondreau, store manager of Reptilian Obsession in the Cherryland Mall.
"Alligators do really well if the person has time to take care of them," he said.
Along with the usual cadre of snakes, lizards and turtles, the pet store also carries a handful of American alligators. Although they don't stay that size for long. Tondreau noted that these $150 "babies" can grow in length of 8 to 12 feet.
"We let everyone know what they're getting into before they leave the store," he said.
Tondreau said that taking care of an alligator's basic needs requires clean water, food and plenty of warmth. While the animals can take the cold for a day or two, they thrive in 75 to 85 degree temperatures.
"Outside they could survive the summer months, but come winter time they wouldn't last long," Tondreau said.
So while scientific evidence may debunk the words painted across Pellman's sign near Wendy's, it is unlikely to read, "Beware of the giant carp" anytime soon. It would ruin the punch line.
"Change the alligator?" Pellman said. "What, and spoil all the fun."
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Three words of importance here...anyone's guess?
Oh, Gotta do this.
@musso...do you continue to wonder why I post the things I do at times?
