And a personal story involving a very good friend.
A week ago today on Antelope Island I found this bison bull scratching his chest on one of the large Tintic Quartzite boulders that are so prevalent on the north end of the island. He was rocking back and forth and alternately throwing his massive head upward, which made the long dark hairs on top of his head stand on end momentarily.
I was unaware that a bison, particularly a huge bull bison, could lift his head quite this high.
Then he started with some impressive and long-lasting tongue gymnastics. Bison tongues are longer than one might expect and they’re mostly blackish gray, with a…
pink underside so their tongues are often described as being bi-colored. He waved that tongue around for a long time, until he eventually started to…
clean the inside of his right nostril with it. He did this repeatedly, sometimes with more of his tongue inside his nostril than we see here.
I see various explanations of why bison do this – from conserving the water that seems to drip continuously from their nose to cleaning mucus that attracts flies.
But I have my own theory. Perhaps they do it just because they can. If I could do it, knowing me I would on occasion, just because I could. Perhaps not in public though. Or maybe only in public…
Which brings to mind a personal story that I simply have to relate.
For most of my 33-year teaching career, Val Davis was a colleague and one of my very good friends. Val was a brassy, sassy, very smart blonde with a wicked sense of humor and I adored her – as did most everyone else. One of her highly unexpected skills (she had several) was the ability to stick her unusually long tongue straight up into her nose – just like bison can and often do. But she only did it on “special” occasions and she refused do it for free. She always required a donation of a quarter before she’d perform.
In 1979 my wife and I took our 6-year-old daughter Shannon to a social function, in a restaurant if memory serves. Val was there too but Shannon and Val had never met. On a whim, I handed Shannon a quarter and told her to walk up to “that lady”, hand her the quarter, and see what happens. Val took the quarter and without hesitation stuck her tongue up her nose – way up her nose.
When Shannon returned to our table her mouth was hanging open, her eyes were as big as saucers and all of us adults were falling off our chairs laughing. Shannon never forgot it.
Val is no longer with us but knowing her, she’d have no trouble at all with me telling this story. So tell it I did.
Val was like no other. R.I.P. my friend.
Ron
Not sure how I missed this post. Absolutely stunning bison shots, Ron! I would have absolutely loved having Val as a colleague and friend — she’d fit right in! 💜
Interesting pix of the bison l- and fond memories of Val. Thanks!
Judy, that’s right, you’d remember Val too. We had quite a varied community at South. Part of its charm.
We’ll call him Booger the Bull Bison. Now we just have to enter him into the belching contest.
I like Booger for short.
Too many tongue thrusts for Val. She must have kept many entertained with that very unusual ability. Nice Bison photos.
Wish we had some here.
Thanks, Everett. I wish you did too.
Vele Val. I cannot even reach my nose with my tongue (and of course I had to try).
She sounds like an amazing woman (on so many levels). I am sure you are grateful that she graced your life.
And yes, I enjoyed the bison photos too but Val triumphs today. I am confident that if she had been with you there would have been a tongue off – and you wouldn’t have had to pay.
“I cannot even reach my nose with my tongue.”
I can’t either, EC. Not even close.
We all need a Val in our lives. Love your post today Ron – am a huge Bison fan. They are mesmerizing to me. My dad could lick the end of his nose – he never put his tongue inside his nose!
“We all need a Val in our lives.”
I believe that’s true, Kathleen. I’m delighted to have had mine.
I meant split not slip.
I’ll change it.
Ron,
I just had to respond to your story this morning. After seeing a few disturbing emails, I came to yours with the bison and tongue history lesson. I cracked up several times and had to retell it to my wife while laughing continuously. It took me a couple try’s before she understood the entire story of the $.25 and your daughter’s reaction. Thanks for sharing!! My morning is much brighter now!
Jim
Jim, I just called Shannon to see if she remembers it. She does, but her strongest memories are of the stories we used to tell about it, rather than the actual event. After all, she was only 6 at the time, maybe even 5.
A wonderful post today – what a great story!
Mr. Bison is a magnificent creature, though is seems like his designer was playing a joke with proportions – such tiny eyes and little horns for that massive body. So it’s nice that he’s got some other talents he can show off😄
“what a great story.”
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Carolyn. I suspect some of my readers will be repulsed by it, so it’s nice to know that doesn’t include everyone.
GAWD! Laughing but repulsed at the same time! 🙂 I’m sure, in particular, boys loved it! Wonder how much Val made off her quarters? 😉 I’m sure Shannon remembers it well……. 😉
Hellofa concert the past few days with Common Grackles, Redwinged Blackbirds, Brewers Blackbirds and, of course, Magpies…….
Judy, when I first discovered Val’s special skill she only required a dime to perform. But when she realized how much I enjoyed seeing her do it, it quickly escalated to a quarter. And that’s where it stayed, for years.
Red-winged Blackbirds have been mobbing my feeders for weeks. I saw the leucistic male once, weeks ago, and haven’t seen him since.
Just an aside here. . .I never paid her and she always performed when I asked her.
The first time or two were the only times I didn’t have to pay. After that I must have been her cash cow…
Well professor, I have learned a lot of things from FP since I started following. A few of those things were quite unexpected; right out of left field. But this one nearly had me doing a spit take with my morning coffee.
I can think of a few things that one could do with such a long tongue, but I can honestly say that inserting it into ones own nostril is not one of them.
Of course I cannot fault the bison; lacking fingers and all…
There is just some things you cannot un-see.
“There is just some things you cannot un-see.”
Imagine how indelible it is when you actually see it. Repeatedly! Cost me a lot of quarters over the years…
So it will not surprise you at all that I knew immediately from your title and first sentence that it would be the story about Val and Shannon. Coincidentally, dinner group was at my place on Friday and of course we reminisced about Val (not about her tongue though!) and wished her a happy birthday in her own special way, with a song she always sang for birthdays. She would have been 89 on Thursday. Love her, miss her!
I was hoping you’d see this, Sue.
I can’t remember for sure where we were when it happened. Can you? Was it at a restaurant?
I really don’t remember. I don’t remember what year Val arrived at South, frankly. In 1979, I had been teaching for 10 years and it all just blends together, so many football games, basketball games, parties, etc. Could’ve been at a restaurant after a Friday game, maybe? Got me!
My first memory of Val was at a SIC meeting at South. She immediately made quite the impression.
I remember Val Davis from Lincoln Junior High. I never had her as a teacher, but my favorite memories of her were when she did a cartwheel into the perfect split. She was a hefty person, so her athletic abilities were a hoot to see.
Yuriko, Val pulled that same impressive athletic maneuver at an assembly at South High – when she was even older and probably heftier. It was jaw-dropping.
What a BIG LAUGH for 6-ish in the morning, and what a great
memory for you……I surely wish I could have known Valerie, too…
being 6 years old at the time, I’ll bet Shannon remembers it WELL!
As for the bison, that skill was a total– and colorful– surprise skill.
Who would’ve thunk it ?
Kris, Shannon talked about Val’s special skill for years. I’m going to call Shannon today, just to see if she STILL remembers.