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Homeowners Meeting Notes 1. The Date of the Sanctuary Annual Meeting is Dec 6th and the meeting will be held at the Valley Country Club, starting at 7 pm. 2. If any homeowner wants to add or move a sprinkler in the their lawn, please call Ron at Caron Realty 720-283-3300. 3. The Design Review Committee has received an order for 4 additional outdoor light fixtures, but it's necessary to have minimum of 10 light fixtures to receive the 50% discount. Please call Anne Nelson at 303-690-6177 if you would like to order some of these attractive lights for your front entrance way or garage. 4. Andy Tyler made a mistake when he stated at the last Board meeting that there is a lifetime warranty on the replacement of the stone fascia on the front of our homes. This is no longer the case. If some of your stones fall off or need replacing it is the individual homeowner's responsibility to have them fixed. 5. Andy Tysler stated that many garage doors and roof top eves need to be repainted. It was suggested that several homeowners may want to get their entire house repainted and if several homeowners get together and request a joint painting bid, they can probably save money. This item will be discussed at the Annual Meeting. Social Committee News Oktoberfest 2006 was considered by the Social Committee, and all who attended, to be a very fine success. In spite of the chilly weather, 42 of us gathered in the garage of Winnie and Allan Kortz at 5:00 pm on Saturday, September 23rd for beer, brats, warm pretzels, potato salad, German wine and a scrumptious dessert bar. Not to mention fun German music and lots of great conversation and laughter. It was a chance for neighbors to catch up with each other once again before we all hide away during the cold winter months. Many thanks to the Kortz's for hosting the party in their immaculate garage; to Andy Tysler for providing authentic German beer as well as tables and tablecloths; to Barbara Sydow for the delightful desserts, and to the Social Committee for once again planning a fun evening for Sanctuary residents. The next event to look forward to will be our annual Cup O'Cheer which will be held at the home of Barbara Sydow on December 10th. Put that date on your calendar, and watch for a flyer to be delivered to your home around the first of December giving details. Come join us for our holiday good time. |
…of things in the Belfry
How rude! My editor hauled me to a stop right in the middle of So. Blackhawk Court a few days ago. She reminded me it was time, again, for the next issue of the Sentinel. Sadly, I do need those reminders. Following that encounter, though, it didn't take Annie long to come up with the perfect suggestion, given the time of year. Bats. It was serendipity actually, because we had been talking about these interesting animals just recently, as a result of a visit to my daughter's home in Nebraska. She has numerous bat houses in her yard, which get a lot of use. She also, lives across the street from a church, which actually has "bats in the belfry". Though sometimes called "flying rodents" or "flying mice" Bats are actually mammals, and the only mammals that fly. Their forelimbs are developed as wings. Other mammals such as flying squirrels can glide for limited distances but are not capable of true sustainable flight. There are about 1,100 species of bats worldwide accounting for 20% of all mammal species. About 70% of bats are insectivorous. Most of the remainder feed on fruits and their juices. And, yes, there are 3 species that feed on blood with some preying on vertebrates, but maybe more on that at a later time. Bats will eat one half their body weight in insects during their feeding, which is mostly at night. Their teeth are very sharp in order to bite through the hardened armor of insects or the skins of fruit. Another interesting fact: Bats are incapable of entering flight under their own power. They have to use gravity to build up speed. That's why they hang upside down. Female bats usually have only one offspring a year. A baby bat is referred to as a "pup" The pups nurse and can cling to the fur of the mother and be transported. They soon grow too large for this. Bats vary in social structure, with some bats leading a solitary life and others living in caves colonized by more than one million bats. In The UK all bats are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Acts. Even disturbing a bat or its roost can be punished with a heavy fine. Austin, Texas is the summer home to North America's largest urban bat colony, an estimated 1,500,000 Mexican free-tailed bats, which eat an estimated 10,000 to 30,000 pounds of insects each night. This article was submitted by Jim Murlin, "Batman"? |