APPLES, TOO: While we’ve been lamenting the
lack of blackberries this year, another reader points out there’s
virtually no apples on the trees in her neighborhood.

And once she mentioned that, we realized how few apples
we’d seen on trees this year, too.

Perhaps these things are cyclical? Or not? Or vary from
neighborhood to neighborhood?

We’re looking for a nature buff out there that can offer a
reasonable explanation.

BEE NOTE: Talk about too much of a good thing,
Angela Nuzzo of Bradford has a followup to a recent comment on the
bee population: “I was walking my dog a few days ago on Harrisburg
Run when I heard a really loud hum.”

“Looking up, I saw a big cloud of bees coming over the tree
tops. It looked like swirling smoke. They were moving slow, but
eventually seemed to stop and hover over a tall pine tree in the
field. I was told that they were probably moving their hive. From
about 100 yards away, I could still hear them and see the movement
in the sky.”

We’ve heard about swarms of bees, and wonder if this is what
Angela was seeing. A little scary, we must admit – particularly for
anyone allergic to bee stings.

ALA PRINCETON: At one time, orange and black
must have been popular school colors. Both Smethport and Port
Allegany had those colors and a reader had wondered why.

Ellen of Port Allegany sheds some light on her town’s
choice: “Port Allegany’s school colors and Alma Mater are sampled
from Princeton. Apparently whoever named the sports team, chose the
colors, the Alma Mater, and even the school flower (the Tiger Lily)
was a big fan of Princeton.”

“Port Allegany was originally the Tigers, just like Princeton,
whose school colors as stated in the Alma Mater are orange and
black.

“Somewhere along the line there was a reporter who called us the
Gators. I think the man thought it sounded good with Port
Allegany.

“The powers-that-be in the school district must have agreed,
because we became known as the Gators, but kept our tiger colors
and our Princeton roots.

“Incidentally, Sheffield’s colors are also orange and black, so
they must have been popular colors at one time.”

TODAY’S QUOTE: “Out of every crisis comes the chance to
be reborn.” So said our calendar on Sept. 12, 2001.