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[FEB. 15, 2002]  ^"Owls, the Silent Hunters," a pictorial exhibit from the Illinois Audubon Society, is on display now in the Annex of the Lincoln Public Library.

The exhibit shows the eight types of owls, both common and uncommon, that may be seen in Illinois and tells something about the habits of these nocturnal birds of prey.

Owls are silent hunters because they have very soft feathers that make no noise as they fly, so they can easily sneak up on their prey. They also have excellent hearing, binocular vision, strong feet and talons for capturing prey, and hooked beaks for tearing it into bite-size piece pieces.

[Photos by Joan Crabb]

They see quite well in the dark, and because of their binocular vision (like ours) they can judge distance and movement very well. Because they cannot move their eyes, they turn their heads from side to side just as we do.

Owls are beneficial to man because they eat mostly mice, rats and harmful insects. They can swallow small prey at one gulp and then regurgitate the bones and fur in small pellets. These pellets can be found on the ground under the places where owls roost.

They are attentive parents and take good care of their young owlets.

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The most common owls in Illinois are the great horned owl, a large owl that can be as much as 25 inches tall and has ear tufts that resemble horns; the barred owl, also a large owl but without ear tufts; and the screech owl, 7 to 10 inches long, with small ear tufts. The screech owl is the one most often seen and heard near our homes.

Barn owls, with their distinctive pale heart-shaped faces, are becoming rare. Like short-eared owls, they favor open farmlands and prairies. Snowy owls are occasional winter visitors from the Arctic, and long-eared and saw-whet owls are also more likely to found in Illinois during the winter.

Other exhibits from the Illinois Audubon Society will be on display at the Lincoln Public Library in the coming months.

The Illinois Audubon Society is the oldest conservation organization in Illinois, founded in1897. It works to preserve habitat, especially for threatened and endangered species, and sponsors educational programs, such as field trips and workshops, for both young people and adults. It is not part of the National Audubon Society.

For more information about the Illinois Audubon Society, write to P.O. Box 2418, Danville, IL 61834-2418; phone (217) 446-5085; or visit the website at www.illinoisaudubon.org.

[Joan Crabb]

[JAN. 18, 2002]  Bored with winter? Lincoln Public Library presents "Board Games Rodeo" from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every Saturday through March 23 in the Pegram Community Room.

If you are high school age through adult, you are invited to come and compete against your fellow "boardmeisters" in games of Monopoly, Risk, Scrabble, chess, checkers, Chinese checkers, backgammon, Trivial Pursuit and Yatzee. Remember to bring your gameboard so everyone can participate.

Tri-County AmeriCorps volunteers serve as referees.

Light snacks are served.

For more information about this program, visit the library at 725 Pekin St. or call (217) 732-8878 or 732-5732.

[MARCH 6, 2002]  ^"The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents." Terry Pratchett. HarperCollins, 2001. 241 pages. Grade 7 and up.

Pratchett has written a Discworld fantasy (his first for a younger audience) that is full of humor, action and unforgettable characters. Maurice is a street-wise alley cat who is both cranky and compassionate. The rodents became educated after eating from a trash bin behind the wizards’ university. They can talk, think, and read and have given themselves names based on labels they saw. There are Dangerous Beans, Peaches, Donut Enter, Darktan, Hampork, Big Savings and Toxie. Keith the kid plays the flute, has a key role in the money-making scheme, and isn’t as dumb as he looks.

Maurice has convinced the rats that they need money, so they’ve developed a plan. The rats will go into town to steal food, scare the ladies and make a nuisance of themselves. At just the right time the kid will appear and tell the town leaders he can rid the town of the rats for a fee. Keith collects the money, plays a tune on his flute and the rats follow him out of town in Pied Piper fashion.

Everything goes as planned until they enter the town of Bad Blintz. There are no "real" rats in sight and there is a food shortage. Maurice and his clan of rodents conduct an investigation aided by Malicia Grim, the mayor’s daughter, who sees everything as a fairy tale. During the course of the investigation they discover a hidden food supply, underground tunnels and sewers, cages, and two rat catchers.

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The mystery escalates into a "can’t put the book down page turner" when the rats have to go in search of the captured children and later when Keith comes up with a unique plan to take care of the rat catchers. Pratchett gives the plot an unexpected turn when he introduces the "voice" down in the tunnels.

Maurice and the rats go through some very frightening experiences and are about ready to give up and leave the town. Darktan, who has accepted the role of leader of his clan, gives a very stirring motivational speech when he tells them they must be strong and believe in themselves to overcome the worst of circumstances. The battle of good versus evil is very evident during the mind duel between Spider, Maurice and the rats.

All ends well when Maurice convinces the town mayor that the rats should stay because they are useful.

If you like fantasy such as Brian Jacques’ Redwall series and O’Brien’s "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh," except with more humor and action, don’t miss this one.

For more information, visit the library at 725 Pekin St. or call (217) 732-5732.

• Lincoln Community Theatre

• Logan County Arts Association

Arts association adopts membership structure, schedules membership drive

[MARCH 6, 2002]  Meeting on Tuesday night, the Logan County Arts Association board adopted a membership schedule ranging from $30 for individuals to $350 for corporate sponsorships.

Although a number of members are already on the books, the association plans to have its first official membership drive during October 2002. Board president Marshall Jacobs said membership benefits begin immediately upon enrollment.

All membership levels represent support for the young organization, which aims to promote a wide variety of arts in Logan County. The basic membership level costs $30 for an individual or $50 for a couple and includes a membership newsletter or mailings.

For $130, a patron membership also includes a 20 percent discount on the price of two tickets bought in advance to any or all of the 10 classic movie nights, which run January through October on the second Thursday of the month.

The classic movie for March 14, to be shown at GKC Cinemas at 7 p.m., is "On the Waterfront," starring Marlon Brando in his 1954 Oscar-winning performance. There will be a door prize of GKC Cinemas tickets. Cecil B. De Mille’s 1956 blockbuster "The Ten Commandments" will be shown on April 11.

A $200 patron plus membership in the Logan County Arts Association adds to the patron benefits discounts on advance tickets for other events besides classic movies and reserved seating at all functions for which tickets are purchased in advance. Other events to date have included a clown performance by Mr. Tone and a Christmas concert by classic guitarist Christian Culleton.

The highest level of support for the association, corporate sponsorship, includes all the preceding benefits with the provision that the classic movie discounts can be applied to four tickets instead of two. In addition the individual, firm or organization will be named as sponsor of one event. This fact will be publicized on the tickets and with a banner and introduction at the event. The cost of a corporate membership is $350.

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[FEB. 11, 2002]  Alison England was from California; the Pasadena Roof Orchestra was from England; and the Rhythm Brothers are not related, to paraphrase their introduction. The Rhythm Brothers is a quartet consisting of — at various times — two guitars, a banjo, a fiddle, a bass, a sousaphone and four silky voices. If that isn’t enough, add in "the music of Raul Reynoso and the humor of Doug Mattocks," and you get one entertaining show.

The Rhythm Brothers have played everywhere from Carnegie Hall to the Grand Ole Opry to Disneyland. And now they have graced Lincoln with their talented "plucking and strumming" as this month’s feature in the Lincoln Land Community Concerts series, at the chapel of Lincoln Christian College.

The band consists of Raul Reynoso, Doug Mattocks, Paul Shelasky and Lee "Westy" Westenhofer.

Reynoso is an extremely talented guitarist and songwriter. His songs have been described as "True World Music," since they come from his mixed background of Latin American culture, Los Angeles society and luegrass guitar. The band played a few of them, including "Matelot" and "Waneta’s Waltz."

Mattocks, a comedian and guitarist, also plays all three of the major styles of banjo: four-string tenor and plectrum and five-string bluegrass. As the unofficial leader of the band, his quick tongue keeps the show moving.

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Lincoln Community Theatre’s website is at www.geocities.com/lincolncommunitytheatre/index.html. Pictures from past productions are included.  The LCT mailing address is Lincoln Community Theatre, P.O. Box 374, Lincoln, IL  62656.  E-mail: lincolncommunitytheatre@yahoo.com.

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