Back at the house we lived in when I was a teen the squirrels were only problematic with regard to tomato plants, but the bluejays would harrass and dive bomb our cat whenever she went outside.

Of course, she understood concepts like transparent materials, and so would sun herself right next to back deck entrance and tempt them into knocking themselves out against the sliding glass door.

I got a bad rep as a squirrel kicker,

Kicker of squirrels!

Driving on the beach at Daytona those damned seagulls KNEW I couldn't go faster than 10 mph and that I couldn't go outside the lines. I wanted to chase them with my car so very much.

Seriously, I am the more alpha creature and I am driving a mechanical crunchy coated thing - fleeeeeeeeeeee before me.

Cool headline: Genetic Errors Nixed Penis Spines, Enlarged Our Brains

Geneticists have linked the physical appearance of humans to patches of DNA lost in the 5 million years since we shared a common ancestor with chimpanzees. One loss prevented men from growing penile barbs, which chimps possess. Another enlarged some regions of our brain.

...

Bigger brains are an obvious advantage (“It probably helped us become the thinkers we are today,” Bejerano said), but it’s unclear why evolution weeded out the spines. These tiny, hair-like projections, found in male chimps and cats, can trigger female ovulation. They also increase sensitivity and remove existing sperm, ostensibly giving males a reproductive advantage. Bejerano suspects the spines are conducive to monogamy.

Could restoring the relevant regulatory DNA in humans resurrect penile spines? “I’m going to leave it to others to paint that picture and its consequences,” said evolutionary biologist Sean B. Carroll of the University of Wisconsin, who wasn’t involved in the study. “But my guess is that something would probably happen.”

http://www.slate.com/id/2287215/

For all you non-huggers out there, a Slate piece by someone else who does not appreciate the hugging.

Now I'm thinking condom with the slogan, "armored for her pleasure"....

For all you non-huggers out there, a Slate piece by someone else who does not appreciate the hugging.

Some of you guys would be very impressed at how far I've come -- when I met my coworker for dinner the other day, I let her hug me with hardly any flinching! (But seriously: We had seen each other like an hour earlier at work.)

::::::::tries to remember if she tried to hug Jesse at Bukowski's::::::nervous:::::::

Bejerano suspects the spines are conducive to monogamy.

I suspect they may be conducive to abstinence.

One loss prevented men from growing penile barbs, which chimps possess. Another enlarged some regions of our brain.

Though actually I see an evolutionary cause and effect from bigger brains and barbless penises: "Let's see, if my dick looks less frightening, I get more attention from the gorgeous cave chicks . . ."