Fortunato, you're most welcome. I liked the story for the same reasons. Well, plus, I like birds anyway.

Guest Undead Parrot -- O thou immortal feathered Anglo-Transylvanian punster -- I "ringed" my "bird" 25 years ago, still *I'll* never tell her age.

Sharon A., thank *you*!! See now, I never thought of that. Still newbie here, despite my pretensions. Very kind of you to post the full article.

Amos: yes, it's lovely, the Fifty-Year Flight of the Shearwater, spatially comparable to the translunar round-trip. / Good thing he didn't hit any ol' continuum-warping wormholes though, right, A? Not nearly as graceful..."Rawwwk! Isle of Man, we've got a Problem..." :)

Mrrzy: *dinosaurs*, eh? Oh-ho! Now we *are* getting scientific, here. Maybe we'll get a debate going on that theory. There are still some holdouts, I think. (Thread-drift Alert!)

Mr. 'Spaw - hi, how ya doin'? Been missin' ya. Say, have you posted anything lately? :)