E-MAIL AND LETTERS

and e-mail lettes

The Buffalo Question Your answer to the March 2001 Question of the Month in "Off-ramp" ("What's the difference between a buffalo and a bison?") was incorrect. A buffalo is a big hairy animal. A bison is what an Australian washes 'is 'ands in, mite. The difference between a buffalo and a bison ("Off-ramp," March '01) is the spelling. This is also true of Republicans and Democrats.

Rude Letters Recently I found in a used bookstore a stack of Arizona Highways magazines that dated to the early '80s. Just out of curiosity, I checked a number of the letters to the editor from the '82-'86 years. Every letter was a hearty commendation on the great work that the magazine has been doing. Then I checked out the letters to the editor written in the mid '90s, and I was appalled at the utter rudeness and "gripiness" of virtually all of the letters. For the betterment of the magazine, I appeal to you to not print any letters that are written in the spirit of griping.

It's true that the commendation letters we receive each month far outnumber the critical letters. In fact, some months we don't get any critical missives. But nobody's perfect and we try to reflect that in the letters.

Scout's Honor Thanks for making the old scoutmaster right again. I tell my scouts to read Arizona Highways each month and they will be sure to see places they have hiked. Sure enough, the March issue arrived yesterday and your cover story was "Explore Aravaipa Canyon." On January 4-5, we hiked the 11 miles of Aravaipa Canyon and had a wonderful time.

Marriage License Line I address the Humor page item titled "Only So Much Time" (March '01). While I appreciate the humor in the comment that the gentleman made while waiting for his marriage license ("I'm afraid by the time they get to our number, we'll be too old to enjoy our honeymoon."), I want to assure everyone that my staff makes every effort to provide quality service in as quick a manner as possible. Unfortunately, there are times when the demand for service is greater than the staff available. I would like to recommend to our future marriage license or passport customers to visit our office in the morning (8:30 A.M. to 10:30 A.M.) or mid-afternoon (2 P.M. to 3:30 P.M.) when it is less crowded. For those customers who need to visit the office during one of the busy times, I have a suggestion for them as well. I would suggest they bring a copy of Arizona Highways to help pass the time. However, I assure you that everyone in the Clerk's Office is going to do their best to make sure the customer won't be able to finish reading it.

It's nice to know we have a court clerk with a sense of humor and a customer service attitude.

Definitely Not Table Fare The author of "Misplaced Marsupial" in the March issue surely intended the statement, "the opossum is still considered a delicacy in the South," to be taken as tongue-in-cheek humor. Even in Tennessee, where the legislature has passed a law that makes it legal to eat roadkill, the lowly opossum is still not on the "fit to eat" list.

I have lived in Alabama for the past 31 years and to tell the truth, I have never seen opossum on a restaurant menu, never been offered it in any home where I've dined, nor do I know anybody who has eaten opossum.

I loved your story "Misplaced Marsupial." It hit very close to home. You see, S.M. White of Tempe, "the Johnny Appleseed of Opossums" you mentioned, was my grandfather. He would travel home to Arkansas each summer and return with several opossums for release in various parts of the state. He had approval and a permit issued by the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

ARIZONA HIGHWAYS