Dear Thielbahr,

I'm sorry to contact you unannounced through this medium. I am Kocak Ahmet a citizen of Ghana, presently, Managing Director Barclay's Bank of Ghana. I have in my bank a big amount of money that belongs to a customer Daniel B.Thielbahr, who happen to have the same name as yours and who has your country in his file as his place of origin, made a fixed deposit for 36 calendar months, valued at $8 ,400,000.00 (Eight Million Four Hundred Thousand United States Dollars). Meanwhile, the fund is now without any claim because Daniel died in a deadly earthquake in China in 2008 . I want your cooperation so as to make the bank send you the fund as the beneficiary (next of kin) to the fund.

Since the last quarter of 2009 until today, the management of my bank have been looking for a means to reach his family so as to ascertain if he is interested in rolling over the Deposit or have the contract sum withdrawn but all effort have proved abportive because Mr Daniel never married or had children prior to his death. This transaction will be of a great mutual assistance to us. I am therefore, seeking your cooperation to present you as the SOLE BENEFICIARY so that my bank will transfer the fund to you.

I am not a greedy person, I'm suggesting we share the fund equal, 50/50% as my share will assist me to start a charity organization to help the poor and also start a business of my own. Let me know your mind on this and please do treat this information as TOP SECRET. Kindly contact me via my Personal Email Address (kocakahmet95@yahoo.com) or you send me your email address for the details. At the receipt of your reply, I will give you details of the transaction, a copy of the Deposit Certificate of the fund and the Incorporation Certificate of the company that generated the fund. Perhaps, if this proposal offends your moral and ethical values, do accept my apology.

Thank you in anticipation of your positive cooperation.

Best regards,

Kocak Ahmet..
(kocakahmet95@yahoo.com)

Thank you so much John for the lovely comment. Being bilingual in English and Spanish, I think it's so important to educate our children at home about so many aspects in nature and the community. I hope that you tell me more about the teacher's tools you have in Spanish or bilingual. I would to cooperate. 

Hi John,

I will be at the Gathering in CA in Sep, so look forward to talking to you more then about bringing kids and nature together via library programs. I spoke with the woman who runs our library's summer reading program and she shared with me that the national program (Collaborative Summer Library Program - cslpreads.org) tends to start planning for the following summer's theme around January 1st. Have you or any other C&NN folks contacted people with this organization to suggest a kids & nature theme for next summer's (2012)  national reading program (which lots of cities participate in)? I can imagine so many ways to promote getting kids outdoors through a kids in nature theme for the national program - books + associated weekly events and activities! And not just targeting children, but also teens and even adults through the summer reading program - our library just started a teen summer reading program this year and hopes to add an adult program next year (we could provide libraries with a bibliography of nature play/kids in nature books written for adults, as the list grows each year). It'd be so cool to have a kids in nature theme at libraries around the country next year. Take care, Carmen

P.S. I'm reading the Magic Tree House series to my daughter and she really, really wants a treehouse now :)

Hi John,

I loved your Get Reading Outside essay! I'd be interested in bringing your idea to our community library for next year's summer reading program (this year's slate has already been set).

My family camps for a weekend each June with a bunch of friends and kids across the bay from where we all live. Last year we spent quite a bit of time singing camp songs and reading around the campfire with worn out kids while supper was cooking...here's a photo from one of our camping book sessions (with my friend Emily Otis reading Lucky Hares & Itchy Bears to the kids).

Hope all's well with you.

Cheers,

Carmen