We received 217 entries correctly identifying the Fake Ad for the American Association of Ermine Breeders on page 104 of the April Observer. The ad suggested raising ermine in one’s backyard could be far more lucrative than raising backyard chickens.
That put Jim Pleger in touch with his country side: “The sad part is that when we was kids, weasels of all colors used to eat our chickens. We had to trap em or give em a couple rounds of old 410. Weasels ain’t good eatin, and the chickens wouldn’t even touch em.”
Pleger then launched into an extended riff about how ermine fur was once used “to decorate clothes for the crowned heads of Europe.” Now that that’s no longer “politically correct,” he speculated, ermine breeders might end up on the street–or need to find a new line of work. “Possibly they could raise chickens,” he suggests, “ifen they could keep them weasels away.”
Kim Clark was more succinct. “I can’t usually find the Fake Ad,” she wrote, “but nothing says ‘NOT Ann Arbor’ like ermine breeders.”
Our winner was Martin Pernick. He’s taking his gift certificate to Casey’s.
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To enter this month’s contest, find the fake ad in the May issue and follow the instructions in the box at the bottom of the Back Page. The fake ad always contains the name of last month’s winner in some form.
