Tale of Two Woodpeckers

Ah, springtime in Berlin: the birds are singing, the ducks are swimming, there's a light mist rising from the lake...

The first thing I noticed today while walking the dogs was the woodpecker that was working on the joint between the trunk of the tree and the branch it was sitting on. This did not seem smart to me from an evolutionary perspective.

Then, I noticed the exhibitionist who was trying to catch my attention.

Since only his bottom half was undressed and the ice on the lake really only melted last week, I assume he wasn't on his way to swim. As a matter of fact, he was wearing a button-down shirt and a sweater on top, probably to counteract the draft from the bottom.

Thank goodness my childhood near nature has taught me all kinds of things, like how to act around wild boars and how (not) to react to exhibitionists, so after spending the initial second of shock to consider the reasons why this man might be walking around naked in the woods, I ignored him.

Then, as my good deed for the day (see below), I warned all the women heading in his direction so they wouldn't get a fright.

One of them just said "Well, I guess it's spingtime again". True enough.