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Someone asked me what kind of reaction the bears have gotten in their street locations. Here's some of what I've heard. Blog back with your stories and comments.

The tourists, it's safe to say, love them -- great photo op. The kids climb on them, straddle their legs, and pat their noses.

Like with other street art projects, there are families that go around finding the bears, and there are lots of comparisons, like, "I've found 22. How many did you get?" One guy has even located and photographed all 29 little bears and all 25 big ones.

People have strong feelings about some of the bears--Laura Anderson's and Paul Clymer's in particular. Hate or Love. It's the strong colors. A local attorney walked up to a Powell librarian a week ago and told her, "That clown bear is horrible." She said, "You wouldn't think so if you saw the kids loving on him. He's a favorite."

That's the way it goes. Then, there are folks who favor the Hammersmark and Ringer/Tremblay bear's because "they look like bears."

And the bees--the Chuck Ringer and Den Barhaug bees--have people buzzing. A pair of slim young women in summer hats and frocks with a Kentucky license plate drove up to the Pinnacle Bank and, as I watched, got out, set up their camera, and took a picture of the two of them with their heads next to the Ringer bear's nose. As for Den's bees, they've had to be replaced.

I talked to a guy who has bid on a couple of the little bears and intends to buy one of the big ones--just 'cause "I get a kick out of them." A woman told me, "I just have to have one of the big bears. Wouldn't Paul Clymer's bear look AWESOME in my back yard."

One of the Cody downtown merchants said, "There are more local people downtown this summer than I've ever seen. They come because the bears are here."

The Bare Bones bear has people talking about just what he's supposed to be. Is it really a rendering of the way grizzly bones look or is he meant to be a spook as in a Halloween bear? And, if the latter, why is he mostly blue?

There's a rumor making the rounds that one of the bears lost a foot. I had someone tell me, as fact, that some cowboy took it off. Another person said that the foot had been brought back and glued in place so no one would know. Well, if so, they did a good job.

About the little bears, people get to vote with their pocket books. And they are. Check them out. There are locator guides in The Cody Enterprise, at the libraries and banks.

What I like best is that all of these sculptures are all truly popular art, evoking emotion and reaction and a range of other feelings. Which, to me, is what art is all about. The hands-on experience, the sharing and sense of ownership is part of bringing everyone together and into the creative process.

The grizzlies gathered on June 21 at the Park County complex bringing some 500 people to the grounds, many for the first time, and providing an air of festivity below the great backdrop of Heart Mountain. The ponds, lawns, and trees provided a welcoming setting for the county and the grizzlies to get to know each other.

After several hours of "getting to know you," the grizzlies moved on to their summer quarters. Thanks to the women of the Heart Mountain Dressage Club, their 3/4 ton trucks and big trailers, to the contribution of a skidsteer by Woodward Tractor, and to the men of Cook's Moving, the process was accomplished in a few hours.