Worst Dog Ever
I drew this picture of a dog the other day at dinner and this is the reaction that I got from my friend, the only other adult present out of four people: "That is the worst picture of a dog I have ever seen." The reaction was swift and definitive. There was no deliberation or hesitation at all.
I'm not sure that the picture deserved such a harsh critique, since it is, in fact, instantly recognizable as a dog. So at least, if nothing else, it is representational. It does convey the actual visual details that constitute the appearance of a dog. So even though it is not a particularly satisfying piece on an intellectual level, it does convey visual information. I agree that something a little less literal might have allowed me to express the more ethereal aspects of what it is that actually constitutes "dogness" in a more general sense, but I was actually going for something more documentary than that.
I think the worst picture of a dog ever would be a picture that conveys neither the representational details of the animal, nor a sense of the dynamic aspects of his being that make him who he is (or at least who he is to us.) So even though this piece fails to get at the more expansive emotive aspects of what a dog means, it is an acceptable stab at simply depicting a dog, and so I can easily conceive of a far worse picture of a dog than this.
Figure 1: Is this really the worst picture of a dog ever?
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Figure 2: I guess writing a story about a dog is something a little closer to my comfort zone than drawing.
Enlarge Photo Labels: animals, images, weird
Easter Rabbit
Most of the dead rabbits I see were dead when I first saw them. This one wasn't. This was just a little fellow and he seemed sick. He just kind of died over the course of a day.
Figure 1: This poor little guy died from something. He didn't seem hurt or anything, just sick.
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Figure 2: I wonder if maybe he got separated from his mom too early.
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Figure 3: I don't think this spot was on his neck when he was still alive.
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Figure 4: He developed this hole in his thorax over the course of about two weeks.
Enlarge Photo In an almost unprecedented move this evening I've included this after-photo text to issue a challenge. If you are the first person to correctly explain the caption on the enlarged image above this paragraph, then I will send you a T-shirt.
Labels: animals, dead things, images, weird
Face Harvest
The rabbit deteriorated to the point that I was afraid in not too much longer, there would be no trace of him left at all. So I decided to harvest his head.
Figure 2: The skull bones are becoming more visible, although they have been crushed. I imagine somebody stepped on the rabbit head by accident.
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Figure 7: This is the rabbit head on the floor of my truck.
Enlarge Photo Labels: animals, dead things, images, weird
Black Bug
I saw a bug. It was big and black. It didn't move very quickly. Both the bug and I survived this encounter.
Labels: animals, images, weird
Take You Home
The rabbit face is in a plastic bag on the floor of my truck. This is all I have to say about that.
Labels: animals, dead things, weird
Bird Problem
One morning I woke up in El Paso and stepped outside my front door and there was a dead bird right next to my foot. I had a terrible problem with birds nesting right above my front door and pooping all over the door step. I used to hose down their nest when I was sure there weren't any eggs or babies in it, and they'd rebuild with lightning speed. One summer, they got some kind of disease and the babies kept hatching and dying all summer. It was disgusting.
Labels: animals, dead things, images, weird
Bye, Richards
The two Richards flew away. It was sad to see them go, but now they're off eating stuff and flying around and sitting on telephone wires and whatnot. It's probably more fun than just hanging around in an old bougainvillea bush, anyway.
Labels: animals, images
Two Richards
In an unexpected turn of events from the animal kingdom today it appears that I was wrong about there only being one Richard in the bird's nest. There are two. Two eggs, two Richards. They're both looking better today than the one I saw the other day. They looked like they were resting comfortably, not panting like Richard was when I first saw him.
We've had some gusty early monsoon-type weather the last few days and I'm worried that these guys are going to get blown out of their nest. They're really deep inside the bougainvillea, though, so maybe that'll protect them.
Labels: animals, images
Richard Hatched!
Welcome to the world, Richard!
The bird hatched. I named him Richard. I'm glad he looks so big, but I have sort of a bad feeling about him because 1) there were two eggs but only one Richard, and 2) Richard didn't look so great. He was laying in the nest with his head down panting. It's been around 105 degrees every day lately and it looked like he was too hot. I'll check him in a couple of days. I don't want to disturb him too much.
Labels: animals, images
Bird's Nest 2
The mother bird is still sitting on her eggs. She's getting more used to me taking pictures of her.
Figure 3: I was interested to see how the eyelid works.
Enlarge Photo Labels: animals, images
Bird's Nest
I was trimming the
bougainvillea yesterday and I saw a bird's nest.
I tried to get in as close as I could, but I didn't want to frighten the bird.
Figure 4: A better view of the bird, sorry she's out of focus.
Enlarge Photo After a while, the bird flew into a different part of the bush so I could get a couple of pictures of the eggs inside the nest.
Later, when I was finished trimming, the bird came back.
Labels: animals, images
All Manner
Snakes and flies. Snakes and flies. Flies are one thing, but snakes are another. Flies are annoying enough, but snakes -- snakes are nasty.
Figure 1: This photo depicts two flies. One of them is apparently riding the other.
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Figure 2: I wonder if these two flies really like each other, or if this is just a union of convenience.
Enlarge Photo I can take a fly here and there. I can even take two flies copulating when I'm trying to eat my lunch. But I cannot abide by a snake. Not any kind of snake, not anywhere near me. Not alive, not dead. Not venomous, not beneficial. And in two days I've seen two snakes, maybe a hundred feet apart.
The snake in
Figure 3 scared the crap out of me the other morning. I was opening the door and I heard a rustling sound, as if there were a lizard moving in some leaves on the ground, but there were no leaves. I caught some movement out of the corner of my eye, and there he was.
I called the fire department. I don't know anything about snakes, and I certainly didn't want him around the baby. The fire department has this unit that comes out for snakes and critters and things like that. The station is right near where I was and the guy showed up seriously faster than I could have loaded up my CO2 pistol.
The fireman was very official, with these heavy leather pants and this special snake removal stick. It was comforting. He told me it was just a bull snake and that some people actually ask them to bring bull snakes to their property to help with rodent control. He asked if I was sure I wanted it removed, and I said I did. He seemed to understand that, which was nice.
Figure 3: The fireman has this bull snake on the end of a five-foot aluminum pole that had some sort of jaws on the end of it that would hold the snake without injuring it.
Enlarge Photo The fireman was a real professional and as nice as he could be. He didn't make me feel bad at all that I'd called him out to remove a twelve-inch beneficial snake. I'm glad to be a
Rural Metro subscriber. That's the company that provides the fire and ambulance services.
Then, the next day, I was out walking in the evening and I was startled to see this guy on the road next to me.
Figure 4: This guy's not hurting anyone. He's dead. I suspect that he is the victim of a motor vehicle accident.
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Labels: animals, images