So sad. We lost Mr Gobble to foxes on Saturday night.

We are very sad.

Mrs Turkey is now safely locked up at night.

We very sad about poor mR Gobble, poor lonely Mrs Turkey, Our investment and insufficient care of animals, our Christmas Dinner.

Sitka black-tailed deer (photo by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tongass National Forest)

Hunting for wild fowl and game is a part of normal life in Alaska. It’s the way many of us fill our freezers, and it’s been part of the traditional subsistence lifestyle for centuries. Many of us feel the natural, wild fowl and game we hunt is healthier for our families than store-bought poultry, beef or pork.

In many cases the fowl and game we hunt is healthier, but our choice of ammo can negate that. Using non-toxic shot, in other words using steel shot instead of lead, has been a regulation in waterfowl hunting for many years. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has an informational page about using non-toxic shot. The Institute for Wildlife Studies has informational pages about alternatives to lead and the California non-lead awareness program.

The reason lead shot has been banned from waterfowl hunting is because it gets into the food chain, including humans, and lead can cause major health problems if it gets into our blood streams. In November 2008, a study released by the North Dakota and Minnesota health departments detailed the affects of lead fragments in venison. The study was done after food pantries in North Dakota in March 2008 were told to no longer accept donated ground venison because of lead fragments.

Many older bullets were solid lead, or lead covered by a thin covering of copper. But there are many newer alternative types of ammo that don’t use lead, including bullets that are solid copper, copper with a tungsten alloy core and a polymer tip, and copper alloy with a polycarbonite tip. So if you’re one of those folks who have gone hunting for our local Sitka black-tailed deer in recent weeks, do you know what’s in your ammo?

Fowl are so much fun. I highly recommend keeping a flock.  We have an egg stand by our mailbox so people can self-serve.  I’ll post a pic.  It’s pretty cool.

“If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth.”-The Catcher in the Rye

But I will tell you a little true story which happened to me recently.

I was sitting and minding my own business idly watching the baby crawl around on a beautiful Montana afternoon, enjoying the sunshine whilst talking on my cell phone to my bff, when I heard squawking. I glance up and see our other rooster (not Ayla–he’s a banty and i think he’s still a virgin, poor thing, because all the hens are larger breeds and he just. can’t. reach. ughhhh. it’s very pathetic to watch, and you don’t WANT to watch but can’t help but watch, like some macabre-slow-motion scene of doom until he finally falls off the back of the hen–they hang on with their talons you know–tears the hens’ backs right up, tears feathers off, leaves their backs bloody, etc. not pretty)…………..

Anyway! Where was I? Oh yeah, our other rooster, Shorty, was right at the crucial moment on his hen and….lemme stress this point…..I USUALLY look away because seeing animals mating right in front of me in my front yard is pretty weird, to say the least, like, between the two roosters and their large brood of 17 hens, you can see chicken porn all day long. but anyway, before I realized it was just another rooster and hen going at it, and before I could look away, I saw shorty–er, ejaculate! I’m sorry to be so gross, but I have to share my misery with you guys. I have never noticed–or I’ve probably noticed and blocked it out–that roosters have semen and I saw several little drops splatter around in the grass where the baby crawls.

Yeah. That’s what I do during my day. Watch chickens mate. What do you do?

The NBA has been playing all year, regional’s have been played and it’s time for the national championship. The players have all put their hearts and souls in the game, striving for the national championship.

Teams line up on the floor and are down to the last half, the score is 68 to 73 the east is in the lead. Sweat is running off the teams members faces as they press for the win and the east opens with a three point shot, the west is credited with the score.

Everyone sits in horror as they see the west get credit for the score earned by the east.

Players are in shock as they race for the the other end of the court for a blocked shot and the ball is returned by the east. Again with a two point shot, and the score clock again credits the west for the score.

The score is now even, 73 all. The announcer explains that the score was given to the west because they had a lower score and it was not fair that the east should be given more as the west has worked just as hard as the east did therefore it is only right that the west is credited for the basket.

By now the east is beginning to loose interest and the west gets the ball and walks down court and a player from the east reaches in for the ball and is called for a fowl. The east has already made two shots, it is time for the west to make a shot so they move to the fowl line under the new rules of equal opportunity.

First fowl shot scores and the score is held pending the second shot. When the second shot fell, the two baskets was divide equally between the east and the west.

Players begin to protest.

Basket ball has just entered political correctness of redistribution of points and the players now recognize that it does not matter how hard they play, there is no rewards for their efforts. No one on either team has came this far just to call it a draw, and decide to quit, game over and start to quit when they are advised they will not as it is the spirit of the game, not who wins or loses.

The sweat dries up as no one is interested in scoring, or even moving forward as the police close in to assure no players leave the field as they sit down and start passing the ball back and forth between the teams to keep the shot clock from running out, and the game clock from stopping. All the player now, realize that they cannot leave until the clock is run down and it matters not what they do, they cannot win or get ahead.

However, those that govern have no intentions to see production drop off and call in the taskmasters, with whips snapping and blood from the back of several players begins to flow. Without rewards and competition for motivation, punishment is dealt out to force the players to continue.

The rules have changed. Freedom has died.

Punishment is dealt out to all that resist. Remember the fine and jail sentence for all that don’t purchase government mandated health care approved of by Obama? That is what slavery socialism is all about. That is your introduction to the future as Obama and company envision it.

Socialism is just a fancy word for slavery. 

That’s the view from all that already live in this slavery,

Duane

Two and a half months since I paused, halfway through the offering formula!  I’m surprised you’re still here.  I’ve been off to Egypt and back in September, and writing (and giving) lectures on Egypt and Africa and Black Pharaohs for Black History Month in October, and time has just whizzed by for me.  Meanwhile, you’ve been sitting there twiddling your mummified thumbs.  It must have seemed like an eternity.

I am very sorry.  How about if I give you

khet nebet nefret wabet ankhet netjer im; everything good and pure by which a god lives.

Anything, in fact, that the most discerning of gods would demand to be served, poured, wafted or sprinkled around his altar .  As you’ll recall, the deceased person has already been offered bread, beer, meat, fowl, alabaster and cloth at his or her offering table.  The third line of the offering formula is a catch-all clause, to make sure the deceased lacks nothing he or she may want in their eternal dining room.  After all, you don’t want to spend eternity making lists of everything you wish you’d ordered, trying to kick yourself for not thinking of it before (and getting even more frustrated because your legs are bandaged together).  So they had line three as a kind of divine etcetera, etcetera, etcetera – very The King and I or, in this case, The God and I.

Artemis Fowl Quotes

]]> http://robertg69.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/black-and-white-fowl-but-not-photogenic/ Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:57:43 +0000 BobG in Vancouver http://robertg69.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/black-and-white-fowl-but-not-photogenic/ http://fednwatered.wordpress.com/2009/11/09/teriyaki-chicken-wings/ Mon, 09 Nov 2009 21:22:33 +0000 manila58 http://fednwatered.wordpress.com/2009/11/09/teriyaki-chicken-wings/

We usually serve this dish as an entree, with steamed jasmine rice and a cucumber salad. Prep time is minimal, and the cooking time intervals allow you to change out of your work clothes and put your feet up before dinner.

4 lbs frozen chicken wings

1 C teriyaki sauce

1 C bourbon

1 t cornstarch

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place the frozen wings in a large baking dish. Combine and mix the teriyaki sauce and bourbon, then pour it over the wings. Place in the oven and bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Turn all the wings over to make sure all of them are coated with the sauce. Continue to bake the wings for another 45 minutes. Turn wings over again.

Remove the sauce from the baking dish and transfer to a medium saucepot. Cover the wings with foil and return the baking dish to the oven. Lower the oven temperature to 300°F.

Skim the fat from the sauce. Place the saucepot on the stove and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. While waiting for sauce to boil, dissolve the cornstarch in ¼ C water. Pour cornstarch into the sauce, bring it back to a boil, and stir well to prevent lumps.

Remove the wings from the oven and arrange on a platter. Place the sauce in a gravy boat and serve with the wings.

O Anti-herói irlandês que vem consquistando fãs mundo afora

Olá, caros leitores inexistentes de um blog pessoal parado! Se você está lendo isso, deve ser alguém com muita sorte, ou com muito azar! Este é um dos raríssimos posts do meu blog pessoal! Aliás, um post que eu estava devendo a muito tempo para os caros visitantes aleatórios!

Este post se trata da minha resenha da minha série de livros favorita: Artemis Fowl.

Para aqueles que me conhecem, não é segredo algum que eu sou fã alucinado desta série. Foi esta a série que me fez deixar os livros do aclamado Harry Potter de lado, para entrar em um cenário fictício totalmente novo e encantador. E é por isso que eu escrevi essa resenha da obra para vocês!

Resumindo o Enredo

A história gira em torno de Artemis Fowl II, o herdeiro pré-adolescente de um império do crime com problemas financeiros, que juntamente ao seu enorme guarda-costas eurasiano Butler, usa de sua inteligência acima da média para bolar planos criminosos e tentar reerguer seu status financeiro. E para isso ele vai entrar em um mundo que ninguém imaginava existir: o Povo das Fadas – criaturas místicas como anões, elfos e duendes, que vivem no subterrâneo se escondendo dos humanos, utilizando-se de alta tecnologia para isso.

Uma visão geral da obra

A série, atualmente em seu 6º volume (com mais 3 livros “extras”), é escrita pelo irlandês Eoin Colfer (lê-se Owen). O gênero é um misto de fantasia, trama policial e sci fi, com criaturas místicas e alta-tecnologia misturados de uma forma criativa e original.

O estilo de Colfer de narrar é muito característico, e conforme ele vai progredindo na história, você vê as cenas se seguindo no mesmo ritmo de um filme, e se diverte com comentários sutis, que tornam a leitura mais divertida e interessante. Sem contar as formas incríveis de criar expectativa e interesse na história. Essa mesma “identidade narrativa” de Colfer, que se apresenta em seus outros livros, no início aparenta ser diferente, mas com o tempo torna-se uma marca registrada que torna a leitura muito mais interessante.

Outra característica forte que se pode notar, pelo menos nos primeiros livros, é um narrativa meio infantil, com brincadeiras meio bobas. Bem, não é de se surpreender, se considerar que antes de AF, Colfer escrevia livros infantis, e ele próprio é professor primário. Mas conforme a série vai progredindo em seus volumes, vamos notando uma clara evolução na narrativa, assim como os próprios personagens.

Apesar do ritmo de cenas que nos faz passar pela cabeça um filme, alguns reclamam do ritmo da história, que as cenas demoram a acontecer. O que acontece na verdade, especialmente no primeiro livro, é que o autor se preocupa em passar o ambiente, o cenário, o “clima” da cena, assim como também tenta desenvolver a cosmologia, e o elenco, durante a própria história, e isso pode ocupar um certo espaço entre uma cena e outra.

Ou seja, o suposto “defeito” de ritmo, é na verdade uma preocupação com tornar o cenário e os personagens mais palpáveis e reconhecíveis na história, além de dar uma coerência à cosmologia da obra.

Disputa Eterna

Talvez por envolver magia (até certo ponto), talvez por ser uma série infanto-juvenil, talvez por ter um adolescente como protagonista, ou algum outro motivo qualquer, desde que Artemis Fowl fez sucesso, comparações com um certo bruxinho foram inevitáveis.

Lógico que estou falando do mega sucesso mundial Harry Potter. Quando AF começou a crescer, começaram comparações, dizendo que AF era uma tentativa de imitar HP. Eu discordo. Para começar, estamos falando de gêneros bem diferentes. Enquanto HP envereda pelo mundo dos bruxos, de aventura, heroísmo e magia, AF segue pela trama policial, planos criminosos, mais tecnologia do que magia, e criaturas secretas.

Devemos olhar pelo próprio contexto: Na Inglaterra, temos em seu passado a crença em bruxos, dragões, e criaturas lendárias, na Irlanda, em criaturas fantásticas como fadas, gnomos, e outros espíritos da natureza. E é nesses contextos que surgem cada um.

Outra coisa que devemos olhar é os seus protagonistas: Enquanto Harry é heróico, nobre, corajoso, e sempre disposto a ir à batalha pela justiça, Artemis é ardiloso, inteligente, dissimulado, e sempre pensando na vantagem própria. Enquanto Harry é o herói clássico, Artemis é o anti-herói que você acha que devia odiar, mas acaba amando seu estilo.

Ainda temos a história continua, completamente interdependente, de HP, enquanto em AF temos cada livro com uma aventura individualizada, onde pouco prejudica você não ter lido os livros anteriores (apesar desta característica estar cada vez menos presente nos últimos livros lançados). Ainda na evolução através do livro, enquanto em HP o personagem vai descobrindo mais do mundo mágico e de sua história enquanto amadurece, Artemis vai adquirindo valores, ganhando amigos (e inimigos) enquanto vai lidando com os indesejáveis hormônios da adolescência.

Para finalizar, tem a óbvia diferença narrativa. Enquanto J.K. Rowling se foca em desvendar a história através da ação, Colfer vai usando de sua narrativa bem humorada e original para criar expectativa sobre a trama.

Os Livros

E como eu disse que faria uma resenha dos livros, aqui estão eles:

Artemis Fowl (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl O Menino Prodígio do Crime) – 2001

O primeiro livro da série, nos introduz o jovem criminoso de 12 anos, Artemis Fowl II, que após o desaparecimento de seu pai no norte da Rússia, e do enlouquecimento de sua mãe, se encontra tentando reconstruir a fortuna dos Fowl, e para isso ele engendrou um plano mirabolante: ele sequestra uma fada, Holly Short, uma agente da LEP, a polícia das fadas, e pretende pedir resgate em ouro para o Povo das Fadas. O que ele não contava é que o Povo fosse começar a jogar sujo.

Lançado em 2001, o primeiro livro é um momento inicial da série, e os personagens ainda não são completamente desenvolvidos e a narrativa, ainda com características dos livros infantis anteriores do autor, nas partes protagonizadas pelo Povo são pouco desenvolvidas, mas serve como uma boa introdução à série.

Artemis Fowl The Arctic Incident (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl Uma Aventura no Ártico) -2002

Agora uma gangue de goblin parece estar negociando fontes de energia com humanos. Holly Short, capitã da LEP, desconfia logo do inimigo número um do povo: Artemis Fowl. Mas Artemis está mais preocupado com outros assuntos: seu pai está vivo, e nas mãos da Máfiya Russa. Parece que Artemis e o Povo terão que deixar as desavenças de lado para resolverem seus problemas.

Com uma maturidade maior do que no primeiro livro, começamos a conhecer melhor o Porto, o mundo subterrâneo, e o Povo das Fadas. A narrativa está mais interessante, e os personagens começam a mostrar seus primeiros sinais da evolução que viriam a ter durante a série.

Artemis Fowl  The Eternity Code (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl O Código Eterno) – 2003

Dessa vez Artemis tenta negociar com um influente empresário americano ligado à máfia. Ele acha que tem tudo sobre controle, e tenta ameçar o império empresarial de Jon Spiro com o Cubo C (no Brasil, Cubo V), uma máquina criada com tecnologia das fadas. Mas ele não contava que Jon Spiro estivesse dois passos à frente, o que acaba pondo Butler em situação de vida ou morte, e o Povo das Fadas em risco de ser exposto. Agora só com a ajuda da capitã Holly Short o jovem Fowl conseguirá resolver isso.

Esse livro termina com algo que poderia ser um final da série, fechando em uma trilogia. Mas as deixas para continuação deixadas pelo autor se provaram ser realmente deixas para continuação. Muitos desgostosos de continuações só vêm até aqui, mas os outros livros se mostram ca vez mais interessantes!

Artemis Fowl  The Opal Deception (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl A Vingança de Opala) – 2005

Artemis não lembra de nada de suas aventuras anteriores com o Povo, mas Opala Koboi, uma duende diabrete, antiga inimiga supostamente em coma, lembra-se bem dele, e planeja vingança. Enquanto isso problemas ocorrem no subterrâneo, e agora Holly é considerada uma traidora. Agora só se juntando esses dois conseguirão se salvar dos planos de Koboi.

Criticado por episódio possivelmente “cauterizante” na série, este quarto livro é o que possue menos fãs. De fato, ele pode aparentar ser uma continuação forçada da primeira trilogia, mas na verdade é o início de uma nova, tão ou mais emocionante que a primeira, e também serve para novas evoluções dos personagens.

Artemis Fowl The Lost Colony (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl A Colônia Perdida) – 2006

A antiga ilha onde residiam os demônios, mais uma das raças do Povo, está voltando do limbo, e pode expor o Povo perigosamente. Cabe a Artemis, Holly e companhia, salvarem o destino do Povo das Fadas novamente. Mas desta vez Artemis encontra um desafio: Minerva Paradizo, uma jovem garota de 12 anos disposta a revelar os demônios ao mundo para ganhar o prêmio nobel.

Saindo dos eventos “cauterizantes” de Opal Deception, este livro se mostra muito mais interessante e excitante, com surgimento de novos personagens, uma trama evoluindo cada vez mais, e mais evolução dos personagens. A trama se mostra mais envolvente e cada vez os personagens se tornam mais carismáticos.

Artemis Fowl The Time Paradox (título brasileiro: Artemis Fowl O Paradoxo do Tempo) – 2008

A mãe de Artemis está sofrendo de uma terrível doença mágica, e só o fluido cerebral de um lêmure sifaka sedoso poderia salvá-la. O problema é que o próprio Artemis vendeu o último da espécie anos antes para um grupo extincionista. Agora Artemis terá que contar com a ajuda de Holly novamente para voltar ao passado e enfrentar aquele que pode ser seu mais desafiador inimigo: ele mesmo, aos onze anos.

Com uma trama cheia de reviravoltas, Time Paradox se revela tão emocionante quanto seu predecessor. Mostrando um Artemis bem mais família, dessa vez são as relações entre os personagens que se mostram mais em foco. Com uma cena que muitos fãs de AF esperavam, e outra que emocionou muitos, é um dos mais emocionantes e agitados livros da série até agora.

Artemis Fowl The Atlantis Complex (ainda sem título brasileiro) – previsto para 2010

O sétimo livro da série, vem focando em ligações entre Artemis e Holly. Ainda não há muitas informações quanto ao enredo, mas sabe-se que será em torno de uma ligação entre os nascimentos de Holly e Artemis, e terá um momento que Artemis estará confinado com a Opala do presente na prisão de Atlântida. Emoções de monte deverão vir nessa sequência tão esperada da série, prevista para sair em inglês em 13 de Julho de 2010.

Artemis Fowl Files (título brasileiro: Arquivo Artemis Fowl Confidencial) – 2004

Um livro “extra” da série, vem com duas histórias inéditas protagonizadas por Holly e Artemis, e uma série de bônus, como entrevistas com os personagens e o próprio autor, as invenções de Potrus, jogos e mais.

Artemis Fowl The Graphic Novel (mesmo título no Brasil) – 2007

Trata-se da história do primeiro livro recontada na forma de quadrinhos, numa graphic novel desenhada com muito estilo, nos dando a oportunidade de ver uma imagem diferente dos personagens da série.

Artemis Fowl The Graphic Novel The Arctic Incident (ainda sem título no Brasil) – 2009

Lançado esse ano, é uma continuação da Graphic Novel, ou seja, é a história do segundo livro recontada em quadrinhos, que ainda não saiu aqui no Brasil.

Uma Palavra Final

Como eu disse, para mim AF tem um lugar no coração mais especial que HP. É uma série genial, que me conquistou. Espero ansiosamente pelas continuações da série, e espero que dure bastante. Filmes são cogitados, mas talvez pelas eternas comparações com o enorme sucesso de HP, AF é abafado e fãs são perdidos, e o filme não sai. Mas a esperança não se esvai, e a espera continua!

This week I looked over in my bookcase and saw a deteriorating vintage book.   I knew the book would not last long.  It is hard to hold all the pages in place, so this week I’m going to publish some copyright free images without the page numbers.  All the illustrations are in color.  They are large, so I’m only uploading 4 freebie images this week.

 The public domain book is Webster’s New Illustrated Dictionary Based on Noah Webster’s dictionary, revised and edited by Edward T. Roe and Charles Leonard-Stuart.  The book was published by Syndicate Publishing Company of New York in 1911.

The top image is titled Badges and Decorations of Honor, Plate I.  The illustration has a copyright date of 1910 by F.E. Wright.

The image above is another illustration with a copyright of 1910 by F.E. Wright.  The birds are “1. Blue and Red Macaw; 2. Incomparable Bird of Paradise; 3.  Golden Bird of Paradise; 4. Resplendent Trogon; 5.  King Bird of Paradise; 6.  Fire Weaver; 7. Paradise Flycatcher; 8. Broad-Shafted Whidah-Bird; 9.  Marsh Hawk; 10. Bald Eagle; 11. Barred Owl; 12. Golden Pheasant.”

The image above is another color bird  illustration.  This time it’s chickens.  The title is Types of Leading Breeds of American Pure Bred Fowl.  The image has a copyright of 1910 by F.E. Wright.

The last illustration also has a copyright of 1910 by F.E. Wright.  The title is Ceramic and Decorative Art.

The illustrations are from a pre-1923 copyright book.  The images should be copyright-free.  All the images have been uploaded to my flickr page.  They have been attributed to Creative Commons.   They are a freebie.  If you click on the image, you will be taken to the image on my flickr page where you can chose the size of image to download for free.

More of Andrea Lemieux’s great photos of cow share families at Glencolton Farms October 17th:

Carving those biodynamic pumpkins for Halloween

Harvest Tableau

Keeping an eye on the young 'uns

New hay barn all stocked for winter. The old one collapsed under snow load.

Orchard encounters....

The main barn at Glencolton Farms on what turned out to be a lovely day to spend outdoors.

]]> http://fednwatered.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/crisp-butterflied-chicken/ Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:53:35 +0000 manila58 http://fednwatered.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/crisp-butterflied-chicken/

Chicken is affordable and flavorful, small enough to work with whole and easy to cut into serving pieces. This simple dish satisfies my need to bite through a crunchy layer to a succulent morsel.

1 3½- to 4-lb chicken

1 ½ t salt

½ t pepper

½ t paprika

1 T olive oil

Mix the salt, pepper and paprika in a small bowl. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place a large, ovenproof skillet on the stove. Turn the heat to high and drizzle in the olive oil.

Wash the chicken, pat it dry. Cut of the wing tips. Butterfly the chicken by cutting all the way through the flesh and bone down one side of its spine. Place the chicken, skin side up, on the cutting board and push down on the middle of the breast to flatten it.

Sprinkle and rub the chicken on both sides with the spices. Place the chicken skin side down on the skillet. Fry until golden brown. You may need to push parts of the chicken down onto the hot skillet to increase the area that is browned.

Flip the chicken over and fry it for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the stove and move the pan and the chicken into the oven. Roast for 20-30 minutes, until the juices run clear.

Slice and serve hot.

A friend and I participated in the Oasis ZooRun 10K yesterday — we actually did better than we expected (i.e. ran more than we walked) and had a great time making our way through the zoo and seeing some of the animals so early in the morning. What a great way to support the Toronto Zoo and all its residents!

And for today’s Creative Something of the Day:

Wood Fowl

Leviticus chapter 11:1-11:47. I’m not sure what to think about this chapter. It seems to be dedicated to God’s advice on what we should and what we should not eat. The question that pops into my head is why? Why does God need to go to such great detail in this chapter? In 11:6-11:7, we are told we cannot eat rabbits or pigs becuse they are unclean to us. And what can we eat from the water? Apparently, only those creatures that have fins and scales (11:12). Seriously? Of course, I don’t eat seafood because I’ve never liked the taste, so perhaps I’ve got an edge from a dietary perspective!

And what of the flying creatures, or as The Bible calls them, fowl? Quite a few types of birds are listed, most of which are not on my diet, however, 11:20 seems to be saying that all fowl that “creep, going upon all four” are not to be eaten. But then we are told what to avoid in the insect world? I don’t know what to think about this chapter. I fail to see why this needs to be in The Bible at all. Obviously, many people in the United States for example, are most definitely eating rabbits and pigs. I wonder what will happen to them?

The chapter continues on describing how carcasses are unclean, and how we need to wash our clothes, and every thing that the carcass touches. Sounds like good advice to me! But then we hit 11:41 – “And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an abomination; it shall not be eaten.” Now what exactly is a creeping thing? Maybe we need some interpretation here, I’m not sure. Are we talking about bugs, or lizards, or maybe snakes? I really want to know what a “creeping thing” is. Apparently, God does not want us to eat “creeping things.”

In the end, we are left wondering what value the chapter brings to modern man. Or is this one of those chapters that only apply to the people of that time period? If so, where is the chapter for modern humans and what they should or should not eat? It’s all so confusing, yet surprisingly normal sounding for the knowledge that existed so many thousands of years ago. Personally, I’m not inclined to think that such a powerful god needs to relate such detailed dietary restrictions to His perfect creation, man. It’s another clear sign to me that humans wrote this stuff, and attributed it to a mythical God character in order to give it some authority. If God loved us so much, why put things on the earth that we should not eat, or that are unclean in the first place? Another mystery, indeed.

There  was  a little golden baby cub born in the forrest. She didn’t know how to capture fowl or go to the bathroom. She loved the forrest but it wasn’t working out so well for her because she was all alone! She stayed in her little den playing with guano because she though if she was just a little prettier, maybe she could find another animal to play with.

As recent posts may have indicated, I am in the mood for poetry. And today, having run across a most beautiful piece by one of my favorite poets, I felt obliged to share it here.

Vultures

Like large dark
lazy
butterflies they sweep over
the glades looking
for death,
to eat it,
to make it vanish,
to make of it the miracle:
resurrection. No one
knows how many
they are who daily
minister so to the grassy
miles, no one
counts how many bodies
they discover
and descend to, demonstrating
each time the earth’s
appetite, the unending
waterfalls of change.
No one,
moreover,
wants to ponder it,
how it will be
to feel the blood cool,
shapeliness dissolve.
Locked into
the blaze of our own bodies
we watch them
wheeling and drifting, we
honor them and we
loathe them,
however wise the doctrine,
however magnificent the cycles,
however ultimately sweet
the huddle of death to fuel
those powerful wings.

– Mary Oliver

]]> http://strategy2c.wordpress.com/2009/10/04/half-fish-half-fowl/ Sun, 04 Oct 2009 09:47:34 +0000 hikingartist http://strategy2c.wordpress.com/2009/10/04/half-fish-half-fowl/

Sometimes things look a bit like both a bird and a fish

Half fish, half fowl

Download the large free print version here

Illustration by Frits Ahlefeldt – HikingArtist.com

]]> http://kjbpod.wordpress.com/2009/09/30/more-than-just-a-family-resemblance/ Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:05:16 +0000 KPod http://kjbpod.wordpress.com/2009/09/30/more-than-just-a-family-resemblance/

We’ve always commented on the way that the Girls look like raptors – some more than others (Penny).  But after one gets to know them, the ridiculousness and fluffitude sort of overwhelms any sense of ferocity.

However.  I just witnessed an event which re-emphasizes the closeness of fowl to predator.

The Girls are out and nattering about the yards, enjoying a beautiful sunny fall day, filling up on greenery.  Suddenly a wild squeaking erupts from Pat’s driveway.  I run over to see River pinning down a mouse with her beak, and then delivering the coup de grace.

River hustles over under a bush and begins pecking apart the dispatched creature with gusto.  Jemima is intrigued, and circles the scene.  This causes River some concern, so she picks up her prize, and with it dangling from her beak, sets off loping across the lawn, Jemima in hot pursuit.  Seconds later, I see them in the front yard – sans mouse.  Who got it?  Where is it?

In River’s throat.  There is a distinctly mouse-shaped lump in her crop.

She has swallowed a mouse whole to keep Jemima from getting any.

“That bird is determined to survive the winter,” says Daniel.

]]> http://ofminutiae.wordpress.com/2009/09/30/lone-feather/ Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:02:41 +0000 waven http://ofminutiae.wordpress.com/2009/09/30/lone-feather/

A lone seagull feather in a small pool filled with cobbles and algae.

]]> http://oneofthoseblogsonthethemeof.wordpress.com/2009/09/26/the-final-countdown-will-always-make-me-think-of-gob/ Sat, 26 Sep 2009 09:51:17 +0000 karenlgould http://oneofthoseblogsonthethemeof.wordpress.com/2009/09/26/the-final-countdown-will-always-make-me-think-of-gob/

I am due to give birth in under a week. I feel excited, irritated that I decided to study this semester and impatient. Of course, I would have felt even more irritated at having one hanging subject for 2010, but the hypothetical irritation is little comfort. Possibly have never felt less like writing a report. Anyhow. Not going to work on it now am I? It’s Saturday night. Want to relax. Want to drill holes.

Yes domestic life continues to throw up its tasks and errands. There is nothing more compelling to the pregnant nester. Ordered fabric this week from Australia. $25.

I present this confusing image as evidence of the burgeoning voluptuousness of the tropics.

Ok, I was going to leave it at that, with perhaps only a trick asterisk to hint at clarification, but I can’t resist explaining that that is a palm leaf growing directly perpendicular to the ashphalt of the driveway.

The dodgy-looking sackcloths the previous tenant tacked to one of our trees have produced further evidence in the last two weeks:

The chickens thrive, helped by Finn and our babysitter/cleaner Jean, who have decided to throw bread to them:

Stay tuned for more thriving, new life and mobile phone pictures in days to come.

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