It's all a bunch of tree-hugging hippie crap!

I was watching Animal Planet last night when it suddenly occurred to me that nature is both amazing and really, REALLY odd. For example, consider the flying squirrel. Cute, but really fucking weird when you stop and think about it.



It must've sucked to be one of the missing-link flying squirrels whose flying membrane genes just weren't strong enough to be selected. I sort of hope that the de-selection didn't involve test flights.


Consider also otters, who are cute and snuggly-looking and will apparently pose for photos in pails and will also--according to Animal Planet--prey on beavers.




Finally, let's discuss the capybara, which the Vatican seems to have declared to be a fish back in the 1600s. These real-life R.O.U.S.-es have yet to receive a Papal re-classification.




In real life, I've been able to observe the not at all bizarre but amazing transformation of four baby robins who hatched in a nest that was built on one of the sculptures on the lawn at work. Here is the nest on May 6th, when the mama robin was still sitting on eggs whenever there was a decided lack of ginormous bipeds and flashy silver things the size of her whole body:



Here is the same nest yesterday:





I was going to write something sappy and thoughtful about how pleasant and Zen-like I've been able to become just by deciding to appreciate the simple elegance of day-to-day life, but it all seems a little overwrought now, so I'll just let you look at the cute birds.


Reading: Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett and Julie & Julia by Julie Powell, which the cat apparently finds as enjoyable as I do:




Either that or he's trying to tell me to get my nose out of the book and get out the damn feather toy already.






Playing: the soundtrack to Monsoon Wedding