carrots

Opposite Day – ND #64

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Brutus being a hogger not a pig – Photo: L. Weikel

Opposite Day

I might as well call today Opposite Day. As magical as yesterday was, with the myriad animal sightings and a meteor streaking across the sky, today was, well, lovely but benign.

OK, maybe benign isn’t the opposite of magical. Perhaps I’m exaggerating a tad the difference between yesterday’s and today’s experiences. I’ll concede that, if pressed, I probably wouldn’t want to experience the literal opposite of a magical day.

In fact, today was rather delightful. A warm front came through (or perhaps the frigid arctic front just left) making it almost feel as though taking a walk without a jacket might be on the agenda. It wasn’t. I got chilly before stepping off the porch. But it was tempting.

Pacha Pig-nose – Photo: L. Weikel

Clarification

I posted the other day about a pig in my life to whom I’ve given the name Princess. Let me be clear: this is an unofficial naming. Indeed, I feel she told me her name is Princess. But I’ve not seen her paperwork, nor would I trust it to accurately reflect what Princess would like to be called anyway.

Princess is not my pig. She abides on a neighbor’s farm. Said neighbor is a farmer and part of this farmer’s offerings to his customers are pork products.

This makes me very sad, but it’s not for me to judge nor to condemn. I do, however, choose to bond with Princess and at the very least let her know that she is loved and seen and appreciated while she’s alive. I’m grateful for her being my friend who pokes her head outside of her hut and then runs out to greet me whenever I walk by.

I intend to give her a carrot now and then, in addition to the dog treats I inevitably carry in my pocket. Based on suggestions of a friend, I may occasionally bring a different vegetable or fruit (an apple, squash, spinach, cooked broccoli?) but if I’m honest, I’m lucky when I remember a carrot. So if she only gets what is the equivalent of a piece of candy from me (a carrot) now and again, I admit to feeling little to no remorse. She could have worse friends.

Alas, the past two days it’s been dark by the time we reached Princess’s abode. So even though I remembered her treat, I didn’t see her.

Princess Pig-nose – Photo: L. Weikel

Admission

I’ll admit it: I’m hoping she might have babies. I shudder at the prospect of their future, too, but hey. We all have our destinies. And as our puppies have turned six months old already, the prospect of bonding with some piglets is a tempting daydream.

(T+64)

Snarfing Down a Carrot – Day 984

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Snarfing Down a Carrot – Photo: L. Weikel

Snarfing Down a Carrot

As I’ve said a vast number of times before, it’s the little things in life that make it all worthwhile. Yeah, I’ve written about a lot of the ‘little things’ in my life over the past 983 days, even accidentally titling three separate posts (here, here, and here) ‘Little Things.’ But I’ve never titled a post ‘Snarfing Down a Carrot’ before tonight and yet the snarfing was most definitely another example of a tiny moment that made my day.

In point of fact, and upon reflection, almost every post has been about something most people would view as utterly inconsequential.

Alas, perhaps that’s one of the lessons I’ve learned through this exercise I dubbed my ‘1111 Devotion.’ My life is a tapestry of inconsequential moments; opportunities to assign personal meaning to the shape of a cloud or to realize joy in the midnight song of a catbird.

Or to experience delight when pigs, responding to my calls, run from their pen to greet me with smiles and appreciative grunts. It got even better (in my book) when the swine that snagged the biggest carrot used decidedly covert and deliberate tactics to hide her coup from the other two. Not only did she know she’d scored, she was determined to hide it from the other two.

She knew what she was doing! – Photo: L. Weikel

Laughter and Joy

I’m grateful for the laughter and joy my ‘three little pigs’ brought me this evening. It was quite a juggling act, taking their photos while feeding them carrots, singing their praises, and making sure Spartacus stuck by my side.

But I hope you’ll agree, these photos capture at least a little of their ‘cheek,’ and surely elicit a chuckle.

I was going to pick a card for us to contemplate on tomorrow’s full moon in Aquarius. Instead, I became distracted by my lovely and loving little porkers.

Maybe I’ll pick a card tomorrow.

Or maybe not.

Shhhh! It’s our secret – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-127)

Oooh-la-la – Day 811

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Photo: L. Weikel

Oooh-la-la

It’s been at least four months since I’ve subjected you, my loyal readers, to the odd delight I take in anthropomorphizing the occasional vegetable. It’s something I fear I’ll never disabuse myself of; I can’t help but smile when these creatures reveal themselves, often from the depths of my crisper drawer. And let’s face it, tonight’s candidate isn’t shy about her bon vivant, “Oooh-la-la!”

Maybe it’s the soupy greens on her head that now remind me of a Parisian beret. Or her desire to recline provocatively against a conch shell. (Who wouldn’t?) There’s even a hint of batting eyelashes in her expression if you ask me…

Just Carrots?

I’m wondering if carrots are my unique weakness or if I just don’t buy enough other vegetables to discover their personalities. Or maybe I eat the other vegetables more quickly and therefore consume their individuality before it can be fully expressed? If that’s the case, I feel a bit sad.

Actually, that reminds me. I did find myself drawn to shooting a portrait of a tomato a couple of days ago.

My initial desire was to share the love – it appeared to me, at first glance, to resemble a heart. The commercial kind; you know. The hearts-and-flowers, Valentine’s Day type of heart.

But then, when I looked at it from another angle, I could see it as a face. A grinning, many-toothed tomato that could almost be a cousin to the Cookie Monster.

Time For Bed

I cut up Brussels Sprouts this evening before I steamed them and didn’t find a single one that made me laugh. Same goes for the broccoli rabe I steamed. Maybe they’re just not as photogenic, gregarious – or politically active.

Or maybe it’s just time for me to call it a night and go to bed.

Hey there! – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-300)

Odd Penchant – Day 674

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Photo: L. Weikel

Odd Penchant

I’m starting to wonder if somehow my youth was stunted or in some other way deprived. I say that because, clearly, I have an odd penchant for anthropomorphizing my vegetables.

I don’t know what to say. When I was a little kid, I was not one to play with dolls – at least, not the stereotypical or traditional ‘baby dolls.’ But man…I do remember Liddle Kiddles, though.

Wow, in the process of seeing if I could find a link to an image of Liddle Kiddles, I became completely distracted by and lost in memories from when I was 7 or 8 years old. Since my siblings were all significantly older than I was, and we lived ‘out in the country,’ I spent a lot of time playing by myself. Believe me, I grew up a long time before there was anything remotely called a play date.

When I found this link to Liddle Kiddles and see their little faces and accessories, I can suddenly still smell the bendy plastic they were made of and remember their outfits as if it were yesterday – or another life.  Of the ‘original ten’ Kiddles created in 1966, I definitely remember having Bunson Burnie, Calamity Jiddle, Howard “Biff” Boodle, Lola Liddle, and Liddle Diddle. Remembering this right now is just so peculiar!

I also played with Trolls. I loved their hair and their naked, androgynous little bodies. I’m pretty sure they, too, had that same rubbery-plastic smell that all dolls of that ilk had back in the ‘60s.

Today It’s Vegetables

What can I say?

I picked up our family’s vegetables from the CSA today and noticed we received a bounty of adorably provocative carrots. Ah yes, I’ve grown up and now instead of Calamity Jiddle and Biff Boodle, I see soft porn in my veggies.

Hardly even soft! But tell me these carrots don’t look just a tad bit risqué?

I don’t know about the middle one. It seems to be a little kid throwing a fishing line into a creek. The one on the left is just kickin’ back, chillin’ out. I could almost imagine it smoking a cigarette and reaching for a beer. And the one on the right? Hmm. It’s probably best if I leave that to your own imaginations.

I’m sure at least some of you know this tendency to anthropomorphize is a distinct part of my personality. You may remember this post. Or this one. Of course, this odd predilection of mine undoubtedly enhances my ability to read the clouds the way I do.

Provocative Carrots – Photo: L. Weikel

Makes Me Laugh

All I know is, my humor may occasionally be juvenile and my imagination may be abundantly fertile, but I’m often able to use those attributes to find something to make me smile in this chaotic, often depressing world.

If it’s anthropomorphizing carrots, so be it. Whimsy, fantasy, imagination, laughter…these are the things in my life that I want to cultivate.

Small seeds. I’m planting small seeds.

(T-437)