Sporkworld

microblog to accompany the digital art site Sporkworld (www.sporkworld.org)
July 4
“One More Parade” (Phil Ochs, 1964) performed by They Might Be Giants
July 3
“ Patriotism is … a sense of national responsibility. Adlai Stevenson (1952)
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Sporkworld Desaturated for the Fourth of July In recognition of Independence Day, Sporkworld’s home page has assumed a temporarily grayer appearance.
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A Reflection for Independence Day Commentary by Daniel Schorr
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“ Patriots may be a good name for a football team, or a jeep, or a wiretapping law. But I will submit that in politics it has become a word corrupted by misuse in I-am-more-patriotic-than-thou epithets.
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My suggestion for this Independence Day is that our warring politicians and their surrogates declare a moratorium on references to patriotism. Daniel Schorr (All Things Considered, National Public Radio, July 3, 2008)
July 1
Did I say “No deer in the yard this year”?
Did I say “No deer in the yard this year”?
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It was a dark and rainy afternoon. What is this keeping company with a mourning dove (left)?  A large sparrow? A female something-or-other not seen before? The photograph, zoomed in closer than the eye could see, gives it all away.  We see evidence of down.  A baby then. Whose? That is the question. This is a time of year with fledglings testing their skills all over the yard when thinking a bird is rare or unusual is particularly hazardous.

It was a dark and rainy afternoon. What is this keeping company with a mourning dove (left)?  A large sparrow? A female something-or-other not seen before?

The photograph, zoomed in closer than the eye could see, gives it all away.  We see evidence of down.  A baby then.

Whose?

That is the question.

This is a time of year with fledglings testing their skills all over the yard when thinking a bird is rare or unusual is particularly hazardous.

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Answer: A baby cowbird, according to the Spork uncle/brother who is a student of ornithology, carrying on a family tradition. He points out that this “baby” — large as it is — is too young to be on its own yet. But — being much larger than its victim foster parents — it may have been tossed out of the nest prematurely to ensure the survival of some of the smaller babies. The hatchling is probably doomed. 97% of cowbird eggs and nestlings fail to reach adulthood (Stokes Field Guide to Birds, p. 446). The hatchling cowbird did not decide to be an interloper. So, is the hatchling a victim, too, of its birth mother’s invasions? Is the mother cowbird, her behavior driven by instinct, also a victim? Are there human metaphors to be explored?

Answer: A baby cowbird, according to the Spork uncle/brother who is a student of ornithology, carrying on a family tradition.

He points out that this “baby” — large as it is — is too young to be on its own yet. But — being much larger than its victim foster parents — it may have been tossed out of the nest prematurely to ensure the survival of some of the smaller babies.

The hatchling is probably doomed. 97% of cowbird eggs and nestlings fail to reach adulthood (Stokes Field Guide to Birds, p. 446).

The hatchling cowbird did not decide to be an interloper. So, is the hatchling a victim, too, of its birth mother’s invasions? Is the mother cowbird, her behavior driven by instinct, also a victim?

Are there human metaphors to be explored?

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Moomin

Somewhat surreal graphic novel, both melancholic and innocent.

June 29
Waiting for monarch butterflies. We’ve seen a few in the yard. They are just beginning to arrive from their winter home in Mexico and points south. This year, we have milkweed, a plant we have been trying to grow for several years. Because of the winter storms, the trees and large branches that have fallen, the milkweed has more sun, and with more sun, the plants have begun to multiply. This year, there will be enough of them to attract the butterflies. Look for butterfly photographs to join the bird and animal and flower images on this microblog. Patience.

Waiting for monarch butterflies. We’ve seen a few in the yard. They are just beginning to arrive from their winter home in Mexico and points south. This year, we have milkweed, a plant we have been trying to grow for several years. Because of the winter storms, the trees and large branches that have fallen, the milkweed has more sun, and with more sun, the plants have begun to multiply. This year, there will be enough of them to attract the butterflies. Look for butterfly photographs to join the bird and animal and flower images on this microblog.

Patience.