ending
School is drawing to a close for the semester, and I’m in my usual flurry of ‘I should have done this thing and that thing differently’. Floating with a lack of good sleep and food. One more week.
memento mori
Two more ducks died during the night. I suspect a stray cat, based on the injuries and the fact that the enclosure could not have let in a hawk this time. Photos below are not for the squeamish. This is the only way I know to relate to life-death. The ducks were given a sky burial since the ground is frozen.
The other two ducks, Dublin and Molly, were moved into the greenhouse.
New Work – in progress
Algae exploration series.
fermentation and algae series - madonna of downtown lansing
algae, glue, kombucha, java moss, tissue, drywall
current projects
winter sky
1. Today I travel to Ypsi to get a few things tied up with grad school. I have to have my NWLB voucher signed, talk to someone in fin aid and figure out whether the loans they offered me this semester can be transferred to next semester, get my Eagle One! card (*&^^%^$&&$$), and go to the bookstore. I really doubt they have Winter 2010 books yet, but I may as well check. Then probably to Whole Foods to buy shampoo and eat my weight in free guacamole samples.
2. Crows. The roosting migrations continue across Michigan. I checked last year’s roosting areas, but no luck. Chris said that he saw thousands flying Eastward this morning, so the plan is to get out at 6:15am tomorrow with the camera and try to follow them.
Video from Halloween 2008:
3. Art. It makes me really anxious to talk about it before it’s done, but I’m in the planning stages of some (hopefully) interesting new ideas. I’d like to involve fermentation (liquids), sand, tissue paper and paint. Maybe paint? Something to add areas of pigment.
4. Still pole dancing. Still in love with this: http://www.youtube.com/user/StudioVeena#p/u/19/IpbLVSCNvHY
Padraig
March 17, 2008 – October 7,2009
(Written on the day that he died.)
This morning, probably just before dawn, our ducks were attacked by a Cooper’s Hawk. We don’t get many of them around here, only one last year, and we always thought that our ducks (Rouen, a larger French variety of Mallard) were too big to be picked up by anything. Echo may have scared it away when I let her out. I was on the phone with my friend LD, went out to feed them, and saw Padraig’s body, not eaten, just ripped up. I screamed and cried, but was remarkably calm once I saw that another duck was hurt and needed medical attention. I had thought that her left leg was broken, because she’s really wobbly on her feet and kept falling over. Bridgette is injured, but not seriously. I found a vet that would treat her, and he said that her leg isn’t broken and that she didn’t have any puncture wounds. I had thought that her left leg was broken, because she’s really wobbly on her feet and kept falling over. The doctor said that she’s off-balance due to the fact that the hawk may have hit her in the head, (they kill birds by breaking their necks) and also most of her wing feathers fell out in the struggle. He gave her a steroid shot and antibiotic. I buried Paddy and laid stones over his grave. It puts things into perspective. I had to go to EMU to turn in some papers, and it was a good distraction to drive there, but I cried most of the way home. I raised him from a one-day-old duckling, born on Saint Patrick (Padraig)’s day. He was a sweet duck, he played games with Echo and us, always chasing us, but running scared when we turned around. He loved his ladies, his pond, and spinach. I like to think that Padraig saved Bridgette by going after the hawk himself, but we’ll never know what actually happened. I just wish I could have stopped it. He was a great duck and our friend.
ducklings eating spinach.
First trip outside!
With Dublin
WordPress won’t let me insert these, but there are some wonderful duck videos we shot here:
video1http://www.flickr.com/photos/radiation88/3133825654/
video2http://www.flickr.com/photos/radiation88/2720809486/
video3http://www.flickr.com/photos/radiation88/3995839350/
video4http://www.flickr.com/photos/radiation88/3995852046/
Always looking for food.
Breeding plumage
A serene spot for Paddy to rest.
Bridgette is feeling much better.
NWLB
Progress is being made.
-need to email KS about educational plan that includes complete costs, per semester, of EMU grad attendance.
-need to email JD about MI adding the program.
Halloween at Scene!
-talk to Peter about band ideas.
-design flyer, have flyers printed.
-talk to Tim and Bethanne about adding flyer to various sites.
-write up the call for artists for the special show nights.
-the sea gooseberry just needs glass sides, then it will be done.
-have not heard back from 414. This could go either way.
-need to send edited photos to InsideOut gallery.
-(s)edition prints are here, need to do the transfer process.
OTU in the LSJ
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20090907/NEWS01/909070325
