Cat Conformity [Senryū]

the cat that conforms
to a hollow in the wall
won't conform elsewise

All-Seeing Feline [Haiku]

a cat on a ledge
peers down with rapt focus.
looking for… what?

DAILY PHOTO: Primping Cat on a Rail

Taken in December of 2021 in Darjeeling

POEM: Silly Cat

I think you know my silly cat

It perches on heads like a hat

It catches critters and sets them free

cause it finds canned food more tasty,

but it loves the sport of the hunt

and can perform acrobatic stunts

between bouts of blissful slumber

POEM: Conceit of Man

An elephant will never forget.
No car keys to misplace, I’ll bet.
A tiger is fearless, I will confess,
but it’ll never be audited by the IRS.

An owl may be wise; you can tell by the eyes.
But it’s never asked to comment on the size of a girl’s thighs.
Dolphins are smart ones, that much is true.
But, pray tell, who is in whom’s zoo?

In all domains humans think themselves the greatest.
And we are the very best of sadists.
You’ll never see a bonobo bureaucrat,
nor get tech support from a vampire bat.

At masochism, too, we’re none too shabby.
At the karaoke bar, ever see a tabby?
Ever seen a chimp with a nipple ring?
I’ll tell you now, that’s not a thing.

Our narcissism has grown beyond the pale.
One lifetime to the rocket from the sail
will give any species some cerebral swelling.
I’m not saying our’s isn’t a tale worth telling.
Let’s just make sure it doesn’t turn cautionary.
Basking in awesomeness, one forgets to be wary.
Next thing you know, super-smart apes are getting the itch,
or the Alpha Centaurians have made Earth their bitch.

DAILY PHOTO: A Bad Place to be a Guinea Pig

Taken in Arequipa, Peru in July of 2010

Taken in Arequipa, Peru in July of 2010

 

If you think this guy is eyeballing the camera suspiciously, it may be because it’s a resident of the Peruvian Andes. If you don’t know what I mean, check out this article from the National Geographic (particularly item #2.)

Anywhere else and he’d be someone’s fluffy little pet… or I guess a lab test animal–given the colloquial meaning of “Guinea Pig.” (So, maybe things could be worse than to be a Guinea Pig in Arequipa. One could be a Guinea Pig in the lab’s at Pfizer.)

DAILY PHOTO: Peruvian Street Puppy

Taken in July of 2010 in Cuzco, Peru.

Taken in July of 2010 in Cuzco, Peru.

DAILY PHOTO: The Puppy Who Didn’t Know How Much He Could Chew

Taken in December of 2014 in Budapest in the City Park (Városliget)

Taken in December of 2014 in Budapest in the City Park (Városliget)

I watched this little dog carry this stick across Budapest’s City Park. He set it down once, or maybe twice, to regrip it in its teeth, but otherwise it kept trotting along. The stick was about 1.5 times the dog’s length and about the diameter of a woman’s wrist.

The expression goes, “Don’t bite off more than you can chew,” but I applaud that this puppy was willing to shoot for the stars.

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TODAY’S RANDOM THOUGHT: Blind Dog

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This dog followed us around during our tea plantation walk in Munnar. It was a fine-looking dog with a warm disposition. It seemed quite healthy, except for the fact that it was missing its left eye.

This made me think. If you take in a blind dog, does that make you its seeing eye human?