Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Home on the Strange

While drivin' around
and surveyin' the ground
for interesting barrows and hills,
I chanced on a sign
as it hung on a line
of old barbed wire. (kind of gave me the chills).

No huntin' it said
Then, painted in red,
This land has already been leased
I looked to my right
And there in full sight
Hung a hapless, but trespassin' beast


And wouldn't you know,
There hung a whole row
Of varmints caught chasin' the cattle
And sort of alone
On a post of his own
A porcupine caught in the battle

 I looked for a gun,
and didn't see one,
but I stayed in my car just the same
A calf might start bawlin',
that farmer come callin'
And see an occasion for blame

I didn't want to quit
taking pictures a bit,
but this time I knew that I must



The warm western skies
Shone bright in my eyes
And I blinked as I drove just ahead of the dust




I took these pictures yesterday in the nick of time for this three word Wednesday.
I had to take liberties with the definition of kind, but I'll kindly forgive myself for that.

Blink; verb: to open and close the eye, especially involuntarily; wink rapidly and repeatedly.

Kind; adjective: of a good or benevolent nature or disposition.

Occasion; noun: a particular time, especially as marked by certain circumstances or occurrences.

14 comments:

  1. I love the rhyme - it seemed to capture the spirit of the west - like the clippety-clop of horse's hooves..the photos are fantastic too - never heard of 'varmints'..it truly is wild out there..glad you were safe in your car! Jae

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  2. A varmint is a corruption of the word vermin. It's a sneaky, low-down, cattle-thievin' critter.

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  3. Sheilagh Lee said:wow love the way you strung this all together.

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  4. What terrific fun. That one really rolled along nicely. I may not have known the Ozarks, but I certainly know varmints - thanks to Walter Brennan!

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  5. Are these pictures real or are they photoshopped? If real, they're very disturbing indeed....

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  6. Interesting read!!...and those pictures a bit eerie too. What an experience!!

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  7. Ha, ha,ha, I liked your forgiving yourself by being different with'Kind'.. a beautiful creation..

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  8. Love the poem, but this city girl finds the pictures disturbing and sad. Ah, the gumbo that is America!

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  9. Wow! The photos are completely new experiences for me, and the writing tight and entertaining.

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  10. Great rhyme and excellent photos. I have mixed feelings about killing everything in sight. I remember my horror when I first worked in country South Australia and there was one farmer who killed everything that moved that he didn't raise, even the now protected Wedge Tailed Eagles. And is hanging up a corpse on a fence, to deter others of its kind or to show off their prowess with a gun to other humans?

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  11. I'd be pretty disturbed if I came across that. I hope they get taken down before they start to smell, or is that part of the plan? It would sure deter me from trespassing, no matter what the temptation!

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  12. what a nightmarish place that must be.

    trisha
    http://sharmishthabasu.wordpress.com/2011/02/17/the-occassion/

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  13. Don't mess with the farmers out here!

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