His vision, from the constantly passing bars,
has grown so weary that it cannot hold
anything else. It seems to him there are
a thousand bars; and behind the bars, no world.
As he paces in cramped circles, over and over,
the movement of his powerful soft strides
is like a ritual dance around a center
in which a mighty will stands paralyzed.
Only at times, the curtain of the pupils
lifts, quietly--. An image enters in,
rushes down through the tensed, arrested muscles,
plunges into the heart and is gone.
posted on September 14, 2003 09:11:20 PM
What a sad, beautiful poem helen. I'm reminded of our neighbor, the cougar who lives along the creek. I've see that look before, although from some distance. The times she and I have spent watching each other are priceless to me. Thank you.
___________________________________
I want to have Ann Coulter's babies
Sein Blick ist vom Vorübergehn der Stäbe
So müd geworden, daß er nichts mehr hält.
Ihm ist, als ob es tausend Stäbe gäbe
und hinter tausend Stäben keine Welt.
Der weiche Gang geschmeidig starker Schritte,
Der sich im allerkleinsten Kreise dreht,
Ist wie ein Tanz von Kraft um eine Mitte,
In der betäubt ein großer Wille steht.
Nur manchmal schiebt der Vorhang der Pupille
Sich lautlos auf. - Dann geht ein Bild hinein,
geht durch der Glieder angespannte Stille -
Und hört im Herzen auf zu sein.
posted on September 14, 2003 09:42:28 PM
If you really want to see cats in action, catch "Living with Tigers" on the Discovery Channel.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34
posted on September 15, 2003 05:03:36 AM
Bear - I saw Living With Tigers. It was great. But, it's terribly sad that they are so endangered. A bit off topic, but I also watched a special on bears on the Discovery Channel. People feed them, they come into housing developments to get more food and because there are too few zoos able to take these animals, they are put down. Too sad!
DO NOT FEED WILD ANIMALS NO MATTER HOW CUTE THEY ARE!
posted on September 15, 2003 08:02:44 AM
I would love to see your couger at a reasonable distance. I have seen one in Florida melt back into the trees at about 200 yards - just close enough to tell what it was for sure. I have had the good fortune to see big horn sheep from 20 foot away when I was younger and in much better shape by climbing above them and sitting still in the rocks with the wind right. I was surprised that when they finally saw me they did not bound away in panic but just kept moving as they already were and kept looking back at me. But then I made no motion at all not even having a camera. I almost stumbled into a bear one moonless night and he did flee in panic. At arms length they have very very bad breath. That is too close though. I agreed with him and retreated too. I am not quite rational about bear because I have had them come in my camp and tear the ice chest apart. The one who did it even knew to open canned goods. It ate the eggs one at a time like a kid savouring chocolates, egg running down both sides of it's muzzle, and ate a block of velvetta cheese like it wasn't even in foil. Just a little roughage I suppose. The ice chest could not be cleaned to remove the smell even with pure bleach. It had to be tossed.
posted on September 15, 2003 08:23:55 AM
Cheryl , living with tigers was an awsome program. I can't imagine living & training those tigers for 4 years then letting then go free.
The trust the trainers had in tigers & vise versa was unbelievable, the tigers allowing the trainers to take the away from them the game the tigers had just killed.
Just a couple of years ago I did have the fortune to see a cougar in the wild. I was only 30 or 40 yards away from it when it walked across a path from me. It just seemed to glide across the ground.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34
A Quebec woodsman who wanted a black bear as a pet, set out Tuesday morning and snatched a young cub from the Gatineau River -- its mother snarling from shore as Denis Ryan sped off on a Jet Ski, holding the kidnapped cub by the scruff of the neck.
The young cub, nicknamed Buddy Bear, was swimming across the river, near Wakefield's covered bridge, and was just a few feet from shore, and its mother, when it was abducted around 9: 30 a.m.
The bear managed to break free from his captor eight times by clawing at him. He tried in vain to swim to shore, only to be dragged back out into the river.
To wear out the bear, Mr. Ryan started running him over with the Jet Ski, forcing the cub's head under water.
The 55-year-old woodsman got his best grip on the cub by holding it upside down by one of its hind legs.
He then started dunking him again and again under water in a cruel attempt to drain the cub's energy.
The cub was now moaning, desperately trying to breathe.
"I just lifted him up and then I could dunk him. Then he couldn't breathe. I kept dunking and kept dunking him. Then I started to drive away," Mr. Ryan told the Citizen.
posted on September 15, 2003 12:14:00 PM
What a dipshit. It would be interesting to see this "woodsman" in a head to head with the poor cub's mother. I'd say that would be a fair punishment for this moron...it would make a better picture for his local paper too.
"Local "woodsman" has face torn off by mother of bear cub he tried to abduct."
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I want to have Ann Coulter's babies
posted on September 20, 2003 07:28:22 PM
Here is another animal victim of the war...blinded and cripled by a hand grenade.
Lion of Kabul roars his last
Animal welfare teams came too late for Marjan
Marjan, the lion who survived years of conflict and ill-treatment in Afghanistan and touched the hearts of animal lovers abroad, has died at Kabul zoo.
The 25 year-old beast who was half-blind, lame and almost toothless died of old age only weeks after an international animal rescue mission arrived to help him.
The only lion in Kabul zoo, he was a gift from Germany in more peaceful times 23 years ago, and became something of a symbol of survival against the odds.
Among his reported exploits are killing and eating a Taleban fighter who climbed into his enclosure to prove his bravery.
The man's brother attacked the lion with a grenade in revenge, leaving it lame and blind in one eye.
The keeper who looked after Marjan for the last eight years said the lion had not eaten for a few days when he found him dead in his cage on Saturday morning.
posted on September 21, 2003 07:41:14 AM
What a sad story. I had read stories about the animals in the zoos there not having food. I agree, kraftdinner, very, very hard to read.
posted on September 21, 2003 08:02:28 AM
About Kiara's link...Being drunk doesn't excuse the dummy who stuck his hand into the tiger's cage. This gives meaning to the expression, "dumb yankees".
posted on September 21, 2003 10:25:28 AM
That's a very sad story about the lion.
Earlier this year it showed all the soldiers feeding the animals at the Baghdad zoo so this isn't good. It's really sad that the tiger lost its only buddy.
Is there any limit to how much beer the soldiers are given? Is there someone who checks to see if they get drunk? These may sound like silly questions but I don't know about these things.
posted on September 21, 2003 12:10:51 PM
Cheryl, just on the side... Born Free was the first movie my mom let me see at the theatre by myself. I felt totally grown-up, especially taking the bus alone! When the movie was over, my eyes were almost swollen shut from crying. I had to get one of the employees at the theatre to call my mom to pick me up. To this day, I have to turn the channel if there's an animal story on - just in case it's sad. Hurting animals or children is a weak spot for me. I almost think I would be able to shoot someone in the head if I saw someone trying to harm a child or animal, it's that bad for me.
