Twiggy celebrated her Eighth birthday on Tuesday. Here she is with her present. Looks like she might have been expecting a treat instead but it was a good day.
Let’s join Twiggy and Tempeste outside.
“So twiggy. How’s that sun?”
“It’s delightful.”
“I have trouble just lying around like that.”
“Yeah, but you and I are different.”
“Well, that’s for sure.”
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to look for a toy so we can play.”
“What makes you think I want to play?”
“Well, it is a beautiful day and thought we could play.”
“I agree it is a beautiful day. I want to lie in the sun.”
“While you are lying there, what am I going to do?”
“You know, sometimes you just have to be alone and entertain yourself.”
“Entertain myself? What fun is that?”
“It may not sound like fun now, but think of something you would enjoy.”
“I do enjoy chasing a ball by myself. Maybe I’ll do that.”
Today, I randomly opened Detour on the Eternal Road to page 115. With eyes closed, I pointed to the page. My finger landed right between “handsome” and “guy.” Our prompt today is “handsome guy.”
With so little going on around town, I thought we would take a moment to check out the deer. We are catered by Le Calamar of Austin. Our entertainment is Steve Martin, Jackson Browne, and Alison Brown
Menu
Steak Tartare pain de mie, comte
Roasted sunchokes escarole, pecan, goat cheese
——-
Yelloweye snapper – almond, guajillo, brown butter
Pan roasted Chicken – sauce vin jaune, chestnut mushroom
Wagyu flat iron steak – cafe d’austin butter, poivrons
Wagyu hanger Steak – au poivre
Roasted Lion’s Mane Mushroom – bearnaise sauce
Let’s get going.
There they are approaching the carrot handout spot at my house.
Gotta be careful when the miser is getting on his bike.
“Okay, Bud. There is nothing to see here. You can take that bike and underlay burro.”
“Now that he’s gone, we can eat in peace. Come on, ladies. It’s safe.”
The first brave doe.
The rest of the ladies enjoy their carrots.
A different group in the sun.
This year’s fawn.
Looks like he wants me to move on, too.
The deer seem happy and healthy, so it is time for food and music. I hope you have a delightful week.
The machine delivers a nerve-saving cup of steaming elixir. The first sip signals the low caffeine warning horn inside my head that a new chapter of addiction satisfaction has begun. The second sip is accompanied by the ever-present Westminster chimes of the front doorbell, indicating another idiot ignoring the “do not ring the doorbell” sign that covers the doorbell.
The barking of Twiggy and Tempeste threatens to crack windows and plaster, so a bone is tossed into the soundproof room, and when the two hounds of Baskerville go inside, the door is slammed. The silence almost caused the eardrums to implode. A check of the security monitor predictably shows the image of someone who looks like Daffy Duck. The usual conversation takes place about a signature for an. envelope, so, with a sigh, the security shutdown process begins.
The SWAT team needs to be put on standby. A quick text to the leader confirms that status. Also, the flight of A-10 Warthogs must be diverted. Another call to the commander puts that worry to rest. The SEAL team needs to be called off, and a call to the leader makes that possible. The MH-60 Jayhawk Helicopter hovering over the house is diverted. A call to the tow truck driver stops the deployment of an M1A1 Abrams Tank. The control panel simplifies the shutdown process of the security system. The boiling oil vats are put on standby, the turret mortars disengaged, the Trebuchet on safety, the concertina wire rolled, the Claymore mines reset, the tower Gatling guns on safety, the moat net dropped, the alligators fed, and the IEDs and shoulder-held rockets put away. The Proton torpedoes switched off. The gamma ray beams covered. The high-powered maser guns switched to standby, and the nanorobots were chained in the basement. The Klingons are called back, and the Targ is caged. Robbie’s Bot is sent to the basement. The Tasmanian Devil is directed to the food in his cage, and the door drops. The locks on the door are thrown. And the door opened.
The duck points to a line on the clipboard for my signature. After signing, he gives me an envelope. Before his little web food gives the classic tip gesture, he gets the tip of the day. “Remember the Chinese proverb: ‘Be not afraid of growing slowly; be afraid only of standing still.'” Before the duck can react, the front door is locked and the security system reactivated.
The envelope is from Linda Hill. Inside is a message. It says, Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “chapter.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!
Yesterday, Sotheby’s oversaw the record $18 million sale of a drawing by Rembrandt: one of 6 drafts he made of lions, and the only one to have resided in private hands.
Those hands belong to Dr. Thomas S. Kaplan and his wife, who, along with standing foremost among the world’s private Rembrandt collectors, ride in the vanguard of global wildlife conservation on behalf of the very cat the drawing so vividly depicts.
Founder of both the Leiden Collection of Dutch and Flemish master works and Panthera, the world’s leading conservation organization dedicated exclusively to wild cats big and small, Dr. Kaplan has been able to synergistically marry these two passions, leveraging one to fund the other, as all proceeds from the record-setting, $17.9 million sale will help ensure the lion survives long beyond both Rembrandt’s time, and our own.
Called Young Lions Resting, Rembrandt depicts with superb draftsmanship the languid, fearless pose of the lion through loose, confident strokes, particularly in the modeling of the lion’s paws, and a controlled shading that brings its gaze to life.
Dr. Kaplan, who’s spoken to GNN before about his work at Panthera, explained how it was the most he and his wife had ever paid for an object after they embarked upon their anonymous journey of collecting Rembrandt and other Dutch/Flemish masters pieces in 2003.
“We recognized immediately the synergy, as my wife told me when I asked her opinion of it when I took her to see it before buying it: she responded, ‘it’s a Rembrandt, it’s a lion, and it’s beautiful; if it’s not for you, then who’s it for?” Kaplan told GNN.
Only 6 drawings of lions by Rembrandt are currently known. Young Lion Resting is the first drawing by the master to come to the market in a century, and the $17.9 million sale price sets a new record for a drawing by Rembrandt by almost $15 million.
Kaplan founded Panthera along with renowned and late conservationist Dr. Alan Rabinowitz just one year after he bought the painting in 2005. Highlighting the plight of the lion across its entire native range, the sale of Young Lion Resting at Sotheby’s was paired with a faithful reproduction entitled Young Lion Vanished, wherein the animal Rembrandt so skillfully brought to life on the paper is replaced by a void—a reality on our Earth across 95% of the lion’s former range.
“Is it savable? Yes, it is, and with much larger landscapes than with the tiger in India. But, in 26 out of the 48 countries through which it roamed, it’s now extinct,” says Dr. Kaplan, whose involvement in Panthera goes far beyond his role as its billionaire philanthropist founder, and stretches well into the scientific.
Young Lion Resting (top) Young Lion Vanished (bottom) – credit, supplied by Panthera
While Panthera has achieved incredible results protecting leopards and jaguars, Dr. Kaplan says that, regarding lions, its programs are still about “playing defense.”
“The lion is not there, but it could be. I don’t believe it will ever be extinct in the wild, but it might come to exist only in fortresses, and we want to see more connectivity.”
Young Lion Resting was co-owned with the chair of Panthera’s board of directors, Jon Ayer, who has spoken with GNN multiple times, and who provided a statement to mark the sale.
“The pulse of life that Rembrandt captured in this lion’s gaze continues to beat today through our conservation field programs,” said Ayers. “This sale provides Panthera with critical resources to combat poaching and habitat loss globally, ensuring that the majesty Rembrandt admired in the 17th century survives well into the 21st and beyond.”
Those resources come as the organization he chairs, and Kaplan founded, will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year. The auction proceeds will support science-directed initiatives fostering human-wild cat coexistence and critical landscape protection in some 40 countries across four continents.
“We probably spend 80% of our time working with people to ensure that we’ve protected them from the human-animal conflict that usually precedes the slaughter of the animals. If people don’t have to kill lions, usually they don’t, but if all of your material wellbeing is wrapped up in a cow or a goat, you’re not going to take that loss stoically,” Dr. Kaplan remarked empathetically.
“You’re going to make sure that doesn’t happen again. On the other hand, if you create good fences, generally speaking, people do not want to kill the cat.”
Kaplan told GNN that among those whose job it is to know within the federal government, there is a belief that if Panthera can’t save a wildcat, no one can. If that’s true, then this record Rembrandt auction suggests the lion is in a safe pair of paws.
The good news in this story is that a billionaire is using his wealth to benefit creatures on Earth. Today’s JohnKu Talks about billionaires. I hope you have a lovely weekend.
Today, I randomly opened The Power of Three by Teri Polen to page 67. With eyes closed, I pointed to the page. The word closest to my finger is “trash.” That is our prompt today.
Since the Super Bowl is this weekend, I thought I would pull some advice from a January 26th, 2015, post. It all seems to be relevant.
Top Ten Things Not to Do at a Super Bowl Celebration
10 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not arrive wearing team clothing for a team that is not playing. If you do, at best, everyone will think you are a sore loser or are drunk. At worst, the crowd may come to the conclusion you’ve had a stroke or burst aneurysm and call for EMT support, and you will end up watching the game on a fifteen-inch screen next to the nurse’s station while waiting for an attending physician.
9 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, remember that many people like to watch the ads. If you forget and stand in front of the TV during commercial time, at best, you will be called many names in the process of getting you to move. At worst, the most enormous guy in the room, wanting to demonstrate his downfield tackling expertise, will use you as his dummy.
8 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not carry in your famous crab dip that must be kept at forty-two degrees or become a hazardous waste site. If you do, at best, the temp will stay near the required amount, and only one or two will be overcome. At worst, there will be no way to keep the dip cold enough, and you will have singlehandedly wiped out a full production day on Monday for several of the attendees, not to mention hurried trips to the ER for a prophylactic pump of the stomach
7 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not believe your host’s offer “to make yourself at home.” If you do, at best, you will be embarrassed when someone asks you to take your feet off the couch. At worst, you will be totally shocked to discover the room you decided to use for a bath is the overflow bathroom for the party, and you will spend a good amount of time under the water.
6 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not be tempted to look into any drawers or behind any closed doors. If you do, at best, only the homeowner will notice the disturbed contents. At worst, the host, being a techie nerd, has installed cameras in each room, which play back on the fifty-inch screen that is beside the game screen to the amusement of everyone at the party. (Except the one you came with)
5 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not think that since the drinks are free, you should help yourself to the point of being over-served. If you do, at best, you might make a complete ass out of yourself, which others will find typical of a lowlife. At worst, you will find yourself disoriented while actively looking for the bathroom, which you imagined you had found in the large bureau in the corner of a spare bedroom, shortly before passing out on the carpet.
4 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not think your duty includes eating a portion of everything that is laid out on the buffet table. If you do, at best, several people will believe you have lost your job or are recently divorced. At worst, your pile of food will be an indication that you need an intervention, which will be organized to take place after the game, to the embarrassment of you and the person with whom you attended the event.
3 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not be the first to suggest some kind of gambling scheme for the game. If you do, at best, several guests will think you make a living that way. At worst, you will have several disputes around who really won and will be forced to double-pay several to keep the peace.
2 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not become overly obnoxious when your team is ahead. If you do, at best, the lead will be short-lived. At worst, someone will take exception to your attitude since they feel bad about their team being behind. As much as they have tried to remain under control, as they learned in group therapy sessions, they are just beginning to lose their grip on reality while holding your shirt.
1 If you are attending a Super Bowl celebration, do not even think of driving your car if you have been drinking. If you do, there is no best or worst, just the potential for disaster for you or an innocent bystander.
Now that all the ice is gone from the neighborhood and the holidays are past, let’s take a tour and see how many decorations are left over. We are catered by Aba in Austin. Our entertainment is NSYNC.
Menu
BLACKBERRY DROP BISCUIT – blackberry compote, balsamic whipped cream
AVOCADO TOAST – pomegranate, preserved lemon, mint
AÇAÍ BOWL – blueberry, banana, pomegranate, dukkah, coconut, mint
KHACHAPURI – baked egg, cremini mushroom, graviera, green onion
SHORT RIB SHAKSHUKA – local eggs, spicy harissa, graviera, roasted potato
A big ole mug of hot steaming golden elixir will scratch an itch that is accompanied by the screaming klaxon, low caffeine warning horn in my head. The salvation is delivered quickly, and the first sip reminds me how dependency can rule your life. The second sip is accompanied by the Saturday disruption of the Westminster chimes at the front door. Pulling Twiggy and Tempeste off the ceiling and giving them an incentive to enter the soundproof room with a fresh knuckle bone tossed in. Slamming the door brings back the silence that should be the norm for the day.
A check of the security monitor shows a visit from none other than someone who looks like Bugs Bunny. After the usual back-and-forth, it was determined that a signature for the delivery was needed. With a sigh, the process of shutting down the security system begins.
The SWAT team needs to be put on standby. A quick text to the leader confirms that status. Also, the flight of A-10 Warthogs must be diverted. Another call to the commander puts that worry to rest. The SEAL team needs to be called off, and a call to the leader makes that possible. A call to the tow truck driver stops the deployment of an M1A1 Abrams Tank. The control panel simplifies the shutdown process of the security system. The boiling oil vats are put on standby, the turret mortars disengaged, the Trebuchet on safety, the concertina wire rolled, the Claymore mines reset, the tower Gatling guns on safety, the moat net dropped, the alligators fed, and the IEDs and shoulder-held rockets put away. The Proton torpedoes switched off. The gamma ray beams covered. The high-powered maser guns switched to standby, and the nanorobots were chained in the basement. The Klingons are called back, and the Targ is caged. Robbie’s Bot is sent to the basement. The locks on the door are thrown. And the door opened.
After signing on the spot indicated, the Bugs look-a-like hands me an envelope and holds his paw out for a tip. “Here’s my tip. When it is scary to jump, that’s when you jump.” With that, the door was closed with me behind it. The envelope is from Linda Hill, and inside is a message. It reads: Your prompt for #JusJoJan the 31st and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “scratch an itch.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
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