Donkeys, Elephants - and Camels?

wikipedia

Election season brings out the animal in lots of people. (Sorry for the bad joke.)

I won't say if I'm a donkey or an elephant, but I thought you might like to know that some people think politicians are camels. Yes. Breeders of wrestling camels name their animals after politicians.

I see the resemblance. Camels and politicians look friendly at first glance. Camels bat their lovely long eyelashes at an unsuspecting person, so you think they might be helpful, you know - to carry your stuff, or give you a ride to the nearest watering hole. Politicians have great smiles... you fill in the blanks.

Get too close and both can turn nasty and spit. Believe me, "camel breath" is the ultimate insult.
I almost passed out when a camel breathed on me once. Maybe I should stop comparing these two before you think I'm too cynical/critical/insane.

Back to the wrestling camels:

Camels in the wild wrestle over females in heat. Long story short: Men got involved and camel wrestling became an Anatolian event. As a part of Turkic heritage, camel wrestling tournaments are a lucrative tourist attraction. The tradition has seen an upswing as a result, and a prize bactrian (two humps) camel can now go for up to $20,000.

I think a camel would have to go 0-60 much faster for me to pay that much, but then there are camels bred for racing too. I lived in the UAE - land of the even more expensive racing camel. Dromedary (one hump) camels are FAST. I reevaluated my perception of the camel after I saw one running past. They can get up to 40 miles per hour, which is a lot faster than my two feet can carry me. They run on animal feed, which probably costs less and gets more miles per gallon. Plus a camel can cross the desert with little water and survive crazy sandstorms.

I haven't included any camels in my work. Probably because I haven't found that character who needs to meet a stubborn pack animal yet.

Wonder who represents the camel party around here...

wikipedia

Rapture on Raptors

via National Geographic

I like raptors. There's something about the hoot of an owl or the cry of a hawk that conjurs magnificence.

I specifically love the Peregrine falcon. That may be because DDT almost killed them all by the time I was born, so conservation efforts focused on the Peregrine for years afterward. I remember touring the Kennedy Space Center as a teen and the highlight of my visit was a Peregrine falcon sighting. Go figure!

The bird really is extraordinary. It dives up to 200 miles per hour, making it the fastest creature on earth. The name "Peregrine" comes from the wandering tendency of the bird and various subspecies are found on every continent, except for the polar regions. The agility of longwinged Peregrines is amazing, better than the higher ranked (by the Book of St. Albans) broadwing eagles. Exceptional vision also make it highly favored by falconers. 

Falconry was once a noble pursuit in Europe, the Middle East and even Japan.  In the UAE, the sport is an important part of national heritage. Conservation there has taken on epic proportion, with the country spending millions of dollars on breeding centers and falconry events. (I lived there for a while so I've even had a falcon on my arm...I must have a picture around here someplace...)

Symbolically, the falcon means good things:

• The sun. Egyptian sun god Ra is portrayed with the head of a falcon.
• Nobility
• Strategy 
• Loyalty  (It mates for life.)
• Focus

All of these things make for a good hero and serendipitously, Freya (see Goddess Culture) wears a cloak of falcon feathers. 

This is a clip of an American farmer and his tame red-tailed hawk.  Some of you may not appreciate watching a bird hunt down a rabbit, but I'm amazed by nature at work.

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