Squirrely

So, while working this morning, I've been having a conversation on twitter with Ratatoskr the Old Norse Squirrel messanger god, about the Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods, along with the White Squirrel himself, cause that's what you do.

Incidentally, I've been reading A.S. Byatt's Ragnarok: The End of the Gods, so Yggdrasil seems to be the recurring theme of late.

1. 1. Ele ‏@minouette 1h

      my 'terms of venery' linocuts http://ow.ly/iRXnr  Love those collective nouns for animals

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   2. Ratatosk ‏@Ratatosk4 1h

      @minouette I am impressed by the glowing red eyes of the Legendary White Squirrel http://etsy.me/10Nwscj  @WhiteSquirrelTO #SquirrelArmy #wlf

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   3. Ele ‏@minouette 1h

      . @Ratatosk4 Thank you very much! The @WhiteSquirrelTO (and family) do indeed have some eerie pink-red eyes..

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   4. Ratatosk ‏@Ratatosk4 1h

      @minouette I believe @WhiteSquirrelTO & Co. were the inspiration for Cronenberg's “Scanners”...

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   5. Ele ‏@minouette 57m

      . @Ratatosk4 Ah! Hmmm.... that's definitely a new twist on the story of the Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods @WhiteSquirrelTO

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      Ratatosk ‏@Ratatosk4 53m

      @minouette Believe me, nobody hunts or traps squirrels while @WhiteSquirrelTO is around. He's the #SquirrelArmy's secret weapon.

Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods

Despite the opinion of some people around here (i.e. this apartment) there's a colony of white squirrels in Toronto's Trinity-Bellwood Park! I know. I've seen them, This is a portrait of one of them, climbing head-down a maple tree, along with the words "Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods", which I carved in reverse, in lino, and printed in dark, silver-bronze, with redish-pink eyes, on Japanese kozo (or mulberry paper). Each print is 8.5 inches (21.6 cm) wide and 14 inches (35.6 cm) tall. It's sort of become a running joke to question the reality of the white squirrels of Trinity-Bellwoods, but they are well documented. You can google it. They even have a street, White Squirrel Way, and a café named after them.

The lettering (fantastical "Legendary", outlined white "White Squirrel" with large bushy-tail like swirls, and the more formal and stylized "Trinity-Bellwoods") reflects the nature of the words.

There are two ways in which squirrels end up white instead of grey, black or brown. They may be albino squirrels, or they may have a rare white fur coloration known as leucism (due to a recessive gene). My local squirrels seem to have red eyes, so I think they are albino. I think it is their rareity which makes them so fascinating to people. These squirrels have fans, like other pockets of white squirrels in other places.

I'll let you, gentle reader, in on a secret. I've been thinking about the myths and legends of Canada, in a more general sense. You know, like Ogopogo and Cadborosaurus, and Sasquatch, the loup-garou of Trois-Rivières or the ghost of Mackenzie King's dog. Good suggestions for additions to this list will be rewarded.

I love etsy seller poodle breath's beautiful ceramic work. I bought myself this pendant, wore it once and broke the ring at the top by which it was suspended - through my own clumsiness. I think I shall epoxy some fitting on the back so I can wear it still. It sucks being clumsy. :(

I made a two-colour proof of the fly agaric block and framed it in a small wooden vintage frame. I leaned it up against the cd's on the bookshelf rather than putting it on the wall. I had intended for the print to be two-colour, but pulling the prints proved problematic. It is important to choose your battles; brown ink consistency was not the battle for me. The print, after all, is more about texture and line. I have gotten a great response to the print in solely red. With printmaking, knowing when to quit is half the battle and usually for me that battle is about line; this time it was about colour.

Yesterday, I asked my father how he could possibly hate Jane Austen. He said that if he googles his name, what he finds are references to one of her novels, wherein his namesake's character is none-too-flattering. This made me laugh.

I am considering doing a series of prints of poisonous things. Perhaps I want to say that all that is natural is not necessarily good for you.

Well, back to the multiplexer data sheets for me.