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Misty Zaugg's Blog - Posts Tagged "wild-critters"
Who's seen a possum up close before? Any wild critters in your neighborhood?
Feb. 11, 2022
Hi friends,
We live in Michigan in a typical American suburb, though there are some more native areas nearby, so we'll see the occasional wild critter go by, though usually just a rabbit or two and a host of birds.
So, yesterday, I was in the laundry room and my daughter squeals out that there's a racoon on the back porch, which I thought was cool, even though we've never seen one here before.
Instead, with his head buried into the bowl of burnt popcorn we set outside to cool off, is this guy (his body is about the length of my lower leg or the size of a large pregnant cat, for reference):
An opossum! Though no one pronounces the first "O".
A few friends informed me that they can eat their weight in ticks, so I'm more than happy to have this guy around here considering how many ticks we had the last two summers. They were bad!
Plus, I learned they are marsupials, which is kind of cool, though they have some rat-like features. He's got the cutest little hands full of popcorn, and we all gathered on the other side of the glass door to watch him chowing down. He didn't seem to mind and even tried to take the metal bowl with him at the end.
Overall, it was like our own personal zoo, perfectly safe behind the glass but with a front row seat to check out this native of our local environment. We really enjoyed it!
How about you? What kind of interesting critters do you have native to your area? Do any of them come up close for a visit? I'd love a pic or two!
Enjoy the world out there!
______________________
Misty's Writing Update:
Just passed the 110k word mark in my current book and am working on squeezing in an animal companion before ending the book.
These are always fun and since it's fantasy, I can make up whatever I want. I was thinking about something along the lines of The Ugly Duckling. You know, a creature that is lowly and maybe even ugly, like a rat, that at some point, through magic will reach the true potential of something like a dragon.
Instead of duck to swan, I'm thinking rat to dragon. LOL.
He'll also develop mentally, eventually forming a true bond with the main character.
Any ideas to throw at me? What would be a fun starting point and how would this animal companion evolve into something truly awesome by the end of the series?
This is the fun part of writing fantasy. Whatever you can imagine, you can create.
Enjoy reading this week!
— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website
Hi friends,
We live in Michigan in a typical American suburb, though there are some more native areas nearby, so we'll see the occasional wild critter go by, though usually just a rabbit or two and a host of birds.
So, yesterday, I was in the laundry room and my daughter squeals out that there's a racoon on the back porch, which I thought was cool, even though we've never seen one here before.
Instead, with his head buried into the bowl of burnt popcorn we set outside to cool off, is this guy (his body is about the length of my lower leg or the size of a large pregnant cat, for reference):
An opossum! Though no one pronounces the first "O".
A few friends informed me that they can eat their weight in ticks, so I'm more than happy to have this guy around here considering how many ticks we had the last two summers. They were bad!
Plus, I learned they are marsupials, which is kind of cool, though they have some rat-like features. He's got the cutest little hands full of popcorn, and we all gathered on the other side of the glass door to watch him chowing down. He didn't seem to mind and even tried to take the metal bowl with him at the end.
Overall, it was like our own personal zoo, perfectly safe behind the glass but with a front row seat to check out this native of our local environment. We really enjoyed it!
How about you? What kind of interesting critters do you have native to your area? Do any of them come up close for a visit? I'd love a pic or two!
Enjoy the world out there!
______________________
Misty's Writing Update:
Just passed the 110k word mark in my current book and am working on squeezing in an animal companion before ending the book.
These are always fun and since it's fantasy, I can make up whatever I want. I was thinking about something along the lines of The Ugly Duckling. You know, a creature that is lowly and maybe even ugly, like a rat, that at some point, through magic will reach the true potential of something like a dragon.
Instead of duck to swan, I'm thinking rat to dragon. LOL.
He'll also develop mentally, eventually forming a true bond with the main character.
Any ideas to throw at me? What would be a fun starting point and how would this animal companion evolve into something truly awesome by the end of the series?
This is the fun part of writing fantasy. Whatever you can imagine, you can create.
Enjoy reading this week!
— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website
Wild Critter Pics from Readers - Check these out. :)
Feb. 18, 2022
Hi friends,
I loved all the emails I got from you about the wild creatures you share your space with. The list was huge and some were a bit scary, like the alligator one of you had to shoo out of your yard. Eek!
Even better, a handful of you sent in some great, and some funny pics. So, I thought I'd share them with you since I enjoyed them so much myself.
Living on an island off the coast of Washington, Karen gets deer, coyote, rabbits, eagles and lots of raccoons. Check out this beautiful shot of a racoon that enjoys helping itself to the plums on her tree in the backyard:
Cherie has everything from wild turkeys to eagles perched in the tree hunting. She even included a pic of her crew of wonderful pets:
Eutre, from my own Michigan sent in some great pics, including one of her cat who "fancies herself a hunter" when finding a deer in the back:
And finally, Barbara shared a startling and fun photo of a deer coming up to say hello on her deck amidst chairs and flowers as well as a fox chilling out in the yard:
Thank you all for sharing just a bit of the wildlife around you with us!
______________________
Misty's Writing Update:
Ok, it turns out I don't have to go far to come up with some crazy monster ideas . . . just check out the stuff that lives here on earth with us.
Remember my rat to dragon idea?
Well, I decided to go with a mole to start, figuring it could unlock some sneaky stealth skills that would come in handy for my main character who is at the bottom of the social ladder in the mage academy.
A pet that can sneak around without being seen or burrow to hide and spy would come in handy.
So, I went looking for pics of moles to get ideas, and ran across something called a star-nosed mole.
Wow! That's all I can say. Go take a look for yourself, and you'll see what I mean.
It has a flared, pink nose surrounded by a bunch of octopus-type tentacles that it uses to navigate tunnels by touch. Really strange and creepy looking, which is perfect for a monster in my book.
I just added a few scales instead of fur, to give it a reptilian flare (and keep the possible dragon-ish metamorphism open for the future) plus a tail with a knob that can used as a weapon and ta-da - new fantasy monster!
And it's a baby one, so though strange, it is oddly cute. LOL. Writing fantasy can be really fun!
Enjoy reading this week!
— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website
Hi friends,
I loved all the emails I got from you about the wild creatures you share your space with. The list was huge and some were a bit scary, like the alligator one of you had to shoo out of your yard. Eek!
Even better, a handful of you sent in some great, and some funny pics. So, I thought I'd share them with you since I enjoyed them so much myself.
Living on an island off the coast of Washington, Karen gets deer, coyote, rabbits, eagles and lots of raccoons. Check out this beautiful shot of a racoon that enjoys helping itself to the plums on her tree in the backyard:
Cherie has everything from wild turkeys to eagles perched in the tree hunting. She even included a pic of her crew of wonderful pets:
Eutre, from my own Michigan sent in some great pics, including one of her cat who "fancies herself a hunter" when finding a deer in the back:
And finally, Barbara shared a startling and fun photo of a deer coming up to say hello on her deck amidst chairs and flowers as well as a fox chilling out in the yard:
Thank you all for sharing just a bit of the wildlife around you with us!
______________________
Misty's Writing Update:
Ok, it turns out I don't have to go far to come up with some crazy monster ideas . . . just check out the stuff that lives here on earth with us.
Remember my rat to dragon idea?
Well, I decided to go with a mole to start, figuring it could unlock some sneaky stealth skills that would come in handy for my main character who is at the bottom of the social ladder in the mage academy.
A pet that can sneak around without being seen or burrow to hide and spy would come in handy.
So, I went looking for pics of moles to get ideas, and ran across something called a star-nosed mole.
Wow! That's all I can say. Go take a look for yourself, and you'll see what I mean.
It has a flared, pink nose surrounded by a bunch of octopus-type tentacles that it uses to navigate tunnels by touch. Really strange and creepy looking, which is perfect for a monster in my book.
I just added a few scales instead of fur, to give it a reptilian flare (and keep the possible dragon-ish metamorphism open for the future) plus a tail with a knob that can used as a weapon and ta-da - new fantasy monster!
And it's a baby one, so though strange, it is oddly cute. LOL. Writing fantasy can be really fun!
Enjoy reading this week!
— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website
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