Tag Archives: academia
Honey Badger: who you calling honey mister?
Don’t make the mistake, dear reader, of judging a badger by its nomiker: this one’s no honey. Named for their predilection for eating honeycombs pilfered from beehives, Mellivora capensis is also famous as a snake-killer. The honey badger uses its … Continue reading
“The Cock is a Bird that Can Tell Time”
You cannot blame the author for the sheer volume of noteworthy cocks in the world. She is perfectly aware that she has already written about the Cock of Dawn, but that was from the Chinese tradition, and the author reserves … Continue reading
Filed under folklore, gender bending, human behavior, medieval, rated NC17
BV-worthy new exhibit
The California Academy of Sciences has long been beloved by the author of BV, figuring in her elementary school field trips, and, more recently, looming large in her consciousness as an example of stunning sustainable architecture. And a friend is … Continue reading
Filed under academia, endangered species, extinct species, human behavior
Dissertation Owls Asleep on the Job
Folkes, while the dissertation elves, tiny little owls that creep into grad students’ bedrooms to madly type pages whilst the tortured souls sleep, are on furlough, I have been working furiously on my thesis. The result? A certain lack of Beastliness. And vocabularity. This … Continue reading
Filed under academia, folklore, Uncategorized
You’d be Prickly, too
A rare Prickly shark ( Echinorhinus cookei) was recently “found” and displayed at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, quite the coup for the eager grad student type who “found” the shark. The shark was ”collected” in an area where the Monterey Bay Aquarium Supported research, by the unnamed … Continue reading
Filed under human behavior, marine life, the strange and the beautiful, Uncategorized
A Blog After My Own Heart
The author of BV deos not often direct her (few) readers to read other blogs, lest you intrepid souls desert me for greener fields. One suspects you may be a bit shifty that way. But today is something of an … Continue reading
Filed under exceedingly cute, rated NC17, the strange and the beautiful
G.I. Joe: Proud Patriot Pigeon
It is not a frequent occurence, in the part of the country in which the author of BV was raised (and where the spirit of the American nineteen-sixties still rules) for the US military to recieve much fanfare, or … Continue reading
Banana Slug: “hard” life.
Beloved by alumni of UC Santa Cruz, banana slugs seem to have a pretty good thing going. Sure, they’re slow and eat detritus on the forest floor. But they’re beloved. …Just, you know, not by each other. In fact, … Continue reading
Echeneis: stubborn little bastard of a fish.
Isidore of Seville, who is, let’s face it, quite the hero for BV, named it the “delay,” for obvious reasons In the 1st century CE, Lucan wrote of it as ”…the sucking fish / Which holds the vessel back though eastern … Continue reading
Filed under academia, extinct species, folklore, marine life, medieval, Phobia-inducing, Uncategorized
The missing link: Darwinius masillae, Sweet as Apple cider
The sound of the name “Ida” has suddenly become sweet sweet music to paleontololical ears. This is because “Ida,” a 47 million year old fossil hidden in a closet for 20+ years has recently been unveiled. Apparently, a … Continue reading
Filed under academia, extinct species, Uncategorized
Bovine rampage in Norway: Revenge of the Beef
In 2002, a series of bizzare bovine incidents in the Norweigian countryside alarmed residents, and alerted us to the possibility that cows are beginning to strain at the agricultural tether. The first victim, 23-year old Stian Skoglund, was “bashed and … Continue reading
No, It’s not a Typo; It’s the “Cock” of Dawn.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have Chinese folklore to thank for next entry: the celestial cock, aka the “cock of dawn.” << The author respects all cultures and will not resort to infantile murrmerings about the word “cock”. But, dear readers, it’s … Continue reading
Filed under folklore, human behavior, rated NC17, the strange and the beautiful, Uncategorized
Humanatee: A dying breed
The humanatee is an ancient, intelligent beast, most often found in large “schools.” When members of far-flung schools gather together in large, gregarous groups called “conferences.” During these sporadic expeditions, humanatees may demonstrate dominance by flashing the “TT” position. These … Continue reading
Catobelpas: Head of an Ox, Tail of a snake, Bad dinner date.
To all of the singletons reading this entry: the author of BV would like to caution you about the Catobelpas, for according to Pliny the Elder, this next member of our medieval bestiary series, which is “of moderate size and inactive … Continue reading
