Day 23 - My Commute

Sometimes when little bub is getting crazy and does not feel like napping, I employ the age-old witchcraft of “put the baby in the car and drive around for instant sleep”. It is an ancient and powerful magic, and one he is particularly susceptible to. On this day I ended up out in the middle of who knows where and I came upon these two lovely little buddies.

One of the first things I noticed about Missouri upon arriving was the overwhelming amount of wildlife. The first time I saw a bald eagle in real life was here, and it has since become such a common occurrence that I almost do not notice them anymore. The sheer volume of animals here seems to desensitize me, but there is one definite exception.  There is an old, dilapidated barn nearby that houses an absolutely sinister family of over 30 turkey vultures (they’re called that because their heads look turkey-like, not because they only eat turkeys). I can’t really describe how ominous it is, all of those dark, dinosaur-looking carrion eaters watching in unison as you drive by; it never fails to make me want to drive by a little faster.  

I know they are not actually scary or bad omens, but they seem to be universally viewed with a certain kind of fear. I set out with this post to bring some love their way, so I started researching to find some interesting facts that could really sway public opinion on these little guys.

But the truth is they are more gross than I anticipated. I won’t go into too many details, but I don’t think I can sway your heart and mind by giving you fun facts such as: they poop on their own feet for cooling, they vomit on you out of fear, and they have no head feathers to keep rotten viscera from sticking to them. Lovely.

So lets take another approach. I am going to pretend that these two are gossipy co-workers and their job title is carrion reviewer. They are embroiled in scandalous talk, completely trashing their missing compatriot who was “too sick” to come into work, but everyone knows that they actually just stayed out too late last night.

Totally typical of them.