Nikki's Photography

After a few days of Singapore fave of fatty chicken and white rice platters I knew I had to find an alternative. Problem solved: Dragonfruit. White, fleshy interior with tiny black seeds, much like a kiwi – refreshing!

The very unusual Cannonball Tree Couroupita guianensis – a wonderfully unique flowering fruit tree growing on East Coast Beach, Singapore. The flowers are about 5″ wide and develop in massive 12 foot-long bunches. The fruit is about 8 – 10 inches across, and apparently has a very unpleasant odor. The tree has been regarded as sacred in India for thousands of years, and the bark, leaves and fruit have been used medicinally as a disinfectant; even believed to cure diseases like malaria.

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The Gateway Arch in  St. Louis, Missouri was built in 1965, commemorating Thomas Jefferson and the westward expansion of the United States. One of the most influential people in the history of  United States, Thomas Jefferson (1743 – 1826) was the the third U.S. president and author of the Declaration of Independence.

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3 miles east of Oglesby, Illinois, is a surprising pocket of beauty you have to see to believe, because the surrounding countryside is flat farmland for miles.

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A giant Canadian flag wraps the Residences at Georgia Hotel building in Vancouver, BC as Canadians prepare for the 2010 Olympics.

Thousands of Grackles gather every evening at sunset throughout neighborhoods in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Texas. It doesn’t take long to learn not to park your car under trees.

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Canadian Wollastonite Mine, 20 ft. tall Inukshuk at gate entrance, Kingston ON

Shopping carts in Lake Ontario, Kingston ON

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Truck driver relaxing with leg hanging out of the window going 75 mph on Hwy 40, Tenessee

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Artist: Anonymous Caterpillar

Dimensions: each hole approximately knee-high to a grasshopper

 Medium: Mixed media; Canna leaf, Chlorophyll, Sunlight, etc.

 Priceless

Tomato seeds sprouting inside the fruit

Rattlesnake Roundup, Sweetwater, Texas March 13 – 15, 2009

From a cultural standpoint, I was quite curious about the Texan Rattlesnake Roundup. Attending, the view was to try to be unbiased and open-minded without any preset opinions. Still, as an animal rights ally I was interested to know whether the four event-filled days were about rattlesnake-appreciation or rattlesnake-loathing. I remain mystified, because it seems to be a mishmash of both.
Driving the three and half hours it takes to get back to Dallas, I marveled how what is acceptable for some, is taboo and unconscionable for others. Since many customs the world over, and across time, are basically borne of societal needs to collectively overcome threats and various natural causes, did this event begin in a similar way?…only here the rituals include a number of large people walking around eating disgusting, deep-fried rattlesnake that was more bone and grease than meat, and corn on the cob? Were the original celebrations of rounding up rattlesnakes actually efforts toward creating a communal mindset of safety, and have they evolved to dominate, even abuse, a predator that was perhaps more of a concern to the earliest settlers than it is now?
For Sweetwater locals, the occasion is an important part of their heritage and present lifestyle that brings the community together, draws in tourists and boosts their economy annually. Scheduled each year are: a parade, carnival grounds, a Miss Rattlesnake Roundup pageant, a Gun, Knife and Coin Show (because coins are obviously in the same category as knives and guns!), a snake-hunting competition, rattlesnake meat-eating contest, and vendors who earn a living selling various rattlesnake parts, products, and bizarre crafts. Unfortunately for raccoons and turtles it was an opportunity to sell their parts as well.
The demise of the rattlesnakes is undeniably sad and seemingly senseless, but the truth of every matter has many dimensions. It is easy to get caught up in the intrigue, and fall under the spell of groups in a festive state, to the point where I did try the deep-fried snake…but after one nip, threw it in the garbage, on top of others’ waste who had done the exact same thing.
I absolutely love reptiles, but admit to have considered buying one of the open-mouthed, fang-baring, stuffed intact, coiled-up snake souvenirs (not the ones sporting tiny cowboy hats and raccoon tails though). Although, upon guilty reflection, is one by-product any less vulgar than the other? I actually thought the coiled up rattlers ready to strike were really pretty, and only wanted one because I’m not likely to see a living one so up close and personal, hopefully.
Whether we agree or disagree, people earn a living doing things we can’t imagine. Practices and beliefs are incorporated over periods of time and passed down through generations. What was once relevant may have lost all sense currently, or in the future. Our consciousness evolves regardless though, and I wonder if in a distorted sort of way, most people leave the fairgrounds of cotton candy and snake pits every year with a deeper appreciation for the uniqueness of all creatures? I certainly did.
Only a human could come up with something so preposterous as little cowboy hats glued to rattler heads. Only a human would buy them! Generally what every pro/anti-whatever-activist-religious-righteous group is seeking is respect. It’s really about respecting all creatures, including humans, who do strange and unpredictable things.