Devil Bear and Friends

My Trip to Huntington Gardens

2007-01-03T08:40:00.000-08:00

by Devil Bear
Photos by Daddy

To start off the new year, we went to Huntington Gardens in San Marino. Huntington Gardens is big, planty and colorful. It has plants from all over the world. Mommy says it's called "botanical gardens" but I call it a "plant zoo" because I can't remember the other thing. This one also has an museum with old portraits from when everybody dressed like George Washington or Marie Antionette. There's even a library with really old books that no one can read anymore because they're in glass cases, (but the big swirly writing is cool), and a fancy restaurant where people pay lots of money to drink tea and eat really small sandwiches.

The Huntington has lots of old outdoor statues and fountains. Some of them are naked, but Mommy says it's okay, because they're "neo classical", whatever that means. One part has a nice lawn surrounded by Gods and Goddesses of ancient times. I liked it because it reminded me of that episode of Battlestar Gallactica where they go to Caprica and find the maproom to Earth, surrounded by the Lords of Kobol. Daddy said maybe I watch too much television.

If you ever saw Clash of the Titans you'll know this guy is Perseus, and he's a Greek hero. I think the sculptor failed to capture Harry Hamlin, because this guy looks nothing like him. As you can see he just cut off Medusa's head because she was being mean and turning everyone to stone with her stare. She had snakes for hair, which I'm sure was no fun for her stylist.

Some of the statues are scary, like this fish fountian.

Daddy thought this fish looked prehistoric. I thought he looked hungry, and I didn't stick around to see what he ate.

The gardens are divided up like you're in different parts of the world. They have an Australia section that has gi-normous cactus plants and twisty trees, and a Japanese Garden. There's even a giant glass bubble building for plants that come from tropical places like rainforests.

One of my favorite parts was the Japanese Garden. It has fancy Japanese buildings where the roofs curve up on the corners.

To get there we headed down this long tunnel covered with vines. I looked it up later on Martha Stewart.com. It's called a pergola. Mommy says you can always ask Martha - she knows everything.

The Japanese Garden has a bent bridge that is so round it's blocked off so no one can go over it. I thought that was kind of dumb. Why have a bridge if people can't even use it?

Mommy said it's to protect people, and that the bridge is there for "aesthetic" reasons - that means it's just there to look cool.

I have to admit it looks pretty cool.

Swimming in the brook were some crazy looking fish that were orange, gold, or had black spots. Daddy thought they were giant goldfish. Mommy thought they were catfish because of their whiskers.
I sat down by the pond and the fish came right up to me. “Sorry guys, I don’t have any food,” I told them, but they didn’t stop begging. I didn’t mind. I just liked watching them. They were shiny in the sun, and even seemed to sparkle. “Well goldfish-catfish… whatever you are, you sure are big and beautiful,” I said.

"They're called Koi!" I looked around and there was a little girl with her friend. She proceeded to tell us all about Koi and how she has some at home. I was glad to learn about Koi fish, but that little girl was so loud and Miss Know-It-All she got on my nerves. Mommy said maybe she'll grow up to be a teacher. Daddy said she would be an actress.

We walked up the hill to see what was in the Japanese houses. That was where we found out about Bonsai trees. Bonsai trees are like miniture dogs, only they're trees. Japanese gardeners do something to their roots so when they grow they look old and grown up only smaller. I think they do this because they don't have room for big trees in Japan. Blitzen really liked the Bonsai trees.

I think it's because his antlers look like their twisty trunks. Maybe I'll start calling him "Bonsai Blitzen!"

This is a big, white sandbox. Okay, the sign said it was a Zen rock garden. I wanted to play in it, but Mommy and Daddy wouldn't let me. I didn't get it. What was it for? Mommy said Buddists use Zen Gardens to meditate. I meditated on the fact that it looked like a big sandbox and I couldn't play in it.

After we left the Japanese Garden we stopped in the Jungle Garden for a break. Behind us were these big shady jungle trees. No sign of Tarzan, though.

In front of us there was a pond with the tallest bamboo I've ever seen!

We rested on a shady bench in the middle.

Blizten and I like sitting on our matching bandanas.

This is a beautiful cactus flower that was growing nearby. I learned the hard way that you should never try to smell a cactus flower like this one or it will prick your nose.

After our break we headed over to this big glass bubble. Mommy said it's called a "rotunda."

It was like being inside a giant terrarium! Inside it's steamy and hot like a suana room. The plants like it that way. I called it the "plant spa" because the plants in here seem pampered like rich people at spas. Even though she knew it was good for her skin, Mommy didn't want to be in there long, because it was melting off her sunscreen.

This is a happy flower at the plant spa.

At the end of the day we went to the Huntington Gardens store. Daddy found a safari hat for Mommy to add to her collection. Blitzen and I thought it looked silly, but it made her happy so we kept our mouths shut.

I hope you enjoyed my trip to Huntington Bo-tan-ical Gardens!

To plan your own trip there go to http://www.huntington.org/. Tell them Devil Bear sent you!

My Brother Blitzen

2006-11-15T01:11:00.000-08:00

By Devil Bear
Photos by Mommy, Daddy and Me.

This is my little brother Blitzen. He was a gift to Daddy from Mommy's best friend. He is three years old.

Like me, Blitzen doesn't remember being born, but we're pretty sure it was just before Christmas. He came dressed for Winter.

At first it was hard having a new addition to the family. After all, it had always been me, Rainbow, Mommy and Daddy. I didn't want a brother. So I just pretended Blitzen was my dog.

It was Daddy's idea.

Mommy thought it was mean, but she went along until Daddy and I adjusted.

We couldn't understand him! We couldn't speak reindeer, and to us Blitzen sounded like Kenny on South Park!

But now we understand him fine, and Blitzen isn't my dog anymore. He's my brother, and I'm glad.

Blitzen is a reindeer - we think. At least he's named after one of Santa's eight reindeer. People often ask if Blitzen is a moose. If you ask him, he says he doesn't like labels.

But I have good reason to think he's a reindeer: Blitzen can fly! Sometimes when nobody's looking, he goes for a spin around the room.

Here's a rare shot I got one night of Blitzen flying around our Christmas tree while everyone was asleep.

He never flies in public, because he's shy about it. See, poor Blitzen can't land to save his life. It's because his antlers are lopsided. Rainbow and I finally got him to let us help. Here he is practicing.

Coming in...

See the pad...

Watch that angle!

Almost there...

Blitzen??

Whew!

Lucky for him he's floppy, so he never gets hurt!

Blitzen is mysteriously accident prone. When we're all sitting together at the end of the bed watching a movie, Blitzen sometimes falls off. Mommy ALWAYS cuddles him when this happens. I think he does it for attention. I think he jumps off the bed so Mommy will pick him up!

During his terrible two's Blitzen was a real pain. He was always jumping around and kissing everybody and sometimes it made me mad. Even Rainbow would growl at him. Mommy said he was just being affectionate. But now he doesn't act so silly all the time.

Here he is in a tranquil Buddist moment, enjoying a stream.

Blitzen is my pal and we go everywhere together with Rainbow, Mommy and Daddy. We've been to places like the San Diego Zoo, Yosemite National Park, Zion National Park, Griffith Park, Switzer Falls, and Point Dume on Malibu Beach.

Here we are at Joshua Tree. Blitzen saw a rabbit and looked away right as Daddy snapped the picture.

He's easily distracted.

Sometimes we all go out to eat. Here we are at the Dish restaurant in La Cañada near Switzer Falls. Daddy took advantage of the dramatic lighting.

Mostly Blitzen is a big ham. He's always making us laugh. Here he is being goofy for the camera.

Since Blitzen and I both have horns, we have a special bond. But he never makes me feel bad that his horns are bigger.

He's the best brother a bear could have!

All About Rainbow

2006-11-12T15:37:00.000-08:00

By Devil Bear
Photos by Daddy & Mommy

This is my big sister Rainbow. Rainbow is very patient and kind and takes good care of me and Blitzen. Every night we curl up next to her, and she keeps us safe.

As you can see, Rainbow is named for her many colors. She was a hippy from the 60's, and they were all about peace and love.

I'd tell you how old she is, but I might get in trouble!

Rainbow originally belonged to Mommy's big sister Diane. Diane let Mommy and Rainbow play together.

Back then Rainbow had big sleepy eyes, so they sometimes called her Sleepy. Mommy loved Rainbow so much that Diane said she could have her.

Around that same time, when Mommy was about 8, her mom got her a puppy named Mitzie. Mitzie was a Sheltie.

Mommy loved Mitzie, and Mitzie loved chewing Mommy’s toys! One night, Mommy forgot to put Rainbow away on the dresser, and early the next morning poor Rainbow became the victim of Mitzie's puppy mischief. There was a tear in Rainbow’s side, and even worse, one of her eyes was all chewed. Mommy was very upset, but she couldn’t be mad at Mitzie who was only a puppy after all. Her mom sewed up Rainbows side. But what to do about that eye? After some thought, Mommy knew. She talked it over with Rainbow. Mommy would have to replace both of Rainbow's eyes so they would match. That meant she had to remove Rainbow's one good eye. Rainbow said go ahead. She never liked those old sleepy eyes anyway!

So Mommy carefully took off the sleepy eye. Then she took some black and white construction paper and cut out two eyes and glued them on Rainbow. And Rainbow still has those same eyes today!

When Mommy was 15 her sister Diane passed away. She and Rainbow cried together. Now it's like a little part of Diane lives on in Rainbow, which is why she is so special.

Rainbow goes with us on many of our adventures, but more and more often she prefers to stay home. One day she might get new stuffing and a brand new set of eyes if she wants. "Every girl loves a make-over," Mommy says. Maybe one of these days Rainbow will get that make over. But it doesn't matter to us one way or the other. We all love her just the way she is.

My Trip to the Zoo

2006-11-10T11:13:00.000-08:00

By Devil Bear
Photos by Daddy

Last year we went to the San Diego Zoo. It was really fun. There were some crazy looking animals there! Daddy took lots of pictures of our trip.

This is Mommy when we first arrived. She always wears hats because the sun hurts her skin. This hat is from Vietnam.

Blitzen and I looked for animals with antlers and horns like us, because they are the coolest. Daddy said they could be our distant relatives. Animals use their horns for fighting or looking cool. I use mine for thinking, and for holding hats on my head. Blitzen uses his for balancing when he flies around.

But we both look cool all the time. Here we hanging with the camels.
This camel has humps on his back. Humps aren't as cool as horns, but Mommy said they help him live in the dessert because they hold water. I said okay, but if he lives in the dessert why is he so furry? She said it's protection from the sun. That's all she thinks about! Furry camels in the desert makes no sense. I'll bet he's from the North Pole!

These white antelopes have great horns! Here they are having a fight!

Mommy said this might explain why I'm argue-
mentative.

This is an orangutan. Daddy said he's was probably related to Mommy. He has red hair and he doesn't like the sun!

This is a Goth pig. She has punk hair and earrings.

This piggy needs a shave!

Someone's got his nose out of joint!

Here's me and Mommy looking at the flamingoes. They have skinny legs. No horns, but awesome beaks!

This is a giant panda. She is related to me because I'm a bear, too. Mommy said pandas are more related to racoons than bears because they have "opposable thumbs". My thumbs aren't opposed to anything, and this sure looks like a bear to me!

Pandas don't have horns, but they're still cool.

Here's the horn king! Even when he's chilling, he's the coolest of them all!

We saw many other animals, until our feet hurt, but we went home happy. Thanks for reading about my trip to the zoo! For more information about the San Diego Zoo visit their website at www.sandiegozoo.org.

Desmond: A Halloween Story

2006-11-10T10:02:00.000-08:00

By Devil Bear
Photos by Daddy

This is Desmond. He looks scary, but he's really not. Before he became Desmond he was a pumpkin, and he sat around our house for a couple days while we decided on his face. He definitely needed a face. How else could we talk to him?

Finally on Halloween, we decided he should look like Darkness from the movie Legend. It seemed like the thing to do considering it was Halloween and all. Mommy says Halloween is an old holiday that honors the last harvest. Daylight becomes shorter, and darkness becomes longer.

So we got on the internet and found a picture of Darkness! The picture was really small, so Mommy made it bigger and then printed it out, only now it was all fuzzy. But she said that didn't matter because she could still see the dark and light places enough to draw on the picture.

She told us not to look while she cleaned out the pumpkins insides. I had to look, and it wasn't so bad. She saved the seeds and put them in the refrigerator. Then she drew her template on the pumpkin and cut out his face. And when she was lighting the candle he said, "Hello, I'm Desmond. Desmond Darkness."

We loved looking at Desmond! We would turn out all the lights just so we could see him glowing in the dark. Darkness in the darkness! And he was so proud. We tried putting him in the window to share with the world, but from outside he was too high and too far away to see. So we just kept him inside for ourselves, and he was fine with that. He wasn't stuck up, despite his good looks.

After a few days Desmond started to change. First he started getting all fuzzy inside. I asked him what was happening and he said he was getting ready to go back. "Back where?" I asked, "to the pumpkin patch?" "Back to the earth," he said. The next day he was even fuzzier, and started frowning and getting soft. He even had a funny smell, but I didn't tell so I wouldn't hurt his feelings. But he knew. "Please take me back!" he begged.

And so, on the Saturday after Halloween, on a day that just so happened to be a full moon, we took Desmond to the park, dug a hole and buried him. Mommy said a few words, and Daddy was sad. But I wasn't. I knew Desmond was happy to be in the ground again.

A few days later, Mommy took a few of Desmond's seeds and planted them in a little pot with some dirt. "We'll just see what happens," she said.

2005-05-01T23:07:00.000-07:00