Observation Project- Birds and Bugs

I'm sitting on one of those bulky concrete benches, slightly weathered with age and lightly sprinkled with debris but in no danger of going anywhere anytime soon. They designed these objects for durability; at least thats my opinion, they certainly are lacking in the way of aesthetics and comfort. Sometimes I hate them for their blatant functionality, but I always appreciate their abundance and relatively large size, they are a great fit for a few friends or many papers. For whatever reason, I always feel compelled to sit on the edge of the benches. A girl close by in a pink shirt and jeans, who is laso sitting on the edge of a concrete bench, is also writing. I assume we write different things for different reasons, but from this distance I cannot know.

The wind is still, and the shadows only quiver slightly. Bird song brings a pleasant sort of life to to the area- the ever changing chatter of a mockingbird, the harsh "caw" of a crow, the slight twittering of what must be chickadees or tufted titmice. When I look to the trees, I can glimpse them. People always take birds for granted. I see one! It IS a chickadee, with its black cap and distinctive gray, white, and black color scheme. It is a warm sight. It reminds me of my childhood, of the years in which I was obsessed with with birds and frequently went birdwatching. Chickadees are known for being curious and playful, and are fun to watch.

Aww it's so cute!

Sometimes they land on branches where I can clearly see them. They seem ludicrously small. The crow, however, swopped over and has a bold presence. It's been a while since I stopped to appreciate birds like this. It's important somehow. I lost that patience I had as a child birdwatcher as I grew older, as life grew more frantic and demands became heavier. I am so very sick of urgency.

There are many bike racks here- white, scuffed, upside down "U's" in perfect rows on slabs of concrete. They are ridiculously boring. At this hour many of them remain unused, abandoned. The bikes line up with them. The whole sight is kind of depressing, like a conveyer belt.

A squirrel chased the crow away. The animal life march on above me. It is somehow reassuring to think that we are of little consequence to them, when on the whole I know thats not really true. The natural world is so inspiring compared to the sterile rows of bikes, representing sterile rows of people in a sterile institution.

Crawling near me on the lip of the table is a trash bug- those tiny worn like critters that build humpbacks out of debris. I got it to crawl on my hand- close up the creature has fierce looking pincers, but they are much too minuscule to pose a threat. The bug seems confused by the contours of my hand, but they don't they always seem confused?

A siren- so close to the hospital you hear those multiple times in a day. Adaptation is a blessing, but it makes you less aware. I no longer consider the potentially grave implications of the piercing sound.

The trash bug us pinching down on my skin. I can scarcely feel it. I wonder whats he's finding by doing that? I wonder what its like to be that creature. I'm taking him off off my hand now, because when he bites me it kind of creeps me out. Nature is like that- always so alluring, but so nasty! Like life it has all types of contradictions. I wish the trash bug luck. Personification is part of being human. Maybe the trash bug applies trash buggy qualities to his world, although I don't know if he's that advanced. Or she. It's a mystery. People want to unravel every mystery, but mysteries are what make life worth investigating. I hope we never know it all. I feel childish writing like this, but thats good I suppose.

Now I see an ant dashing across the table. This table is host to many lives, not just mine!

I see a downy woodpecker too- I never knew Gainesville was so rich in bird species. I need to pay more attention to the reality outside of myself.