Pygmy Owl                                                                       click to enlarge

I was on the phone talking to one the president’s unofficial advisors, actually it wasn’t one of his advisors it was just some one that happened to answer the phone, about the financial impact to the US economy if the Kardashians were to leave Reality TV and the resulting chaos that event might have on the market and the rest of the free world, when I noticed a flicker of movement out of the corner of my incredible brown eyes.

There sitting on a branch just several feet away was the reclusive but not often seen Pygmy owl. This was a momentous event, not just seeing the small little visitor, but the relief I felt that there were still some left.

As you know things got a little tough here at the Institute during the Sequester/Furlough/Shut-down fiasco and many of the interns and I’m not proud to say this, some of our PhD’s, foraged for extra rations on the Institute grounds. This happened as you know because they weren’t getting paid and couldn’t pay for their meals at the free commissary we run here at the Institute. Unfortunately much of the Institutes’ flora and fauna was stripped bare for consumptive purposes with the smaller birds and animals bearing the brunt of the onslaught.

Burrowing owls were a favorite because they were easily run down and so were the Pygmy owls and there weren’t many of them to begin with. I became aware of the problem by a tragic discovery I made as I checked the outbuildings for damage. Some of the staff had been pulling the clapboards off the walls to burn in their rooms for heat. As I looked about there on the ground was evidence of a horrendous act. I was chilled to the my core, to see that little pile of yellow feet lying out behind the commissary because then I knew what was in that unusual but tasty stew they’d been serving.

Many other animals were affected as well. We were lucky that our established colony of Black-footed Ferrets had been here long enough that they were able to burrow deep enough to be out of reach when the staff tried digging them out. The ferrets were saved due to the famished, weaken state of the foragers so one good thing came out of that whole government screw-up.

As director of one of the leading fact-finding Institutes in the world I must bear the responsibility for some of the outrageous actions of my staff. My only defense is similar to the one that Italian cruise ship captain used when he tipped that big boat over, which was “Hey, I was having dinner. I didn’t want to let my steak get cold or scare my date.” Keeping the staff from finding out about the gourmet selections I had in the Director’s personal food locker kept me busy enough that I was unaware of what my semi-starving employees were up to. Rest assured that as soon as I found out they were immediately put on half-rations and I had the Lamprey locker reopened. No one likes it when I reopen the Lamprey locker so I don’t see this kind of behavior happening again. Unless those splendid individuals running things there in our nations capital have another repeat of this mess in January that is.

For those of you who may need some background on this whole Sequester/Furlough/Shut-down thing and the origin of the Lamprey locker, I refer you to the following posts that may help you understand the situation.

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/furlough-day/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/furlough-day-2/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/furlough-day-10/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/dire-straights/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/missing-and-presumed-lost/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/gone-to-get-cigarettes/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/they-fix-it-yet/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/auto-post-qldk396o0yys/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/well-its-a-new-day/

http://www.bigshotsnow.com/checking-in/

These 10 posts pretty well cover the story to date. I know it’s a lot of reading but I’ve tried to keep the amount of words used to a minimum and still tell the story. Don’t think of it as an assignment think of it as one of  the worst history classes you ever had to sit through when you were in school. The boring ones where you thought your brain was going to explode because of the dullness. Then double it. If that doesn’t get you to read them then I don’t know what to do. Just skip them then, but don’t come running to me if I mention something later on that you don’t understand but would if you just did what you were supposed to and read the damn posts.

OK then, I’m sorry my staff ate all the damn owls. I’ve told them “Don’t do that again.” So anyway enjoy the picture.