The Birds In The Trees

I went to see an Old Friend, whom I hadn't seen in nearly two Years, and he asked me, rather nostalgically, if I still painted Pictures of Dogs. He had always liked how I had managed to imbue those Images with a great deal of Sexual Energy. I reminded him that the Man I live with is from Burma and that in his Culture the Dog is considered a Species of Vermin. He asked if there were any Animals I particularly enjoyed depicting, and so I told him of my Bird Paintings, particularly the Series I made from Photos taken at Bodega Bay of a Sea Gull and a Hawk flying together in Tandem. These very recent Photos in this Post show a Hawk in a Willow Tree, at the Palace of Fine Arts, watching the Water Fowl swimming in the Pond, pictured in the subsequent Photos. The last three Photographs show a little Yellow Finch perched in a Japanese Cherry Tree on Noe Street near Duboce. My Old Friend told me of watching a magnificent Hawk devouring a Pigeon on his Sun Deck in the Mission, leaving his Porch littered with Feathers. I should mention that this Friend is a long time Vegan Vegetarian and yet does not expect other Creatures to act against their Predatory Instincts. He was very impressed with how strong the Hawk's Legs and large his Talons are, and how wide the Wingspan is. I know that for me, out of all the Forms of Disposal that Human Remains are subject to, the so-called Sky Burial is the most compellingly attractive and moving, which is one Reason among many that the Vulture is possibly my favorite Bird.