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Tue, Jul 29, 2025

2:30am EDT

Members: 676

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Total Online: 3,039

Carrion Luggage

by Robert Waltz

Rated: 18+ · Book · Opinion · #2336646

Items to fit into your overhead compartment

Carrion Luggage

Native to the Americas, the turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) travels widely in search of sustenance. While usually foraging alone, it relies on other individuals of its species for companionship and mutual protection. Sometimes misunderstood, sometimes feared, sometimes shunned, it nevertheless performs an important role in the ecosystem.

This scavenger bird is a marvel of efficiency. Rather than expend energy flapping its wings, it instead locates uplifting columns of air, and spirals within them in order to glide to greater heights. This behavior has been mistaken for opportunism, interpreted as if it is circling doomed terrestrial animals destined to be its next meal. In truth, the vulture takes advantage of these thermals to gain the altitude needed glide longer distances, flying not out of necessity, but for the joy of it.

It also avoids the exertion necessary to capture live prey, preferring instead to feast upon that which is already dead. In this behavior, it resembles many humans.

It is not what most of us would consider to be a pretty bird. While its habits are often off-putting, or even disgusting, to members of more fastidious species, the turkey vulture helps to keep the environment from being clogged with detritus. Hence its Latin binomial, which translates to English as "golden purifier."

I rarely know where the winds will take me next, or what I might find there. The journey is the destination.

Show Recent Comments

10 Most Recent Blog Comments:

Shh...whisper need inspiration

about 8 hours ago
In response to "Reality Check"

Wait, WHAT? I'm not going to get that mansion on the hill I've had my eye on for 20+ years, once I publish this book of short stories and or poems I've been working on for the past 20+ years? Well...

Lucky for me, I write because I enjoy it. Even if I was doing it for monitery reasons, knowing past authors only made it big after writing numerous, numerous best sellers, I would already be far too behind, as I haven't even published one thing. I honestly have no intetion at all to publish anything I write.

No, I think the money could come in for being a publisher, editor, the like. I never hear, as you said, an author being wealthy because of published works. Sad really, but reality. A reality some people are going to be shocked to find out on their own.

2 Like

dogpack saving 4premium+

about 13 hours ago
In response to "Reality Check"

I know most well paid writers have many projects going at the same time. I've read biographies that mention this as well as autobiographies that also have the same information to substantiate this as what many writers famous or not do. I must be doing something eight. Getting published is not my focus although I'm open to this event. I write because the stories demand to be written. When Ideas come my way I write them down and the stories come to life. When more ideas come and are relevant to a particular project I add to this project. When I do not want to write, I do not write. Most of the time this is because of environmental and physical interactions that stop me or slow me down in my daily activities. I write for the joy of writing and creating art and sharing ideas, stories, and whatever come to my mind with potential readers now or in the future whatever happens.

Word art is a joy and a fantastic journey.

3 Like

🌖 HuntersMoon

about 17 hours ago
In response to "Reality Check"

This reminds me of my favorite quote: "I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done..." Steven Wright

3 Like

Sum1

a day ago
In response to "Pill Bugs"

I'd love to say that I'm with you on the 24% bit, but I'm not. I could also justify it by saying that "Oh, I take Natural Supplements." Yeah, I've known this could, or might, be untrue, but it's a company Kathy has used for years, maybe even Eons.

I order Melaleuca Vitamins every month. They aren't cheap either. However, I get about every Vitamin I need in a morning, and evening packet. It's enough to be a meal! I'm don't have a membership to earn money, I have because the products are cheaper for members. Essentially it's like a Pyramid Scheme.

I will say that I love their Melaleuca Oil. It's their version of Australian Tea Tree Oil. I use their Shampoo also, it has a bit of that oil in it.

🌖 HuntersMoon

a day ago
In response to "Pill Bugs"

Declare the past,
diagnose the present,
foretell the future. — Hippocrates

1 Like

Spud(She/Her)

a day ago
In response to "Pill Bugs"

I loved reading this entry!

1 Like

🌖 HuntersMoon

Jul 26, 2025 at 10:21am
In response to "Light the Fuse"

In spite of dogpack saving 4premium+'s pessimism, we'll continue to poke, prod, and occasionally get bitten by the universe. With any luck, we will succeed... in 20 years.

Stik to My Own Beat

Jul 26, 2025 at 8:47am
In response to "Accidents"

I haven't linked to Cracked in a while. I'm not a fan of the direction they went in.

I would legit read an entry about this.

dogpack saving 4premium+

Jul 26, 2025 at 8:15am
In response to "Light the Fuse"

My concern is the humans often think they can do better than the one who made everything. Just because something can be made to work doesn't mean it is a good idea. Decades after inventions are in use it is discovered something very harmful is a part of the situation. Playing God doesn't mean humanity knows everything to know about the results of any project.

Brandiwyn🎶

Jul 25, 2025 at 2:17pm
In response to "Going Wit Out"

Speaking as something of a wit myself, I've found that the secret to being funny, in addition to watching and analyzing successful comedians, is to be brave. You have to experiment with wordplay and gauge the reaction of your audience, and over time, you catch on to what works and what doesn't. That only works if you're willing to bomb on occasion. Just like that guitar you're trying to master, and as you pointed out, wit takes study and practice.

1 Like

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