[Mostly] Wordless Wednesday - Critters of the Royal Gorge

In a follow-up to the Gorge-ous [Mostly] Wordless Wednesday, I thought I'd post a couple of the critters I enjoyed catching a glimpse of at the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park.

 

We got to watch these guys while waiting to go down to the bottom of the gorge in the incline car.  There were three different throat colors on the hummingbirds (my ruby ones came out blurry).

 

Window shopping the nectar?

 This is a white bison!  Maybe you've heard about their sacred place in the parts of the Native American community, maybe not, but they are considered a symbol of peace.  They had three there!  And none of them were albinos (no pink eyes or nose).  I've seen my very own white bison!

As a little bonus, here's the Legend of the White Buffalo:

"One summer a long time ago, the seven sacred council fires of the Lakota Sioux came together and camped. The sun was strong and the people were starving for there was no game. 

Two young men went out to hunt. Along the way, the two men met a beautiful young woman dressed in white who floated as she walked. One man had bad desires for the woman and tried to touch her, but was consumed by a cloud and turned into a pile of bones. 

The woman spoke to the second young man and said, 'Return to your people and tell them I am coming.' This holy woman brought a wrapped bundle to the people. She unwrapped the bundle giving to the people a sacred pipe and teaching them how to use it to pray. 'With this holy pipe, you will walk like a living prayer,' she said. The holy woman told the Sioux about the value of the buffalo, the women and the children. 'You are from Mother Earth,' she told the women, 'What you are doing is as great as the warriors do.'

Before she left, she told the people she would return. As she walked away, she rolled over four times, turning into a white female buffalo calf. It is said after that day the Lakota honored their pipe, and buffalo were plentiful." John Lame Deer, 1967

Now for some links:

Abomination Magazine  is looking for unsettling, scary story submissions.  Paying market.

Like writing noir?  eFiction Noir is looking for well written noir.  

Where Writers Win is trying to build a comprehensive list of Book Review sites and is looking for your help.  They do already have an existing list that can be a great resource.

I didn't have time to really look this over and understand it, but it looks like something that may be interesting if you have time.  Libboo is a web community of authors.  They are looking for people with completed manuscripts, or who are already self published.  They are interested in creating buzz around your book, as well as helping you to connect with people who are interested.  Other than that, you will have to read for more info!

Lastly, this is a great speech for you artistic types out there.  It's a commencement speech Neil Gaiman delivered.  You can thank Madeleine at Scribble and Edit for recommending it to me in the comments section last week!

I will be on vacation next week to visit family, so will see you the Monday after.  Have a great week! 

Any links to share?  Ever seen a white bison?  Heard of the story behind it before?  Think it might signify world peace?

May you find your Muse.