01 November 2008

New Rhino Ritual

If you read Boing Boing you've already seen this, but if not, here's a link to an excellent video of an escaped rhino drill, from Tokyo.

Now, I live near no rhinos -- I'd have to drive over to the northside, to the zoo, to see one. So my daily life is not connected to rhinos. But I am quite taken by the solemn, ritualistic feel of the video. And I think that it would be pretty easy to invent a ritual using the meaningful movements shown in the video -- the falling down in front of the rhino, the herding of the rhino with plastic netting, the futile poking of the rhino with sticks, the final conquest of the rhino with tranquilizer darts and nets. Especially easy would be the fact that you don't use a real rhino, just some guys in a plastic shell costume. So I want to invent this ritual. I think definitely we could get this together by next Halloween.

Boing Boing got this from Nothing to do with Arbroath, a Scottish (I'm guessing here) blog which is full of interesting things, such as information about mushrooms breaking apart driveways, and jilted lovers crushing cars with giant machinery, and to which I now subscribe by rss feed, because it is clearly a Superior Blog of High Importance.

Here, for instance, is a video of a cat playing with a box. I love this blog.

4 comments:

Reya Mellicker said...

You know about those people who want to "re-wild" American by introducing large animals back into our landscape? Like elephants and ... rhinos! So we'll have to know how to deal with them.

I guess.

It's November! I'm so looking forward to a month's worth of your thoughts. Oh yeah!

CarlBrannen said...

The rhino escape does evoke thoughts of a dragon costume at New Years. I guess you take the ceremonies you have, and adapt accordingly.

The best part of the cat video is the juxtaposition of the fat cat with the diet drink box.

Anne said...

I know! The cat is hilarious. I enjoy also the part wherein the cat, having taken a long run at the box, ends up running it into the chair leg. (Only enjoyable since clearly cat was not harmed in the making of the video.)

Marjie said...

Well, having been *involved* to some extent with rituals involving Disney songs, Raffi songs, and A.A. Milne characters....

Zoo's in the East End. But don't worry. We've never had a rhino escape.