Fear the slithering death

A warning to anyone who is afraid of snakes: This blog post is about the Black Mamba. There are pictures and a video of it here, but I started with the tame looking picture of a snake crossing sign. That way, you won't see the scary stuff yet. I'm mentioning this, because I know if you have this fear, you won't even want to look at a snake. So, if that's the case, just stop reading now. :)

 

I watched a really interesting documentary tonight. It was about a woman who lives in Swaziland and helps move Black Mamba snakes out of homes, schools, fields, or basically anywhere else people need to be. This is terrifying work, because the bite of Black Mamba is lethal. If you do not get your hands on some anti-venom within 15 minutes of being attacked, your chance of dying is 100%. This snake's venom is the second most deadly after the King Cobra's. Black Mambas have their name because their mouths are entirely black inside. This snake might look cute and smiley in a picture, but I wouldn't want to be near it in real life.

Something amazing about this snake is the eerie way it moves. All snakes move in a creepy, slithery way, but there's something different about a Black Mamba. It is the only snake with the strength to lift 1/3 of its body off the ground as it moves. Since the Black Mamba can grow to 14 ft, this snake could lift its body up and (depending on your height) literally look you in the eye.

It took me a while to find just the right Black Mamba video to share. Between people being afraid to capture the footage or possibly dying in the process of filming, there aren't many videos out there. I did finally find a great video made by National Geographic. You'll learn everything you need to know about Black Mambas here:



This snake is very patient and self controlled. It stalks its prey and ambushes it. The Black Mamba could be slithering below you in the grass, above you in a tree, or even in a desk drawer. Seriously, one of these had to be pulled from a child's school desk in the documentary I watched.

Even if you didn't have a fear of snakes when you began reading this, you might be fearing the Black Mamba by now! You don't need to be too fearful if you aren't in Africa, though. That's the only place you'll find these snakes in the wild.

There are some things that everyone needs to fear, though. I've been reading a book titled The Gift of Fear: and Other Survival Instincts That Protect us From Violence by Gavin de Becker. The running themes of the book are trusting your instincts, using your common sense, and having some patience. I was reminded of the book as I wrote this post, because the people mentioned in it have tendencies similar to the snakes I described. The cover of the book states "This book could save your life" and I believe in some situations, it could. Anyway, I'd regret not passing this info along!

All dressed up and nowhere to go! (Where could I go in one of these?)

I saw something today that I had to share with you guys! This will be short and sweet, since my last blog post may have caused you to have sensory overload. :) Remember when I shared some photos of the skeleton dresses displayed at Paris fashion week? (If you need to be refreshed Click Here) Well, the runway is going goth again! This time Dutch designer Iris Van Herpen has done more than paint a skeleton on a dress. Instead of endoskeletons, we now have exoskeletons as the skeletal structure becomes a dress it its self!

I actually find this beautiful and delicate. The reason I'm not disturbed by this design is that it doesn't take the shape of any real creature's body. It's more of a bone sculpture.

I would have gone with white heels, but whatever.

Iris also designed this snake dress! What kind of material do you think this is made from? I bet it's surprisingly light weight. Is it gross if I say this reminds me of intestines?

Some shoes Lady Gaga would approve of!

I realize that no one short of Lady Gaga would wear looks straight off the runway. (I'm actually starting to think her style is influencing runway looks.) Even toned down, I'm not sure where a person would wear these outfits. Maybe to open the door to trick-or-treaters? Although, if someone were to open their front door to children while wearing the first look, they might be arrested...

If you would like to see more of Iris' creations, here is her web site: http://www.irisvanherpen.com/

P.S. ~ My blog buddy VainGlorySinner, suggested the perfect pair of shoes to wear with the first outfit! Check out these spinal cord heels:

I'm not into ankle boots at all, but if these heels were attached to something a little more delicate, I'd wear them. In my opinion, skeletal shoes are subtle enough to wear in public. If these shoes are your thing (and you just won the lottery) you can buy them HERE.

A Venomous Villain

A few nights ago, I saw the movie Rango. It probably seems like a bit of a stretch to write about this movie in a Halloween themed blog, but there were actually a lot of scary parts in it. That and I wanted to recommend this to someone, so here's a way to recommend it to 46 of you at once! :)

I'm almost not sure how to explain Rango. If you watch the trailer, it looks like a standard slapstick movie without much of a plot. That's why I didn't post the trailer here. If you watch the entire movie and not just the few dumb parts they stuck in the trailer, you'll be surprised by how complex the plot is.

I'm not really sure what the intended audience for Rango was. It seemed more directed to adults than kids, and to really specific adults at that! There were Hunter S. Thompson references, Clint Eastwood references, bits about Las Vegas draining all the water away, spiritual life after death thoughts, general "Who am I?" questions, and Los Lobos as singing owls.

Johnny Depp voices the main lizard character, Rango. It was fun to imagine him saying some of his lines. For some reason his voice was reminding me of Kermit the Frog. Bill Nighy voices "Rattlesnake Jake" who is pictured below. I had to include some pictures of him, so there's something scary in this blog entry. :)

The snake's movements are actually pretty freaky. He also has a gun as a rattler. Look at those fangs!

Rattlesnake Jake isn't the only spooky thing in this movie. There are also walking cacti that come alive to look for water. Their glowing faces appear behind, well whatever dry plant stuff they're made of. I really tried to find a picture of those to share, but I couldn't!

I found a surprising amount of Rattlesnake Jake tribute videos on YouTube! Most of them have really bad metal playing in the background and are taped off TV, but I managed to find one I like! This one does have Insane Clown Posse playing on it, but the music fits and I like how this clip shows the snake's creepy movements.

P.S. ~ I just read an article this morning (Friday now) about some real life snake drama. This is just ewww: Snake House