The Zuzulalulation of the Bees

Platypuss here. I'll tell you that I was a little worried yesterday when I made my heartfelt scan of the Animals in Big Bed Land and everything seemed out of focus. Strange, I thought. I listened closely and let myself become absorbed in Animal-Consciousness... and I heard the faintest murmuring, the sound that gently vibrates in a dormant hive, the zuzulalulation of the bees, bees, bees, bees, the zuzulalulation of the bees.

I realized that the Animals had gone into the quasi-dormant state they assume when they are pretending to be stuffed animals (this takes almost all of their energy) and that they were doing this because some Monsters were at the House tearing out drywall and other loud things. Even though the construction Monsters are friends of Monsters J. and E., the Animals felt it wise to adopt stuffed animal consciousness temporarily.

Well. One thing I never knew before was that while they do this, the Animals commune with the Bees. Bees are neither Animal nor Monster. They are Bees. Essentially mysterious. We have known them for a long time, but they appear only when they wish. Once when Monster J. and E. were driving on the highway passing a logging truck, the bees spoke in their ethereal yet troll-like and ominous voices: Please please please said the bees: PUT BACK THOSE TREES.

We tend to collect bees that we find in the Wilderness of Monster objects. Only free things live in the Wilderness - things you buy live in the Land of Things (we call that place Boise.) The pictures I've posted today are of some of these Wild Things.


The artwork below is by Annalu (the talented and lovely companion of Speedy) called "Bee Hula," part of a series of phrases invented under the laughing spell of the Bees (this is one of the hazards of communicating with them and we were both helpless with laughter at the time): Bee Good, Bee Mad, Bee Dog, Bee Hula.

Amanda Every Otter has revealed herself lately as keenly interested in drawing. The character of Bee Girl showed up one day and is on this sticker. She has also sketched out the characters of Bee Maiden and Bee Matron - from whom we expect to hear in the future.