A Return to my Roots with ECWA

This coming Saturday morning, I will be embellishing participants at a fundraiser for the Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association (ECWA) with some of my River Critter Pictures.

This marks a return of my face painting to ECWA fundraising efforts, from whence they began 8 marvelous years ago!

I first developed River Critter Pictures back in 2004, to paint on kids at an ECWA table at an Earth Day celebration, in Downtown Durham.

Getting my gear set up, as first customer's wait patiently,
and ECWA superstar Jane Finch helps out.
Circa 2004

Back then I did a lot more creepy crawlies, such as mayfly nymphs etc. But I didn’t have many takers on those, so I’ve broadened my pallet, to snakes, snapping turtles, and leaches. Just kidding! Sort of….

My current pantheon is centered around angiosperms, specifically our reptiles and amphibians of the Southeastern US.

These include our magestic Rough Green Snakes, Tree Frogs, Marbled Salamanders, Fiery Red Efts, Striped Skinks, Anoles, yellow-bellied sliders, even an American Alligator or two!

But I am always looking to widen my pallet of critters, and recently, at a Haw River 30^th Anniversery celebration, I did my first snail! It was glorious!

I have also recently added a tiger lilly. and would like to bring in some more riparian flora, such as swamp lily’s, snake grass, maybe a willow tree?

For this event, and the upcoming Beaver Queen Pageant, it looks like I’ll be adding our lady of the lake to the Pantheon. Should be fun!

In case you are wondering about that picture above, that fateful Earth Day in Durham was not just the debut of River Critter Pitchers, but also the debut of my infamous ‘Possum costume, which has sadly since fallen into disrepair life is hard on a 'possum's tail, but was in full effect that Spring day downtown!

Rabbid 'Possom sighting Downtown!

I had also fashioned a pretty good flea mask for fellow ECWA brat, Matt Brockman.

I never did get the rest of the costume together though, and he has grown out of his flea days.

 But, as much fun as I was having, I did not get the last laugh. My co-worker at the time, Terry, The Storyteller, turned the tine on me. What did he give me? True to his storytelling, said the little man with the black hat, I'll never tell!

Here Story Teller Terry turns the brush on me!