Little Castela 2013-07-29

[Dave]

Nothing wrong with a well-wrapped bundle o'baby. My Ma did that to all four of us, Kiowa-style. And, we used to have a decorated cradleboard for sale at work, and there are pictures somewhere of both of my nephews all wrapped up and snug in it at different times.

I believe I've read some fairly good research which indicates that swaddling can be quite comforting for infants (especially newborns), if they're receiving proper human contact as well (being held, touched, carried, cooed to, etc.) and, of course, being fed and changed as necessary.

The problem with the old understaffed-orphanage "swaddle them and leave them alone" approach wasn't the swaddling... it was the abandonment. Lots of human interaction (of the touchy-feely kind) seems to be an essential factor in having an infant's brain and nervous system develop properly... an infant denied this interactive attention is at real risk of suffering delayed development of a number of sorts, from which it may never recover.

Castela. Good name. Desert plants are tough, and survive a lot.

And, fortunately, the other kids don't seem to have chosen "Goatbush" as a nickname for this little thorny youngster. "Pickle" is cute, and so is Pickle! it will be very interesting to learn her story.

[DilyV]

The first thing that went through my mind when I saw the baby was "Thup"... only without the large black eyes. Maybe it's a Thup's distant relative, Thip...

Thap's ridiculous. Maybe next time you should thop and pay more attention.

*headdesk*

[Julie]

And here's Sobek?

As one can understand from this text alone, Sobek was considered a violent, hyper-sexual, and erratic deity, prone to his primal whims. The origin of his name, Sbk in ancient Egyptian, is debated among scholars, but many believe that it is derived from a causative of the verb "to impregnate."

Somehow, not quite what I would look for in an orphanage staff position. Apotropaic he may be, but not the best choice to protect children... unless perhaps he's gotten a bad rap and his reputation is undeserved?

Thought! Maybe he got the name and association because he was seen with kids often...because he runs/manages the orphanage. As for the violent part...well...if he's really protective, he might have reason to be violent. Then again, it's a fair connection for us little humans to think he's violent by nature when he's got the head of a very violent snappy creature. And then again (again)...maybe he's just Sobek's brother.

And Dang! They can swaddle a baby old-school in this place - that young-un ain't goin' anywhere it ain't carried....

*poit*

....I stand corrected. "Come back here, Jack-Jack!"

I need to watch that movie again...

This place has the makings of a Wapsi spinoff: Paranorphanage

Well played, sir!

[Dave]

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tet ... ylomorphs/

I love the T-shirt.