CREATURE FEATURE
I see that Creature Feature a-comin', it's comin' 'round the bend
Johny Henry was a steel-drivin' man. Well, that about wraps things up. Or does it? The tall tale of John Henry is one of America's nearest and dearest: a post-bellum parable of the sacrifice, toil and work of freed slaves in a modernizing world, and a hyperbolic rumination on humanity's place in an increasingly industrialized society. Most of it, either fortunately or unfortunately, still rings true today as clear as a nine-pound hammer.
The famous Pacific Northwest cryptid. No, not that one.
Imagine you're a crew member aboard the Lightship Columbia in 1934. You're minding your own business, staring out into the murky Pacific Northwest mist across the Columba River between Oregon and Washington. Then the waters begin to bubble. Steam exhumes from the surface. And a 40-foot serpentine sea monster reveals its big ugly head. You've just met Colossal Claude.
Calamity Jane: Heroine of the Plains. Out of the Wild West Women most people can name, Martha Jane Canary most certainly tops the list. From her rough-and-tumble real-life exploits to the hyperbolic spin-offs, Calamity Jane has rightfully earned her place in American lore.
From waterfront walkways to mountaintop meadows to philosophers' promenades, the cherry blossom tree has long been synonymous with beauty, introspection and the transience of nature and the soul. But look beyond their beautiful blooms, and you'll discover folklore as contorted and quirky as the branches of these ancient trees.
A myth that's full of smoke and mirrors.
Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a... cat with wings? And maybe a serpent tale? Okay, what the fuck is going on here? If you wouldn't be so judgy and just ask the ancient Aztecs, they'd have a pretty good explanation for you. Well, maybe. Even their explanations derived from difficult-to-decipher codexes and drawings are a little up in the air. But that doesn't make Tezcatlipoca any less awesome.
