Pigeons!

I have a soft-spot for pigeons. Many people view them as "rats with wings" (a trend possibly started by Woody Allen's quip in the 1980 film 'Stardust Memories'), but I, for one, relish their company. As you may know, New York City is not my first choice of places to live (not even my 10th). One of the things that keeps me sane is the pigeon and squirrel population. Along with roaches, rats and mice, that's about the extent of the city's wildlife.

Pigeons are incredibly athletic, gregarious and clean birds. Their tendency to hang out in big groups (thus generating huge amounts of poop concentrated in one area) is what gets them in trouble. It doesn't help that people feed them bread and other processed foods that cause their droppings to be rock hard and especially difficult to eradicate. Pest control companies help spread the myth that they carry disease (they can, but it is extremely rare that it transfers to humans) to keep themselves in business.

Anyhow, I for one love watching them. This explains why they crop up (that's a pigeon pun, by the way) so often in my artwork. Here are two recent examples: A comic for an upcoming anthology and a mural in our future baby's room.