#barkman

[roughridingrednecks]

Barkman

[mangor]

... the barkman ... . 

pipeline:  discodiffusion>midjourney>stablediffusion>photoshop 

[kraymerman]

Spread all across Michigan, there are large stretches of thick, shadowing forests, stretching from Lakes Michigan to Huron, and more than half of the UP is taken up by the waves of wooden, green-topped goliaths. The trees are so thick, offering shelter to all kinds of life, that it's not uncommon to find neighborhoods where the deer are so close that they might as well be neighbors, peeking out of their homes among the trees when there's nobody around, or when the sun has set and the moon rises, or to hear owls calling their inquisitive calls into the brisk northern night.

But deer and owls aren't the only woods-beasts that wander the forested plains of greater Michigan. Some folk speak of dogmen, muscular, canines that walk on two legs, heck there's a whole song about it. The song goes "the best advice you can get is never go out at night". This is gosh durn good advice, because the Dogman isn't the only creature that wanders those woods. There is a beast that blends into the trees, its skin like coarse, dark tree bark, standing at 7 feet tall, its arms and legs long enough to reach the tops of the trees and thin enough to slip through the tightest fits between branches. Around its shoulders it wears a pelt made of thousands of small twigs, that rattle and sing in the hollow wind, like a rattlesnake, or a wooden wind chime. Protruding from its crown, two twisted, gnarled roots burst, twisting up towards the sky, like antlers. It stalks in the night the endless, unknowable forests of Greater Michigan, raking its sharp claws along stones, leaving deep, too deep, gashes, or letting out deep, bone-chilling cries that almost resemble the sound of old wood, creaking and cracking under the weight of the chilling north winds. And its eyes almost glow in the night, like those of wolves, a true predator. This is the beast known as the Barkman.

The Barkman prowls just beyond the tree lines, far enough in that you won't see it, but not far enough that it won't see you. It's a carnivore, too, and with strong, sharp claws and jagged, splinter teeth, it is well equipped to hunt, kill, and devour its prey.

Luckily for us, though, the Barkman don't show up much. It keeps to itself, and we do the same. We get the clearings, the Barkman gets the woods, and its content satisfying its hunger with birds, rabbits, and the occasional deer. But, when night falls, and the moon rises into the air, the Barkman may become more bold. Like the deer it shares the woods with, it breaches the boundary and ventures out into our settlements, wandering the headlamp-lit streets, hunting for fresh prey. Or, if a human dares to cross that boundary themself, and enter its territory, they best turn around and leave, fast, 'cause you've left the land of man, and as far as the Barkman is concerned, you're free game. Ask any Michigander about the woods, and they'll tell you how, if you linger away from home too long, lost among the trees, a sudden silence will fall upon the lands, no wind, no rustling of leaves, no tweeting of forest life. When you hear that, run, 'cause that silence means the Barkman is watchin', and it's givin' you a warning or, if it's in a hunting mood, a head start.

So listen to the Dogman song. There's something out there that wanders those woods, a hunting beast made of bark and woodchips, of rich, free trees and dry, crackling kindling. Beware the Barkman, and don't go out at night, or you might become no more than blood and crackling flesh, feeding the maw of the wooden man of the eternal Michigan forests.

[whitneybarkman]

Over the gentle hill.

[etherealarte]

Lovisa Barkman for Miu Miu Eyewear

[hayleylovesjessica]

Jessica Chastain in Mexico City with ballerinas Katherine Barkman and Sae Eun Park

[giraffeonstilts]

[humbug-demartino]

[eu-nasciassim]

[malindamadaras1996blog]

[stylestream]

Lovisa Barkman | Loewe tee • Bik Bok shorts • Hermès accessories | Instagram | 2023

[daneshgar1391]

Smooth and Sophisticated: The Charm of Knot-Free Persian Rugs

[whitepolaris]

EMPRESS

Rachel Barkman

[whitneybarkman]

It's daisy season.

[etherealarte]

Lovisa Barkman

[book0ftheday]

Spores written and illustrated by Joshua Barkman, aka @falseknees , published 2022.