Pixel art headshot of Otis, ANE's black bear mascot
Y'know, the whole "man vs. bear" debate has always annoyed me a little. Not because I think it's sexist against men or whatever, but because black bears are among the chiller big animals you could come across out in the forest, and the premise of "at least you know what awful thing a bear would do to you" paints them in worse a light than they've really earned. They're just not particularly aggressive animals, at least towards humans.
Come to think of it, I saw a black bear once out in the woods I like to hike. I think I did, at least. I can't remember if I had my walking stick with me at the time—it was before I got my new one, since that was only quite recently, but where this event falls on the old stick timeline escapes me at the moment—but I was out picking up nuts and invasive greens for cooking, and at some point during my walk this lumbering black mass saunters across the path just a few yards ahead of me before disappearing into the brush. And I kind of stopped for a second, wondering what the hell I'd just seen, and the only thing that made sense was a bear. I didn't get a good look at its face, but it was the right time of year for them to be looking and acting like that thing was I saw was looking and acting, and there've been sightings of black bears in the area in the past, so I don't think it's unreasonable to say it was probably a bear.
Where was I going with this?
Oh, right.
If you meet a black bear in the woods, you're probably fine. Cross paths with a moose, on the other hand, and you'd best start believing in God before you're sent to meet it.
Another day, another pixel. Here we have a piece featuring Otis, another of @ane.boston's mascots!
#pixelart #furryart #furry #anthronewengland #ane2026
![Mey [📷/🎨] (aka Proxy) 🔜 FCL, FWA](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/avatar/plain/did:plc:xosklbydjssioevu6d7qkrsb/bafkreicz5ccso2lkt6ldivlhubf3qcmbqblsutbdtjx7unjzr26c7v6uwe)
