snakecats:

dadcore420:

a zebra is just a horse that thinks it’s special

i’m not like the other horses

i have

stripes

PREMISE: Zebra forgery (when a horse is painted to look like a zebra for the purpose of committing fraud) costs the U.S. economy over a billion dollars each year. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have experienced the frustration of buying a zebra from a mall outlet or sidewalk vendor, only to discover, after leaving their new pet out in the rain or taking it for a swim, that it was actually just a horse the whole time. When you need to know if an animal is really a zebra, or if it’s just a horse with stripes painted on, call Zora Zavattini and the Z Team.

CHARACTERS: Zora Zavattini is a self-taught zebra expert. She spent two years secretly living in a Six Flags safari park, bonding with the zebras and learning their ways, in order to become the world’s only “zebra whisperer.” If an equine animal develops an immediate rapport with Zora and instantly follows her commands, it’s a good bet that animal is a zebra–unless it’s an unusually stubborn zebra, or an unusually obedient horse.
        Zeus Zuckerman is Zora’s second-in-command. He’s a painter who, before he joined Z Team, supported himself by working as a circus strongman. Zeus’s background in the arts means he’s an expert at determining whether something has paint on it–and if someone tries to tell him otherwise, he’s got the muscle to back up his opinion.
        Zsa Zsa Zabriskie is perhaps the most important member of Z Team. She owns a power washer.

NOTABLE EPISODE: In a rare twist on the show’s usual formula, the Z Team investigates a pair of crooked zookeepers who are suspected of painting zebras to look like horses as part of a scheme to avoid paying the exotic animal import tax. Though the team cracks the case, it pushes their skills to the limit, and they are left with their confidence badly shaken (S06.E09 – “Dial Z for Zebra”).

CATCHPHRASE: “It’s paint!” / “Time to catch some Zs – Zebras, that is.”

TRIVIA/MISCELLANY: Zebra? had a very small budget, and since renting a zebra is much more expensive than simply painting a horse to look like a zebra, most of the “real” zebras on the show were actually horses painted to look like zebras.

Fics

Now that life* is calming down slightly, I’m starting to think about finishing a fic or three. I need to finish Stars before Halloween. Other than that, I have in the works:

• murder mystery Zelink
• Advanced Topics in Celestial Mechanics AU Zelink, or
• the Link POV on BotW Zelda no one is asking for, but at least it’s complete.
• start from new and write Yiga Link as double agent because enemies-to-lovers is my jam

help. What do I focus on?

*no COVID thus far this school year, yay; alas, no zebras.

update

School seems to be settling down for the littles. we’ve avoided the plague so far and I’m hearing news stories that we might get vaccines for the 5-12 crew (which includes my kids) before Halloween, which would be *superb.*

I don’t know when I will get back to fanfic. I do know I am working on my last charity project for the year because three in one month is a lot. No more disasters allowed, 2021. You’re on notice.

Zebras are still on the loose in Maryland; they have yet to visit my yard, to my continuing disappointment.