I posted this image because soon there will be carnival festivities again (officially from February, 7th until the 9th, 2016).

It was taken some while ago in Bergen op Zoom, a town in the province of North Brabant, The Netherlands (famous in Holland by the way Carnival is celebrated there).

The title of my image is named after the sculpture 'De Geit van Mie den Os' (The goat of 'Mie den Os'). 'Mie (Dutch for 'Mary') den Os (Dutch for 'the ox') is the nickname of Mie Verbiest, the, not so elegant, 'female' owner of this goat.

The story (only available in the Dutch language) goes that the goat and Mie did their daily stroll. Mie had leashed the goat. Suddenly the goat was frightened by a passing brass band that was playing music loudly during the carnival festivities, and it went on the run (with Mie as well, as she had no other choice, lol). The finally result was that the goat had injured its udder with a piece of barbed wire, that was intended to fence a meadow.

To remember this 'remarkable' event for ever, this sculpture was created.

Probably to prevent the (artificial) goat from a similar trauma, its feet were fixed to its pedestal. The people who have done this, didn't realize however that even an artificial goat is hungry from time to time, but can't reach the lush green now, and therefore is almost starving.

My image is a proof for this fixation with concrete. Please notice, at full screen size, between the right eye and mouth of this artificial goat the word 'Bee', the typical complaining goat sound when pronounced in Dutch.

To save her from a horrible death, one had to find a creative and inventive solution: the 'goat' is - each year at carnival time - garlanded with a wreath of Brussels sprouts and other vegetables.

A ridiculous and bizarre story isn't it?

Therefore it's my entry for both Manic Monday and the 'Bizarre' contest.