For those of you who have been wondering since September just why I’ve claimed a photo of an obviously ceramic polar bear as my own, I’ll attempt to answer.

I enjoy that likeness. This particular ceramic bear is known around this house as the “Sitting Lomonosov.” There is also a “Walking Lomonosov” and a “Baby Lomonosov.” All three were produced in the former Soviet Union and have USSR stamped on the bottom of them. The Lomonosov factory still exists and still produces these bears, but they, of course, no longer stamp USSR on the bottom of them.

She also has a pair of Royal Dux bears of a similar size. She has a plant shelf in the master bedroom, and they reside comfortably up there, watching over Her. She has another, larger bear (but obviously not as large as me) on the plant shelf in the living room, guarding the common areas of the house. Then there are the other bears, of little consequence to me, that litter this house and the one in Texas.

If you want to see the likeness of my twin brother, you may recall the picture from June 5, 2003. So far, nobody has ever taken a picture of me, and I intend for it to stay that way for awhile. But really, the Sitting Lomonosov captures my personality quite well.