Rule #16—Shoot. Nevermind.
For the longest time, I was planning to do Rule #16: Possums Can Never, Ever, EVER be Cute. I mean, it has ALWAYS been irrefutable—undeniable! Until now.
As my younger sister said as soon as she grew strong enough to beat _me_ up for a change: "Ah! so NOW the TABLES ARE TURNED!"
It's true. Possums can be cute, and here is the proof, thanks to one Meg C.:
And again in an artful pose, just waiting to be re-created in your Drawing 101 class:
Big props to serg at University of SouthAustralia who posted the original photos that Meg C. found. Schweet.
Email
to a Friend 
Add
to del.icio.us
Digg
this
Holy cute possum! Who woulda thunk it?
how are possums not cute? look at that schnozz!!! it's so squeal-worthy. let me illustrate my point.....
weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Why can't they remain like that forever? I'm sure people would take a liking to them.
Meh. Li'l baaaaaaaby possumkinses, like most baby animals, are exempt from the Never Cute designation. Otherwise...
http://www.deskpicture.com/DPs/Nature/Animals/opossum_1.html
I always thought of opossums to be creatures of the devil, but this one is rather cute.
I suppose only the fullgrown ones are imbued with evil.
:-p
Do I smell a cuteness trifecta? Rules 2, 13, and 14? Oh, shoot! and now with Rule 16!
Wook at da cuuute widdle possum! You're right, though, hashi, grown ones are 'creatures of the devil'...
Juicy#13 on the top pic looks suspicious! has it been photoshop-enhanced?? i smell a rat!! er, apossum.
[shoot, i'm just grumpy cos i need an intervention or something to tear me away from this.]
omg - it's the wittle fingers and toes and tail....help me..faint
Is there a rule for "If you can curl your tail, it's cute"?
Rule #16: If your ears are bigger than your head, it doesn't matter how un-cute your species in general is.
You sure that's a possum? Looks like the sugarglider my friend had in college...
I think the tail is unparalelled in cuteness and untility
Doesn't that top picture look like Fievel from An American Tail? All he needs is an oversized newspaper-boy's cap.
can't something be so ugly it's cute, just out of sheer empathy? meg? any comments?
i seriously think that second one is a painting.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
oh my, now that is darn cute!
::thud::
It looks like the little creature from "The Flight Of The Navigator!"
BWAAHAHAHA!! Casey, I was about to make the same observation!
(I always wanted that cool spaceship, too...)
The second pic looks like it's been worked on, but I gotta agree--baby possums are CUTE. Adult ones, however, look...oogy...
--TwoDragons
opossumbly cute!
I once held the Rule 16 opinion myself...until one night a small gray baby possum wandered into my house to nibble the cats' food, and I spent the better part of an hour trying to shoo it back outside. Unfortunately, I couldn't accomplish it because...it was just too *polite*. When I tried to shoo it somewhere with my shouts or my big scary broom or something, it would simply walk with a complete lack of hurry to some other hiding place, like "Okay, if you don't like me there, I'll just go over here, then. Don't mind me!"
It ended up perched on the end of a rolled up piece of posterboard that was standing in a corner, head in and little butt sticking out, as if hiding his eyes would make the big crazy lady go away. Now that I knew how utterly docile it was, I finally took a chance and just picked it up by the tail (which promptly wrapped around my wrist, of course), hustled over to the front door and deposited him gently on the front stoop. There was a tiny thin trail of wetness after him as he wandered away in bewilderment -- the poor thing got so nervous being picked up that he peed!
As said before, adult possums are hellspawn. But that little guy was the sweetest. Cutest. Thing. (say it with me now) EVAH!
Awww he's adorable! The first picture he looks so sad, like he's saying, "Please don't hurt me."
yes, many things can be so ugly they're cute ... a baby moose, earth shoes ... but this little guy's a clear winner!
"I shall call it, 'Possum in repose.'"
OOOpossums are never cute. possums like the ring tailed and brushtails are precious. they don't look at all like those scaryass things that you see in the States.
and then baby of precious is muah.
OK, I have to say in possums' defense that what they lack in cuteness, they do make up for in civility. They are constantly coming up on my back porch to eat out of food dishes I leave out for the random stray cat. I have sat and watched cat/possum etiquette for long periods of time, and the possum usually waits his turn quite willingly. But last night was the best. Cat said "You go first" then possum said, "No, after you" and so on and so forth until finally the possum gave up and took a bite or two and then left out of courtesy. So there is a cuteness about possums... You just have to watch a while to see it come out in the personality. Besides, I like the way they waddle just like my fat cat. It's kinda cute.
Lori
oh my geez! supah cute!
iHateToast is right--this is an Australian possum, which is a whole different animal from the American opossum. How to tell them apart? Possums are always cute. Opossums are not. :)
Those are australian possums. The Virginia opossum (American type) is a different critter.
But I think that American "o"possums are so ugly, they are cute. You just have to love something so sorry-looking.
I'm sorry but ALL baby possums can be cute :
http://www.animaladvocates.us/images/hanging.jpg
Whoa. RKEM is just plain right. Thou shalt click.
Possums are cute. Always have been, always will be.
Rule #17???
SPIDERS are never cute. Neither are centipedes. *shiver*
Yeah, those are Possums, which are not quite the same as Opossums. I used to hate opossums, but I worked at a wildlife rehab center over the summer and we had tons and tons of baby opossums, and they were truly adorable. They have these giant heads and ears and wee little people hands! Opossums are very misunderstood. They are great to have around your garden because they eat slugs and bugs and only like fruit that has fallen from the tree. They are pretty harmless. They do grow up to be kinda ugly, but they are still just ugly sweethearts. Who fart a lot.
Wow, the picture of the baby possum on the flowers is PRETTY as well as cute!!!
American opossums may not be cute, but Australian possums are!
That said ... eeee, curly tail! :D
yeah-- that second picture is definitely a painting.
Very cute
Maggie
What can I say? Just plain cute to boot! Even animal babies are special as shown in this photo.
Hey! Stop knocking the American opposum! They most certainly are cute, especially the adults.
Sure, they're a bit sticky-looking compared to your average rabbit, but it's that Oscar-the-Grouch-ness that makes them so appealing to me.
My fiancée and I were driving through Pennsylvania at night and a car sped around us, overtaking. About 500 yards down the road we found an opossum writhing on its back in our lane, almost certainly struck by the speeding car.
We got out and I carefully lifted it up. It was easily as beautiful as any other animal I'd seen. Had we been in another place we would have taken it to a vet's, but the people who stopped and saw it looked us like we were crazy and said nobody around there would deal with opossums. We had to move it into the nearby field and watch it until it was able to walk away.
As many have already said . . . that possum is just sooo cute *__*
And another . . . he looks like a cute little puppy awww
http://www.bodytalkhealth.com.au/wendysgallery/images/wildlife/babyringtail.jpg
Awwwww cute! =3
I lived in Australia for a year and there are possums EVERYWHERE, at least in Brisbane...and the Australian possum is reaaalllly cute, baby or adult!
Now those are "puppy dog" eyes if I ever saw 'em!
Soooo sweet.
And there are some creatures that are so ugly, they're ugly. Like Sam (RiP) http://samugliestdog.com/
Dang. He looks like the Crypt Keeper's dog, poor thing. :-(
NO NO! "Possums" are an Australian animal, they are very cute. They are not the same as the North American OPUSSUM.
Catcher, what about Happy Face Spiders? These guys cured me of my arachnophobia: http://radio.weblogs.com/0106444/images/2002/04/12/happyfacespider.jpg
Cowshark, that thing is not cute. When I looked at it, I shrieked and swore and nearly fell off the bed. Spiders are evil. Yes, I know I am being unfair, because they are good for the environment and all that (eating bugs), but they are SCARY. They have too many legs...what do they need all those legs for? For crawling all over you and laying eggs in your ear while you sleep...
EW!!!
BTW, the baby possum is super cute.
Awwwww, that little guy looks like he's saying "Where's my mommy?" I had no idea they were born that small. What a cutey!
My parents have an opossum that lives around their house, they've named him and call him they're little garbage disposal...and they wonder why he's been getting fat :)
I couldn't be bothered to read all the comments because I was in such a hurry to say I think BABY possums are the cutest baby animals in local wildlife... If you don't think so, then you haven't met one!!! www.carolinawildlife.org/ rescue.htm
They have the curiosity of 10 juvenile cats and the dexterity of, well, something very dextrous, and they have such BEF that they actually pull it off as charming. Like Jude Law or something.
Tried briefly to find a photo of a momma with her brood clinging to the fur on her back... priceless!!! When I do find it, you'll be seeing my submission and changing your tunes about possums!! (we'll change that nickname from "nature's garbage collectors" to "nature's recyclers" or something very eco-friendly like that)
Save the cuteness!!