Tag: animal

Kevin, Kenny, and Nicholas Cage

indigoshell3 Comments

We had missed our flight.

What a way to start the first day of camp, eh? Arriving at 10pm in the dark gives a great first impression.

I had pulled an all-nighter as our flight was at 4am, which was a very stupid thing to do. I felt like death while waiting for the next plane to fly.

I was grumpy. I’m sure my little brother was too.

The car ride was awkward because everyone but my little brother and the driver was asleep.

I remember waking up and groggily stepping out of the car. The first thing I remember from the camp was a startling loud cry of a very, very familiar bird.

It was a peacock call.

All over camp, wandering freely, were peacocks. I was told that the peacocks roaming the main part of camp were called Kevin and the ones that stayed near the Animal Area were called Nicholas Cage.

During nighttime Kevin would hop up waaay up there in a pine tree, startling children walking underneath whenever they make a nighttime call. I had made a little game out of it; trying to find Kevin whenever he was in a tree. He was usually camouflaged too well among the branches and leaves but sometimes I would see the little jitter of his tail feathers.

The Animal Area was what it was called: an area for the animals of the camp. What we called the “Bird Aviary” housed many different species of birds: peacocks, pigeons, silkie chickens, and a lionhead rabbit.

The most valuable peacock we had was a half albino, half normal peacock, and he was settled in the Aviary. Prince Charming and his Princess, two albinos, were also in the Aviary.

When I was in China I grew up hearing the calls of peacocks day and night.

Most people wouldn’t expect there to be peacocks in China but for some reason there was a hotel that had peacocks in it.

Being at camp and hearing Kevin and Nicholas Cage cawing all the time brought a slight feeling of nostalgia.

After my five out of six weeks of camp was up I was told that the peacocks were actually called Kenny.

Why had nobody told me this earlier?

I had been calling them the wrong name for five weeks? But even the counselors called them Kevin!

I still call the peacocks Kevin. Old habits die hard.

The Old Gum Tree

indigoshellLeave a comment

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Merry, merry king of the bush is he
Laugh, Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra!
What a life you lead

Many in this world do not know what a kookaburra is, even more have not seen or touched one.

Many would not know that the kookaburra’s call doesn’t sound like a laugh – it’s more of a demonic monkey yelling at the unfairness of the world.

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Merry, merry, merry little bird is he
Sing, Kookaburra! Sing, Kookabura!
Sing your song for me.

Many would not know how large and cuddly these birds are, how soft and downy their chest feathers are.

Many would not know the gleam of light cyan in their wings, how minuscule the feathers are and how they catch the light so easily.

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Eating all the gum drops he can see
Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra!
Leave some there for me

Many would not know how picky a kookaburra will be with a frozen mouse.

Many would not know that kookaburras would even eat frozen mice.

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Counting all the monkeys he can see
Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra!
That’s not a monkey that is me.

Many would not know how hard it is to perfect the kookaburra call, as well as getting them to call back to you.

Many would not know that if you stroke his belly and then push on his legs, you could get Stevie to sit on your hand while you pet his head.

Sarah and William

indigoshellLeave a comment

All over the internet, a new trend has been circulating.

Sloths.

Me Gusta

Creepy sloths. Creepy sloths everywhere. Do people really know what they’re like? My guess is that not many people have seen sloths in real life.

Over the summer I spent six weeks at Cub Creek Science Camp and got to take care of a very wide variety of animals. Among my favorite were two two-toed sloths, Sarah and William.

Sarah Lookalike

Sarah was the more active one, slowly and carefully wandering around and around her pen. “Don’t touch her face!” warned many, many counselors. “Don’t let her grab you! Don’t let her bite you! Don’t feed her! Sit down on the stool and don’t move!”

“You can feed her and pet her if you’re very careful,” said Billy, a very mellow counselor that taught the “Jungle” class, which is where the sloths are located.

William was the one always sleeping in the corner of the enclosure and only awakened when I brought him a little lettuce. Only lettuce though, since William will take one bite of an apple and then drop it to the ground.

Sarah though, eats both apples and lettuce. Neither of them seem to like the sweet potatoes very much and I often wonder why they even have sweet potatoes anyways since none of the animals seem to like sweet potatoes.

After feeding Sarah her apples she would stare at me with her deep brown eyes and slowly reached her odd clawed hands towards me. Any other person would be told to duck and cover but I reach out and stroke her claw, playing a strange little game of keep-away. It’s true that if they grab on they won’t let go until they bite it, but I’m careful enough to not get grabbed.

When camp ended and I returned to OVS I felt myself pining for my summercamp and its animals. No, not for the dwarf miniature horse (my gods he’s small), not for the towering camel, but for the strangely charming sloths that have plagued the internet.

Not that I’m complaining about them.

photo 21629120-2068-4857-94bd-ee0c68376bae.jpg

Frustrated.

yrreskrap2 Comments

GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Goodness, is it too much to give up one lunch of your day so that someone, somewhere could have a meal? So that maybe some animal could be saved. So that cancer research can be funded?

I am frustrated. Frustrated with the current predicament that student council is facing. We have proposed the idea of replacing one lunch meal at school for soup, salad, and bread so that the proceeds would go towards a charity of the student body’s choice. The underclassmen agreed to the idea. But the upperclassmen…that’s a different story.

A few people are concerned about not having a good lunch. They complain that lunch is bad enough already that they would not want to downgrade to a simple meal of soup.

But what astounds me is their view of community service. Community service is about giving, not about luxury. So why then, is giving up a single meal, one out of the 21 meals that they have a day, so difficult? All of the money goes straight to the charity. So why? Only good can come out of this experience.

To be continued. Hopefully, progress will come.

A Furry Surprise

yrreskrap2 Comments

10:28 AM: Monday, November 7, 2011.

A text message from my mother:

“There is a big surprise waiting 4 u. Hint: it’s furry, so sweet, and endearing…Can you get what it is?”

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m going home this weekend with my friends Anni and Sungjin. My mother had left me a long text message explaining food options and furniture and this BIG SURPRISE!

I really hope it is either a cat or a dog! I CANNOT WAIT!

If I had to choose which dog or cat I will be greeted with this weekend, it would be:

1) Scottish Fold Cat

My favorite pet by far was a Scottish Fold by the name of Butter. These cats have the sweetest disposition and a lovable face. Their eyes are very big and their ears are usually folded.

2) Chihuahua

My favorite dog was a 6 pound Chihuahua by the name of Tinkerbell. Chihuahuas, contrary to popular belief, are very intelligent creatures. Tinkerbell never barked too much either and was very very loyal.

3) Teacup Poodle

To be honest, I just want one of these because they are SO CUTE. I mean, LOOK AT IT. Ah my goodness! It makes me so nauseous because of how cute it is!

4) Bengal

I really want this cat because it is SO beautiful! It looks just like a miniature leopard! Goodness, I want it!

I hope I am not getting too caught up with this idea of having the pet be a cat or a dog because knowing my mom, she could have gotten me a nice knit scarf or a hamster.

But keeping my fingers crossed for a SCOTTISH!

The cutest animal

thehungryrunnergirlLeave a comment

My best friend and I were skyping and talking about what we would like to be if we could be reborn. My friend said she wanted to be a jellyfish because they don’t seem to have anything to be concerned about or to be stressed! I told her that I wanted to be an alpaca; because it was the cutest animal I had ever seen.

Alpacas inhabit at high altitude of 11,500 ft to 16,000ft in South America. It looks like a small llama. They have been domesticated for thousands of years. Alpacas protect themselves from intruders by making sharp, noisy high-pitched bray sound and attack smaller predators by kicking and spitting. Most of them spit at other alpacas, but sometimes they can spit at a human too.

Diet wise, they don’t eat as much as other animals do. The intake of grass and hay, including other vegetation that they eat per day, goes up to 1-2% of their body weight. They also try to chew on almost everything,even an empty bottle.

People in Peru have been using alpaca images in their art; they also use alpaca fiber to make knits. I have an alpaca sweater, and despite of its thinness, it is very comfortable and warm.

Why are they so cute?