LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

A Little Break from the Campaign Rhetoric


Folks closely watched the Webcam  as Masai giraffe Autumn headed into the last weeks of a very long pregnancy.  (Average gestation period for giraffes is fifteen months.)  Yesterday morning they were not disappointed as Autumn successfully delivered her little baby.  The little one immediately got on its legs and found its mother's milk.  And everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

The birth occurred at the Greenville, SC zoo and gave folks a brief respite from the non-stop coverage of politics.  The healthy baby was especially welcome considering that Autumn's last calf was stillborn.

Mother Autumn and father Walter touch noses as the little baby balances on wobbly legs.
Look at the growth chart on the wall.
The "tiny" baby is six feet tall.
(Courtesy photo from the Greenville Zoo)


We live in the mountains only 30 miles from Greenville so it's an easy day trip for us.  The drive is especially beautiful as it runs down the Southern Blue Ridge Escarpment with its dramatic drops in elevation and some gigantic rock formations.  The road is winding with lots of switchbacks so we don't drive it in winter.  We take the long route on the Interstate.

The following photograph is one I took at the Greenville Zoo in 2013.  It's a photograph of Kiko, Autumn's firstborn.  He was a year old at the time and now resides in the Toronto Zoo.

I stood there a long time waiting for Kiko to stand up but he was soaking up the sun.
Didn't even look our way.
Paid as much attention to the camera as Lucy does.



A contest is already underway for naming the little calf.  The zoo has not announced whether it is male or female so contestants are asked to select one name for each sex.

You can watch the Webcam of the three giraffes in the barn and paddock here

For those of you who might be interested, Pisgah Pete predicted an early spring.  After stopping to munch on nuts for a while he also predicted that the Carolina Panthers would win the Super Bowl.  As for me?  I don't trust squirrels of any kind.

Today we are getting another little respite from campaign "news."  It's pouring rain so there are breaking weather reports with the ubiquitous videos of news reporters standing by flooded roads.  More than 2 and a half inches have fallen overnight and it's still raining.  What with the still lingering snow, the heavy downfall has flooded streams and roads.  I'm making a big pot of minestrone soup and we'll hunker in for a while.  Oh, we do have to go out one more time today.  Lucy is at the groomer so we'll run down to pick her up and THEN we'll hunker down.  But it will be for a shorter time than when we got the major snow.


10 comments:

Far Side of Fifty said...

I am sick of politics already, Zoo news is much better:)

The Bug said...

Aw - cute baby giraffe! That is as tall as my husband - ha!

Anonymous said...

Love seeing the giraffes. They are such beautiful, graceful mammals. And yes, they are a wonderful respite from politics.

KB said...

It is so hard to imagine a baby animal being 6' tall! I love those giraffe photos.

So, Pisgah Pete thinks the Broncos are going to lose? He should talk to my nephew who is an insane Broncos fan. As for me, I don't like football but it will probably be hard to avoid it this coming weekend.

I find the reporters standing out in the bad weather to be some of the most hilarious stuff on TV! You hunker down and stay dry!

Nance said...

We got a similar forecast from Ohio's prognosticator, Thistle the Whistle Pig, who took over for Buckeye Chuck. Sigh. I know--how Precious can you get?

I was marvelling at the thunderstorm we had Tuesday night. It rained like crazy, which is always preferable to snow. And we had a high of 63 yesterday--in NEO! In FEBRUARY! Records fell like...well, rain...all across the region.

Your baby giraffe is charming, like most babies are. News footage of Bei Bei, the newest panda, have me completely smitten. I want the job of Holding Pandas At The Zoo. Where do I apply?

Mary Lee said...

I'm so glad you wrote this one--I hadn't read about the giraffes. Heck, I didn't even know that Greenville had a zoo. It wouldn't be so bad if I hadn't lived there for a few months.

We had the horrible rain and winds here, too. No power loss this time and our trees are still standing. Whew!

Ahh. . . here comes the sun. I hope it's found you, too.

Arkansas Patti said...

Went to the site and was lucky to see mama and baby come in for a quick drink. He is purely adorable. Thanks for the warm smile.

Tara said...

Thank you so much for posting a link to the Barn Cam!! I saw him there kind of chewing cud, as it were. He/she is probably not chewing anything yet.

I have a feeling an early spring is not in the cards for anywhere on the east coast. All those predictor animals be damned. I think it's going to be a long and wild winter.

I had to laugh when I read you were cooking up minestrone soup, as I did the same thing last week. I did try a new thing which I thought turned out well: I added some ground veggie "meat" to the soup. Tasted just like ground beef with the same texture as well. Only soy product that I've actually liked.

Hope your rains let up for awhile. Cheers!

Lowcarb team member said...

Definitely agree Zoo news is so much better / nicer than political news.

All the best Jan

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Far Side - I think all of us are weary of politics. And who doesn't love a baby giraffe?

Bug - Yes, the little baby could look Dr. M right in the eyes.

Robin - It must have been quite a sight when travelers encountered their first giraffes. They are indeed unique and fun to watch.

KB - We are the only family on the block who are hoping the Broncos will win and take a bit of sass from the Panthers "Prince of Football."

Mary Lee - We go down every now and then to visit the little zoo in Greenville. And yes, we finally have some sun but it's turned much cooler with strong winds.

Patti - The little one really is fun to watch. Hard to turn away because you think they might do something the minute you turn the cam off.

Tara - Yes, I agree. I do feel as if winter is not finished with us. The minestrone was delicious. I added a bit more spinach rather than any cabbage and used some really good bacon for the meat.

Jan - Yes, almost anything is better than politics.