Today is a lovely quintessential autumn day. Makes no difference to me, the chimpanzees or the cattle that it’s the middle of summer, we are all thrilled with the charcoal skies, cool, rain-fresh air and still comfortable temperatures. The chimps couldn’t WAIT to get on to Young’s Hill this morning and when I came up to open the door everyone had gathered their remaining breakfast to go and they crowded around the doorway, hair standing on end with excitement. There were human strangers on one side of the hill working on their road up to the power lines, brazen cattle on the other and all under the most glorious of Pacific Northwest days (maybe best appreciated if one is a true Pacific Northwestern soul).
Betsy:
Honey:
The chimpanzees’ path around Young’s Hill has been mowed down, but it doesn’t take much to venture into the tall grass, growing drier and pokier by the day. Add a sudden shower to the mix and chimps’ sneer faces accurately depict their displeasure of the two. But to their credit, everyone stuck to their group walk around the perimeter, securing their territory from all the intruders this morning.
Foxie:
Burrito (pretty much how I’d look too with grass poking me in the eye while it was raining):
Annie and Missy opted to stay out on their own and made their way to take cover under two structures, seemingly listening to the rain in peace:
And Neggie? Well, she has no need to subject herself to stranger danger, getting poked in the eye by grass or rain. Clever woman:
Later this afternoon, I captured Annie and Missy enjoying one anothers’ company and the beautiful autumn-ish summer afternoon with only the sound of the breeze, a distant birdsong and Foxie sighing in her sleep from the top of the greenhouse:
Annie sitting cross-legged <3
Looking at those last two pictures of Missy and Annie, I can’t help but to think, “If only Missy knew that her daughter is coming to live with her at summer’s end.” I hope that Annie will enjoy being an aunt to Honey Bee.
Hi, Katelyn,
Actually, we’re having a week of those days currently here in and around Nashville. Ours is courtesy of Barry, that splitter, as I imagine part of yours is as well. ?? TN is far enough away from the coast to get winter snow, but close enough to the coast to share in the wet, colder weather during summer hurricane season, which means each year I get to have Christmas AND Halloween in July! Ha!
To celebrate, I pulled out my autumn wax melts rich with spices and fruits, and began working on fall designs for my Etsy shop. Smell is a powerful motivator for me, with the winter scents full of eucalyptus, mints, and pine helping the most by letting me keep focus and concentration.
Have y’all noticed if the chimps react to smell and certain scents? I know they have crappy olfactory glands as we do, but am wondering if they seem to *like* certain scents, or are drawn to some more than others.
My head is full of strange imagery at the moment. I am picturing Jamie in a more feminine moment just sitting around like a queen, toes stretched, draped over a plastic chair in the playroom, her fist wrapped around half-a-dozen red roses and dreaming of Burrito-toes. ??
Cheers. ???
Hi Carla,
Our entire summer has been unseasonably cool, but that’s fine by (most) of us and helps quell wildfire concern ever so slightly. We’ve experimented with essential oils like lavender and mint in the past, but haven’t observed any noticeable reaction from the chimpanzees (not that they aren’t responding in ways we can’t see). I have seen them occasionally smelling flowers before eating them and I imagine them finding it enjoyable, but Jamie in particular smells everything before she eats it, so who can say? 🙂
My goodness, I didn’t think I would ever see a Foxie-face that I didn’t like, but man, I was wrong! In spite of her tiny size, she’s certainly intimidating with that sneer and pilo combo!
I too absolutely LOVE these days of misc rain, clouds, cooler that usual weather… true PacNW gloriousness.. So nice to see the chimps and bovine residents enjoying it too!
oh, and yesterday was “World Chimpanzee Day”?! How did we all miss that!? Is it a real thing?
Hi Linda, World Chimpanzee Day is a real thing! We made mention of it on Facebook that day. 🙂
Aaah! I’ve never been on Facebook……I should have known you’d not miss it!
Ouchie, that look on poor Foxie and Mr. B’s face expresses it all. I will miss seeing those beautiful greens, yellows, and chartreuse grass colors as the hill moves into summer (pokier) tans. Thanks for all the photos of everyone today, I enjoyed each and every one.
We all are dreading the loss of the colors as well, Kathleen. But it’s usually long gone by now so we’re having some luck with the extension of this cooler weather. 🙂