Today I am thankful for the chimps and the way they are a steady anchor of normalcy in the sea of chaos that is this strange year. For many of us, Thanksgiving might look a lot different this year. For the chimpanzees, it looked just about exactly the way it always does. It was filled with FOOD! Wishing everyone a safe and joy filled holiday -from all of us at the sanctuary.
Senior superlatives
Today I revisited Diana’s Inviting your questions blog to look for some inspiration for my post. Tami asked which chimp is the class clown, most congenial, most beautiful/handsome, and most quiet? This reminded me of those awkward yet entertaining yearbook surveys where students get to vote for class superlatives. I’ve taken it upon myself to nominate each of the 10 chimpanzees for their own superlative. Dissent is encouraged in the comments section 😜
Let’s start this off with a pretty easy one. Most Athletic has got to go to Missy Chimpanzee, the runner:
Class Clown? Gotta be this guy, Burrito:
Miss Congeniality would probably go to the amiable Mave:
For Most Helpful, I nominate Jody Chimpanzee for her caring den mother personality:
There is no contest for Most Relaxed. Negra wins in a landslide:
Most Loyal might go to Annie (right), for her staunch devotion to her BFF Missy:
Here’s a contentious one… I nominate Willy B for Most Handsome, based primarily on how he makes the female chimpanzees virtually swoon with excitement when they get a proper look at him (like I said before, post your objections in the comments):
Quirkiest Personality goes to the always unique Honey B:
And Most Likely to Brighten up your Day seems to be the right fit for the fierce and eccentric Foxie:
Oh yes and Jamie wins Most Likely to be your Boss of course:
Feel free to post your own superlatives nominations below!
Ice-capades
Ahhhh that time of year has arrived where the chimpanzees scurry around Young’s Hill, picking up bountiful mouthfuls of snow and ice along the way.
Burrito is a real ice eating enthusiast. This afternoon we spotted him climbing all over the Escher structure searching for the cold stuff. 
Snow is more fun to eat than to walk on:
Apparently, the best snow is the kind that you find on the outdoor platforms. Here Burrito waits in line behind Foxie so he can sample this particular snow pile.
Missy and her mouthwatering treat:
Annie:
Foxie:
2020 Great Pumpkin Heist
A bonus live action video from last Saturday’s Jamieween Party. Just in case you missed it, make sure to check out Diana’s blog about the big day.
All business
She may sometimes choose to wear relaxed boho scarves on her outdoor adventures, but don’t let it fool you. Jamie is all work and no play.
The chilly snap of Autumn
This morning marked the first solid frost for the Central Washington Valley. I had the new, yet old and familiar task of scraping frost off my windshield before I drove through the foggy chill to the sanctuary. Tomorrow we even have SNOW in the forecast, but I refuse to believe it until I see it with my own two eyes. This afternoon the gorgeous Fall sunshine burned off the morning freeze and gave way to a cozy warm greenhouse and lots of walks with the chimps in the fresh air of Young’s Hill.
Kelsi and I set out for a pre-lunch walk with Jamie and we were soon joined by Burrito, Missy and Annie.
Burrito had one goal in mind, distract Chad (who was trying do some perimeter maintenance) and make him play chase instead.
Every time Chad would stop to work, Burrito would patiently wait with him…
Until they could run together to the next spot!
One of the questions on Diana’s “Inviting your questions” blog was, Does Jamie always patrol Youngs Hill clockwise?
The answer is generally yes, she does BUT not always. If something exciting is happening on the other side of the hill, she occasionally starts in a counter clockwise pattern to check it out. She also likes to throw us for a loop and play her version of follow the leader. This sometimes means she doubles back on her pathway and we wind up going in an unusual direction. Today she put Kelsi and I through our paces making us run back up the hill for a change.
Lastly, Jamie and I took advantage of the warm Greenhouse for a post-lunch grooming session. A perfect Fall day spent with good friends!
Little odd moments
This morning I witnessed one of those odd scenes which always makes me love the chimpanzees and their choices in sanctuary life just a little bit more. Please forgive me as I didn’t get proper photographic evidence to share here.
Anthony and I were midway through cleaning the playroom when we spotted Foxie playing with her dolls and doing little flips in the window. Just behind her on the greenhouse deck was Annie, wearing a bright orange headband around her waist and Burrito with a checkered plaid blanket “scarf” draped across his shoulders. Enter Jamie, with a leftover radish she found (somewhere??) accompanied by a stick of bamboo she had broken into her own “knife.” Jamie set about stabbing her radish down the middle repeatedly to cut it in half before she ate it, just because she could.
This brief morning moment reinforces how different all the chimpanzees are and how they each have such particular interests. Dolls, blanket scarves, headbands and homemade stick knives, we certainly have an interesting group of individuals living here at the sanctuary. The best part is, ALL chimps have different likes/dislikes and certain special quirks about them. Just think of Honey B, who arrived here only August of last year. As she has settled in, we’ve seen her enjoy building massive paper nests, eating fistfuls of popcorn and scooting around on her own wheeled toys– to name only a few of her passions. Honey B positively defines the word quirky.
I think I can probably speak for all the caregivers and blog readers alike, we really can’t wait to finish our expansion and welcome home our next group of eccentric CSNW residents.
I’m still practicing with our new camera, so I have just two random photos to share with you today.
Annie adoringly grooming Missy:
And Boss Jamie with boots and scarf close by:
