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.
Party
2020 Great Pumpkin Heist
A Jamieween Tale of Two Scarecrows
Today was Jamieween, a day unlike any other.
Today we celebrated Jamie Chimpanzee’s birthday and Halloween. And boy did we celebrate.
All of the humans truly outdid themselves this year. Enrichment Coordinator Chad has been thinking about and planning some special surprises for Jamie’s 43rd, and there was a lot of improvised fun sprinkled on top. Caregivers came in on their day off to help and share in the celebration.
I’ll start with Jamie. She had a particularly fantastic day. It was chilly early this morning, but as soon as I opened the hill for the chimps, Jamie bolted out and I joined her on the first walk of the day. The morning light choosing spots to illuminate on the hill was so beautiful (the photo below doesn’t quite capture it, but I posted a short video clip on Instagram), and I was glad she invited me along to enjoy it.
There were many gifts for Jamie throughout the day (thanks to those who purchased items from our wish list for Jamie!). These gifts were left for her in different areas for her to find. Katelyn noticed that Jamie had a particular interest in mummies a while back – she was carrying around a national geographic and paying special attention to some photos about mummies. So of course mummy books were a part of her celebration.
Kelsi and Anna created a “haunted box fort” for her in the playroom so she could enjoy some of her new books.
Later, after a refreshment…
…she checked out another one of the mummy books in the greenhouse:
Yesterday the winds were howling, but today was still and crisp and even warm, so of course we had to set up some Halloween food forages outside. The chimpanzees got to enjoy their very first pomegranates of the season – whole pomegranates! Jamie was quite pleased.
If you have seen past Jamieween celebrations, by now you might be wondering about the pumpkin and Jody…
This year, Chad had the idea of making scarecrows for the chimps with edible heads, so the pumpkin stood in as the head of the scarecrow on Young’s Hill.
Behold:
Due to her actions in past years, Jody has been bestowed the title of Great Pumpkin Thief. It wasn’t certain that she would be holding that honorific this year, however, because while Jody was off collecting pomegranates, Annie took an interest in the jack-o’-lantern (minus the lantern):
Annie also un-stuffed the scarecrow a bit and founds some hidden nuts.
But in the end, Annie left the pumpkin in place for Jody, the true thief, to strike again.
There was no obstacle, including one Burrito Chimpanzee, that would stand in her way:
Just look at that determination:
Everyone, as in years past, eventually got to enjoy the fruit of Jody’s labor by partaking in some of the pumpkin. Queen Negra nibbled on some from her bed, sharing with Missy:
For the other group of chimpanzees, we decided to use a head of cabbage for the scarecrow noggin. Chad added the jack-o’-lantern touch and Anna secured the scarecrow to a post:
I can’t look at that and not laugh. On the other hand, I can also imagine a horror movie with that character.
Willy B may have thought the same. He did not want to interact with the scarecrow, but made a quick job of devouring the cabbage:
Mave and Honey B were enjoying a lettuce forage in the chute while Willy B had his personal Jamieween treat, and later all three had a little party in the mezzanine with sparkling cider and popcorn:
Then for lunch they too got whole pomegranates. These, however, were extra special as they had had a visit from carver Chad. I’m sorry I did not get any photos of Willy B putting a whole pomegranate in his mouth and attempting to chew.
For dinner, Willy B, Mave, and Honey B got their own taste of pumpkin, which they devoured. Here’s Honey B:
Jamie ended her day by grabbing one of her new boot books and collecting some corn cobs in a box to enjoy in the front rooms, emitting low, contented moans as she ate.
All of the chimpanzees had a day of non-stop partying and are now sleeping soundly. There were many other photos as well as videos of the day, but I see that it’s dark and late and I should get home to my own haunted home.
I hope you all had a fun treat-filled day like the chimpanzees and that it continues into the night!
The Great Watermelon Haul on Foxie’s 44th Birthday
This video above of Foxie’s 44th birthday celebration has a little something for everyone. Well, except we did not get any photos or video of Mave or Honey B enjoying their watermelon boats. They did enjoy them, rest assured.
In addition to the watermelon bowl forage, which was a tradition began many years ago by volunteers, we also served smoothies (normally a breakfast-only thing) at both lunch and dinner. Foxie was appropriately appreciative.
Foxie’s was the first birthday we celebrated when the chimpanzees arrived in 2008. We knew her exact birth date because she was born in a laboratory and we had scant records of her years as a biomedical test subject that included her birth date, place of birth, and the number they assigned to her and tattooed on her body.
Those days must feel very, very far behind her today as she celebrated her 12th birthday in sanctuary.
What a gift to have all of these chimpanzees in our lives and to be able to give them good days.
Raise your watermelon bowl to many more!!
Foraging on the Fourth
Foraging is all about strategy.
You start by evaluating each type of food. Watermelon: sweet, refreshing, can be consumed quickly. Corn: Delicious but time-consuming, gets stuck in your teeth. Primate chow: satisfies those carb cravings but leaves your mouth too dry to eat anything else. Lettuce: great palette-cleanser but not much bang for the buck.
Next you survey the landscape. Walking long distances requires time and energy so you’ve got to do the math. Just spitballing here but I’d say a watermelon at 200 yards is worth two corns within arm’s reach.
And finally, you need to understand the competition. Foxie’s got bad knees, so you can outrun her. But be careful, Missy will fight you for an ear of corn.
Then the moment arrives. The door opens and two acres of 4th of July forage lay before you.
The gang sets off to the far corners of Young’s Hill in a quest to stuff themselves silly.
Wait! Oh, no. As usual, Negra has been distracted by the first piece of lettuce she saw. Keep your eyes on the prize, Negra!
While the others race by her, she bites gingerly from her slice of iceberg, oblivious to all the awaits her.
Meanwhile, Jody and Missy each race to claim a stump covered in watermelon slices.
Jamie swiftly climbs to the top of the cabin for more corn.
Missy reaches the pinnacle of the Escher climbing structure to capture the watermelon atop the tallest post.
Meanwhile, Negra wonders if it can get any better than this. Warm sun, cool breeze, and a quarter head of iceberg lettuce.
Burrito races from structure to structure with his bounty…
…pausing only briefly at a vantage point from which he can survey the area for more treasure.
Missy scampers across the shaky bridge from Carlene’s Tower to Jamie’s Tower…
…and returns with more food than a single chimpanzee should be able to carry.
Jody is up to her ears in watermelon.
Annie’s up to her eyes in ears of corn.
And Burrito is attempting to walk and chew watermelon at the same time.
All the while, Negra happily savors her slice of lettuce. They just don’t grow lettuce like this anymore, do they?
Back in the greenhouse, Jody takes a much needed break from being upright.
And Jamie works to polish off her corn and lettuce. While I personally swear by typewriter style, Jamie eats around the full circumference before working her way down the cob.
Luckily for Negra, Jamie didn’t finish all of her corn. Negra later returned to the Greenhouse, emitting a sound somewhere between a whimper and an alarm call, as if she had seen a snake. As the gang turned to her to see what was wrong, Negra swiped an ear of corn from Jamie’s feet and waltzed into the Playroom. It’s good to be the Queen.
Happy Birthday to our Queen Negra!
To know Negra is a true honor. She is unapologetically herself. To know who you are is a very important life skill. To have the ability to express yourself is also very important. Negra’s life has not been easy. However, Negra is a chimp who knows how she likes things and what she wants. Negra knows she loves pine-coco juice, lettuce, and chow. Negra as many of us know is the queen of comfort, she loves to make people dance for her, and when she wants to play she is not afraid to initiate it. When she feels like it, she gives the best kisses. Negra also gets to make those choices. She gets to choose where and how to make her nest, if she wants to go out on Young’s Hill, and she gets to express herself how she chooses. If Negra feels annoyed with her caregivers she can show her feelings, and trust us Negra is not afraid of holding back :).
June 13th, 2008 changed many lives. Most importantly everyday for 12 years seven chimps’ lives have gotten better each and everyday. And seven chimps became ten chimps. While our family may be growing, our visions and goals as a sanctuary have not. As Leslie Knope once asked in a TV show called Parks and Rec, “Are you better off now than you were a year ago?”. The answer is ABSOLUTELY and Negra is the perfect example of that. Happy Birthday to our Queen Negra. You are so very special to us.
If you missed the The Queen’s Brunch today you can still donate on our auction page. There are still a few second chance items left. Don’t miss out!
The Queen laying on her throne.
We had a huge forage out on Young’s Hill for lunch. Jody had arms full of cattails and a mouth full of roses. She also scored a big chunk of coconut. However, Jody got a little distracted near Negra. Negra looked over and to her dismay there was an abandoned coconut! Negra looked to be the happiest person in the world!
Negra with the coconut.
Missy zipped around the whole forage. I literally never saw her walking.
Jamie with arms and a foot full of lettuce.
Bubba enjoying his peppers.
Negra loving her lettuce too.
We hope you all had as much fun with the virtual auction and brunch as we did! I will leave you with these two images of Negra.
Happy Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day!
Today the sanctuary community is celebrating the fourth annual Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day. Here at CSNW, we celebrated a day early because our staff were all here at the same time for Honey B’s birthday party and you can’t share pizza and ice cream over Zoom. Normally we don’t eat where the chimps can see us but there’s not enough room for us to maintain our distance indoors. Notice someone spying on us?
Not wanting to leave Jamie out of the celebration, the team finished lunch quickly and went on a run around the hill.
Burrito tried his best to keep up.
This is what impresses me most about our staff and volunteers. We set aside a brief moment for everyone to relax and eat and all they can think about is making Jamie happy.
I also appreciate the thoughtfulness that goes into their work. Yesterday, Honey B had her first birthday celebration here at CSNW, and the staff, led by Chad, our Enrichment Coordinator, spent weeks brainstorming ideas for her party. It’s easy to throw a party, but this had to be a Honey B party. And it was a hit – so much so that Honey B will not let the party end. Seriously, she won’t let us go in to clean up. I guess we can keep the party going another day? (Update: At dinner she reluctantly let us close off the mezzanine. I made a deal with her that we’d move all the stuff, clean, and then put it all back again. She is pleased to once again be buried in her birthday mess.)
The most difficult thing about being a caregiver is not the physical work, though it can be exhausting. It’s the caring. It’s the relentless searching, day after day, for new ways to make others happy, even though you know it’s never going to be good enough. It is hard and it wears you out. I’m glad we have a day to formally acknowledge the importance of sanctuary caregivers. We are so grateful to our staff and volunteers, and to everyone else in our sanctuary community, for never letting up.
I’m sure this guy is grateful, too.
Tomorrow we celebrate the 12th Anniversary of the arrival of the Cle Elum Seven and Negra’s 47th birthday with our first ever virtual celebration. We hope you will celebrate with us! Join us on at this link for The Queen’s Brunch Facebook Live virtual event at 11:00 am Pacific Time on June 13th (you don’t need to have a Facebook account to watch!).
