Rose by Another Name

When preparing for the character of Rose Nylund, writer and producer Susan Harris told the then auditioning Betty White, "Rose is so naive. She's totally naive, she never gets the double meaning of anything, no sarcasm." And on the spot, Betty White created one of the most beloved and confounding characters in television history. Originally, Betty had been auditioned as the vamp Blanche Deveraux, but because Rue McLanahan knew that Blanche was the role she was born to play, the girls switched and magic was what followed. If you have seen a single episode of Golden Girls, you know that Betty hit the role of the dim-witted, innocent Rose right on the nose, and yes, at times, it did hurt a little. There were many instances where it seemed likely that Blanche, Dorothy or Sophia were about ready to murder Rose to shut her up. In one episode Sophia made an attempt with a stove-pot, but much to her disappointment, she was interrupted by Blanche.

From her rambling and confusing, "back in St. Olaf" stories to her believing that she was the daughter of Bob Hope, Rose makes for one brilliantly entertaining, odd duck character. Her childlike innocence and scattered brained tales of impossibly out-there situations may make her seem like a rather dull knife with little to contribute, but that is not the case. I will admit, though, that when I originally started drafting my ideas for this post, I felt a bit like Dorothy when she was telling her boyfriend about the lessons the girls had taught her; when she came to Rose, she concentrated intently and even gave up after a considerable span of time to move on to a different topic, but mid-sentence she realized that Rose had indeed taught her something; "A square knot."

Funny as that may be, Rose was not a mere square in the plots. Indeed, it is time that we look at Rose in a very different light than the mere comic relief in a comedy. Leaving the characters countless charities in which she was involved aside, Rose had some of the most dramatic issues that occurred within the series happen to her. In fact, sweet, innocent Rose was confronted with one of the scariest diseases of modern times: AIDs. Yes, the child-like character goes seventy-two hours with the dark shadow hanging over her. But how? Now, you may be thinking that we know generally how the HIV virus spreads, we learn that in our ninth grade science classes, but in the 1980s, there was another way the disease was spreading and it was brought up TWICE in the Golden Girls. Any ideas? If you guessed via transfusions, then you are correct. If you thought Rose Nylund was needle-sharing, then in the words of Sophia Petrillo, you botchagalloop! Go back to Golden Girls 101 and review your character notes.

That's right, transfusions. How could that be? Don't hospitals screen blood donors and test the samples before they put blood from one person into another? Well, the answer for today is yes, but the reason did not seem necessary until the AIDs pandemic that left the world in shock. For my Millennial readers and back, we may not remember the fear and the hatred, the lies and the misinformed stereotypes that spun out from the early days of AIDs. Today, we know that it is spread by unsafe sex, the exchange of blood, plasma, or other bodily fluids, and from needle sharing. But in the early 80s when AIDs was the new terror on the scene, it was known as "Gay-Related Immune Deficiency." Why? because the first several cases of patients being admitted with symptoms of HIV in the US were gay men. But scientists and the health community began to realize that this was not a disease that was limited to the gay-men community. But who were these other victims? Some were users, but quite as the years went on, quite a few were hemopheliacs, people whose lives depended on blood transfusions as well as people who needed any sort of transfusions. The main focus on television (media included) was not on those folks, save for the Golden Girls, who again, did so twice. 

In the first episode, Sophia brings a boy in a hospital a nectarine. His name is Sam. He can't be more than twelve years old and he is living in the hospital, wheel chair bound. Sophia visits with him, but the boy is sad because, "no one's ever beat it before." It's a short scene, but important. For those who were paying attention as they watched in the '80s, this little boy gave a new face to a seriously misunderstood disease. In the 1980s, the general people failed to realize the amount of AIDS patients who were children. Between the mid-80s and the early 1990s, there were almost 7,500 cases of children being diagnosed with AIDS, of them, 601 through transfusions, the rest, from their mothers (CDC). All of these victims were the silent victims, but at least the children were not the targeted victims unofficially deemed by the general public as "enemies".

Every other year or so it seems that there's a new virus that is blown-out of proportion on the media to be the next Walking Dead bringing Apocalypse. Between 2000 and 2016 alone, we've had Mad Cow, Bird Flue, Swine Flu, Ebola and the current flavor of the week is the Zika Virus. Now, this is not to downplay the serious and absolutely devastating effects these abhorrent afflictions have plagued on the human race. This is instead to point out that our focus on these diseases do not center around prevention, treatment, or information. Instead, we focus on the deaths and the carriers of the diseases. Granted, our streets are not filled with panic stricken folk running about madly, nor were there any in the '80s, but things are substantially different today than they were thirty years ago. For starters, we have far greater access to information via any electronic device we possess. This wasn't the case in the eighties. People relied on the papers and the TV to tell them what was going on. The information from doctors, scientists, researchers was not as accessible to the general public. Your average citizen was not sure what was happening, so fear, panic and stereotypes filled the voids left by the lack of information. 

With the lack of information spreading fear, stereotypes about AIDs and its victims arose like mad. There were quite a few stereotypes within the episode that the Girls addressed: Sophia doesn't want to use the same bathroom as Rose for fear of catching AIDs, which Dorothy helps her mother to debunk; Sophia labels cups with Rs to keep herself from using Rose's under the same fear of AIDs being spread via sharing dishes, which is debunked by Dorothy and Blanche. There are quite a few instances in the episode where Rose expresses her fear of becoming isolated as no one would want her around if she is diagnosed as people back then had a difficult time finding work or maintaining their jobs due to the stereotypes that existed, but solidarity and the tight bonds of their friendship help prove to Rose that no matter what, her girls would be there for her.

The producers and the writing team of Golden Girls knew that they had the attention of the globe; they had been in the top ten spot since their first year and in their 5th season, they had upheld their desire to portray real family and real people problems with humor. And with the episode "72 Hours," that's exactly what they did. They did not have the answers to the AIDs pandemic, but they knew two things: AIDs was not a "bad persons" disease and no one could get through the process, whether they be waiting to be diagnosed or pushing through, without the support of their loved ones. Unfortunately for far too many AIDs victims, they were forced to suffer and die alone. For Blanche, Dorothy, and Sophia, they knew that no matter the outcome of Rose's test, she would not be alone.

Rose is eventually declared clear, but over 100,000 American people from 1981 to 1990 were not so fortunate and fell to the disease. Today, we do know more about AIDs, but still, people are being diagnosed. Approximately 40,000 were diagnosed in 2014, but this is a significant decrease from previous years We cannot let information about AIDs slip. Parents need to talk about safe sex with their children. We cannot depend on the school system to tell our children about the real dangers that are out there. Even Dorothy makes this point to her mom during the episode, after which Sophia proudly says that she has come along way from telling her daughter to not let boys touch her "you know w-h-e-r-e" (yes, she spelled out where), and proves it by giving to Dorothy a bag of condoms. That may indeed be a bit of an extreme example of talking safe sex, but it makes a good point.

TV is highly influential in our lives and the writers of Golden Girls knew this. For better or for worse, we learn a LOT from our TVs. Using innocent Rose as a banner for people who are scared and possibly very sick remains to be one of the most brilliant episodes of Golden Girls, if not television history. It showed how misinformed minds become subject so quickly to fear and to panic. Here in 2016, look at how drastic the measures were to prevent Ebola from entering our country. Look at the words used by the media about the victims. Would it not make more sense to inform and instruct people about an extremely serious disease, rather than make the suffering out to be the enemies? The next time our zombie-making disease arises, think of Rose Nylund, an adult woman who had a teddy bear named Fernando. Think about her when you hear about the victims who need love and support, not condemnation and neglect. Learn what you can about the disease itself and the preventative action that you may take. Learn from the Golden Girls, who sought nothing else than to show us how compassion and friendship can make the world, even a sick world, right.

Until next week, dear Readers, when we visit Dorothy Zbornak,

Your Humble Author,

S. Faxon

The Gems in Blanche's Crown

Hello, dear readers,

A quick, but important note: a friend and colleague's daughter endured a terrible car accident a few weeks back; she has been in and out of the hospital for almost TWO months and is now in need of a lot of help. If you can donate ANY amount to help her and her family your generosity will be much appreciated. If you are unable to donate, it costs you nothing to share the link with your friends: https://www.gofundme.com/sabrinadavis

Thank you.

Now on to our regularly scheduled program!

We are continuing on our golden brick road through the 1980s-1990s series The Golden Girls. The next four posts are going to concentrate on the girls themselves and a selection of the virtues, strengths, societal issues from yesteryear through today that they helped to portray. And today, we are going to start with Blanche.

On the surface, Blanche Elizabeth Deverau is a fun loving gal who deems herself a queen of the old South. To any outsider, and often to her friends, she is vain, she is attention hoarding and the world revolves around her. However, a dive beneath the shallow waters reveals a more complex character with deeper strengths and flaws that reveal her to be quite human. The humanization of characters may seem like an odd concept for which to aspire, but it is the flaws, the problems of our favorite TV characters that make them "real" and more like us viewers. Indeed, the Golden Girls were constrained by the twenty-eight minute air-time or so, and most of their problems were solved in that brief time frame, but the issues they touched, as we will see with our first highlighted golden girl, remain to be profound in modern times.

Throughout the twentieth century, we ladies have made tremendous leaps in the States, but the value of women as more than mere house-wives who had the right to vote was emerging as a common theme in 1980s cinema and sitcoms. The Cosby Show had Dr. Claire Huxtable. The ladies of Nine-To-Five proved to their good-for-nothing boss that karma packed one mean powerful punch. And the Golden Girls had Blanche, a vixen who had married rich, was temporarily engaged to an extremely wealthy man, was for the majority of her life a house-wife and had a governess to take care of her children. Yes, indeed, that last note is surprisingly contrary to the previous statements, but Blanche is a character full of surprises. Diving just a bit deeper we see that regardless her assertions as a meek, yet sexually free female, she has principles and stands up when her principles or loved ones are threatened.

In an episode in season one appropriately entitled, "Adult Education," Blanche is taking a few extra courses to complete a degree, which will help to have her considered for a promotion at work. This alone is something to stop, analyze, and admire. In the 1980s, the 25% of the female population 18-24 years old in the USA were enrolled at college, compared to the over 45% today (Mather and Adams). That's all well and good, but realize that the average age of college for females even to date is between 18 and 24. Blanche was in her fifties vying for a promotion by trying to earn her degree. This is a subtle detail in the episode, but incredibly inspiring. It shows that you don't have to be twenty-something to be a college student hoping to advance yourself. Hope does not have to and nor should it stop just because you've settled down with a family, or in Blanche's case, that she lived in a mostly empty nest, save for the few "coo-coos" who were her roommates. (Die-hard Golden Girls fans will likely understand that reference. If you don't get it, watch Season Seven.)

In Blanche's quest to achieve that promotion, she hits a snag. She needs to bring up her grade in Psychology - she failed her midterm and if she doesn't pass the class, she won't have the GPA to receive her degree. Trust me, if anything stands in the way between you and your degree, a piece of paper that you have put your blood, sweat, and tears into, you're going to be upset and willing to do almost anything to achieve that most desired end. So, after consulting her girls, Blanche decides to ask her professor for assistance to see what she can do to earn a better grade in the class. The professor listens to her story and unfortunately, he does have a way that will guarantee her the path to a passing grade. A path that of course excites her until she realizes that the extra-credit would involve extra-curricular activities. Blanche is prone to be drawn to those activities, in fact the words "possible-addict" come to mind, but she knows that she wants to be proud of her degree. Sleeping with the professor would forever hinder her from holding her head high whenever she looked at or thought about her degree.

After the incident Blanche consults with her girls and they all agree that she needs to report it to the administration. Alas, for Blanche the ol' song and dance that many people who blow the whistle fear; the administrator said to Blanche, "It's your word against his." Like it's not terrifying enough for victims of sexual harassment to come forward, particularly when their harassers are in positions of power, the person who was supposed to provide her help, refused to take her seriously because there was no witness and because, to quote the administrator, "A man's career [was] at stake."

Now, Blanche could easily have accepted this, she could have kneeled down to the idea that her report could ruin a man's career, but she decided to take a stand for her own rights. She buried herself in the books and even missed a Frank Sinatra concert to take her final exam. Towards the end of the episode, Blanche is the last student in the class taking the exam. The professor tells her that it is time for pencils down; when she stood up, the professor again asked her to consider his offer. But Blanche was not about to stand down after all of the work she went through. Standing proud, Blanche told the professor to kiss her "A," (her grade of course.) 

Blanche, promiscuous, fun loving Blanche, stood up for herself and for women's rights by saying, "No" to the easy route. Now, unfortunately for Blanche, she did not receive the promotion because some other woman took the low road by using her body (having a butt lift) to receive the promotion. The girls gave Blanche words of sympathy, but with the biggest smile, Blanche replied that it was alright as, "one day her but'll turn to mush, but I'll always have my degree."

If you've ever been in a situation where you had to choose, be proud of the decision you made. You know, a quote comes to mind from a marvelous book a dear friend loaned to me; "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it however." Richard Bach, Illusions.  

Keep that quote and the brightness of this gem in Blanche's crown in your thoughts, dear Readers. Perhaps these words may prove to be an escape or a pathway to greatness for you.

Until next week when we go where few have gone before - beneath the peroxide colored hair of Rose Nylund...

Your humble author,

S. Faxon

PS - If anyone would like to sponsor my research so that I may dive deeper with the topics in terms of research and expansion, the ideas are here. The funds to support my hobby, alas, are absent. Does this sound like a project in which you'd like to invest? If so, leave a comment below. I'm listening, I have a plot outlined, and I am ready to write.

Cheesecake

Friday, January 29, 2016
Cheesecake
Quick side note: if you've been to San Diego, if you live in San Diego, you've probably heard of or been to Seaport Village. It is THE most darling part of America's Finest City and it is at risk of being torn down to make room for a mall and hotels. Now yes, I get that we need to expand the convention center, but by tearing down Sea Port village we are taking from San Diego a place where locals AND tourists enjoy peace, the best coffee in town (at the Upstart Crow), and a variety of adorable shops. Please help us preserve this piece of our town by visiting this website and sharing it with all of your friends on your Social Media: http://www.saveseaportvillage.com/take-action/. It takes two clicks to let people know that this is NOT right and it should not be allowed to happen. Write #savesaportvillage on Facebook AND Twitter with your photos of the joy Seaport Village has brought you.

Alrighty, dear readers, here's the scoop: some of the following may not be suitable for all audiences (young'ns in particular) because, to paraphrase a line from Sophia, "This ain't going to be no cakewalk." 

A few years back, one of my sisters sent me a link to an article regarding an analysis of the Mary Tyler Moore Show. The article discussed the residual impact of the sitcom on viewers and its influence on social norms. This sparked inspiration for my sister to send me the link with her simple commentary: "You could do this with the 'Golden Girls' no one knows them better than you." 

When I first started this journey I had not claimed to be the number one fan, still don't, but I have always deeply respected and admired the messages within the show and the strength of their characters. Once, I considered proposing to instruct a semester long college course on the 'Politics of Golden Girls,' so this project struck me as a positive first step toward achieving this goal. 

Whether you are interested, but not familiar with the sitcom that aired in 1984 or if the girls are dear friends, sit back, relax, and in the words of Sophia, "Fasten your seat belt slut puppy, this ain't going to be no cakewalk." (See, that's the complete quote). And that's probably not the case; the following posts will be discussing social issues that were controversial at the time of the show's running life and that remain relevant issues to-date.

A tremendous thanks goes to Victoria who introduced me to the girls. Victoria, as ever, "Thank you for being a friend." 

Chapter 1: Cheesecake

I. Widows and a Divorcee, Not Biddies 

In the first season, Rose and her boyfriend Arnie decided to go on a romantic weekend cruise. It is Rose's first intimate experience with a man since her husband Charlie's passing fifteen years earlier. She is hesitant, scared and nervous. She was concerned that she would feel like she was cheating on Charlie. To add to Rose's fears, Charlie had endured a heart attack while they were making love and passed away; you see, Rose was afraid that she might kill Arnie. 

The episode switches to a conversation with Blanche, Dorothy and Sophia. They are discussing how long they waited to be with men after their husbands passed or, in Dorothy's case, after her separation. Blanche is the most-promiscuous character - to say the absolute least - and she did not wait so much as a month after her husband George passed. This contrast brought to light the taboos that face women at that stage in life: can there be life after your husband dies? At what quality and to what extent? In the 1980s when the GGs were on air, women outlived their husbands on average by eight years. Women have historically outlived their husbands and have been stuck with the question of "what do I do now?" for centuries. Rose Nyland captured the concern best in her speech in the pilot episode: 

"It's not fair you know. We get married, we have kids. The kids leave and our husbands die. Is that some kind of a test? You don’t work that hard. You don't go through everything you go through to be left alone. We are alone, Dorothy, we really are. Our families are gone and we are alone. There are too many years left and I don't know what to do." 

The Mary Tyler Moore show had a similar theme of life after marriage, showing a woman after divorce, another taboo. But she was young and did not have an established family. These women are all over fifty and while Blanche has a different date in almost every episode, their prospects for marriage seem small. However, in their seven years of show, they more than proved their prowess, knocking the stereotype of cake-baking, sweater-knitting, t.v. zombie grandmas. These grandmas, they rock. 

The GGs did something that had never been done prior and that has not been done since; for seven years, four women in their fifties and sixties ruled the air like twenty-somethings. They set the stage for shows like Sex in the City and Mom, and they proved that actresses don't have to be shelved once they're over forty and starting to display signs of aging. Bea Arthur wore her white hair with dignity and style. Betty White displayed evident signs of aging gracefully. Rue McLanahan, the youngest at fifty-one.had more sex-appeal (even if it was self proclaimed) and as such a sex life more active than most can claim. Estelle Getty was even made to look older by wearing a wig, skin-colored makeup, and old-lady" glasses.  

Although Rose's speech about being older and alone is chilling, every episode to follow in the next seven seasons proves that these girls were anything but 'alone or inactive.' There have been many times when I've acknowledged that the lives of these gals were more active than mine!

They attended a Madonna concert, went to a nudist resort (granted, unbeknownst to them), they were on a game show, they sailed through a hurricane, traveled back in time in Brooklyn, danced the night away in an all night marathon, and, need it be said, had more dates than one can count! Now, Blanche may have been the most promiscuous one, but Sophia got all the celebrities: she had dates with Burt Renolds, Mikey Rooney, and Julio Iglesias (yes, Enrique's dad). Sophia, the character in her eighties was quite often times a grump, demonstrated the most that life is about living, especially after loss.

There's one episode, "A Nectarine" where it's a rainy day and the three younger ones are determined to be productive around the house. Alas, their ambition is thwarted by apathy and they spend the day in their pajamas. But Sophia goes to the market to buy a nectarine. At least, that's what she tells the girls. When she goes to the market, she meets a lady who is about her age and is being spoken down to by the grocer. Sophia, the champion for the under-trodden, steps up and takes a stand against the grocer, listing a myriad of organizations that she alleges represents the elderly. In a later scene she is volunteering at the hospital and an elder lady who is clearly been neglected by her family, a theme we see arise numerous times in a few episodes, including one where Sophia "kidnaps" a friend of hers from a home that is poorly funded and has less than home-happy standards.

Elder abuse and neglect  was not considered a criminal issue until the 1980s when "Surgeon General Louis Sullivan held a workshop on family violence, declaring it to be a public health and criminal justice issue that included the problems of elder abuse and neglect." (National Academies Press). In 1985, a federal task force was created to determine the extent and possible prevention of elder abuse within the United States. The task force requires, "States to have in effect a State elder abuse law with mandatory reporting provisions." (Library of Congress). This hadn't existed federally prior to the 1980s. The writers of the Golden Girls were highly attuned to the social issues of the day, and throughout the course of the show, Sophia stands as an advocate for elder rights, shedding light onto the fact that the elderly in the States are too often seen as burdens and not as loved family members with incredible insights on life, love, and days long gone. For many of her friends and the watchers, Sophia shows that you don't have to accept something that feels wrong especially because you are not alone. This is a theme that rises numerous times throughout the Golden Girls and we will continue to discuss this theme throughout the following weeks. 

Yes, these are brief overviews of deep topics and youbetcha I could ramble endlessly about each topic mentioned, but this is a blog and a mere brief escape, so I'll do my best to keep these short. Trust me, it's not easy. This whole segment is to show that the Golden Girls were more than just a mere sitcom - they were guardians in a way, proving to people in their golden years and up that they didn't have to be afraid. That if they tried hard enough or if they did not sit down and wait for death, that one thing was certain - you would find a friend and maybe even find someone with whom to share a slice of cheesecake.

Until next week dear readers when we meet the girls individually,

Your humble author,
S. Faxon

Your Golden Moment: 

Oh, Betty

Last week's post wasn't much of an escape and I do apologize for the sorrowful read. But, this is an escape, so we're going to jump right into something light and bubbly, and who else makes us smile and laugh more than Betty White. Last week, Ms. White turned 94 years old. Alas, I could not find the video from her most recent birthday, but here is the video of the flash mob that was done for her last year:

Now I don't know about you, but this video may bring me to tears from the sheer happiness on her face. Whether she is trying to or not, Betty White has been bringing laughter and happiness to people and animals across the world for decades. From her early work on "Life With Elizabeth" (1952-1955) to her tireless efforts to protect and love our animal friends, Betty has certainly been an active member of this world and remains to be today, even in her nineties!

It's hard to tie a Golden Girl down. Many people in Hollywood start to slow down when they hit fifty, but for Betty, Rue, Estelle, and Bea, fifty was a new beginning. A genesis in their careers that would spark laughter, inspiration, kinship, and most importantly friendship, for countless years to come.

There was something remarkable about the Golden Girls, the series that stretched across seven seasons and has been viewed by millions around the world. The actresses, writers, and production team touched topics never before dared and impacted our society and culture in ways I doubt many have really stopped to realize.

You know, it was my dream to meet the girls to tell them how much their show meant and means to me, but unfortunately I missed my opportunity to meet the majority. I did write to Ms. Betty White and she sent to me a signed photo of herself with her dog Panda. I do regret not writing to the others earlier, but life is too short to dwell in regret. And so, I will do what I can to make it up to the ladies to help their legacies live on. Over the next few weeks, dear readers, we will be delving into the amazing lessons, values, and laughs that the Girls gave to us. This will be a tribute to these legend-leaving-ladies who quite a few of us would like to thank for being a friend.

And so, tune in next week dear readers for Chapter One: Cheesecake. 

Until Next week, dear readers.

Your humble author,

S. Faxon

Mr. Rickman

Tears dropped onto my desk at work today. I, like much of the world, received horrible news. Actor and wonderful man, Alan Rickman, passed away.

This is not to be a happy one, dear readers. This writer is quite devastated by this news. Though I only met him once on the streets of New York city, Mr. Rickman was like a very dear friend. From the moment I first saw Galaxy Quest in 1998 as an eight year old kid, I knew that this actor was something special. The more I learned about him, the more he proved that.

As a writer, I occasionally base characters off of actors, for appearance or characteristic. Because Mr. Rickman was so good at becoming whatever character the screen required, he was an easy one for me to derive inspiration. Being that I've been writing for thirteen years, he was a familiar figure, to say the least, in my head and very much so in my writing. Made a list of how many characters in my books I would have liked him to portray on screen - seven. Seven separate stories that I have had with him in my heart for thirteen years. I consider each one of my characters as my children or dear friends. I know every one of their histories, their stories, their personalities. I know that it is merely fantasy and I know that my grief is silly, but it feels like all of those characters and Alan Rickman have died. It is not going to be easy to pick up the pen for a while without tears staining the pages.

My sincerest condolences to Rima - his lifelong love, and to his family, his friends. I cannot begin to imagine the grief that they are feeling.

I am sorry too my dear readers that this is not much of escape for you. Just needed one myself today.

Life is strange. One moment, you are riding high in a cloud of happiness and everything is right. The next minute, your face is in the gravel and digging in. It's in those times that we must cling close to the memories of goodness and of light. Those images may fade at times, but it's in our moments that we are down that we learn to appreciate the little things and the memories of what is right.

Your grieving author,
S. Faxon

A Wild One

Good day, dear readers! Are you ready for a wild one? An adventure with the wild ones that is.

My mom and I took a visit to the zoo this past weekend and though it was a drizzly, grey day, the animals were collectively more active than I have seen in a long time. Allow me to tell you about it.

Mama and me at the world famous San Diego Zoo

We made it to the zoo and it was quite grey and misty out, but there were a surprising amount of people in Balboa Park. Probably all assuming like we had that San Diegans seek shelter whenever the blue in the sky is absent. 

There is a LOT of construction and remodeling happening around the zoo. The entrance is being changed and is currently in a temporary structure that I'm pretty sure was a trailer painted an extraordinarily bright green. 

We entered the zoo and made our way to the Koala area. We ooed and awed at the little grey fluffs hanging out in the trees by their little heaters, of which we were jealous!

We saw a baby wallaby be groomed by mama wallaby and then the little tyke hopped right up into mama's pouch and disappeared! It was so precious!

From there we walked over to the giraffes and apparently, you can feed the giraffes now on Saturdays and Sundays. It was amazing to watch people feed these gentle giants. Their big ol' heads and necks reached over a gate so that they could extend their long, grey tongues to take biscuits out of the hands of tourists. And yes, people were selfie-ing with the giraffes as they plucked food from their hands. That part tarnished the moment a bit, but then there was a baby giraffe that was just barely taller than me. So cute! He was born in May and he was his mama's eleventh baby! Did you know that when giraffes are born they are technically dead? It's the kaboom with the ground dropping from mama's elevated backside that starts their hearts! What amazing animals!

After the giraffes we crept by a sleeping rhino (would not want to accidentally wake a breathing tank!) We started to head over to the center of the park to try to find a place for coffee. It was freezing! En route, we passed some awake grizzly bears! They were ENORMOUS! One was napping, but simultaneously digging with her long clawed paw. The other was crunching on a delicious looking salad. Eventually he finished his greens and moved on to dessert - grubs from a tree stump that he ripped apart. I've never seen the bears that active. It was incredible.

We hiked down the trail, admiring the incredible plants and trees on the way to the bottom of the hill. Eventually we took the Aviary Trail and looked at the colorful birds. When we reached the top of the hill we found what we desired - coffee. Although, there was a moment of fright when we found this sign:

We hung out with the baby orangutan and her family. We watched little otters swim to their hearts content. We were right at the window when the male tiger prowled by - I loved that. We also saw a snow leopard leap from the top of his enclosure to prowl right beside us. I could have pet a snow leopard if I had been so inclined to reach my hand through the fence we were so close, but it is never wise to pet something with the word leopard in its name. (Hey, that's a reference!) The day of animal activity was just spectacular. The last really cool thing we saw was a young male jaguar. He was enjoying lunch, but when he was through he started to cry out for his mama. It was soooooo heart breaking. The keeper kept telling us that he was like a kindergartner who wasn't quite used to being away from mama yet. This didn't make any of us feel better. Rest assured that mama was reintroduced to him, but we all still felt for the little guy.

Looking for the smallerish human

There was one part of the park that was really interesting. The zoo has an animal ambassador program where they have cheetahs and Labradors, wolves and labs, and a few other buddies together in a long pen. We had a lovely lady cheetah out and about with her friend. They were running around together and playing. We were able to see the cheetah bolt, and I mean BOLT through the exhibit, probably a 100 foot dash when she locked onto something, which I'm pretty sure was a small human. If you're curious about the Ambassador program at the zoo, Nicole Payer did an interesting article explaining the program, which you can read "Dogs and Cheetas Living Together." 

We eventually made our way to the front of the park. We bought souvenir tumblers so that we could have another cup of coffee. The nice thing about these tumblers is that we'll get 99 cent refills on all beverages (except beer) on all future visits. And it's a nice tumbler, so I'm excited to use it. I also bought a pin and a fleece - did you know that this is a special year for the zoo? This year marks the centennial of our town's zoo, which originally composed of a bear, a lion, a few flamingos, some borrowed ostriches from the ostrich farm, and a cigarette smoking chimp. Ah, the early 20th century. Actually, I can't remember if the chimp was a part of the zoo during the Panama Exhibition or if he came later with the World's Fair in the 30s. I'll let you know once I remember.

Until then, though, I wish you a happy week and that you enjoyed this wild escape.

Your humble author,
S. Faxon

Celebrations

Good evening, Dear Readers! (Or whatever time it is that you read this blog!)

Huzzah for the first post of this New Year! It is customary for us to celebrate the New Year in the middle of the night. We celebrate with bursts of light in the sky and raise our glasses to the hopes for renewal. Well, in a similar albeit micro way, that's how I think of sunrises. The bursts in the sky are not from fireworks, but from the awawkening sun. The  glasses that we raise are coffees, teas, waters, celebrating the fast of the night. I'm an early morning person, does it show?

Whether we anticipate doing so or not, the New Year marks a reawakening, a new beginning. A fresh start. I was resolute not to make resolutions, but of course I did join a gym as the membership prices are affordable thanks to the "New Years Resolution" folks being sucked in like metal to magnets. Now please do not think that I frown upon making resolutions in the New Year. I think it is a delightful way to set goals for ourselves that we may otherwise let slip by. I do have hopes and aspirations for the New Year. Most of my goals are personal, but the ones that I will share include my writing. There is a sequel that I have been penning for some time that I hope to see through within the next few months. There's the blog, which I hope continues to bring delightful, short distractions to my dear readers. Other than that, I'm more curious about you - what are your goals or resolutions for 2016? If you're up for sharing, leave a comment below. Who knows, maybe you're looking to start a blog yourself but don't know where to start - why not try it out here?

If one of your resolutions was to increase your reading, I may have a suggestion or two for you:

The Feasts and Follies of the Animal Court by Me - On Barnes & Noble's Nook and on Amazon's Kindle

Already ripping through that one? Well, it's only the beginning.
Foreign and Domestic Affairs - Exclusively on Amazon's Kindle

If you only have a Nook and want to read the sequel, let me know! I'll see what I can do. After all, I'm here for you.

I pray that you all have a wonderful, beautiful, prosperous New Year! Now go out and celebrate life. 

Until next time, dear readers.

Your humble author,

S. Faxon