We've had an unusual snowfall here recently. When it snows, I don't like to drive anywhere, even in the evenings and even if we've run out of a staple food. Instead, I like to revel in the beauty of it all and feel safe and snug.
Here is a view of our pasture in the snow.
We ran out of grapes this morning, which is what Bow likes to have for the first course of breakfast. But we still had goodies in the fruit basket that Bow's uncle sent him for Christmas. So Bow had a juicy pear instead of grapes.
It's nice to have a ripe pear for breakfast before dawn. And a slight variation in our routine is good for all of us.
Here's to an interesting and happy and hopeful new year!
Bow loves food. But he also likes to play. Yesterday, for Christmas, Bow got three gifts. Now, compared to what most children get on Christmas day, that may not seem like much. But for Bow, opening a gift and enjoying its contents is a very leisurely activity. In the past, when he got a whole pile of gifts, he took days, weeks and months to get around to opening them all.
Over time we have learned that more is sometimes less, and we have minimized gifts for Bow at special occasions. Bow had a hardy breakfast before he was presented with his 2012 Christmas gifts. Perhaps that is why he chose to open the non-edible gifts first.
But eventually, when he selected a few items from his third gift, a fruit basket sent by his uncle, his enjoyment of the goodies was quite evident.
Toys and trinkets can be fun, but food is essential!
The highlight of Bow's lunch this afternoon was pickle salad, consisting of orange cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas in the pod and miniature dill pickles.
Usually, Bow leaves his vegetables for the last course, preferring the sweet juicy apples over every other portion of the meal. But today, he asked for the vegetables first. I'm thinking it has something to do with the pickles!
Sometimes you run out of cereal. That's okay, because you don't actually have to eat cereal. There are so many other, better things to eat. But when you are a chimpanzee, and you have finished your grapes, and you are accustomed to getting cereal for the next course, it can be a little disappointing.
For just such an occasion, you can break out the granola bars. They are just as bad for you as cereal, consisting mostly of oats and honey. They come in a bar, so that you can go on a hike and eat them without making too much of a mess. But if you are hankering for a messy eat, like cereal and milk, all you have to do is break the bar down into smaller pieces.
Then you pour on the milk. It looks just like cereal with milk, and it tastes a lot like it, too.
However, when you do all this in front of your chimpanzee, he will not be fooled. He won't call it cereal. He will call it "granola and milk." But if he enjoys eating it, anyway, your work is done!
