Zoo

Today I was off work, and Lisa didn't have any tours, so we decided that it would be a good idea to take a family day before the chaos that is the Vent Haven ConVENTion begins (See yesterday's post for more info on that!). So we all went to the zoo together.

Sounds like it would be a nice time, doesn't it? And it was a nice time. Except. Except it was only about 70 degrees and it rained most of the time. Which was kind of funny because the park was in Summer Heat Mode, with vendors selling Icees and snow cones and giant mist machines stationed throughout the zoo in order to help cool everyone down. What they really needed were people selling parkas and umbrellas, and maybe hot cocoa for the foolish people (read "everyone in the family except Lisa") who decided to wear shorts.

Lisa was the one who really wanted to go to the zoo, and it was because she had heard about the new giraffe exhibit. The old giraffe exhibit had two giraffes in it, and they pretty much stayed in the back of the exhibit where you couldn't see them well. The new exhibit was designed to get you up close and personal with the giraffes. You walk onto a bridge that is the same height as an adult giraffe's head, and you can feed the giraffes from leaves that are nearby.

Again, sounds great, doesn't it? The only problem here, though, is that the five giraffes in the exhibit are brand new to the exhibit, and as such they are pretty much scared to death of all of the people on the bridge. As a result, they kept their distance. The photo above shows Lisa and Meredith watching one of the giraffes.

One animal we did get to see a little more closely were the elephants. The one in the foreground of the picture you see here was sucking water out of a hole and spraying it on himself (or herself--I'm really not sure). Over and over again. The one in the background, meanwhile, was having problems. Lisa referred to that one as the "slow" elephant or the "mentally disabled" elephant. He had grabbed a load of hay with his trunk as if to eat it, but every time he lifted his trunk to put the hay in his mouth he would close his mouth. When he dropped his trunk he'd open his mouth back up again, but when he lifted the hay again he'd close his mouth again. He did this probably ten times before finally getting the hay into his mouth.

Despite the rain we had a good time, though we didn't stay as long as we normally would. We had to get back home anyway, though, because the girls had dentist appointments this afternoon and Natalie has soccer camp tonight.

It is an eventful day.