Tuesday, August 27, 2013

A Roaring Good Time

Thought for the day:  Blessed are they who can laugh at themselves, for they shall never cease to be amused. 


Sometimes I laugh so hard, I get a little horse...  (Sorry.)
Okay, it's time for this oldie but goody to run an oldie but goody. Yep, rerun time. But, wait! Don't change the channel yet... some reruns are worth watching a second time, and I think this is one of them. Besides, since it first ran in November of 2011, it'll be brand new to most of you.

Its original title was Why Can't We? And so with a little updating and no further ado, here 'tis. Enjoy!

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Thought for the day: And one day the lion and lamb shall lie down together.
                                               

No, not THIS Noah's Ark!







My brother was in town for a couple days the week before Thanksgiving, and he, Smarticus, and I took a trip to a really neat place. Noah's Ark. That's what the place is called ... it's not like we made a quick run to Mt. Ararat or anything.

It's actually a privately-owned animal sanctuary here in Georgia. A sprawling place which a variety of furry, scaly, and feathered animals now call home. (And some of the ... "Hello! Pretty bird!" ... feathered ones are VERY talkative!)





This emu was almost as interested in watching us as we were in watching him. There was an extremely large group (flock? herd?) of emus at the sanctuary. Not sure why there were so many of them. Maybe some breeders unloaded them on the facility.





In spite of the thought for the day, we didn't see any actual lambs and lions cuddling up together, but we did see something almost as startling.



Above is home for three very special critters. If you look closely, you'll see a tiger lying on the porch. See him? (Sorry ... couldn't make the darned zoom on my camera work.)

And HERE, resting beside the fence, is a lion.




And here's the lion and tiger ... TOGETHER! Oh my!






And, surprise! Above, you'll see the third member of this unusual trio. When the chow wagon drew near, the bear lumbered out to join the cats. Guess he was hungry as a... you know...


Here's the three of them together.



And another shot of the three amigos.


The bear and tiger kept nuzzling each other.
The lion is slurping on what the caretakers called a beef popsicle.


So, what's their story? How is it that these three animals, who would ordinarily be considered mortal foes, can live and play together in peace? They've been raised together since they were cubs, when they were confiscated from drug dealers. Bottom line, who cares how their species behave in the wild? These three are friends. And perhaps, therein lies an important lesson for all of us, dontcha think? A lesson of hope and peace.



                                         
                                      Until next time, take care of yourselves. And each other.

P.S. Many thanks to all of you for the good wishes about our visit with some of the grandchildren over the weekend. We did, indeed, have a wonderful time. (A roaring good time!) I was too busy playing to take many pictures, but here's one:

Devyn, Aaron, and Kymber

That picture was taken right after a reshuffling. Jaiden decided to abandon the swing to do some climbing, so Aaron left his spot on the swing with Devyn to sit on the big boy swing. (And now they want to know why I'm messing with a stupid camera instead of pushing the swings... like I'm supposed to be doing. Heck, while I was pushing all four of them, I was beginning to think maybe I should try out for America's Got Talent...)


87 comments:

  1. welcome back, Susan ;) love these rescue places. I'll say it again... natural enemies? naw

    survival instincts. Isn't that a wonderful place.

    hahaa two frowns and a smile ... cute g'babies...

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    1. Thanks! Yeah, me, too.

      It really is a wonderful place. Seeing a bear and tiger nuzzling each other is such a remarkable experience.

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  2. Ooh and aah. I would love to have a tiger reclining on my veranda (and it might keep Jazz in line). I am sad for the reason that the amigos became friends - but very happy that they did. Thank you.
    And I love the photo of your smile factories at the end as well.

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    1. Tigers are absolutely beautiful. aren't they? Not just that coat, but their grace and power, too. And um yeah, I kinda think Jazz would mind his manners... and turn into a house cat... if there were a tiger lying on your veranda.

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  3. Dear Susan,
    this is the first time I saw these three animals together! Sometimes one sees photographs of e.g. a dog adopting a little geese (come to think of it: or couples where one wonders too) - but three such forceful and high-tempered animals: wow!

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    1. Isn't it amazing to see them together? I love those inter-species friendship pictures, but these three astounded me.

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  4. how cool it is, right?? it's like society, when we are kids we have no boundaries but the older we get the higher the fences are built. great lesson here girlie!

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    1. Yes, VERY cool! You're right. Left to their own devices, children notice their differences and may comment about them, but it doesn't prevent them from playing together.

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  5. The horse is sooooo !funny ,thank you for making me laugh :)

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    1. I'm glad the horse pic made you laugh. No neigh-sayer you!

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  6. I love the notice - they know where the bear and the lion come from, maybe they're not so sure about the tiger?

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    1. I'm not positive, but when they were cubs, I think all three of them belonged to the same drug dealer.

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  7. I'm fascinated by the lion, tiger, bear trio! it just proves what I've always said. No matter what your differences, you can get along. Animals can do it, children can do it. It's adults who screw things up.
    I'm glad you had a wonderful break with the grandkids.

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    1. Absolutely! Just shows what a smart cookie you are. No matter how different we are, our similarities are much greater.

      Thanks.

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  8. The three friends are amazing. As is the photo of your grandchildren. Thanks for sharing. :)

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  9. Thanks. Then, I'm glad I reposted it, too!

    Yeah, we could learn a lot from animals.

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  10. We had inside/ outside cats. When they were out, they would chase bunnies with one thing in mind. When they were inside, they would share their litter box with a Lop-eared rabbit and often sleep beside him. They were family.

    Oh, those grandchildren are cuties, Susan. I guess you noticed that once you start pushing kids on a swing, it becomes a commitment. " More, grandma, more; higher, grandma, higher; me next, grandma, me next.

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    1. That's pretty neat about your cats. I guess they considered your lop family.

      Oh yeah. No matter what I did with one child, the others would be saying, "My turn! My turn!" It was too funny. Kymber is quite a light-weight, so I was holding her in the air upside down and all that kind of silly stuff. Aaron, who most definitely is NOT a lightweight, started jumping up and down squealing the to-be-expected "My turn! My turn!" So I told him he was too big, and I didn't think I could do it with him. So he says, "No, grandma; I still widdle!" So what can I say? I mean, he IS only three. So he got his turn, too.

      Delete
  11. When you have grandchildren you learn to multi task like never before.

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    1. Boy, ain't that the truth?! (They keep us "young", right?)

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  12. I'm laughing daily then at me, myself, and I! Love the Noah's Ark! Amazing photos!

    But the photo of the grandkids, priceless!

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  13. What a great lesson. Too bad humans don't get it half the time.

    You have the cutest grandchildren. Yummy, yummy, yummy they are SO CUTE. I am glad y'all had such a great time [How could you not? :)]

    Take care. Hugs and much love! JG

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    1. Yeah, you're right. Half the time, it seems humans get so fixated on every little picayune difference that separates us, they fail to appreciate the mountains of things we have in common.

      Thanks. We think so, too.

      You, too, kiddo. Hugs and love back atcha, l'il sis. 12:34

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  14. Pushing away
    At your bay
    Must have gave you muscles
    Like that guy from Brussels
    Maybe the trio wants to go down the yellow brick road
    So are in play nice mode

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    1. Yep, pushing a swing
      Is just the thing...
      It might get rough,
      But it'll make ya buff.
      Oops! Look at the clock!
      Gotta go, but "I'll be bach."

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  15. Oh, what a sweet story! I'd love to visit this sanctuary. And I always enjoy these stories about animals who have become friends in spite of the fact that they are different species. Have you seen the famous one about the elephant and dog who became best buddies? I think the dog's name was Bella but I can't remember the elephant's.

    Glad you had such a nice time. The grandkids look adorable as always. :)

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I think you'd love the sanctuary. LOTS of animals there. Yes, I vaguely remember the story about an elephant and a dog... and about some other unlikely animal pals, too. Those stories always get to me.

      Thanks.

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  16. What a cool place to visit! I'm going to have to check that out with my kids next time we're in Georgia. We have an animal sanctuary here, too, and it is really different than a zoo, isn't it? You get closer to the animals, for one thing, and you get odd combinations like lion, tiger, and bear all in one enclosure. My kids could stick their fingers through the fence and "pet" one especially friendly coyote, and they could feed the deer.

    Very cute grandkids, as always. That's a lot of kids close in age to keep tabs on! Makes me tired just thinking about it. :)

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    1. I hope you're able to check it out the next time you're in town... I think you'd really enjoy it. Yes, sanctuaries are a lot different from zoos. Not that I don't enjoy zoos, but there a whole different feel to sanctuaries. If you want a more up-close meeting with animals, you might like the Yellow River Game Ranch, too. No matter how many times we've been there, the kids (and we old farts) enjoy feeding the deer.

      Having four younguns that close in age is pretty demanding, but they get along with each other really well. Biggest downside I can see is when they're all in college at the same time. OY!

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  17. Kids do bring out our hidden talents, ones we didn't even know we had sometimes, lol.

    When I was reading about the animals at Noah's Ark I immediately thought they must have been raised together as cubs. That's a cool feature. :)

    Glad you had a good time with the baby grands (kids, not pianos). :)

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    1. Yep. Playing with kids reminds us how much fun it is to play.

      Thanks. They're truly grand. (Not that I'm biased.)

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  18. A message of hope and peace indeed :) what a wonderful story. Did you know that lions and tigers sometimes breed in captivity? Like with each other. And it's called a "liger". It's true. The Cincinnati Zoo has two of them.

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    1. I'm glad you liked the story. I've heard of ligers, but have never seen one. Neat.

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  19. Wonderful post.
    Noah's Ark and of course the cutie patootie grandkids !

    cheers parsnip

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    1. Thanks. I'm glad you liked it. I'm also glad I'm not the only one who still says "patootie"!

      Cheers!

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  20. Your grandchildren are beautiful!!

    This cartoon is on today's subject:
    https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?shva=1#trash/140bdf3fa3343d98

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    1. Could you please send me your email address if you're interested in being a "ducky"? I'll explain!

      fishducky@budandfran.com

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    2. Thanks! I dunno what it means, but I believe being a ducky would be just... ducky!

      Thank you, too, Janie.

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  21. I believe I recently saw some YouTube footage of the lion, tiger, and bear. It made me tear up then and now.

    So glad you had a fun weekend with the grands!

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    1. Oh, cool! I never thought to look on YouTube, but it makes sense that there's some videos of them on there. I'll have to check 'em out.

      Thanks! It was a lot of fun.

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  22. That is really something to see them all together like that! (The critters, not the grands--lol!) What a wonderful place to visit. :)

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    1. Yeah, it's definitely neat to see those critters together. (The grands, too!)

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  23. The little ones look like fun. I want to play, too. The post is wonderful. If I read it before, I don't remember it.

    Love,
    Janie

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    1. So play! If you don't have any kiddies around, you always have the dogs. (Fetch!)

      Thanks. I'm glad you liked it.

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    2. The Z-Boys won't fetch. They do obey when I say, Take a nap.

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  24. That was definitely worth a re-run :)

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  25. I'm glad you mentioned lion, tiger and bear grew up together. I was afraid they were the only ones left in a once more populated corral. Great photos and shared adventure!

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  26. ...they were confiscated from drug dealers... I knew there was a reason I stayed away from drug dealers! Glad the animals were rescued.

    Your grandchildren are very cute, and that swing...seriously awesome!

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    1. Yeah, I'm glad the animals were rescued, too, and it's so cool that they're still together.

      Thanks. They have quite the playground in their back yard.

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  27. That is so cool! Those three buddies set a great example for all of us. I love the sign hanging on the fence telling people to take that lesson home with them.

    Your grandkids are so cute! Glad you had a 'roaring' good time together!

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    1. I'm glad you think the unusual buddies are cool, too.

      Thanks!

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  28. If you ever come to columbia, South Carolina you need to stop and visit Riverbanks Zoo. As I have whined about countless times I do not like living in the Midlands of South Carolina and often describe the area as having the charm of a second rate strip mall but Riverbanks is the exception. It is easily one of the best zoos in the country.

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    1. Sounds good! Thanks for the tip. I'd like to go to Charleston someday to see the Hunley museum, so maybe we could make a couple days of it and swing inland to see the zoo, too. I used to think the National Zoo in D.C. was the best, but Atlanta's has really come a long way since we moved here in '71. It used to be downright depressing, but now there's a lot of natural habitat type areas. And pandas... even two new babies!

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  29. Hi Susan .. yup pushing'dem swings is push me pull you hard work .. but four of them .. now that is some feat .. Mrs Gran!!


    Delighted you're having such a fun time .. and Noah's Ark is just brilliant .. the three cubs together after 12 years .. wonderful to see .. cheers Hilary

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    1. Pushing dem swings wasn't nearly as taxing as toting their little butts around and acting as their personal jungle gyms. (But I loved every minute of it!)

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  30. Then I forgot - LOVE the L A U G H header banner or wot ever tis called!!!!! Beautiful to look at .. H

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    1. Thanks! I took that picture at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens when we went there to see the mosaiculture exhibit. (Awesome!)

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  31. What an amazing experience Susan, I wish I could have see this too:)

    I hadn't read this post but I only started reading your blog a few months ago... always entertaining :)

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    1. It was an amazing experience, and when the weather gets a little cooler, I want to go back, and see them again!

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  32. That lion, tiger, and bear are almost (but not quite) as cute as your grandchildren. Looks like y'all shared a great day! :)

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    1. HA! Yeah, it's a toss-up. (But I'm quite grateful the four-legged cuties didn't climb all over me!)

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  33. I am a big fan of harmony, but I have to say that zoos make me sad.

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    1. SOME zoos make me sad, too. But sanctuaries provided care and healing for animals that would otherwise be put to sleep. UGH! What a euphemism. They'd be killed. And it's obvious that the people caring for the animals at Noah's Ark truly love them.

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  34. Loved this! Reminds me of a story I read recently where a wolf and a bear would meet at the same place every evening to hunt together. Yep, in the wild. I think we could learn a lot from our animal counterparts. (Hugs)Indigo

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    1. Indigo!!! So good to hear from you again, sweetie.

      Wow, for animals of different species to bond like that in the wild is absolutely amazing. Take care, kiddo.

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  35. Oh my goodness, that horse picture cracked me up.

    What a great reminder that we can all get along, no matter our instincts or backgrounds. Heck, if animals can do it...

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    1. I'm glad. Always good to start with a chuckle.

      Yep, birds do it; bees do it; even little... wait! That's not what you mean, is it? Seriously, seeing different animal species get along makes me wonder why humans find it so difficult to follow suit.

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  36. I've seen this zoo on TV before and heard the story of the three friends-- you're so lucky to be able to go visit it!

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    1. Cool! I didn't realize the amigos had been on any shows shown outside of Georgia. Yeah, I really do feel privileged to have seen them in person. (And I'll feel privileged the NEXT time we go, too!)

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  37. I bet the bear is ruling that cage!

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  38. Emus!! (I have a small obsession with them :) Love the 3 amigos--that's really cool. And kind of makes ya wonder what the drug dealer was thinking when they got the three cubs! Oh my!

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    1. Emus really are cool, aren't they? The seem to have a personality. (emu-ality?)

      I doubt if the drug dealer was thinking at all. He just wanted to be "cool".

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  39. how wonderful that the 3 have been allowed to stay together. :)

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  40. I thought that was neat, too. It would have probably been easier to separate them.

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  41. Love all the photos. So awesome! Thanks for sharing!

    Nas

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  42. That horse reminded me of Mr. Ed - do you know who he was?

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    1. Of course! I still remember all the words to the show's theme song, too.

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