Out in the Snow

We have been snow bound for several days now. I have gone for a walk each day, but Bow has not wanted to go out.

At first there was not much snow on the ground, but it was nice to take a walk down the path in the snow flurries.

On the second day, there was much more snow on the ground, though by afternoon when I took my walk, it was not snowing any longer.

On the third day, I saw deer bounding over the path. On the fourth day, it was so cold out that I cut my walk very short, and we concentrated on grooming.

 And today, on the fifth day, Bow asked to go outside. I did not know whether to take the request seriously. Sometimes when he is bored, but it is too cold out, he will drag me all the way to the outer door, but never actually go out. But this afternoon he jumped out without hesitation. Naturally, his feet never touched the snow. He landed on the bench.

Bow shook his head at the cold, but did not ask to go back in. Instead, he lay on the rim of the bench's backrest and sunbathed for a good long time, before asking to go back inside.

Snow on the Ground

This morning we woke up to snow on the ground. It was not much snow, but it is the first snow of the season.

In the back yard, the liquidambar pods were topped with snow, like tiny Christmas ornaments.

The bench in the outer pen was frosted with snow.

I tried to entice Bow to go out into the pen to experience the snow, but even when I told him that Leo was out there, he stubbornly refused to go out.

He preferred to stay snug and warm indoors.

RELATED

http://theodosiaandthepirates.blogspot.com/2017/12/audible-vacuum-count-is-out.html

The First Snow of 2017

The first snow of 2017 fell yesterday and blanketed our world in a thin white cover. It wasn't really all that much snow, but it was white and fresh and different.

Bow looking out at the snow in the outer pen

We had had flowers blooming as late as December, so the fresh fallen snow was not unwelcome.

No, this climate is not entirely hospitable to chimpanzees in their natural condition, but neither is it to humans. That's why if someone is homeless. he would do well to move further south.

Bow is not homeless. He has a home and a family, and in the cold of winter he stays indoors and is warm and snug and cared for.

We spent a lot of time grooming each other yesterday. Somebody in the comments to one of my videos said it was too bad Bow could not go outside. But I think there's a different way to look at it: it's lucky that Bow doesn't have to go outside, if he doesn't want to. It's good that he has the indoors option.

Bow does not lack for companionship. There is Lawrence who sits with him if I have to go out. And there is his friend who brings the bananas. Last week, Lawrence asked Bow what his friend's name is who brings him bananas and grapefruit and pickle ice, and Bow spelled out "G-I-R-L". He was quite insistent. Twice Lawrence asked him, and twice Bow spelled out  "G-I-R-L". But actually, her name is Charla.

Bow and Charla

No, things are not ideal in this state for chimpanzees, but it is probably one of the best states in the union in terms of legislation, because free chimpanzees from other states have been flocking here, as the laws have made it impossible for them to live anywhere else. And yet the long arm of the Federal government is closing in on us, and already many of Bow's contemporaries are in trouble with the law.

In case you are interested, this is what has been happening lately to chimpanzees in Missouri:

http://courthousenews.com/missouri-primate-foundation-tells-peta-to-back-off/

There are legal consequences to the decision by US Fish & Wildlife to label domesticated chimpanzees in the United States as endangered wildlife. One of the most convoluted is that owning them is now considered a "take" that prevents them from breeding, and PETA is trying to force breeders to send their chimpanzees to sanctuaries where they will never be allowed to breed, and all in the name of conservation.

Meanwhile, in our snowy, quiet world, all is still calm, and we still hope. Eternal Hope is the title of the instrumental music by Kevin Macleod that I chose for the video of our first snowy day of the year.

Yes, we still hope, And if you still hope along with us, please vote us up and speak up for us wherever you can. Let the world know that you understand what we are up against, and that you sympathize and care. Sometimes that's all it takes.

Snow on Wednesday

The forecast said "Snow on Wednesday", but I did not realize this would be waiting for me when I got up this morning!

Just outside the sliding glass door to my bedroom, a winter wonderland awaited.

And the snow at the front was almost as inviting.

I drove my daughter to a friend's house for a sleepover after school yesterday, so she is getting to spend her snow day off from school over there. It's just me and Bow and the dogs and the birds. Bow asked to go outside, but he soon thought better of it.

He was all cheerful and playful on his way down the corridor to the airlock, but he drew the line at crossing the threshold into the outer pen.

Once safely back indoors, Bow cheerfully engaged me in a few leisurely games of chase, which are a good way to stay warm while both exercising and socializing.

It's quite possible that all this snow will melt by evening, but just in case we are snowed in we are covered, as I went and bought groceries last night. I almost did not hear the cashier calling me to let me know another register was opening, so absorbed was I by the new issue of TIME I picked up while waiting in line -- with all the latest news about Alexander Hamilton.

They lured me in with the promise of an exposé on his "tragic fate." I was hoping for candid pictures of Burr.Instead Burr was smeared as a "secessionist", and Hamilton's vision for America was praised.  "America has grown into the country that Hamilton envisioned." 

 Here is my opinion of Hamilton's vision for America:

http://www.pubwages.com/55/who-should-pay-for-waging-war

Anyway, while at the grocery store, I stocked up on food as well as reading material. We will not starve due to the snow.

For dessert for lunch today, we had this cake I baked last night using my own homemade dough with cherry jam. My daughter hates anything with a cherry flavor, but somebody gave us this cherry jam a while back. And I decided to use the jam while she is at the sleepover with a friend to make a cold weather treat for Bow and me.

A lot of people conflate creative efforts and personal labor -- whether in the kitchen or in other endeavors -- with wealth creation.

I would like to think that I created "wealth" by using the flour and the butter and milk and shortening and baking powder and the jam and baking them all together to make something new. It certainly would have cost more if I had bought a cake or pie ready-made at the store.

Bow and I  did enjoy having it for dessert!

But when all is said and done, I'm afraid that baking something and then eating it ourselves is just plain consumption and not wealth creation at all.  Only if I had managed to sell the cake to somebody else would it count as wealth creation. But that in itself is a small mercy, as it also means this particular transaction between me and Bow will never get taxed! We can eat our cake and not give a single crumb of it to the government.

Related Posts

http://theodosiaandthepirates.blogspot.com/2016/02/wealth-creation-is-not-building-its.html

Bow Braves the Snow on Valentine's Day

Bow in the outer pen this afternoon

Today is Valentine's Day, and it snowed in the morning. But yesterday, the day after the fire, there was still smoke curling up from some of the stumps in the woods.

I walked though the forest and noticed a few smoldering embers.

I wondered whether any of it still might be a latent fire hazard. It smelled nice, like a campfire.

But this morning there was a blanket of snow covering the burnt portions of the land. No more fire hazard. All is safe and cold and white.

Bow waited until the afternoon to brave the cold so he could lounge about on his bench for a few moments.

He was careful not to set foot on the snow covered floor, and even wiped off the rim of the bench before lying down. Then he gave me a happy backwards glance before settling down.

Snowed In

We have been snowed in for such a very long time! I can't seem to remember the last time that my daughter went to school. For me, this is not a bad thing, as I can still work on the computer all day long. But Bow is really tired of it.

At first, I was able to distract Bow on the days when going outside was not possible by finding things to do indoors, such as trying on one of his new socks.

But that sort of activity can keep him occupied for only so long, and soon he gets bored again. Outside, everything has been constantly covered in snow, and often too cold to venture out.

Periods of thawing were followed quickly by new snowfall.

The pasture was snowed over.

Sometimes we could hear birds chirping, and once I thought I saw a rabbit, but only found its tracks when I went to investigate.

Meanwhile, Bow became less and less patient with this continuing winter weather.

He often asked to go outside, only to decide at the last moment that he didn't want to go outside after all.  Displays that should have taken place outdoors ended up taking place indoors to the great annoyance of all concerned. Bow can be really loud!

And in general, he just has been complaining a lot. Not verbally. But when he is bored, he sits and rocks back and forth and makes raspberries, and I can't get anything done at all until I find some way to make him happy again.

"What do you want, Bow?" I ask him. And whatever he asks for, I give him. I expect answers such as "Give me my blanket" or "I want an apple." But what if he doesn't actually want anything that specific and concrete?

The other day, a couple of days ago, we had this "What do you want?" conversation multiple times without Bow ever being satisfied. He asked for the blanket. I gave him the blanket. Two seconds later he was rocking back and forth and making raspberry sounds again. "What do you want?"

He handed me the blanket and points for me to take it away. I took it away, and in no time at all he was rocking back and forth and complaining loudly with his raspberries. I came back in, and he told me he wanted the blanket, I brought the blanket back in, and again he was not happy. Finally I turned to him and asked really pointedly: "Bow, what do you want? I can give you anything, just tell me what it is. But you have to tell me..."

קשת אוהב את אמא he spells. "Bow loves mommy."

This was in answer to "What do you want?" So I figured I had better stay in the pen with him, in case he wanted to hug me. I sat down on the floor beside him. "You love me, huh?"

He reached for my hand, turned his back on me and then showed me where he wanted his back scratched. He didn't love me: he wanted me to love him! I spent a good long time scratching his back. And Bow was satisfied.

Reciprocity does not come naturally to me. But Bow is a good teacher of the "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" school of life. If only I had known this years ago! I always wondered what other people wanted when they wouldn't say. The answer is obvious now.

The other day someone on Facebook asked me whether I am an empath. He noticed I posted a lot of pictures of animals and plants and nature, and he thought I was empathetic. "Do you talk to animals?" he asked me.

"I live with a chimpanzee, and I talk to him. And he talks back," I answered. "But I am an not an empath."

"Can you tell when he is happy or sad?"

Oh, my. You don't need to be an empath to tell when Bow is happy or sad. Anyone can tell just because he is so good at communicating that non-verbally, but very loudly!

I am in fact quite possibly the closest thing to a non-empath that there is on earth. I need things spelled out for me that other people pick up on instinctively. For instance, most people know, but I have just recently learned, that when someone says "I love you," they don't mean that they love you. What they actually mean is: "Please love me!"

It took a very long acquaintance with a chimpanzee who can spell for me to learn this simple lesson.

Raising Your Voice

Despite the cold, Bow asks to go outside every day. He has a sweater and socks and clothes he could choose to wear, but he never does. He wants to go out as he is. And while he does not stay out for long, he does seem to accomplish a lot.

One of his favorite things to do is to express himself. First he looks around to see what he can see.

But then he does not wait very long to make his own contribution.

Bow's cries can be heard a long way away. Some people yodel. Bow just vocalizes. Then when he is done he can relax and enjoy the view.

And when Bow feels that he has accomplished all that can be accomplished, he takes that leap back inside, without ever touching the ground.

Does Bow go outside primarily to express himself? Is it because he can use his outdoor voice and it can carry well beyond the borders of our property? Is he sending a message to someone out there, or merely enjoying the sound of his own voice?

Many years ago, someone asked me whether I write in order to express myself or to communicate with others. At the time, I thought it an odd question. What would be the point of expressing myself, if I did not hope others would read and understand? What would be the point of communicating with others, if you were not allowed to express yourself in that communication?

But one of the things I have realized in the past thirteen years is that while communication and self-expression are related and often intertwined, they actually are separable. I am inclined to think that self-expression predates communication. I believe that reciprocity is overrated. Some messages go only one way. Sometimes you broadcast, but never receive. Like a baby's cry, which indicates a want, our most important ways of expressing ourselves go out, whether there is an appropriate audience or not. If the baby is lucky, his call will be heeded by a person who understands the want being expressed. Then self-expression will blossom into communication. But even so, every communication starts out as one-sided. In order to receive the self-expression of someone else, we have to stop speaking long enough to hear the other.

Bow always comes in from his outdoors sessions with a self-satisfied expression. He has said what he had to say. And whether or not his message was received, he feels much better.

Venturing Out

Yesterday was such a great day for Bow, that he did not even ask to go outside once, and he did not mind the snow at all. He had a party, guests and great food. There was no time to feel cooped up. Some of that carried over this morning, because there were still presents to open and play with.

There was the balloon that Laurie had given Bow.

There was his new berber carpet mat. It looked just like the carpet in the living room.

And then there was the brand new pair of socks I got him.

However, late in the afternoon, all this novelty began to wear off, and Bow asked to go outside. I said okay, but I did not really think he would go through with it, because there was still snow. Lots of snow.

Bow surprised me. Without once touching the ground, he went out.

He admired the view. He sampled the snow on the horizontal support.

He turned this way and that, but he never once set foot on the ground.

And when he decided it was time to come back inside, he did so with one quick bound, landing safely indoors.

A Taste for Snow

It snowed this morning, and school was canceled.

Bow spent most of the morning  after breakfast asleep, completely hidden by his blanket. But around 10:30 am he asked to go outside. I was skeptical. There was still snow on the bench.

However, Bow insisted that he did want to go outside, so I complied.

At first Bow just settled on the ledge, reluctant to step on the floor below, where there was snow.

But then he started to take an interest in the snow that had accumulated on top of the horizontal support bars.

The snow was starting to melt a little, and Bow decided to sample it.

After making some loud, slurpy, lip-smacking noises of satisfaction with the quality of the snow, Bow decided to go back inside, where it is warm.

Watching the Snow Melt

It snowed on Sunday. Not a very big snow, but enough to give the ground a bit of white cover.

In the outer pen, the bench was covered with snow.

The next day, there was still snow on the ground, but people went about their business. The school bus came by for my daughter. The sun came out from the clouds.

All this while, Bow did not ask to go outside. He was content in the warmth of the inner pen.

Today as I went for my walk in the pasture, I noticed that most of the snow had already melted.

There was more of it left in the shade and less in the sunlight. When I got back from my walk, Bow asked to go outside.

It was still pretty cold out, and Brownie complained, but Bow was undaunted. He laid himself down on the rim of the bench and surveyed the yard.

He stayed there a good twenty minutes before he asked to go back in.