Spring Returns

The snow only lasted half a day. By late afternoon it had melted. Bow woke up from his nap, refreshed and ready to explore.

There is nothing like napping to help clear the mind.

He even went outside for a little while, but it was still cold, so he came back in and napped some more.

When Bow is not napping and we are stuck indoors, sometimes he likes to watch videos on Youtube. If I am watching something on my side of the partition, and he thinks it is interesting, he draws my attention, takes my hand and spells: " תני לי לראות" -- "Let me see."

He was very interested in a video about the effects that meditation has on the brain. When a picture of the brain came on the screen, he leaned in closer to see.

He also likes music videos.

The Sound of Music is one of his favorites. When Bow listens to music, he does not do it passively. He gets involved.  Bow lets the music sweep him away. But when the music is done, Bow sits down and watches the people applauding.

When not watching videos, Bow likes to groom and be groomed.

Bow likes to groom my face

The weather changes did not really phase Bow, because he has other things to do when going outdoors is not an option. But I wondered what the snow had done to the flowers and the buds. When I ventured out yesterday to check on the flowers after the snowfall, there was no visible damage from the snow,

The daffodils by the lagoon were fine.

I went out into the woods to look at the volunteer daffodils growing there. They were thriving and swaying in the breeze.

By evening last night we had a beautiful sunset.

In the dimming light, I could hear a symphony of croaking frogs. Frogs! What were they doing during the snow, the day before?

Nature is full of mystery. Somehow things survive despite the ravages of the seasons. Maybe it's because nobody helps them, and nobody notices if they don't survive. They just have to find a way on their own.

When Bow is Dreaming

This morning, Bow and I went outside to play. We could see the sun streaming in through the woods behind our house.

It's nice to be outside on a pleasant clear morning.

Bow did the usual things. He vocalized and displayed.

Between displays, Bow would pat me on the back in a friendly manner, just to let me know that his acts of self-assertion were in no way intended to reflect on his deference or regard for me. He was just letting the world know how he felt. Then he would invite me to join him in a game of chase. This happened several times.

But when he was done, Bow signaled that he wanted to go back inside, asked for his blanket and settle down for a nap.

While he was napping, I noticed that every once in a while Bow's toes would wriggle. Can you spot the wriggling toes in this video?

I watched the toe wriggle event happening more than a couple of times, and I wondered what Bow was dreaming.

When you spend twelve hours a day with a chimpanzee, you get to know him really well. But there are some things that Bow may never tell me. Such as why he wriggles his toes when he's asleep.

Rain, Rain Go Away

Taken this morning 8-6-2013

For days now it's been raining every morning. It starts before dawn, and often it does not stop till the afternoon. Then it resumes again in the evening or at night. The effect has been very good for our fruit, so I am not really complaining, but for Bow it has been a trying time. A thunderstorm woke him in the night, and he was upset for a while. This morning, while it rains, Bow naps.

Outside the gentle drone of the rain's pitter-pat drowns out any other noise.

It has been raining so much that everything outside is getting greener and greener, like something in a tropical paradise. Even Bow's bench is turning a little green.

When he goes outside in the afternoon, during lulls in the rain, Bow is careful not to walk on the wet parts.

Taken yesterday afternoon -- 8-5-2013

He looks for safe place to put his foot down, on that is neither wet nor green.

Taken 8-3-2013

No matter what else is going on, Bow wants his feet to stay dry.

taken 8-3-2013

Puddles are starting to form everywhere. The ditches at the sides of the road on my property are full. A friend reported 2.5 inches of rain yesterday and another 2.5 this morning so far.She said the fish in her pond were hanging onto weeds to avoid being swept away.

A puddle on my property

Last year, we had a terrible drought that killed fruit trees and caused a shortage of hay for cattle and horses. Let's hope that this year's rain does not turn into a flood. It's good to have plenty of rain. But we don't want too much of a good thing.