RIP April the Giraffe

 On this Easter Sunday, and  first Sunday off from the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, I must share some sad news from our area of New York State.

April the Giraffe, who captivated millions around the world in early 2017 as she prepared to give birth, lived about 20 minutes from me near Harpursville, New York.  On Friday morning, she passed away at the age of 20.  Her death made headlines in our area.

In 2017 and 2019, I blogged about April.  Here are two of the posts (with some edits):

In early 2017, Animal Adventure Park near Harpursville, New York owned a pregnant giraffe by the name of April.  Wanting to keep their fans updated as to the progress of her pregnancy, they installed a web cam in her stall.

Internet lightning struck.  April, as they like to say, went viral, and hundreds of thousands of people watched April give birth in - of course - April, of 2017.

I feed April at Animal Adventure, July 2017

It was a bit of a rocky road, this event that took everyone by surprise.  There are many people who oppose the concept of zoos.  But millions of others took April, Oliver, and the eventual baby - Tajiri - into their hearts.

April and Tajiri, July 2017

The owner of Animal Adventure, Jordan Patch, was not an overnight success.  He started out with a dream and a camel by the name of Maxx.  (Maxx passed away in the summer of 2017).

When the Internet chose April to go viral, Jordan Patch saw an opportunity to help save the world's giraffes.  Giraffes are vulnerable to extinction.  Several species (yes, there is more than one giraffe species) have already gone extinct.  He used the publicity to raise money and awareness.

He has also raised awareness of the world of special needs (as my regular readers know, I have an autistic brother in law) through his young daughter, Ava.and their charity, Ava's Little Heroes.

I was fortunate enough to be able to see April twice - in July of 2017 and, again, in the summer of 2020. 

April had another baby giraffe in April of 2018. Azizi, sadly, predeceased April last year.  (I must note here that Azizi was not living at Animal Adventure by then.)

In a perfect world, no animal should have to live in captivity and have their births live streamed on You Tube.  The animals at Animal Adventure, yes, should be roaming wild in a world where they never have to worry about climate change, or poachers or encroachment of humans on their territories.  But that is not our world.

I hope that one day, it can be. 

A Dream and a Giraffe

Two years ago, Animal Adventure Park near Harpursville, New York had a pregnant giraffe by the name of April.  Wanting to keep their fans updated as to the progress of her pregnancy, they installed a web cam in her stall.

Internet lightning struck.  April, as they like to say, went viral, and hundreds of thousands of people watched April give birth in - of course - April, of 2017.

It was a bit of a rocky road, this event that took everyone by surprise.  There are many people who oppose the concept of zoos.  But millions of others took April, Oliver, and the eventual baby - Tajiri - into their hearts.

Putting things in perspective - yes, April is that big

 I, so fortunate because I live only about 20 minutes away from Harpursville, was one of them. 

I even visited April, Oliver and Tajiri later that year.  But then, other things took precedence in my life.  April became a distant memory.

Life went on at Animal Adventure Park, though, and, with about 304,000 other people yesterday, April gave birth to a baby boy yesterday.  The labor was uneventful and mother and little baby giraffe boy bonded quickly.

So why should this matter?

Because the owner of Animal Adventure, Jordan Patch, was not an overnight success.  He started out with a dream and a camel by the name of Maxx.  This isn't Maxx, by the way - he died (from old age) a couple of weeks before my spouse and I visited.

When the Internet chose April to go viral, Jordan Patch saw an opportunity to help save the world's giraffes.  Giraffes are vulnerable to extinction.  Several species (yes, there is more than one giraffe species) have already gone extinct.  He used the publicity to raise money and awareness.

He has also raised awareness of the world of special needs (as my regular readers know, I have an autistic brother in law) through his young daughter, Ava.and their charity, Ava's Little Heroes.

In a perfect world, no animal should have to live in captivity and have their births live streamed on You Tube.  The animals at Animal Adventure, yes, should be roaming wild in a world where they never have to worry about climate change, or poachers or encroachment of humans on their territories.  But that is not our world.

I hope that one day, it can be.

Local Saturday - A Pumpkin Day

The first day of fall in upstate New York.  If you looked at the thermometer, you may have thought it was August.

But, all around us, fall was showing itself.

Russell Farms tent, Vestal, New York

Gourds.

Russell Farms tent, Vestal, New York

More gourds.

rest of pictures: Stoughton Farms, Newark Valley, New York

Massive pumpkins.

Pumpkin checkers with mini-pumpkins.

Pumpkin and corn games. 

The corn maze, which I did not take advantage of, has a different picture theme each year.  This year's maze theme?  Local animal celebrities April the Giraffe and her son Tajiri.

Like it or not - fall is here.

More fall pictures in the coming weeks.

Local Saturday - Fixing the World with Ava's Little Heroes

Today, it is time for the little heroes of the world to shine-the children who fight for every breath, or who have to undergo constant doctors visits in faraway places or terrible treatments for dread conditions that affect every moment of their lives.

Childhood should not be a time of pain.

Parents of ailing children shouldn't have to spend their days fundraising.

April - who else?

A giraffe who went viral has come to the rescue.

Oliver, April's mate

Well, several giraffes.

Today was a day of celebrating Super Heroes - and, although I was not present physically at Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York (home of the Internet famed giraffe family of Oliver, April and Tajiri), I was there in spirit.

If the then-pregnant April hadn't gone viral in February, things may have been different.  But she did (among how many thousands or millions of animal web cams), and the owners of Animal Adventure Park seized on the opportunity.

The owners of Animal Adventure Park, Jordan and Colleen Patch, have a young daughter, Ava, who was born with a rare medical condition.  Even before birth, the medical bills and worry started.

Although they were able to pay the medical and transportation bills, they knew other families struggled, and, last August, they had their first Ava's Little Heroes event.  With the money raised, they were able to help one family.

Today, due to the power of viral, they were able to help five families.

In their "spare time",Jordan, Colleen and employees have been helping giraffes and animal conservation in general with more of the money raised through the webcam prior to, and right after, April giving birth.

AM (to the left of April) and April

So many of us wonder how we can do more to fix our world.  Jordan and Colleen don't wonder - they just do it.  They don't turn away from the challenge.

I think to myself:  can I do any less, in some little way?

Ten Top Things I've Learned About Blogging.

What do I wish I knew when I started to blog?

During a "cousins" reunion Saturday, a cousin reached out to me for help.  He's been writing pieces for local newspapers.  His daughter bought him a Wordpress site, thinking he might want to get into blogging. He put up one post but he doesn't know what to do now to get readership and to grow his blog.

I wish I knew what to suggest to him as far as WordPress (which I know nothing about), but I can tell him a little bit about blogging.  I have seven years of experience.  I'd like to share some of what I learned with you, my readers, so I can share my vast (ahem) wisdom with him.  In turn, if you have any suggestions for a true blogging newbie,  I'd love you to leave me a comment.

This is what my blood, sweat and (sometimes) tears have taught me:

1.  Blog a lot about giraffes!  No, only kidding.  Seriously: blog about things people are interested in, if you are interested in that thing.  As one example, there are a lot of people out there still interested in April the Giraffe, the once-pregnant giraffe whose last two months of her pregnancy were streamed on YouTube 24/7.

As it happened, April lives about 20 minutes from me.  And yes, in July, I went to see her.

April melting my heart

I got more likes on Facebook (OK,  it was in in a Facebook group of April fans, but still) from that post than any other post I've ever posted on Facebook.  Why? If you can arouse strong emotions in people, you will get reads. (That's the secret of cat videos, too.)

But, in all seriousness, people can see through a phony blog in no time.  And they can tell if you don't love what they are doing.  No one wants to read a blog that sounds like "do I reallllly have to do this?" Well, they don't realllly have to read it.   If you love something, work that into your blog posts.  If you couldn't care less about that topic, don't bother.  Blog about something you love.  I can't emphasize this enough.  That dislike/boredom/lack of passion will show right through your writing.

Be real. Be you.  It's not as easy as you think, but it is worth the effort.  And when you know your voice, stick with it.

(Also, link to other bloggers.  Share the blogging wealth.)

2.  I wish I knew there was such a thing as blogging challenges when I started.  If you want to grow your readership (and who doesn't want followers, for either personal or business reasons?), this is one of the fastest ways to increase your readership.  By reading the blogs of those in your challenge, you will quickly learn what works - and what doesn't.  A great challenge, the Ultimate Blog Challenge, will start up again in October.  Another challenge he might enjoy is the April Blogging from A to Z.
Or (not sure it will happen this year) NaBloPoMo in November.

While I'm at it - join a blogging support group. And publish your posts on social media - Facebook, G+, Twitter.  

3.  I wish I knew that consistent posting is key.  I highly recommend daily posting, at least for the first month or two of your blog.   Once you establish yourself, what becomes necessary is not daily posting, but, rather, consistent posting.  If you don't want to post daily - and many bloggers don't want to, or can't - then it helps your readers to know that you have a schedule. Then stick to it.

4.  I wish I knew there is no such thing as a perfect blog post.  Perfection is not necessary.  Passion IS necessary.  If you don't like what you write, your readers won't, either.

5.  But, you must know what your readers want.  A blog is not all about you.  It is about your readers. My readers seem to love pictures of snow (in the winter) and flowers (the rest of the year),

6. You must read your readers' comments.  You must!  Those comments are more valuable to a blogger than breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even good chocolate.  For example, two years ago I wrote a blog about autumn, which turned out to be a bit self centered.  A couple of my readers gently reminded me that much of the world does not experience quite the same fall as upstate New York (where I live).  My sin?  I had taken my readers for granted.

7.  Related to #6, I wish I knew how important it was to comment on, not just read, other blogs.  Yes, don't be shy.  Comment!  And if you do disagree, which is fine, please, please, please, be respectful. There is a person, a living, breathing human being with feelings, on the other end of that blog post you like or dislike.

8.  Pick a good name!  I like the name my cousin picked for his blog.  If he goes on Twitter or other social media, he should be consistent about the name.  The name of your blog is your "brand".  That s something I learned too late.

9.  Include photos (and please, only your own photos). NEVER get photos from a Google search.  NEVER STEAL PHOTOS.  NEVER NEVER NEVER.  There are legit sources for free photos but don't worry about it while you are learning the other stuff. If you take good videos, you may want to share that with readers, too.

10.  Finally: appreciate your readers.  Let them know often because your readers are what makes blogging worthwhile.  I don't do that enough.

If you had advice to new bloggers, what advice would you give?

A Flood and A Dream

Imagine this:

You own a successful bar.  But that is not your dream.

Your dream is to work with animals.  It has been your passion since you can remember.  But there is that matter of earning a living.

Then one day, there is a massive flood.  Your business is flooded, as is your home.

Now what?

Do you rebuild?  Or do you close your bar and follow your dream?

A man by the name of Jordan Patch decided to follow his dream.  He purchased land about 30 minutes from where I live in upstate New York.  He opened a private zoo called Animal Adventure Park.  He hoped that people would come.  They did, little by little.

Then one day, he trained a webcam on a pregnant giraffe named April and...the rest is history.

Dreams really can come true.  Just consider the story of Jordan Patch and the giraffe now beloved by literally millions.

As someone who was impacted by that same flood, in September of 2011, I am so inspired by the story of Jordan Patch.

I've written several posts about April the Giraffe, who had her baby on April 15, 2017.  But there is still one more piece to this story - the story about Jordan's little girl, Ava.

I will continue to follow the stories of April, Jordan and Ava.

Do you have a dream?  Don't wait for a flood.

Make it happen today.

Sustainable Saturday Spring at the Frog Pond

No, today's post is not about a pond that frogs live in, as much as I love the sound of spring peepers.

One of the things I enjoy about living in the Binghamton, New York area is that you aren't all that far (by car) from beautiful rural scenery and various farms.  Please come along with me on a little local adventure.

In late April, I traveled from Harpursville, New York (home of Animal Adventure Park, where a webcam trained on a pregnant giraffe named April went viral during the winter) about 15 miles to Bainbridge, New York.  There are two places near Bainbridge I will go to:  Pine Ridge Grocery, an Amish-style bulk grocery which is a wonderful adventure in grocery shopping, and Frog Pond Farms.

(If you are in the area next Saturday, Pine Ridge is having its annual Customer Appreciation Day, and you will have a good time there.)

Frog Pond can be extremely crowded (I don't recommend going there on weekends) but it can be a fun place for a family outing.  There are farm animals (if you are into that), lots of produce, and the best part - you can eat any fresh produce they sell, as long as you eat it on the premises.  So, if your child is hungry, you can head towards some fruit, and it is fine with the owners.

The greenhouse was full of early spring plants

So if you see some strawberries, for example, you can sample before you buy.  The day I was there, I did just that (and, I bought some delicious strawberries from North Carolina. Ours won't be ready for another month).

Local Maple Products

I will caution you - the produce is not always local, especially in the springtime, and you have to be careful about what you buy.  But there also some incredible bargains to be had.

There's one more attraction - the owner, who checks you out in an auctioneer-like sing song, totalling up your purchase entirely in his head.  I should have recorded him.

If you plan to visit this part of upstate New York to see April the Giraffe, this is only about a 15 or so minute drive from the Harpursville area.

Here are some more posts about Frog Pond:
The Mental Math auctioneer
The Chia Plant
Fall at Frog Pond

If you are planning to visit April the Giraffe and are interested in any other attractions around Binghamton, New York, please mention it in the comments and I'll see what I can do.

Will May Showers Bring April Followers?

It's Wednesday.  Normally I would have a Spring Things post.

I would post beautiful flowers now blooming where I live in upstate New York, such as these dogwood blooms.

Not today.

I am taking my normal Spring Things post and turning it into still another post about April the Giraffe.

Yes, that April, the giraffe who gave birth live on a webcam on April 15, as over a million people worldwide watched. 

Animal Adventure Park, where April, Oliver (her mate) and Taj (her baby) live, is about 30 minutes from where I live. It's located in a rural area near Harpursville, New York. And this week has not been a good week weatherwise for our part of upstate New York.  So this post is a little about local pride.

I want people to visit this area.  Heaven knows, we could use some influx of tourism dollars.  Face it, when you think of where to vacation, Harpursville is not on the top of anyone's bucket list.  Neither is where I work, Binghamton.

At this point, you are asking yourself one of three questions:
1. Has the author of this blog lost it?
2. Who cares?  Why would someone waste hours watching a giraffe pace back and forth?
3. I love April! What's going on?


A bad storm last Monday didn't make life easy, but life went on.  Thousands were without power, many trees were down.  Friday, another event.  Thousands without power (some the same people who were without power from Monday to Wednesday, or even longer).  There was some flooding. Animal Adventure is safe, but the torrential rains (more rain over the weekend) has not made it easy for them, as they struggle to open on time - May 13.

So, about that webcam everyone watched: The webcam is no longer on 24/7; it is on between 4pm and 8pm Eastern Daylight Time every Tuesday.

You can access an archive through April's website.

For me, and many others, watching April is like watching an aquarium or a fire burning.  So relaxing.  The cares of the world melt away.  Threats of nuclear war and other man made disasters are far away for a few moments.

But four hours a week (no, I don't watch it continuously) weren't enough for me.  Animal Adventure Park isn't open yet, so I knew I couldn't get in, but my spouse and I could still drive past it.  So we did, and here are my pictures taken April 29.

Here is the road (Martin Road, in Harpursville, New York) that leads to April's home.

First glimpse of the property.

The sign (sorry, I could have used a zoom but I was using my iPhone SE).

Closer....and you can vaguely see a lot of construction behind that fence.  This was made possible by the attention (and money) from the months that April was a viral celebrity.

Ah, if only I could have seen through that fence.

So no, I didn't see April.  In fact, I didn't see anyone.  I wonder if they were on their lunch break on that beautiful Friday afternoon.

I will leave you with one more picture of a dogwood taken yesterday.  This particular blog post doesn't begin to show the beauty of upstate New York.  So I have a question:

Are you an April fan?  Are you thinking about visiting Harpursville, New York to see April and her family?  If you are, do you want to find out more about the Binghamton area?  Let me know in the comments, and I'll be happy to blog more about what you might be interested in.

Noteworthy (Music Monday) #AtoZChallenge

As over a million people watched Saturday morning around 8:54 am Eastern time, April, our local giraffe at Animal Adventure Park, gave birth to a baby boy giraffe.

I was one of them.

My heart almost stopped when the baby giraffe came out of April, and lay there, seemingly not moving.

And then he started to move. A half hour later he was on his feet, wobbly at first, and still later, he was running around Mom's pen.

In around four days, the webcam will be turned off.  Animal Adventure Park (AAP) opens May 13, and they have many tasks to perform by then.

So ends, perhaps, the longest group therapy session in history.   April became a symbol for so many - an escape from the reality of North Korea threatening the lives of millions of people, terrorists striking all over, and of politics in our country perhaps not as usual.

For a few minutes each day, we could watch two giraffes living their lives.  We who have been pregnant could sympathize with the contractions, with April's increasing difficulty in getting down on the ground for a short rest. 

My spouse couldn't care less, but when I announced April was giving birth, he came over and we watched it on the computer together.

And now, I am overdosing on cute, watching that miniature giraffe interact with her Mom, and with one of her human caregivers.

Not quite miniature, though.  As of yesterday, she was five feet nine inches tall and 126 pounds. (I'll let my metric readers do the conversion math.)

I just can't resist.

Thank you, AAP, for taking us along on the ride.

I plan to visit AAP sometime this summer, and if I get there I will take my readers along on the trip.

April and unnamed baby, in your honor, I offer you this song.

Happy Monday! (Next Monday, Music Monday will resume).

"N" Day in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge - my theme, Traveling Through Time and Space.

Mothers Day (for Giraffes and Garden Bloggers Bloom Day) April 2017 #AtoZChallenge

A day to remember, as April the Giraffe is giving birth even as I publish this post!

On the 15th of each month, gardeners from all over the world gather at an Indiana blog, May Dream Gardens, to participate in a meme called Garden Bloggers Bloom Day.

Spring has come to my zone 5b garden near Binghamton, New York.

It has come with bloodroot.

It has come with my earliest daffodils.

Pansies smile in a basket I made up.

The vinca appeared yesterday.

My Lenten Rose is upright and blooming.

Indoors, my African Violet that has been blooming the last two Bloom Days is on its way out, but another one opened its first flower yesterday.

One of my two orchids in bloom.  This was a Valentine's Day gift.

And the other, which needs to be repotted so its blooms are sparse.  This was a Mothers Day 2015 gift.

April 9

Alas, the crocuses are gone, but I couldn't resist showing you a clump from earlier this week.

By tomorrow, my hyacinths should be in bloom.  You can never have too many flowers.

Remember to visit Carol at May Dream Gardens after you leave my blog, and check out flowers from all over the world.

And now - push, April, push!

Traveling through time and space on Garden Bloggers Bloom Day.

Giraffes and Gene Gene (The Dancing Machine) #atozchallenge

As I write this the evening of April 7, April the Giraffe, beloved by hundreds of thousands of people all over the world, still hasn't given birth to her calf.

Tomorrow, Animal Adventure Park, which is about 1/2 hour from here, is having an event at our local shopping mall (no April, obviously).  It's an Easter oriented event which was scheduled before the webcam broadcasting April and her mate Oliver went viral, and I'm wondering if I should even go.  I wonder how mobbed it will be.

For now, perhaps I'll just content myself with this giraffe purse I purchased today, made by a local woman.
Such a perfect memory, as I travel through time and space for "G" day in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge.  Besides our local Giraffe, here's another thing to Get you Going.

Do you remember the original Gong Show, a show of the 1970's?

If you don't, I have no idea how to explain it to you.  Its creator, Chuck Barris, died last month.  Chuck Barris, in his own way, was a genius creator of many game shows, featuring newlyweds, people dating, and...well, you get the picture.

The Gong Show was one of the very first reality shows.  It was supposedly a "talent" competition, but not too many of the contestants had talent.  Three celebrity judges would watch the contestant perform and, if the contestant was too terrible even for the standards of the show, the judge would strike a gong.

It was so bad, it was good.

So, where does Gene come in?

A man by the name of Gene Patton was a stagehand at NBC Studios at Burbank, California.  One day, Chuck Barris saw him dancing, if you could call his movements true dancing.  Gene wasn't a dancer, but Chuck Barris saw something in him.   He started bringing Gene, renamed "Gene Gene the Dancing Machine" out during really horrible acts, or "just because".  The appearances were made to appear spontaneous, but they were actually scripted.

Gene would shuffle to the tune of a Count Basie song, "Jumpin' at the Woodside".

Everyone loved it.

Gene (or Gene Gene) died in 2015, a month short of his 83rd birthday.   But I'll always remember him for the funniest "dancing" act of my young adulthood.  But, one more thing:

Ironically, he lost both legs in 2001 due to diabetes.

Again, you just can't make this stuff up. Tomorrow, A to Z takes its Sunday break, while I blog about (if it returns) spring.

Amazing April #atozchallenge

Please join me as I Travel Through Time and Space on the first day of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge to a playground in the Bronx, New York City, on a mild April day in 1959.

A group of girls are gathered in a circle.  One bounces a clean, pink Spauldeen ball and starts to chant, standing on her left leg as she swings her right leg back and forth over the bouncing ball:

"A my name is AM,  I come from Arizona, and I sell apples!".  AM passes the ball to the next girl, who bounces it against the sidewalk, chanting "B my name is...."

Many of us have childhood memories.  Some are happy, some are not.  But when we grow up sometimes travel to places we never would have dreamed of ending up in.  

The little girl from the Bronx never would have dreamed that every day now, we travel all over the world, carried by electrons and the interwebs, to even more amazing places.  Hence, my theme, Travel Through Time and Space.

Today, on the first day of the month, thanks to the Internet,  I blog about a giraffe called April.

Who ever thought a pregnant giraffe named April, living in an upstate New York animal park about 30 minutes from where I live near Binghamton, would become an Internet sensation?

After the owners of the park decided to train a webcam on her during the third week of February, hoping she would give birth any time, April the giraffe, as they like to say, went viral.

At any one given moment, upwards of 210,000 people from all over the world watched April and her caregivers.  Thousands participated in chats on their site on You Tube.

And now, all the signs of labor ready to begin are there.  What could be more fitting on the first day of April?  Here's a link to the live, official April channel on You Tube.

I couldn't believe I was spending an hour each night watching a giraffe's butt, along with those  thousands of other people.  I was learning about wax caps, udder filling, how giraffes give birth, and how endangered these majestic creatures are.

I learned to tell the chief zoologist, Allysa, and the other giraffe caregiver, Corey, apart, just by viewing their hands (as they fed April lettuce near the web cam).  I watched interviews with them, and with the owner of the Animal Adventure Park, Jordan Patch.  I learned about young Ava Patch.

What an incredible journey this has been for Jordan and his family, and for all of us who have bonded over a webcam.

Life takes us to many unexpected places, and that's no April Fools.  And that's how the Spauldeen bounces....

Are you part of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge?  If not, here's a quick rundown.  The title of this post starts with A.  On Monday (we have Sundays off, except for April 30) my blog post title with start with B, and so forth.  On April 30, a rare Sunday for A to Z, my post will begin with Z.

"A" on the Blogging from A to Z Challenge.  My theme: Traveling Through Time and Space.

Local Saturday - April and Ava

Hundreds of thousands of us are captivated by a giraffe (still pregnant as I blog this) living in Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York.

But I am just as captivated by (as a famous journalist once based a long series of broadcasts on) "the rest of the story."

April the Giraffe lives about 30 minutes from where I live.  This park is owned by a man by the name of Jordan Patch, who you will see in this video along with zoologist Allysa and keeper Corey, and a bunch of tortoises. (why tortoises? You'll have to watch the video).

Last year, Jordan Patch and his wife Colleen welcomed the birth of their first daughter, Ava.  But this birth was not your usual birth.  Seven weeks before Colleen's due date, Colleen showed signs of premature labor, and a sonogram was done.  Soon after, doctors gave the couple dire news.

Their unborn baby had an arachnoid cyst — between the surface of the brain and the cranial base or on the arachnoid membrane, one of the three membranes that cover the brain and the spinal cord.  The cyst was monitored by neurologists, but, two weeks before her due date, labor had to be induced due to the cyst's rapid growth.

After birth, and a number of health emergencies, a diagnosis emerged.

Ava has a condition called agenesis of the corpus callosum, further compounded by infantile spasms.  In layperson's terms, the two hemispheres of Ava's brain are not connected.  This condition probably stemmed from the existence of the cyst.

Doctors don't know Ava's prognosis.  The condition could result in nothing.  Or it could result in Ava being severely disabled.  She may never walk.  She may have severe physical or mental deficits.  The Patch family may not know the entire truth for several years.

The Patch family has not let that uncertainty stop them.  Already, they and Animal Adventure have held a fundraiser for another local family with a baby challenged by a serious condition called "Ava's Little Heroes".  They wanted to take the love their community showed them and "pay it forward".  There will be another fundraiser this summer.

Many watching April did not know about the behind the scenes drama of Ava Patch, the baby whose nursery is decorated in giraffe prints and who helps feed carrots to April and her mate, Oliver.


There will also be an online naming contest when the giraffe calf is born.  With each $1 contribution, you will get a vote, and the proceeds will go to some worthy causes, including an animal conservation foundation in Africa, maintaining the local giraffes at the park, and for "Ava's Little Heroes".

And mark your calendars for May 13, when Animal Adventure Park opens for its fifth season, and show your support of the Patch family, and animal conservation.

Sustainable Saturday - April, Allysa, Animal Support Animals and Snow

It's been an interesting week in the Southern Tier of upstate New York.

At Animal Adventure Park, in nearby Harpursville (about 30 minutes from where I live), a pregnant giraffe, April, continues to attract hundreds of thousands of daily views to her You Tube page.  Meanwhile, both the best and worst in human nature continues to appear in live chats and comments on the park's Facebook page.

I'm watching as I write this blog post, along with about 102,000 other people.  Just think, a reticulated giraffe could unite this country. But, after she gives birth, will anyone pay attention anymore? That remains to be seen.

Around 9pm Eastern Daylight Time each night, you can see one of the park employees coming in and interacting with the giraffes.  My personal favorite is a woman by the name of Allysa.  The interaction between Allysa and April is so heartwarming, as Allysa feeds April romaine lettuce and carrots, and will then give April a quick external exam, a belly rub, and belly kisses.  Upwards of 130,000 or more people will watch that tender moment.

So, why are so many people obsessed (and I do mean, for some, obsessed) with April? Forbes Magazine had an interesting take on the situation - April could be, for some, a virtual emotional support animal. Call it, if you will, virtual animal therapy to relieve stress and anxiety, something many of us are experiencing right now.  Read the article at the link to find out more about emotional support animals.

Meanwhile, Animal Adventure continues to dig out of the snow we all received in this area earlier in the week.  For my readers who live in areas that don't get much, if any, snow, here are some more pictures for you.

Broome County Courthouse (downtown Binghamton, New York) and the moon, March 16, shortly after sunrise.

A downtown Binghamton, New York street the afternoon of March 17.  Yes, after a day or so, snow doesn't look as pretty as it once did.

An area house.  Looks so peaceful, doesn't it?  Those lumps on either side of the small porch are buried bushes.

Happy Saturday, wherever you live.

Local Saturday - April and the Rumble Giraffes

Right now, as I blog this, some 70,000 people are avidly watching a webcam at an animal park about 30 minutes from where I live.

April the giraffe, a 15 year old giraffe awaiting the birth of her fourth calf, is quite pregnant, and has become a media sensation. Yesterday, new media, including the New York Times, visited our small area of the world.  Hundreds of thousands of people (I do not exaggerate) log on every day, hoping to catch a birth that may take all of 15 minutes.

Her mate, Oliver, waits in the neighboring stall. Male giraffes are aggressive - to their keepers, to their mates.  Bulls can't be kept together with their mates all the time - they can be a danger to the ones they live with.

We (especially women who have given birth) easily put ourselves in her place.  How uncomfortable is she?  What is she thinking?  She has such trouble getting down on the ground to sleep.  Sound familiar, women, that trouble sleeping?

If you tune in at 9pm Eastern Standard Time, you get to see her interact with her keeper, and it's a beautiful thing.  I've only remembered to do it once.  I've seen a woman come in, clean the stall, spread sawdust on the floor, give April a rub.

April gets treats here and there, too.

Right now, as it is only 17 degrees here (that's -8 for my Celsius readers), they are indoors.  And, the park is closed for the season.  It will reopen May 13.  And something tells me they will be mobbed with visitors.

But, as I've mentioned before, April is teaching us more about us than about her.

Just check out the park's Facebook page. 

Right now, besides a lot of general questions, and some snark here and there, there is a lot of discussion about how Oliver is being treated. Isn't he getting treats?  Isn't his cage being cleaned? (the answer is "yes" to both. But he doesn't need treats as often as April.  And, it's dangerous to enter his pen so cleaning is a process.)

Many people think April will give birth tonight, as she seems increasingly restless and her belly is rumbling a lot. (It's amusing - after having our minor league baseball team renamed the Rumble Ponies, maybe they will need to hurry up and rename them the Rumble Giraffes.)

Thank you, Animal Adventure Park, for all your interactions with your fans.  I am so happy to be able to bring this to you as a Local Saturday post.  We so need this distraction in our lives, knowing a new life is close to arriving in our area.  I realize not everyone supports keeping animals in capitivity,

Why don't you tune in at the You Tube link above, and join the fun?  We all hope for a successful labor and deliver - and it makes me think of my own labor story. (ha, if only it had been 15 minutes!)

What about you?