The Eternal Dilemma
December 3, 2021 by J.B. -
Each morning, Negra is forced to choose between her two greatest loves: food and bed.
The arguments in favor of food are myriad. Let’s start with the obvious – we all need to eat to survive. So put a point on the board for breakfast. In fact, maybe this isn’t such a difficult decision after all.
On the other hand, bed is really soft and comfortable.
But food is so much more than just sustenance. Nothing tastes better than fresh fruit, peanuts, and a hard boiled egg from the caregivers’ rescued hens.
Bed is warm.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Skip breakfast and you’ll get off on the wrong foot.
But you’re already in bed! And you know, Newton’s first law and all…
A little sunshine along with breakfast doesn’t hurt either, does it?
Outside has snakes and the sun shines perfectly well through windows. That’s the whole point of windows.
The longest we go between meals is the time between dinner and the next day’s breakfast. By morning, our bodies need to refuel.
Bears go a whole winter without eating…
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I love how Neggie gets so cozy in her nest!
These photos and captions are the BEST! The captions are every bit as fabulous as the photos. :0) Nice work.
that last photo is priceless!!!
This is hilariously beautiful! (Beautifully hilarious?)
God you look so comfortable. What a cutie!!!!
I so relate to Negra’s existential dilemma. We’re clealy related. Thanks for the lovely photos.
There’s no such thing as too much Neggie!
I so relate to Negra’s existential dilemma. We are clearly related. Thanks for the lovely photos.
Decisions. Decisions. The Eternal Dilemma is hysterical J.B.! The funniest part is that I can actually see Neggie pondering all of this. The photos are so precious. Negra is precious. Her eyes. Her droopy lips (top and bottom photos case in point).
“Bears go a whole winter without eating”… This slayed me! Perfect ending to a delightful shot story.
i completely relate to Negra’s dilemma: eggs or blankets, a warm body or a full tummy? Oy!! What’s a girl to do?
I am so glad to see Negra again and to read about her. I had wondered where she had gone. It appears that, with the daylight getting shorter north of the 45th parallel, Her Majesty has a royal dilemna: to eat or to hibernate.
A few weeks ago when I visited the Chimpanzees at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, I was speaking with one of the volunteer staffers about CSNW. As she was introducing me (mitigating factor: there was a glass partition between the two species of primates) to the eldest of the troop there, she asked how old our oldest resident was. I stated what is thought to be Negra’s age. Then, spontaneously, I found myself exclaiming with joy, “I just adore her!”
Thank you for the text and visuals of today’s blog.
she’s 48. 1.5 years til birthday cake!
:birthday::birthday:
hmmm JB. I suspect this is a conversation between you and you each morning.
😉
Still, I ADORE today’s blog and especially it’s star. Soooo many precious photos all on one page! Thank you for evoking a huge heartswell in me.
And I love all those thick cozy blankets!
I absolutely LOVE this post! Not as much as I love Negra, but still. 🙂
Hi Negra. I truly appreciate your dilema. Maybe stash some food under your blankies. Works for me.:blush:
Yes!! That’s the perfect solution!
I agree with the addition that the food could be tucked inside the folds of each blankie for safe-keeping and for warming it up (and maybe there are stashes in there hidden away!) Neggie just slays me with her nests and the expression of contentment on her face with each one. While I love the colorful ones she chooses, my fave is the furry rug that she pulls up to her forhead. Thank you JB!!!
Whoops, I posted the same idea down below. I voila This gal doesn’t have a nine pound dictionary just for nothing.
Wow! that came out a mess. Where did the part go where I was explaining my spell checking of voila? I love words and that is why I have a dictionary you could use for weights. My nephew thinks it’s ridiculous I even have it. Kids these days!
This post was so sweet I was forced to repost it on my Facebook page <3
Breakfast in bed. Voila!
You mention snakes…..have you been able to work out a new system to prevent them getting in? We couldn’t live through another Burrito episode!!
We think so! And we’re working on plans for the expanded Young’s Hill/The Bray to make the gates and entryways snake-proof while still being usable on a daily basis.
Wonderful, endearing, close-ups of Negra! Thank you. They are priceless, It looks like she, always, puts down a cover on the, hard, surface, as well as cuddling up in her blanket.
I agree with the addition that the food could be tucked inside the folds of each blankie for safe-keeping and for warming it up (and maybe there are stashes in there hidden away!) Neggie just slays me with her nests and the expression of contentment on her face with each one. While I love the colorful ones she chooses, my fave is the furry rug that she pulls up to her forhead. Thank you JB!!!
Photos are so sweet, I just want to print and display all over my house! Yes! breakfest in bed or blankie with breakfest 🙂
Oh my gosh! The first pic of Neggie EXACTLY captures her dilemma all over her face! It’s as if she and JB had just had a long convo about this most difficult decision, sleeping in all snug like a bug in a rug, or giving up that oh so warm nest to make sure Bubba doesn’t eat all the morning grub! I didn’t believe anyone appreciated sleeping in as much as I do until I met Negra! Now all she has to do is some positive reinforcement training with the caregivers until they learn the finer details of serving breakfast in bed!!
I think this awesome photo montage should be called Essense of Neggie. Her personality is captured in each and every picture. Just makes me want to give her a big hug and snuggle up with her, all while enjoying a hot bowls of oatmeal!
i love her beyond words
Gosh, if you switched Negra’s pictures with mine, this whole blog would be the story of my life. Lucky for her, Negra gets to eat in bed, so she has the best of both worlds!
pssst
I actually have this pretty decorative box on my bed to store (hide) my goodies and necessities. cheez-its (when I need salt), fig newtons ( that I wadge not chew LOL), kleenex, walnuts (to offset the mini tootsie-rolls with something healthier)
:yum:
I’ve never been the type to eat in bed, Paulette. I could probably count on one hand the number of times I have done it. But you’re starting to give me ideas….:smile:
I like your sense of humor J.B., and your love for Negra shines through these beautiful photo’s and the captions underneath them.
I can so relate to the struggle of choosing between a snug and comfy bed and delicious food….
Negra made that into an art !
Loved the pitures and appropriate captions. How do you keep coming up with new ideas for posts after all these years. So you guys have “rescued chickens” there too. What a great bunch of animal lovers, rescued everything,cows, dogs, cats, chickens, chimps. Do you and Diana (and the other caretakers) ever have time for yourselves. Do you get to have a social life. Do you get to spend holidays and go away on vacations. Just wondering.
Hi Elaine – The chickens are actually at the home of caregiver Anna and her family. And yes, while scheduling vacation time has become more difficult without the help of our full volunteer roster, we do all get away from time to time. Whatever we lack in the social life department is usually not the fault of our work 🙂
Would love to hear about the new ideas for snake prevention. I know Bubba sure appreciates brainstorming ways to keep them on the other side of the fence!
Me, too, Kim!
Unbelievable that Bubba never stepped in before, but when he finally decides to, both times, it brought trouble. “Bad luck Bubba”.
Even though I imagine it’s the same or similar to before, I’d love to know!
Hi Kim and Linda – It’s not that exciting; just a way to integrate the snake-proofing into the vehicle access gates so that large, heavy vehicles can still enter. The steel frame of the door will overlap the steel frame of the gate frame and will be built of a gauge of steel that can withstand the tractor.
Thanks, JB!
A really excellent blog post, JB. Many thanks!