Semester 2: Blog#4

Ampersand:

I hope to create a polished piece of writing for this book. Hopefully, some sort of story about working with animals. Thats what Im going to aim for. I hope to be managing editor, project manager, and hopefully our book comes out professional and polished.

Photo Essay

I push the brown door to the side. The cold, crisp air greets my body in a bear hug. I walk in, stomping the mud off of my feet. A shiver escapes my body. It’s like a jolt of lightning. “Wow, it’s really cold today” I say. Ed looks up from the food he’s chopping and nods in agreement. “How are you today?” He asks. “I’m good, and freezing!” I wrap my arms around myself, trying to hold in the warmth that isn’t there. We have one goal for the day, feed the animals. Ed Hamilton, one of the keepers at the Embery Institute for Wildlife Conservation is currently chopping vegetables to go into the bowls for the animals. Who am I? I am Deanna Fox­­­­—Intern at the Institute, being trained to become a full time volunteer.

“So did I tell you two more weavers escaped? No one does their work around here. I’m the only one who checks the hole in the Aviary” “Damn. Do you think they’ll come back Ed?” He laughs. “Well, if people check the traps then maybe” He goes back to chopping. Grapes for the toucans, the parrots, some for the monkey. He cuts the fruits and the vegetables, tossing them into the appropriate food bowls. I go around hosing the cages, starting with the Scarlet Macaw, Cruiser, and finishing with the owls. I scrub the cages, shivering in the wind and finally finish. Ed finishes the last couple of leaves from the lettuce. He cleans up and looks over, “Hey, grab these bowls and go feed the birds, then Andele.

I walk over, seeing that Andele (sloth) is still snoozing in front of the heater. I squeeze through into his sleeping area, and poke him with papaya. “Here Andele” I coo, “Come get your food. Come on Andele, wake up.” He pokes his head out, and sniffs the food. He realizes that its good, and decides to wake up. He slowly clambers out and greets me. I reach over with the papaya, and he opens his mouth in return. Chomping down on the papaya, he is pleased. I give him some lettuce, and some more papaya. I scratch him, and I hear Ed call me, “Hey, are you ready to feed the baby condor?” I leave Andele at his food bowl and walk back to the feed room, a smile on my face—of course I’m ready.

After preparing the liver, rats and meat, we head off down to the condors cage. “Hey birdie!” Ed calls, the condor flaps its wings, the 12-foot wingspan acting as a big fan. She (the condor) greets Ed, and he pets her little head. “Time to hand feed. He instructs me to hold the liver out, and I do just that. The condor hops over and swallows it whole, gulping it down as if she hadn’t eaten before. Surprisingly, I let the condor lick the blood from my hand. I grab a rat by the tail. “Here condor! Come get this rat.” The condor hops over and attacks the guts. Intestines go flying blood squirts, and soon the rat has no insides. Ed and I make eye contact. One word floats between us, dishes.

Walking over to the sink, I add bleach and soap to the water. I soak the dishes. Commence Scrubbing. Bowl one, two, three, and four go by in a minute, the small ones. Scrubbing and cleaning, I get through them all. Finishing up, I wash my hands and goes into the feed room. “Well Ed, we finished before dark.” He laughs. “See you tomorrow” He says. I nod. “9:30 sharp like always.” I shut the door behind me. As I walk to my car, a grin draws across my face, good day. I drive off into the sunset, another day at the ranch under my belt.

Semester 2: Blog#2

A couple miles down State Route 67 in the East county of San Diego, I turn right onto Willow Road. This road can lead to a jewel. My car bounces down the muddy road, soaked from rain. River through river I splash, the trees hang over my car, as I turn where it says 'Deliveries'. Driving down, there are some little houses, fences and rings to run horses. A stable stands before the other cars. Shift gears. Emergency Brake, and my car sits by the others already there. Get out. Breathe in. The air is fresh. No smog, no pollution–just air. I continue on this journey. Walking up past the barn, a donkey comes over to greet me. Pet the donkey. Steal a kiss. His name is Eeyore. Continue on. I walk through the maze of different rooms, and get to the trailer. The door is open. It looks like she got up a little early for me. Her dog runs out. Jessie. I pet the dog, and smile. Looking to the left, sitting on a huge box, is a cheetah. A site to puzzle a person. First a donkey, then a dog, and then a cheetah. I enter the trailer. At the computer there she sits. Leaning forward towards the computer, glasses on, typing with one finger. She's hard at work. She turns, and there we are, face to face. Joan Embery. This tall, crazy blonde character stands up in greeting. Her booming voice startles at first, but her warm smile changes that quickly. She says, "Want to see the Ranch?". My eyes open wide, a slight gasp escapes my throat. "Lets go check it out!". She gets up and walks past. "Jess!" She calls. Not much use since her dog is right by her side already. She walks to the golf cart, pushes a box off the seat. She summons me to hop in. Then her dog, squeezes on and gracefully sits, with her bottom on the bench of the cart. I laugh. Seeing a dog sit so human like is odd. Joan backs out with ease, and shoots off through the stables. I look all around at the horses, the mules, the zebra! Too much. I hold on for dear life, we bounce and speed around the Ranch, as she points out where everything is. This ride is over too soon. We return to the trailer, and I wipe my shoes on the leopard print rug. I sit down in the worn leather chair. Looking at her, she sits as well. She looks at me, "Well, how about that interview?"

Second Semester! Blog#1

Videos:

What makes a good final product is not only an amazing interview, that has an underlying story, but a brief bio about the interviwee so the readers get to know about them.