Since Sunday, I’ve spent more time in the city of Atlanta than any other time I can remember.  And it mostly involved studying animals.  And when I say animals, I mean warthogs, and whale sharks, and one subhuman animal that intentionally stepped in front of the MARTA bus on which we were riding.  And spat on the windshield.  No wonder GR is scared to go into the city.  But into the big city he ventured.  But only for a few hours.

On Sunday, we spent the morning at Zoo Atlanta with several of GR’s family members.  His neice and nephew from North Carolina were in town, so we all went on a bit of a field trip.  It’s been years since I’ve been to the zoo; eleven years to be exact.  The last time that I was there, I chaparoned Gus and two other 1st-graders on a school field trip.  But it seems that the only thing that I can remember about that trip is being mortified by the actions of one of the little deviants. 

You see, we were in line so that the boys could have their pictures taken with some sort of wooden cut-out of a tiger.  When it was our turn and I was about to take the picture, one of the boys yelled out, “Mrs. Lulu!  Look!  I’m drinking milk from the tiger’s boobie!”  In that instance, my fight-or-flight response kicked in, so I ran.  Mortified.  And laughing.  But first, I took the picture, because I’m just immature that way.

Anyhow, from what I can remember, the zoo has improved somewhat since circa 1996.  And as cute and interesting as they are, I must say that the new meerkat exhibit is hardly worth mentioning or an actual trip to see.  The space in which the meerkats are contained is about as large as my work cubicle. 

In a nutshell, the highlights of this trip involved:

1.  Being attacked by a bird in The Living Treehouse while I was trying to take a picture.  I’m requesting that the name of the treehouse to be changed to something more appropriate, because you might walk in there living, but who knows how you’ll come out.  Very deceiving, that name.  See the attack bird…

2.  The giant, sleeping panda, Lun Lun, and her baby, Mei Lan.  Who slept for the entire five minutes that we were allowed to look at them.  Cute though, aren’t they?

3.  The train ride with GR’s 2-year-old great-nephew, Xander.  Truly the cutest boy to ever live (besides Gus).  He so did not want to get off the train…  

4.  Eating a Nathan’s hot dog (which I have no picture of because I had it crammed in my mouth before I made it to a booth to sit down).

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So after I left the zoo, I made the long drive to Villa Rica to enjoy a 16th birthday dinner for my sweet, pretty cousin, Toodles…

…and to pick up my equally sweet and pretty cousin, Chuckles (who seriously has some of the funniest stories ever about her home in Savannah), so that she could spend the next few days with me. 

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On Tuesday, Chuckles and I visited the Georgia Aquarium where we met Toodles, my aunt, and some of their family members from Michigan.  And the highlights of that trip involved…

1.  The hot dog, which was not a Nathan’s hot dog, but it worked in a pinch.  Again, no picture.  Again, crammed in mouth.

2.  Spending time with Toodles and Chuckles (ignore my hair…see #4)…

3.  Watching the Beluga whales…

4.  Sitting through a 4D movie in which it rains.  Literally.  When you have hair like mine, rain is never a good thing.  I was grouchy the rest of the day.  That is, until #5…

5.  Eating seafood paella and drinking mango margaritas at La Fonda afterwards!

So, that pretty much sums up my Fourth of July festivities.  Chuckles and her dog, Deputy, went home last night, and now I am sad and back to the old grind.  Thank goodness there’s only two days until the weekend!