Nov 062008
 

Burning a hole in my wallet were some free zoo passes, given to me by my co-worker Lindsay at my last job. Henry came home from work early yesterday morning and we decided to take advantage of the seventy degree sun, even though it had only been a few months since I last spat ire at strangers at the zoo. And really. is it ever too soon to go on another hate-mongering rampage, am I right? I swear, every time I go to the zoo, the majority of the people there looked like they were born from a white wine-influenced one night stand between the LL Bean catalogue and Ann Taylor Loft outlet store. I bet their Cabela-bought backpacks are stcoked with Evian and organic cheese sandwiches. I bet their kids don’t swear.

Immediately, I disliked this one broad with two kids (one of which plays hockey; I know this because we parked next to her hockey league-decal’d $50,000 Mom Van). She hogged the view of a young playing tiger from the rest of us peasants while she took shot after shot with her obscenely gigantic lens through a finger-print streaked glass window, like she was some fucking safari journalist. Then just as she was about to leave, some douche in a STEELER jersey (nauseating) took her place with his equally ridiculous camera and I just stood, mouth agape, and said to Henry, “Seriously? This is the Pittsburgh Zoo, not the fucking Outback. They’re taking pictures through GLASS. Snot-smeared GLASS. Go take your John Holmes lens to the goddamn STEELER game where it belongs, Hometown Hero.”

All I wanted to do was see a fucking tiger gnaw on his rubber chew toy. OK?? 

Chooch seemed more aware of what he was spectating this time and spent less time trying to climb under fences and pick up rocks. He ooh’d and ahhh’d at the lions and tigers and at one point was so overwhelmed and amazed at what he was witnessing, that he let out a wonder-tinged “oh shit” in hushed tones.

Luckily, none of the LL Beaners were around.

In the Elepehant House, Henry attempted to play the role of Educator by saying things like, “Look at the big ears on those elephants, son! And wow, what big eyes!” which was only negated moments later when I laughed, “Holy shit, Chooch, look at their BIG POOP!” Of course, that’s what Chooch chose to repeat. “Big poop?! EW!” he screamed, wrinkling his nose. “BIG POOP, MOMMY, LOOK, BIG POOP!”

“OK, let’s move on,” Henry mumbled.

Chooch highly enjoyed the monkey house this time around. laying on his stomach at each exhibit to get a better view.

While it’s awesome that Chooch is shaping up to be so independent, it takes twice as long to walk when a two-and-a-half year old insists on pushing his own stroller. And god forbid you should tell him which way to go. We ended up side-by-side with a couple whose young daughter was trying to push her sister’s stroller, as well. Her mother pointed to Chooch and said, “See how he’s pushing the stroller all over the place and running into people? That’s what you’re doing too.” Fortunately for her, her daugher quickly dropped the reins when she saw how out-of-control she must have looked. Thanks for using my reckless son as your example, Fellow Mother. Asshole.

Chooch took this picture himself, when the camera was resting on the dirty, flu-dispensing table. His pink-painted nails are so shiny.

I have to eat every hour or else I’ll die. Unfortunately, the only food place there that served something without meat products was closed, so my only option was french fries in a Dixie Cup. Supposedly they had salads, but they must have been tossed with that new lettuce from Argentina.

You know, the invisible kind. Because I didn’t see it. So while Henry and Chooch chowed down on chicken tenders and a cheeseburger, I sulked at the sticky blue table and ranted loudly for all to hear about how absurd it is, in the year 2008, for a ZOO, a fucking piece of shit ZOO, to not have any herbivore-friendly sustenance. FRENCH FRIES ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH. I swear to God, the place that supposedly vends pizza has not been open once in the last six times I have gone to the zoo.

I AM WRITING A LETTER.

“I’ll buy you some Dip’n Dots,” Henry offered, trying to talk me down from the roof I was about to mount with my rifle. Fuck a Dip’n Dot, Mustache. I want LUNCH.

Henry gets nervous when I’m angry, and even more anxious when I’m hungry on top of that, so he ate without chewing and we quickly left for Denny’s, where I enjoyed a veggie burger and cottage cheese.

I might go back to the zoo in five years. MAYBE.

  7 Responses to “A Dumb Day at the Zoo w/ my Conservative Mate and Profane Son”

  1. I wish you would go to the zoo every week. Because it’s fun to read.

  2. God Chooch is so frickin CUTE. I love his scrunched up smiley face in the Madagascar picture… is that to get people interested in the zoo, by connecting it to a crappy cartoon?

  3. OMG so much chooch-related awesomeness
    also:
    -other people are assholes
    -I am relieved that chooch ingests everything you have to say; republicans can go eat a dick

    I LOVE zoos. I’m lucky enough to be near the metro toronto zoo which is just… such a fantastic place. And you know what I realized? THEY DON’T HAVE ANY VEGGIE OPTIONS EITHER

    except for fries

    wtf Zoos get your shit together. Toss some of those fruits and veg you’re giving to dumb chimps our way.

    Now that I think of it, it’s actually funny that the animals are eating pricey/imported fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat… where the rest of us pay for overpriced, greasy, should-never-be-eating-to-begin-with, “food”

    so who’s really higher up on the food chain, I ask you?

  4. i love both this entry and your photos.

    more!

  5. ““Holy shit, Chooch, look at their BIG POOP!” Of course, that’s what Chooch chose to repeat. “Big poop?! EW!” he screamed, wrinkling his nose. “BIG POOP, MOMMY, LOOK, BIG POOP!””

    *cracking the hell up*

    LL Beaners!! Oh, them and their wrinkle proof khakis!!!!

  6. I hereby proclaim you Queen of Awesomeness.

    Anyone who can make elephant shit and the Pittsburgh Zoo sound this entertaining, deserves a job on the Zoo Council. Perhaps this will garner you more leverage in your desire for more vegetative food.

    Nicholas´s last blog post..ACHOO!!!

  7. “Thanks for using my reckless son as your example, Fellow Mother. Asshole.”

    Ohmigod I laughed so hard at this. That was the funniest thing ever.

    Jessa´s last blog post..Hammer Head

Leave a Reply to buenomexicanaCancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.