Wednesday in Numbers: The Zoo Edition

Wow, what a day!

Just an FYI for anyone that may have an objection: this post contains photos of animals in captivity as we spent the day at the zoo. No lectures about how terrible zoos are, just either enjoy or ignore the pictures!

188: Campers in attendance today

17: Campers between the ages of 4.5 and 7 in my group today

5: Wonderfully amazing “junior counselors” that kept me and my group sane today

2: Wonderfully amazing older campers that opted to hang with my group today

96: Degrees Fahrenheit the temperature hit today

106: Heat index in degrees Fahrenheit

1: Baby zebra seen

87.2: Pounds this baby zebra weighed at birth

11: Songs the older campers made up, beginning with the zebra, about each animal we saw

4: Kangaroos seen jumping happily in the heat

8: Campers that thought the Spanish word for kangaroo (kangarú) was HILARIOUS

4: Cafe tables occupied by my camp group at the zoo cafe to eat lunch

7: Obnoxious sea gulls that thought their lunches and the campers’ lunches were one and the same

3: Big cats seen inside the “Big Cat House”

1: Panthers seen sitting inside a cardboard box, just like my cats at home do

2: Lions seen outside in their habitat area

1: Male lions seen roaring and batting at his mate

2: Giraffes with purple tongues we saw galavanting

1: Incredibly funny polar bear that seemed to be mocking us with his “ha ha I’m in the cold water and you’re outside sweating” attitute

3: Confused-looking meerkats seen as they were all called “Timon” by throngs of campers

23: Different animals ridden on the Zoo Carousel as a way to cool off

12: Glasses of water generously given to us by a nice girl at the ice cream stand

2: Monkeys seen playing with what looked like a paper grocery bag

1: Monkey seen that seemed to think the paper grocery bag was, indeed, his morning paper

20: Popsicles purchased after campers were extremely well-behaved all day

20: Hilarious bright green faces that ensued from said popsicles

44: Minutes spent on the oh-so-hot bus to return to camp

2: Much-needed bottles of water (64 oz nalgenes!) drunk between boarding the bus and leaving for dinner

1: Emilys I met up with for dinner after camp. (Former coworker and Bradley University friend)

1: Pints of Woodchuck Pear Cider consumed (Please excuse lousy phone photos to follow)

1: Small Caesar salad consumed with Parmesan crispies

1: Gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato bisque consumed by Emily

1: Bowls of jambalaya with brown rice, crawfish, sausage, and amazing sauce I consumed

5: Inappropriate jokes made about the intertwined shrimp atop the rice

3: “Teaser” rainstorms I drove through on the way home

1: Scoops of low fat no sugar added ice cream I stopped for on the way home

4: Couch cushions I’m currently occupying while writing this post

1: Beds calling my name

Tagged as: camp, Chicago, Chicago dining, dinner out, food, friends, rice, spicy