Hi Everyone,
What a whirlwind of a month!! I'm sure most of you have heard about the Minot flood. Mouse River Flood Fight 2011 is what they are calling it. Most important things to note are 1) I am safe, 2) my apartment is not in an evacuation zone, 3) the animals are safe, and 4) I still have a job.
Things started a month ago. We had been hearing about a possible flood, but was usual, no one was really taking it serious. Well Memorial Day was chaotic with us getting 5 inches of rain that day. The Ground hornbill shelter in their exhibit was flooding. The kookaburras were soaked. They all got pulled inside in the pouring rain so they didn't get sick. The golf carts were even stalling out in the water, there was so much. I didn't think anything of it.
The next day we all got called in for a mandatory meeting... or so I thought. I got there, and I learned we had to evacuate the zoo. Now this evacuation was to evacuate the animals to either a place they could be "safe" on zoo grounds or to a warehouse north of town (which has been dubbed the "North Zoo"). At this point, the river isn't supposed to crest any higher than the infamous '69 flood. So 90% of our animals are removed from the zoo completely. The animals to stay were the primates since they could climb high enough in their outside exhibits, reptiles, lamb, dik diks, and outreach animals (which would be moved the next day to NZ). Over the day and night, the giraffes, bears, cats, bison and bongos are shipped off to other zoos. It took a total of 20 hours to get everything moved. I was there for 18 hours. I didn't leave until 5:45am the next morning,it was a long long day. The reason we shipped them is because it was impossible to keep giraffes in the warehouse and gravely unsafe to keep cats (we have lions, tigers, snow/amur leopards) and bears (3 of them) in pens meant for cattle from the fair grounds. Our original plan was to evacuate to the fair grounds until we learned they were to go under too.
So for three weeks half of the crew worked up at NZ and half at the Main Zoo (MZ). Things were looking up. The river seemed to go down, and we were hoping to go back to the zoo soon. Then Monday happened. The park director told us that we had to get out... NOW. so the last 10% of the animals were evacuated to the NZ along with everything they could grab from pictures to toys to rakes that were left behind to mop buckets etc. Every announcement on the radio seemed to estimate the river higher and higher. Remember how the river wasn't supposed to surpass the '69 flood levels? Now it was predicted to go 5 feet higher than '69 and 7 feet higher than 1881. Keep in mind the city has totally gone into hysteria at this point. People are buying out the water bottles.... National Guard, who has been here since the beginning, is getting at least 400 more soldiers to help and are directing all major intersections.... The evacuation zones are now mandatory evacuations.... People have until 10 pm on thursday to get out. Well that soon changed to 6pm... So then comes wednesday- people are hauling butt to get out. All the time knowing that if the sirens go off it means that the water has breached the dikes. 1pm Wednesday, they went off. People really couldn't believe it.
Thursday comes when Mitch (co-worker) and I brought the penguins to Como Zoo. They were getting too stressed, it needed to happen. They had a good ride and were happy to see a big pool when they got there. They will be on exhibit after their quarantine period. You should go and see those gorgeous faces! :)There are 13 of them!
While we were gone, the National Guard closed down part of Broadway, our main road to go North-South. Now people have to drive on the bypass, which takes 2 hours on average to drive. This on a normal base takes maybe 10 min. As of Saturday, our water is contaminated they thinkr so all water is to be boiled before using. NOW as of today, Monday, water lines have broken in town. So now we are under an emergency water conservation order. The joke amungst the zoo is we are waiting for the volcano and earthquake. ha. ha.
THANK YOU EVERYONE for all of your texts and calls to make sure I am ok!! Many of you offered me a place to stay, which I would have taken up on if I didn't have to be here for the animals.
But all in all... the animals are ok as am I. The water is still one block away from my apartment downtown. The water is receeding as of today. So fingers crossed it goes away asap!
The zoo is pretty much closed indefinately. After the water goes away, then there is clean-up. So far my job is safe. It's just sad and stressful.
You're all welcome to call! During evacuation of the zoo, I didn't have time really to talk and explain, but I do now!
Love you all,
Nessa
Monday, June 27, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
P.S.
So.... I forgot to mention one more thing. Dean got a job here in Minot! He is liking it so far. We are living together and experiencing the whole where-to-put-all-this-stuff thing. haha
p.s.s. I realize I had said that not much happened since I had blogged... HAHA that wasn't totally true I guess! It just feels like it lol
Have a great day!
p.s.s. I realize I had said that not much happened since I had blogged... HAHA that wasn't totally true I guess! It just feels like it lol
Have a great day!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Why Hello There!
Hola mis amigos,
Where to begin? Not too much has happened since I last blogged. The zoo is still going well. The summer has fully arrived and all of the birds outside besides Zeus, the toucan. Maia, the other toucan, was picking on him, and his body temp was down a bit. He's doing much better now :) The kookaburras weren't going to go outside until we cleared the third section of black and white ruffed lemur exhibit for them. The lemurs have two sections to themselves and connected by a tunnel above the walkway. The kooks have a super awesome laugh that I think everyone should hear. There was a kookaburra in Omaha in the Desert Dome that was always laughing while I cleaned in there everyday. Loved it! The kooks are in the area of the zoo with the bears are there and the primates along with the BIG cats. Most of the sounds of the zoo come from this area of the zoo. The penguins are doing great! Last week, I got to go to a middle school with Squirt, the penguin in the picture in my last blog post. It was very fun! Squirt kept walking towards me, looking like "Dude, these people are staring at me!" lol I can honestly say that was my first presentation I've done smelling like flamingos! Ok so I should say smelling like flamingo poo mixed with the smell of their food. It smells like bad chef boyardee! Yuck! I hold my breath when I have to go in and get their dishes haha
Today I saw that besides having 2 families of canada geese and their gosling that we have a mama Mallard and 12 chicks!! It made me smile and made the day a little better. We found one day about two weeks ago that we had 2 baby crested geckos! So we have lots of babies in our area. It's just a day brightener to see them all :)Jeri, a tortoise of ours, laid eyes the other day. It was very interesting to see her dig her hole before laying her eggs. It seriously took her all morning and most of the afternoon to dig her hole. Without an incubator, the eggs won't hatch since they take 200 days to incubate. That would be winter here-sad.
Besides all the birds being outside, which is awesome, I can fully do giraffes and helped bring the wolves in one evening. That was a scary ordeal! There were two of us keepers trying to bring them in and having a wolf look at you in the eyes is a little creepy. We got them in ok though. OH! And the other day, I got to help walk a reindeer named Rosie! That was very cool. I had no idea that they shed so much. It was her first time out with the public, letting them pet her. She did wonderfully! Other than that, always gaining more responsibility. That's about all for the zoo.
Aliens is going very well. I have been making good tips. Most of all I've had two families talk to the managers to tell them how well I had done :) One family was the other night, on friday. Simple table too! It's always a great feeling to hear that. The mgr just told them to do the phone survey, and he messaged all of the other managers to tell them :) And I got a free butterfinger shake out of the deal haha The other family was right before Easter, the day before to be exact. Being as it was my first holiday here, I was a little sad to not be going home. They were so much fun to wait on! Well they told the mgr too the same thing and told me how it's great to see someone who loves their job. It was the end of the night after a long day. They gave me a $20 tip, and it meant the world. This isn't the most I've made from a table but with such sweet people, it was awesome. Even made me tear up a bit!
Other than Work and WoRk, things are pretty well. I am SO excited to go home on the 11th and to go to Ashley Graham and Jon Ekerholm's wedding on the 12th! Hoping to see Clare in the cities too. Most of all, excited to see the fam!! Amelia drew me pictures and wrote me notes. I'm excited to get those in the mail. It's hard explaining to a 7 yr. old why their aunt isn't always around like she used to be. She's a trooper and boy is she excited when I do get to see her! Last time I was home (for a day and a half in April), I went and picked her up from school. She was so EXCITED! I was equally excited though too ;) That time at home was so much fun. We don't have to do much to have fun. I spent good time with my parents, my brother and his family. Vincent hadn't changed too much thank goodness! He will be walking soon though. I am excited for him but sad I won't be there to see him take his first steps. He's a cutie pie hehe :D My mom is crochetting a beautiful afghan for me. Today she even planted a cutting of my Great Great Grandmother's plant for me to have. How many people can say they have anything from their Great Great Grandma let alone something alive?? I think it's pretty darn awesome :D
Bella is still doing great. Not sure what I'd do without her. I got her this cat toy that has a bird filled with catnip and feathers on it that stands on a spring. On top of it all, the bird chirps. She loves it! haha you'll hear chirping every now and then while she's attacking it. haha I got two new fish, Shary III and Chuck (Dean named him haha). Today, Chuck caught on he had to tap the feeding pole. yay! Training will begin soon then!
Well guys, uffda! That's so much! haha
Until next time....
Nessa
Where to begin? Not too much has happened since I last blogged. The zoo is still going well. The summer has fully arrived and all of the birds outside besides Zeus, the toucan. Maia, the other toucan, was picking on him, and his body temp was down a bit. He's doing much better now :) The kookaburras weren't going to go outside until we cleared the third section of black and white ruffed lemur exhibit for them. The lemurs have two sections to themselves and connected by a tunnel above the walkway. The kooks have a super awesome laugh that I think everyone should hear. There was a kookaburra in Omaha in the Desert Dome that was always laughing while I cleaned in there everyday. Loved it! The kooks are in the area of the zoo with the bears are there and the primates along with the BIG cats. Most of the sounds of the zoo come from this area of the zoo. The penguins are doing great! Last week, I got to go to a middle school with Squirt, the penguin in the picture in my last blog post. It was very fun! Squirt kept walking towards me, looking like "Dude, these people are staring at me!" lol I can honestly say that was my first presentation I've done smelling like flamingos! Ok so I should say smelling like flamingo poo mixed with the smell of their food. It smells like bad chef boyardee! Yuck! I hold my breath when I have to go in and get their dishes haha
Today I saw that besides having 2 families of canada geese and their gosling that we have a mama Mallard and 12 chicks!! It made me smile and made the day a little better. We found one day about two weeks ago that we had 2 baby crested geckos! So we have lots of babies in our area. It's just a day brightener to see them all :)Jeri, a tortoise of ours, laid eyes the other day. It was very interesting to see her dig her hole before laying her eggs. It seriously took her all morning and most of the afternoon to dig her hole. Without an incubator, the eggs won't hatch since they take 200 days to incubate. That would be winter here-sad.
Besides all the birds being outside, which is awesome, I can fully do giraffes and helped bring the wolves in one evening. That was a scary ordeal! There were two of us keepers trying to bring them in and having a wolf look at you in the eyes is a little creepy. We got them in ok though. OH! And the other day, I got to help walk a reindeer named Rosie! That was very cool. I had no idea that they shed so much. It was her first time out with the public, letting them pet her. She did wonderfully! Other than that, always gaining more responsibility. That's about all for the zoo.
Aliens is going very well. I have been making good tips. Most of all I've had two families talk to the managers to tell them how well I had done :) One family was the other night, on friday. Simple table too! It's always a great feeling to hear that. The mgr just told them to do the phone survey, and he messaged all of the other managers to tell them :) And I got a free butterfinger shake out of the deal haha The other family was right before Easter, the day before to be exact. Being as it was my first holiday here, I was a little sad to not be going home. They were so much fun to wait on! Well they told the mgr too the same thing and told me how it's great to see someone who loves their job. It was the end of the night after a long day. They gave me a $20 tip, and it meant the world. This isn't the most I've made from a table but with such sweet people, it was awesome. Even made me tear up a bit!
Other than Work and WoRk, things are pretty well. I am SO excited to go home on the 11th and to go to Ashley Graham and Jon Ekerholm's wedding on the 12th! Hoping to see Clare in the cities too. Most of all, excited to see the fam!! Amelia drew me pictures and wrote me notes. I'm excited to get those in the mail. It's hard explaining to a 7 yr. old why their aunt isn't always around like she used to be. She's a trooper and boy is she excited when I do get to see her! Last time I was home (for a day and a half in April), I went and picked her up from school. She was so EXCITED! I was equally excited though too ;) That time at home was so much fun. We don't have to do much to have fun. I spent good time with my parents, my brother and his family. Vincent hadn't changed too much thank goodness! He will be walking soon though. I am excited for him but sad I won't be there to see him take his first steps. He's a cutie pie hehe :D My mom is crochetting a beautiful afghan for me. Today she even planted a cutting of my Great Great Grandmother's plant for me to have. How many people can say they have anything from their Great Great Grandma let alone something alive?? I think it's pretty darn awesome :D
Bella is still doing great. Not sure what I'd do without her. I got her this cat toy that has a bird filled with catnip and feathers on it that stands on a spring. On top of it all, the bird chirps. She loves it! haha you'll hear chirping every now and then while she's attacking it. haha I got two new fish, Shary III and Chuck (Dean named him haha). Today, Chuck caught on he had to tap the feeding pole. yay! Training will begin soon then!
Well guys, uffda! That's so much! haha
Until next time....
Nessa
Monday, April 18, 2011
Crazy, Boring Times
Well it's me again... I'm still here in Minot. Well as far as the zoo goes, I am fully trained in my "area" of the zoo. I am now equiped to care for the zoo's collections of reptiles and birds. On a daily basis, I am bit, struck at, and have a ground hornbill fly at my head, which I've learned to use a bucket as a shield and to cover my face. The joke at Space Aliens, which I work a few nights a week at, is to ask if I got bit by anything that day HAHA The best one I had was that I got bit in the palm by a toucan! I was trying to put Maia's toy in her bucket again lol She wasn't a fan of me in her pen ha. But being there isn't always painful, I have a lot of rewarding moments too. This is Squirt. His mate is Jeanne, and he is a handsome African black-footed penguin!
Being here is okay so far, but I do miss home very much so. Vinnie is going to be crawling very, very soon. Hearing about it isn't the same as seeing him do it. He is army crawling these days I hear. Only two weeks and I get to go home. Wish it was tomorrow.
Minot is definately not Fargo. I miss my friends more and more. I am thankful I have one friend here, but trying to make more. It's hard. At least, I am not too far from Fargo. Last weekend, I got to go to Fargo for Ashley's bachelorette party. It was so much fun! I had to miss the actualy party since they had a brunch for her. So instead, I took Ashley, her sister and Kristi to the Bowler and the Gastro Pub. It was a blast! good times :)
Well that's really all I have for today. Call Anytime.
Being here is okay so far, but I do miss home very much so. Vinnie is going to be crawling very, very soon. Hearing about it isn't the same as seeing him do it. He is army crawling these days I hear. Only two weeks and I get to go home. Wish it was tomorrow.
Minot is definately not Fargo. I miss my friends more and more. I am thankful I have one friend here, but trying to make more. It's hard. At least, I am not too far from Fargo. Last weekend, I got to go to Fargo for Ashley's bachelorette party. It was so much fun! I had to miss the actualy party since they had a brunch for her. So instead, I took Ashley, her sister and Kristi to the Bowler and the Gastro Pub. It was a blast! good times :)
Well that's really all I have for today. Call Anytime.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Los Penguinos y Muchos Parajos!
Hola!
So I made it to Minot and got all settled in. After 12 hours in the car, we made it at about 5:30pm on Thursday, the fourth of March I believe it was. It was a very, very long day. The apartment was... well.. interesting. But after a lot of hard work and creativity, my parents and I made it cute! I have all of my paintings by animals hung up and let's just say you can tell I work at a zoo lol by all of the animal pictures! It's not the largest place, but it's cute. So you all need to come visit! I'd love for some visitors. I have an air mattress ;) Other than that, Friday I filled out paperwork and actually worked half a day that Saturday to get orientated. Now it's been about a month I've been here and hard to believe. My boss left for over a week when I had only a week and a half of "training." I was a little nervous about that time. I was new to the job and now my boss/mentor were leaving. All that worry for nothing, things went beautifully. I was on my own all day during my 7day trek and am 3x quicker at my daily tasks. It is nice to finally have KEYS and respect! As an intern, you never get keys; so this is my next step towards a whistle (marine mammals)! Here at the Roosevelt Park Zoo, I am what they call a Seasonal, which in the Zoo World translates into a zookeeper that works 32 hours a week. Although, another zookeeper came up with calling us "assistants" since we do all of the work of a full-time staffer, but we work one less day a week. Those 32 hours will become into affect once I am done being "trained." I guess that will be within a couple of weeks or so. That will be good and bad. I could always use the money but a 3 day weekend would be nice too. The people here are very kind. I am always learning something and can't wait to train in all the areas of the zoo. I take care of 14 penguins, 6 flamingos, 6 cattle egrets, 2 ducks, 2 West African Crowned Cranes, 2 Trumpeter Hornbills, 1 Pelican (Nigel), 2 kookaburras, 2 toucans, 2 Ground Hornbills, and 3 Amazon Parrots. Those are just the birds and soon I'll be working with the reptiles. I began training with them today. But I suppose better head off to bed. I hope to blog soon again though! I'm sure you're all anxious to hear what a normal day is like ha. ha.
Well as usual, I miss all of you dearly. It's hard being here by myself, but I'm doing my best to make everyone proud.
Well like I said time for bed. tty all soon!
So I made it to Minot and got all settled in. After 12 hours in the car, we made it at about 5:30pm on Thursday, the fourth of March I believe it was. It was a very, very long day. The apartment was... well.. interesting. But after a lot of hard work and creativity, my parents and I made it cute! I have all of my paintings by animals hung up and let's just say you can tell I work at a zoo lol by all of the animal pictures! It's not the largest place, but it's cute. So you all need to come visit! I'd love for some visitors. I have an air mattress ;) Other than that, Friday I filled out paperwork and actually worked half a day that Saturday to get orientated. Now it's been about a month I've been here and hard to believe. My boss left for over a week when I had only a week and a half of "training." I was a little nervous about that time. I was new to the job and now my boss/mentor were leaving. All that worry for nothing, things went beautifully. I was on my own all day during my 7day trek and am 3x quicker at my daily tasks. It is nice to finally have KEYS and respect! As an intern, you never get keys; so this is my next step towards a whistle (marine mammals)! Here at the Roosevelt Park Zoo, I am what they call a Seasonal, which in the Zoo World translates into a zookeeper that works 32 hours a week. Although, another zookeeper came up with calling us "assistants" since we do all of the work of a full-time staffer, but we work one less day a week. Those 32 hours will become into affect once I am done being "trained." I guess that will be within a couple of weeks or so. That will be good and bad. I could always use the money but a 3 day weekend would be nice too. The people here are very kind. I am always learning something and can't wait to train in all the areas of the zoo. I take care of 14 penguins, 6 flamingos, 6 cattle egrets, 2 ducks, 2 West African Crowned Cranes, 2 Trumpeter Hornbills, 1 Pelican (Nigel), 2 kookaburras, 2 toucans, 2 Ground Hornbills, and 3 Amazon Parrots. Those are just the birds and soon I'll be working with the reptiles. I began training with them today. But I suppose better head off to bed. I hope to blog soon again though! I'm sure you're all anxious to hear what a normal day is like ha. ha.
Well as usual, I miss all of you dearly. It's hard being here by myself, but I'm doing my best to make everyone proud.
Well like I said time for bed. tty all soon!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Ready or Not, Here I Go....
It's two days before I leave to move to Minot, ND. Almost everything is loaded up and ready to go. Tomorrow we load up the little bit left and get Sharky and Bella ready to move. The apartment is cleaned and newly painted today. Let's hope it's a cute apartment! In case I hadn't typed about it yet, finding an apartment in Minot is ridiculously hard since the oil boom hit. This apartment is the right amount every month with utilies included, and I get to have pets. Friday, I have to stop into the zoo already. Nerves are very high. It is a relief to know people in Minot. But I am nervous to start at the zoo. Once I meet the people it will be A-ok :) Just have to have faith in my knowledge. Wish me luck! I'll update when I'm there!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Why Not Minot??
GUESS WHAT?!
I HAVE A JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!
Things have done a 180 once again. In other posts, I've mentioned how things seem to do 180's very quickly in my life, and this isn't any different. My last post I told how I was the newest worker at the daycare until I got hired or until May. Well I got up to Fargo the day before I started again and moved a car load of things into my new residence. The first day I started back at the day care went well. There was a lot to learn, but I was sure I could handle it. When I got off work that first day, I had a voicemail from Roosevelt Park Zoo in Minot, North Dakota, asking me to call them back. They mentioned how they were excited to hear back from me even! So early before my 2nd day of work, I called them back and was offered the position! I had originally applied for the hoofstock keeper position, but they called me about a seasonal bird/reptile keeper position! This is a better suit for me than hoofstock. Seasonal just means in this instance that that is the first position cut if the budget is cut. After "conquering" the birds/reptile area, I'll be a "relief" keeper, helping out in all areas of the zoo. So needless to say, my temp position was very temporary. There wasn't a need to train me in anymore at the daycare since I couldn't stay there more than 2 weeks. So, I stayed a week with Dean to spend time with him and friends. Now I'm home spending time with my family before getting ready to move to Minot. I am still looking for an apartment though. I didn't think finding a place to live would be that difficult, but I didn't know about the oil boom happening in western North Dakota. There's less than .5% vacancy in the whole city. It hasn't really set in that I will be by myself in a new city, where I know exactly 1 person. But this is the right move for me. The best part is that this is PAID and a JOB. I had been applying for nearly a year, gaining experience the whole time. The Audubon sea otter internship was offered to me when I applied for a different internship... look how great that one went!! I figure there's a reason that I was offered these positions. Can't go wrong with experience! I love to learn, and the people I had met were very nice in Minot. This will be good :)
So within days I have gone from visiting to moving to fargo to moving home to get ready to move to minot. LOL I counted and by the time I move to Minot, I will have moved 9 times in about a year.... crazy....
Well off to play with Vinnie, who is sitting in my lap
'Til next time..............
I HAVE A JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!
Things have done a 180 once again. In other posts, I've mentioned how things seem to do 180's very quickly in my life, and this isn't any different. My last post I told how I was the newest worker at the daycare until I got hired or until May. Well I got up to Fargo the day before I started again and moved a car load of things into my new residence. The first day I started back at the day care went well. There was a lot to learn, but I was sure I could handle it. When I got off work that first day, I had a voicemail from Roosevelt Park Zoo in Minot, North Dakota, asking me to call them back. They mentioned how they were excited to hear back from me even! So early before my 2nd day of work, I called them back and was offered the position! I had originally applied for the hoofstock keeper position, but they called me about a seasonal bird/reptile keeper position! This is a better suit for me than hoofstock. Seasonal just means in this instance that that is the first position cut if the budget is cut. After "conquering" the birds/reptile area, I'll be a "relief" keeper, helping out in all areas of the zoo. So needless to say, my temp position was very temporary. There wasn't a need to train me in anymore at the daycare since I couldn't stay there more than 2 weeks. So, I stayed a week with Dean to spend time with him and friends. Now I'm home spending time with my family before getting ready to move to Minot. I am still looking for an apartment though. I didn't think finding a place to live would be that difficult, but I didn't know about the oil boom happening in western North Dakota. There's less than .5% vacancy in the whole city. It hasn't really set in that I will be by myself in a new city, where I know exactly 1 person. But this is the right move for me. The best part is that this is PAID and a JOB. I had been applying for nearly a year, gaining experience the whole time. The Audubon sea otter internship was offered to me when I applied for a different internship... look how great that one went!! I figure there's a reason that I was offered these positions. Can't go wrong with experience! I love to learn, and the people I had met were very nice in Minot. This will be good :)
So within days I have gone from visiting to moving to fargo to moving home to get ready to move to minot. LOL I counted and by the time I move to Minot, I will have moved 9 times in about a year.... crazy....
Well off to play with Vinnie, who is sitting in my lap
'Til next time..............
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