Baby Gorillas, New Years, and Moving Blogs

It's a new year and things are bound to change. Over the past few months, I've been working towards migrating this blog to my new professional website, amandacorlies.com. I've been wondering what I should post as my last official blog here at this sight. It felt like I needed something worthy, since I've been posting for over five years.

When a friend sent me a lovely video from the NC Zoo about their gorilla program, the births of their two youngsters last year, the loss of their silverback, Nick, and the outreach conservation programs they are a part of in Africa, I realized I'd found my final blog. (Thanks Friend!) It was good to see some old friends and meet some new ones smiling out of the camera at me, both human and otherwise.

So, here you have it folks. My final blog  here at the Keeper of the Zoo site. For those wonderful and faithful readers who have been following me here, don't fret, the blogging will continue over at Amanda Corlies, and links to this archive will remain very much alive. So, come on over to my new location, after you've watched the video, of course. Happy 2014! May the changes in your lives make them richer and fill you with joy!

Patches the Polar Bear

Thought you might like to see the photos of Patches, the NC Zoo's new polar bear exploring her new home. She arrived at the zoo on Wednesday evening. No word yet on when the exhibit will reopen to the public. They will allow Patches some time to settle in first. So here are some photos to tide you over. And don't forget to stop by The Ravens Crossing today for some YA fiction fun with Wildwood Tides, my latest story. There are lions and tigers and bears in the story, even. Well, no bears yet, but they will make an appearance. I bet you people are not surprised. Have a fantastic day. You can find the beginning of this season at by clicking here.

Welcome to North Carolina, Patches!!

'Tis the Season. Butterflies are here!

Today, I finally felt like spring was here. Yes, I know the Vernal Equinox has already passed, but it was snowing here the other day. You heard me. Snowing in Virginia in April. It's been a little trippy weird. Anyway, today I broke out the shorts and enjoyed some fun in the sun. Now that the day is done, I find myself looking through my photography from the past two years. I thought I'd share a few. I'm partial to winged insects, it seems. All of the photos appearing on this page are my own. Feel free to use the images in any way you see fit, as long as you attribute Amanda Corlies as the artist.
Happy spring, peeps!

Don't forget to check out the online young adult adventure over at The Ravens Crossing . It's a ton of fun!

The Ravens Crossing Turns One!

Over the next two weeks, The Ravens Crossing is celebrating turning one with a giveaway to thank all of our fantastic readers. You are the best. Head on over to www.theravenscrossing.org to enter and thanks for reading and for helping us spread the word about TRC! 

This past year has been a wild ride. When I look back, I'm shocked to see how much can be accomplished when friends come together to create something they truly believe in.  Exactly one year ago, TRC was born a small idea that grew into an amazing adventure. There are not enough words to thank my fellow writers and college alums Andi Lea, and West Thornhill, for making me a part of this project. We have managed to create a whole science fiction/fantasy world, present it in an innovative format, and provide affordable reading about diverse characters to young adults and people of all ages. All of the volunteers on this project have spent untold hours planning and writing our adventures and helping build and run a website to publish our serialized stores six days a week. The project is now in it's third season, and there are plenty more adventure planned. The future looks bright. For those who have just found us, you can purchase the previous seasons from the website in ebook format on Amazon and Smashwords.

Some Thanksgiving Tips from my Furry Friends

Today, I braved the hoards at several airports across the country to travel to my father's house for Thanksgiving. This year promises to be filled with good food, family, and lots of laughter. By way of a brief Happy Thanksgiving wish, my furry friends would like to offer up a few choice holiday tips for everyone.

Baby the giraffe says, "Savor every moment."

Emeril Junglefowl recommends more veggies this year.

Arnie the water buffalo says, "Make time for friends!"

Cinco says, "Keep Tums handy, just in case."

Mercy was fond of the post-turkey nap.

Nita and Teela were always partial to family hugs.

Above all, tell the ones you love how special they are!

Happy Thanksgiving. Have a safe and happy holiday.

All photos by Amanda C. Sandos except the junglefowl photo appears courtesy of John Ireland.

More on Juma, the Baby Giraffe

Photo Appears Courtesy of the NC Zoo

I know, I've already been oohing and aahing over this adorable baby, but I couldn't resist posting this fantastic picture a friend at the NC Zoo sent me. Plus, they have announced officially that the baby is a girl. She has been named Juma, which means "Born on Friday," in Swahili. I can't wait to go meet Juma in person. Jamili is taking great care of her daughter, too. Since she is just four years old herself, I am very proud of this young mother.

Also, this week is our season 1 finale at The Ravens Crossing, so while I'm repeating myself, don't forget to drop by every day this week to read our Big Bang Finish. Sharon and Alex will post tomorrow morning at 8. This week's stories are some of the best things I've written to date. Morgan and Holly posted Tuesday. Here's the link to them. I'm really so proud of this entire project. All of the stories by the other authors, Andi Lea and West Thornhill are fantastic. Don't miss out! You can start with the week 1 stories here and read them all by following the weeks on the story tab at the top of the page. It's a young adult sci-fi adventure. And  what do you suppose is the best part? It's all free! So go! Read! Enjoy!

A Bit of Spring in Your Step

Yes, today is the one day equal to its night. I love it when that happens. In honor of spring, I give you the birds and - well not bees. How about just a whole lot of animal loving on a fabulous spring evening. And speaking of love, you can read a sweet love story I wrote, called Morgan & Holly, over at The Ravens Crossing. Find out what the birds have to tell my ladies. I would love to hear your feedback. Feel free to leave us your comments, and please, if you know anyone who enjoys young adult, sci-fi, fantasy fiction, consider passing our website along. There are free stories posted 6 days a week.

 www.theravenscrossing.org.

In the meantime, here is some love of the animal kind to add a little spring in your step. 

Hope your make time to enjoy the great outdoors!

Stephen Kingfisher: Another Lover of Horror

Courtesy of the NC Zoo

A couple of days ago, a friend and former coworker sent me this lovely grey-headed kingfisher image. The bird in the photo also happens to be a good friend of mine. Meet Stephen Kingfisher. He lives at the North Carolina Zoo's Forest Aviary where I worked for ten years. He was one of my favorite birds, the king hunter of the exhibit.

Stephen was not adverse to killing. Then again, what kingfisher in his right mind is? He was constantly helping us with pest control. He was also really good at keeping the place clear of all small reptiles and amphibians who found their way into the aviary through the dirt floors or stowed away hidden on the tropical plants. Apart from the clever play on words, he got his name from the apparent relish with which he made his kills.

It wasn't uncommon to find him perched proudly somewhere showing off his latest victim. Often it was a dead anole with its legs and tail hanging limply out of his mouth. Stephen Kingfisher would then proceed to whack and pulverize it for an unusually long time before finally gulping it down. It seemed obvious that he liked having an audience for this, and the more they reacted the more he relished it. Yes, a bird lover of horror that does his namesake proud. It's really good to see him again.

I think a visit to the NC Zoo might be just the thing. It's about time I said hello to all of my friends there, furry, feathered and otherwise.


Oh, and speaking of birds, over at The Ravens Crossing, we are participating in the Leap into Indie Blog Hop hosted by Paranormal Wasteland and Can't Put it Down to promote indie authors of young adult (YA) fiction. So, head on over to TRC. Leave a comment  and you are entered to win a $15 Amazon gift certificate. If you click the button to your right, you will find a list of twenty blog links who are participating in the giveaway. You can enter to win at all twenty places if you want. The blog hop runs through this coming Sunday, March 5th, 2012. We will announce our winner at TRC on Monday. Drop by to say hello and find some cool, YA indie stories. Happy March!

Ravens Are the Coolest!

So what is the difference between a raven and a crow? Since there are so many similarities, people often confuse these two amazing birds. Both are members of the Corvid family. Both are extremely intelligent, large, black birds. Both have a long and varied history among humans, making frequent appearances in myths and legends, and as totems and mascots. Over at The Ravens Crossing, Team TRC chose The Raven as our mascot. Make the jump to find out why. Personally, I was excited that we chose ravens over crows.

I think ravens are one of the coolest birds. They differ from crows in a number of ways. There are three easy ways to spot the difference. First, they are at least twice the size of the common crow. Second, their calls are distinctly different from a crow's. They make a variety of cool sounds where the crows commonly just make a more obnoxious and repetitive "caw" call. Third, ravens are also usually seen singly or in pairs, where crows can often be found hanging with a group, which incidentally is called a murder. Maybe this is thanks to all that obnoxious calling they do?

Anyway, both birds are personable and curious, often interacting with humans. In fact, Ravens are notorious for it. Check out this video of some young men learning to speak raven. It cracks me up!

Head on over to TRC to learn all kinds of cool facts about ravens! Find out how to enter for the chance to win a free Kindle.

The Ravens Crossing: A Free Interactive Online Fantasy

www.theravenscrossing.org

This is something entirely new, something you have not experienced before! Yes, if you click the link above you will find yourself in a brand new world of a young adult, internet-based interactive fantasy, one that sprang from the minds of three authors during morning coffee meetings. It's been a thrill to work on this with my fellow authors and college alums Andi Lea and West Thornhill. (You can find my author blog at Amanda Corlies.) We brought on board two other alumnae from our small women's college, Jess as our Managing Editor extraordinaire, and Poet Rae as our supremely talented Website Designer. From there, it grew to a whole team of advisors of all ages, and voila, a project of amazing scope, energy, and creative originality is born. This is something entirely new. Additional features will be added to the website as our story unfolds. So head on over to www.theravenscrossing.org. This week, we will be giving you a tour of our new world. Next week, the stories begin. Last, but most certainly not least, many thanks go out to all the fantastic people who continue to work on this project. It's a pleasure to be working with you all!