More baby animals from ZooBorns

My Tiger on the Road came home from China after a splendid time, but now she is away again, in Switzerland with her dads, while Blas is at a conference. I wish I could be there with them! Since I can't, I'm watching videos of mother animals with their young. The tigers here are at the Zurich Zoo.


I am absolutely enamored of the site ZooBorns which brings news of new babies in zoos around the world. Inevitably, the joy of their arrival is tinged with the sadness that they should be in zoos because their species are threatened in their natural habitat. It takes a lot for one of these babies to survive:

The gestation period for Indian rhino pregnancies is approximately 16 months. When born, calves normally weigh in the range of 75-100 pounds and will nurse throughout their first two years. They are normally able to stand just hours after being born. 

"Mama You Sweet" some favorite mother songs

Loretta Lynn sings about her mother in "Van Lear Rose," with Jack White.

1979, Dolly Parton's "Coat of Many Colors" is a song my daughter and I used to sing along to, but as covered by Maria Muldaur and her daughter Jenni.

I can't find a video of "Mama You Sweet" by Lucinda Williams, but it's a hypnotic song about the intense connection she had with her mother.

from her album West (2007)

I love you Mama you sweet
I love you Mama you sweet
I love you Mama you sweet
I love you Mama you sweet
I love you Mama you sweet

With an ocean in my spirit
And cracks on my lips
And scars in my heart
And this burden on my hips

Ocean becomes heavy and tries
To push its way out
Through these ancient eyes
And the memories in my mouth

Ocean becomes tears
That ebb and flow
Over the lines in my face
And the pain in my soul

And pain hits a wall
And doesn't know which way to go
And ocean says I'm crying now
And tells pain to follow

And pain courses through
Every vein, every limb
Trying to find a way out
Between the secrets in my skin

And secrets hold on
Until they finally give in
And they meet up with ocean
And tears again

And tears hand me a shovel
Saying break beneath the crust
That binds earthly skin
And buries all the trust

Somehow trust was caught
Between the cracks on my lips
And the scars in my heart
And this burden on my hips

I love you Mama you sweet...

That mother-daughter talk

MPR has a new series of events, hosted by John Moe, called Wits. I missed the first one, although I followed it on Twitter, and it was a huge hit. They have kindly provided a video clip of their first guest of the series, Julia Sweeney, whom some may remember from SNL, while others may know her for her one-woman shows about surviving cancer or her spiritual journey "Letting Go of God." She also is a regular on "Wait, Wait! Don't Tell Me" on NPR, and is reliably funny as hell.
We had our version of this conversation, but I headed off at least some of the surprise element by getting some age-appropriate books. You'll have to ask my daughter how she remembers it.