It’s an all-day affair for an Orcas Islander to simply go to a doctor’s appointment on the mainland. Ferry line at 6:15, arrive in Anacortes at 8:15, drive to Burlington, Bellingham, or Seattle, then barely make it into Safeway before getting back in the ferry line for the voyage home.
So it’s always nice to have a fun excuse to pay the painful $84 ferry fee (for four people and a car) to go somewhere off-island. Thanks to OASIS discounts for the ferry and zoo fees, we went on a last field trip as a homeschooling family yesterday to Woodland Park Zoo, which is on the northern outskirts of Seattle.
It’s a beautifully constructed and well-thought-out zoo and we had a great day seeing miraculous creatures, but I still can’t figure out why we humans need to keep putting animals in cages. We felt heavy about it when we looked past all the fantastic enclosures at the listlessness of so many animals. They weren’t just hot or tired. I don’t allow cages at home and I wouldn’t want anyone to cage me. Zoo animals are so bored and well-cared-for.
We watched a silver-back gorilla lie on the ground on his back right next to the glass as he spaced out. We looked into his deep eyes and wondered if it’s right for him to have nothing to do.
I know everyone’s got their reasons for zoos, and I’m all for the protection of endangered or hurt animals. It’s great to have specialists and scientists who know every species’ needs. We will certainly hope to have the genetic material of animals that are gone in a few years. But nothing justifies a being’s total uselessness either, in their only time here on this earth.
Let’s gloss over all that heavy stuff and see some pretty pictures. (Sarcasm intended.)
I feel your boredom, buddy.
Photos by Evan Kulper
