Bundaleer would like to wish all his mates a very Merry Christmas!
He also hopes 2012 will bring everyone plenty of peaceful habitat filled with healthy, tasty gum trees!
Ahhh, the simple dreams of a koala!
::
P.S. Bundaleer's secret wish is that all his mates can learn more about the Koala Hospital that nursed him back to health! Keep an eye out for the new National Geographic documentary featuring this special Australian hospital just for koalas.
It's something that koalas don't like to have to do. But they do it anyway. They survive!
They brace themselves, nestle into trees, protect the little ones, and ride out the storm as best they can. Well, yes, much like the rest of us really.
Here is Bundaleer taking stock of some damage done by Hurricane Irene at his local park in Greenwich, CT.
Of course, no koala ever likes to see a fallen tree. However, in this storm, many more trees here remained standing than were toppled so Bundaleer didn't fret too much about this particular one. Still it was a big, old tree with history, so that gave the young koala some pause...
Happily though, Bundy's osprey friends, as well as the colorful harbor boats, made it safely through the storm! Bundaleer guessed that they, like he, had quite natural ways to endure unexpected high waters. (Did you know that nearly all koalas can swim when they have to -- without any lessons whatsoever?!)
And so that leaves young Bundaleer, thankfully, in good general stead, waiting for his next adventure. He actually has an inkling of what his next adventure might be. Do you?
You may agree this is not the best picture of Bundaleer. The lighting is awkward... the picture not crisp. But consider the larger conditions.
The wind outdoors was howling. Hurricane Irene was snapping trees in half like baby carrots. Rivers were raging. And power outages had brought the mood of camping right into the home.
So who can blame tiny Bundaleer for clinging to a bonsai tree during the hurricane's height? He needed reassurance that not everything was going to blow away!
However, while the rest of the east coast was yearning for electricity, Bundaleer warmly welcomed the dim lighting. This is much better for sleeping, he thought!
But still, Bundy wondered how his favorite places were faring near the water... What about the boats, the ospreys and all the little animals he hadn't met yet?
It was this last particular cloud of worry that made it hard for even Bundaleer to fall asleep on the night of Hurricane Irene...
It was not this week's East Coast earthquake that rattled the nerves of our friend, Bundaleer. No, he climbed atop the nearest tree immediately, and enjoyed the gentle rolling ride!
But hurricanes and trees are not the best of friends. And this is why our friend Bundaleer now finds himself a little bit nervous. And so...
...yesterday Bundy and his support crew drove to nearby Greenwich Point to observe the seaside park at its summer peak.
Bundaleer could not fathom that within 24 hours, the plentiful green leaves could turn brown, and elegant boats might be strewn across the beach.
Holding a compass, Bundaleer tried to figure out which direction was southeast. Forecasters had predicted winds might come most fiercely from that direction...
Bundaleer was puzzled why so many nice boats were still afloat in the water. Irene would be here in 24 hours! Didn't the boat owners want to protect their nice boats? Poor boats!
And then there was the huge osprey nest located on the inlet. (Can you see it? Double-click to enlarge the picture!) Oh no, thought Bundaleer! It might get blown to smithereens! Where will the ospreys take shelter?
Bundaleer frowned, which koalas do not like to do, and pondered all of this as he gazed at a sandbar's silhouette. It was possible that the sandbar might not even be there after Irene. Bundaleer felt sad...
But still, the small koala with a big heart was glad he had come to the park. Life is supposed to be full of peaks and valleys, Bundaleer reassured himself, and today had been a pretty peak!
Bundaleer vowed to hold tightly onto these beautiful images in his mind, even when the winds were sure to be howling soon enough outside his window.
I saw the green, I loved the green, the green will come back next year... he kept repeating to himself gently.
This is Bundaleer reporting live from Greenwich Point, on Long Island Sound, in Connecticut.
It sure looked nice, this European farm lifestyle of just lying around on one's side. Na ja, die Mutter und Baby hog together! Bundy, who lost his own mother to cancer, studied the hogs' pose enviously and angled himself just so.
But after a while, Bundaleer felt things weren't quite right. He soon came to understand, from personal experience, that small Australian koalas are totally different than big German wild hogs.
First of all, he realized he didn't enjoy getting dirty like these wild hogs did. It's not so good for blog pictures.
Second, these wild hogs had hooves, not claws, so they couldn't even climb up nice nearby trees! Poor hogs, thought Bundy, just stuck on ground level!
Third, and not surprisingly, Bundaleer considered the topic of food. These hogs didn't seem too picky about what they ate. Bundy, on the other hand, felt he had a very clear idea about what constitutes an excellent meal, and what doesn't.
So Bundaleer, who often consults books when he has questions, took out from the library a Very Important Book. This book was Joanne Ehrich's book entitled, Koalas: Moving Portraits of Serenity.
Like the serious student he is, Bundy first appreciated the book's nice pictures but then moved on to more challenging text.
The book clarified for him that (1) white koalas like him are indeed very rare, (2) he, as a koala, is definitely supposed to be out of the dirt and up in the trees, and that (3) he must rely only on whatever branches of eucalypt smell good to him on that particular day.
Oh, so koalas are supposed to be picky, Bundy thought happily! He felt relieved because when he had studied the wild hogs, he had been feeling particularly picky that day...
And so, by reading this Very Important Book, Bundaleer confirmed that his instincts were indeed natural and good.
That is why he is so proud and pleased to wear this special scarf made for him earlier this year by Anna, one of his biggest fans. The scarf reads: I [HEART] SALAD!
Now, when Bundaleer decides to go "hog wild", he only does so for his favorite meal: eucalyptus leaf salad! And for a koala, that's just the right thing to do!
Another place Bundy visited recently was Lübeck, in northern Germany. Lübeck is famous for marzipan, a sweet ground almond paste that can be molded into all kinds of fun shapes, and painted with chocolate and other edible liquids. Above is the shop of Niederegger, premier German marzipan maker!
Bundy couldn't believe all these "vegetables" were really made out of sweet marzipan! He wondered whether ground eucalypt leaves could also become pretty shapes like carrots and apples. Maybe that would make people want to plant more eucalypt trees...
When he found a chair his size, Bundy hopped right into it, sharing the space with friendly marzipan seals. The seals were happy to meet this gentle, land-loving mate.
At last, Bundy received a delightful gift: a small marzipan bear of his own! Of course, Bundy is not a bear but a koala. Nonetheless, both animals share a special closeness of appearance as well as spirit.
Here, the two mates work hard to pose just right for a formal portrait.
Maybe the flight happened because they wanted to travel more often. Or maybe those clever koalas just needed to prove that, working together, they could really do it.
We may never understand how the whole thing got started. But this flight idea became a mission, which then became reality -- and also a great short story ripe for the blogger's picking!
A few months ago, when the days were shorter and night fell earlier, Bundaleer and his cadre of koala cousins made a mighty pact. They decided that somehow they were all going to fly -- unaided -- through space. That's right, space.
Here's the crew: Kowali, Yuki, Uki, Yupa and, of course, Bundaleer.
Their training was long and hard. Many test missions were not without failure and disappointment.
But these marvelousupials did not give up; they were determined to FLY. And their voyage was captured here on video.
And so, despite the risks, our koalas actually flew through space. Yes, smaller space. Well, really a living room space.
But their flight method has been perfected. And we believe it can be replicated elsewhere on a greater scale.
The trick on even longer flights will be to ensure that the sweet and sleepy koalas stay awake during the ride!
Indeed, they must stay awake because -- occasionally -- there is a problem at air traffic control. When mischief strikes a controller, the result can send koalas flying.
And koalas don't really like that. Their life is hard enough already.
As evidence, here is one flight that didn't go as planned.
Reminder: Always fasten your seat belts, and remember that the nearest koala may be behind you.
Thought to be the world's oldest koala, "Birthday Girl" (shown above) passed away peacefully last night in eastern Australia. She was 25.
Birthday Girl was a long-time resident of the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital in New South Wales. She suffered from chronic arthritis but was helped greatly by numerous medicines.
One time, Birthday Girl got stuck up in a tree after an arthritis medicine (that had allowed her to successfully climb up the tree) unexpectedly wore off! In the wild, the average koala life span is 10-15 years for males; and 15-18 for females.
Koalas don't really like change too much. It makes them kind of nervous.
I guess that's why Bundaleer declined to do any big postings this fall. He just wasn't comfortable yet living outside The Big Apple.
He worried about how and where to explore. He worried about the neighborhood dogs. And if he could remember the street names -- with all those letters instead of just two or three numbers?
Well, it took a few snowstorms... but the adventurous nature of Bundaleer returned as usual!
His old Aussie scarf (which is becoming a bit tattered) became a bandana, and his new hand-crocheted scarf kept him cozy and warm despite the bitter cold!
Bundy confessed to me that, with a little snow on his fur, he thought he even looked a tad rugged!
Eager to burn off some excess weight put on over the holidays, Bundaleer got some (used) cross-country skis and poles, and skied his way over nearby trails. Being so low to the ground, Bundy quickly became an expert at "snowplowing" his way to an easy stop.
Still, you may remember that Bundaleer was practically glued to the TV during the last Winter Olympics.
Like many others, Bundaleer was enthralled with the skillful skiing of Shaun White. And so our dear and daring Aussie friend wanted to see if he, too, could master skiing on a single board.
Not surprisingly, Bundaleer found he could snowboard with relative ease. Unfortunately, my camera skills were not as good as his aerial jumping. Every time Bundy flew up into the air, I couldn't find him in my viewfinder!
Well, here's one place I could count on finding Bundy: at the lodge for some apres-ski! He got a friend to make him a hot toddy in his new Christmas mug. And he relaxed his sore, short muscles.
Bundaleer decided that his sporting equipment, even though it was makeshift, had worked out just fine. In fact, he had had fun! (Just as much fun, in fact, as the sledding in New York City's Central Park!)
Sometimes it takes a few fun experiences to get the hang of a new place. And now, as you can imagine, Bundy is looking for the next fun thing!
Tonight, Bundaleer was enjoying several of his favorite Christmas presents all at once: 2 knit scarves, a Phoenix silly band, and a green iPod Shuffle filled with nature sounds of the Eucalyptus Forest!
He also received a sleeping bag and a tiny tea cup not shown in the photo!
Bundaleer wishes all his friends and distant family a very happy and cozy new year!
Bundaleer would like to wish all his mates a very Merry Christmas!
