That One Chick #8
Before the day of the digital camera–you had to point and shoot and cross your fingers hoping that when you got your film back your children wouldn’t look…like…this. It was always a crap shoot with no do overs.
Check out the little monkey on the left.
Speaking of monkeys…
When I was about this age–6 or 7ish we had a neighbor in Los Angeles that kept all kinds of monkeys. No lie. She had chimpanzees and spider monkeys and kept them in a huge playroom-pen at the front of the yard that she called the Monkey House. We could see them swinging on rings and jumping around from our kitchen window. Pretty sure there would be something illegal about that these days. Anyway, one day we came home to find the biggest and baddest grandaddy monkey of all time sitting on top of our fridge. His name was Beatnick and he apparently came in through our open kitchen window. When we came in the kitchen, he stood up and started screeching and throwing fruit down on us. My brother had a potato growing in a jar with toothpicks and water–the little dope threw that too.
My dad yelled, “Everybody stand still,” so we stood still. Too bad the chimp didn’t listen.
That creepy guy jumped right down and landed…
on my head.
So, try to picture it–two big old monkey feet clutching the top of my head–his toes were poking me in the eyes. Not to mention the fact that a monkey the size of a toddler weighs about as much as a 10 year old child. Before I could yell or bawl or help myself in any way, he sprung from my head to the kitchen table–knocking me to the floor. My dad picked me up and tossed me out of the kitchen. Pretty scary–I must say.
I have no idea how my dad got the monkey out of our house, but for years–any time he’d see a chimpanzee on T.V. he’d say, “Those little devils are as strong as a grown man.”
All I know is that they are as heavy as a sack of bricks…
when they land on your head.
I did not know that about you. That is a great story!
Oh my gosh! I am still laughing! Thanks for making my day! We all have moments like this, (hopefully without a monkey on our head to get our attention!) Isn’t it wonderful to have something to laugh at to make you appreciate the day. I have to admit, I too, love digital pictures, except when the computer crashes and you did not back them up 🙂 Sigh, I will not make that mistake again!!
That is hilarious – and scary! You must have been besides yourself.
Plus, I totally remember the “film” cameras – lol! I love digital now. It feels so good to only print the ones I know look good and delete the ones that don’t 🙂
Happy Thursday!
OMG!!!! How scary would that be. For some reason I have never understood people that keep monkeys for pets. It just seems strange. I remember a neighbor who had one and always had a diaper on it. I too am so glad for digital cameras so that you can shoot as many pictures as you want to make sure that you get those great shots and not the missed ones that you have to wait to get them developed to see if there was that good one that you wanted from an event that you cannot recreate. But I must admit my pictures don’t get developed like they use to – they sit for way too long on my computer. 🙁
Whow!! That musta suxd!Haha!!I got ran over by a huge dog once when I was running down a hill, but that’s as exciting as my story gets. Ooh..I can just hear grandpa saying that now. Haha!
Yes, yes. It’s always good to know about the monkeys in a friends past.
:]
I’ve told this story so many times–and you’d be surprised how often people would say, “Monkey. Yeah. Sure.”
Like anyone on earth would make THAT up!
Remember having a whole roll come back blank? That was a nightmare. Usually happened when someone opened the back of the camera and it wasn’t at the end of the film–then whole roll would be ruined.
Ughhh…
Better days now!
We had another friend with just one little spider monkey that was named Tonga. She would bring her to places on her shoulder with a tiny braided leash around the monkey’s middle. It was fascinating–but I’m just not real fond of them…any of them.
😕
Yeah, he didn’t like monkeys much either after that. Of course, he was the one that probably had to wrestle the dang thing out of the house. I should have asked him how he did it…oh well.
I’ll ask him the next time I see him.
:]
Pretty scary indeed! You are lucky he didn’t kill you. Over the last few years there has been so many reports on TV of chimps maiming people.
But the story is funny from our standpoint. But we weren’t experiencing it. Are you afraid of monkeys or chimps?
In regards to photos. I’m so glad for digital. I take terrible photos. I have to take about 100 to get 1 good shot (not really that bad, but close). Plus I’m all about instant gratification. I hated waiting for a roll of film to be developed. When 1 hr photos came out and Poloroid, that was fabulous. But digital is so much better. Plus now it’s so easy to touch up photos. The bad part of digital. I rarely print out photos anymore. I just store them on my computer or post them on my blogs.
I haven’t actually been in a room with a roaming loose chimp since that day–but I’m pretty sure I don’t want them near me. Especially since we’ve heard–like you said–how deadly they can be.
I’ve watched movies like Project X, and Gorillas in the Mist where the monkeys seem all calm like little babies…maybe some are like that, but my dad said that guy nearly crushed his hand–and my dad wasn’t a small man. So, no–I wouldn’t want to be around them at all.
My pictures are allll just on the computer. I rarely print anything. They just seem safer on the computer.
Wow, they don’t look like they’d weigh that much! I love monkeys! hehe My husband, who is from Peru, got bitten by a monkey on his wrist when he was visiting some friends in the jungle there. He still has the scar, I love telling that story!
OK, that story should have come with a warning like “Be sure to use the bathroom before reading this or else you’ll pee yourself laughing!”
I too prefer the digital age, but I keep forgetting to delete the bad pictures and print the good ones. I made a goal this year to print more pictures. So far…no good.
Wow, you’ve had an interesting life!! I love monkeys, and I always spend a lot of time watching them play when we are at zoos and other such monkey type places! But I would not like one to jump on my head.
I’ve always liked monkeys… but maybe it’s because I’ve never had one on my head! 😉
I’m glad that there are digital cameras now too… but now it’s hard because there are lots of “good” ones! I find myself having trouble erasing them, even when they aren’t the best quality. I still love getting them printed… but they seem to always look better on the computer.
See—I’m telling you–those little suckers are MEAN!
You nut! I’ll try to remember to warn you next time.
:]
Just be sure to watch them from behind a wall or something. They are really freaky little creatures.
I don’t think I’ve printed anything since getting the digital camera. I’m ok with it though because I really only use them on the computer anyway. The printed ones have to be scanned so I like them where they are.
I’m going backward here – haven’t been near a computer for a couple of days. Really, you just need to write a book – it would be a best seller.
PS Dani and Jared
Baby boy – Jack David
9 lb 7 oz
22 inches
2-17-10
3:21 am
That could be a good conversation starter or date evaluator question 😉
Sad! I didn’t know that you never asked him about it later. That was the first thing that came to my mind after hearing this story again.
I haven’t seen those really… we should watch those movies.
Tell them congratulations!! That’s wonderful news 🙂
P.S. Mom I second Lynnette. You should write a book… and you know which one I’d vote for… nudge… nudge…
Ohhhh! Congratulations Marmee!! That is a good sized baby too. Nice going everyone.
About the book–perhaps. I could call it “With a Monkey on My Head.”
Ha!
I am loving the pictures.
something about them is so cool and so much better than the fancy digital ones now.
so i’m pretty scared of monkeys myself. when i was in kenya, there were baboons everywhere! and we were told to not feed them or they would kill us. seriously they attack people for food. and they are crazy little animals. not like rafiki, the funny baboon in the lion king.
Oh, my gosh!! Now that is scary. Honestly, they are soooo strong. I can see how they could kill someone without a second thought.
Yikes.
YAH for JARED and DANI!!! That’s sooo exciting!!! Congrats to all of you!!! How exciting!!!