Yum's Favorite Bedtime Story

Once upon a time there was a Baby Red Panda that lived in the forests of the Himalayas.  Baby Red was an extremely naughty girl and she was always off doing one mischief or another.  Baby Red had two really good friends, a pink Tee Cat and a baby Fawl Bear.  When the three of them got together it was mayhem all over the forest.  Baby Red would distract Mr. and Mrs. Snow the leopards while Tee Cat and Fawl Bear tied their tails together.  The three naughty kids would sneak up on Monk Ape while he was enjoying a banana and send him screaming into the trees, banana peel and pulp flying everywhere.  One day Baby Red decided to stay in their favorite abandoned temple while the other two rushed home before dark.  She was so busy collecting crane flies, she never noticed when the sun reached the edge of the horizon.  It was a cold night and Baby Red certainly didn't know her way home.  She snuggled up under a small tree and stifled her sobs in her big bushy tail.  Just then she heard a low hoot..."Whoooooooooooo".  Baby Red hid her face in her tail and shuddered with fear, or maybe it was the chilly breeze, but it didn't matter.  The hooting continued and seemed to be getting closer.  "Whoooooooooooooooooo".  The next hoot was so close Baby Red almost jumped.  She looked up and there was a big furry owl sitting right in front of her.  "Hello, Baby Red.  Lost, are ya?"  Said Mama Owl.  Baby Red remembered how the trio had hidden Mama Owl's nest and made her weep and worry before handing back her nest with her precious eggs in it.  Perhaps Mama Owl had vengeance on her mind.  Baby Red hid in her tail again.  Mama Owl rolled her eyes and whistled to her babies.  Down flew four little baby owls, and the fluttering of their tiny wings made Baby Red look up.  "Hello, Baby Red.  Lost, are ya?" The four of them said in unison.  They didn't seem so intimidating so Baby Red replied with a quick nod.  Mama Owl said, "Well, we know where you live, we'll take you home."  The four owlets followed suit and repeated their mom's sentence in unison, once again.  It made Baby Red giggle and she wasn't scared anymore.  Baby Red nudged Mama Owl with her ear and then lowered her head - her way of showing remorse over past deeds.  Mama Owl laughed and patted Baby Red on her little fuzzy head.  "You should see what these four come up with when they're at their best!" She laughed.  Again, the baby owls repeated the sentence together.  Baby Red giggled again.  Mama Owl flew up into the air, her owlets tailing behind her in a line, and Baby Red followed them.  All the trees looked the same, all the winding paths led everywhere but home.  "Be patient, Red!"  Mama Owl (and of course the owlets after her) called from up above.  Finally Baby Red saw the big hollow tree that was her home.  Her mother was passed out in front of the tree, tired and drained from all the crying.  Baby Red ran to her Mama and jumped on her tummy.  Mama immediately woke and wiped dry tear stains from the fur under her eyes.  She encircled Baby Red in a tight panda-hug and kissed her between the ears.  Mama and Baby Red both thanked the kind owls and offered  them a gift of novelty bamboo.  "No thanks, we're strictly non-vegetarian!" they said.  The five of them winked at Baby Red and flew away into the darkness, back to their own cozy homes probably.  Baby Red stayed in Mama's embrace all night, and swore not to be naughty ever again.  Obviously she forgot all about that the next morning!  :P :P :P

I did say this blog was about anything and everything. What did you expect to find here anyway, recipes?  :P