Columbus Zoo and Aquarium -- Actually seeing the Red Panda and Pink Flamingos live and in person -- (with valid coupon)

Let's try this again! On the first day of release from isolation due to the Covid-19 pandemic, my sister and I will re-visit the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. We will actually get past the Zoo entrance with our validated money-saving coupon.

Back Story: I asked my sister if she wanted to rekindle our relationship. She said yes. We began going on diverse outings to have fun and be sisters again. Our relationship had not been one of our top priorities. We decided to change that. Our bond is growing and, more importantly, we are sharing our healing with others. Our mission: to let others know they can heal a broken relationship in their own lives.

Crank it up! AC/DC's Back in Black is our theme song, and we sing it with a vengeance (even though we don't know all the words)! Please be patient. We take a few minutes to get started. Also, Warner Brothers Music Group silences the music in parts of our hysterically harmless video.

If it isn't obvious, we did not rehearse.

We must share the importance of why we are making the choice to visit the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on our first day of "freedom." Going to the Zoo is important to us because, you see, we did not get past the Zoo entrance when we attempted to go in August 2019.

I received a coupon from a friend -- 2 for the price of 1. We were excited about our coupon. We sang in the car rejoicing about the gorgeous weather on the way to the Zoo. We talked about all the money we were going to save. We were ecstatic about our exquisite planning for our latest outing. We were going to miss the weekend crowd because we picked Friday not Saturday. Kerri wanted to see the Red Panda. I wanted to see the Pink Flamingos. We would munch on overly-priced hot dogs and share a Coke and lots of smiles!

We skipped jollily into the Zoo. Then -------- errrrrrrrr! Slam on the brakes.

We realize we look extremely thrifty. But, hey! We're on a budget! We did get to use the bathroom facilities. Then we enjoyed the flora and fauna just outside the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. In the entrance, we looked at pictures of animals -- real and animated. We know how to make the best of our circumstances when we cannot use our coupon, damn it!

Now you understand WHY we are going to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on our first day of post-isolation.

Please join us as we take you on our fabulously successful journey to and INSIDE Jack Hannah's Columbus Zoo.

The night before we could not sleep. We checked and rechecked the day of the week -- Tuesday, and read and reread the fine print on our money-saving coupon -- 2 for the price of 1. Yep, it was good on Tuesday.

Off we went! We got up early for us -- 9:30 a.m. We wore our matching t-shirts that read "AC/DC BACK IN BLACK." We added iron-on decals with our names to the back. Before we left town for the Zoo, we made a quick stop (yeah, right!) at our local McDonald's for iced vanilla coffees and sausage biscuits. Mustard only on Kerri's. Mustard and slivered onions on mine. We planned on munching on those overly-priced hot dogs, but hoped eating breakfast would hold us off until late afternoon. We planned on sharing a Coke (our own separate Cokes) whenever we got thirsty. We accounted for soft drinks in our budget. We also accounted for the $10 parking fee.

Once we arrived, we made sure we had not locked our keys in the car. Been there, done that. We remembered what Mom taught us, and were good little girls by responsibly taking notice of the row and aisle in which we parked: Row Manatees, Aisle 360. We confidently and jollily skipped the 1 1/2 miles up to the ever-familiar Zoo entrance. (We actually walked -- slowly. We needed to save our breath and energy for interacting with all the exotic animals! Plus, we can't skip anymore.)

First attraction -- the Red Panda. I made sure my baby sister got to see the Red Panda. Our eyes watered when we saw him. He looked right at us! We tightly held hands as we watched him eating green bamboo leaves. It was a miracle. We watched him for a whole 15 minutes.

Next came the Pink Flamingos. We wondered who would mention it first. She allowed me because I am the one who wanted to see the Pink Flamingos desperately. "The reason they are pink in hue is because the amounts of shrimp they consume turns their feathers from white to pink." She let me sound so smart. We oooed and awwed for as long as we could. They smelled fishy.

We didn't make it til late afternoon to go get our hot dogs. The pure exhilaration from seeing our two favorite exotic animals made us hungry. Plus, we had already spent a full 25 minutes of gazing. So, grazing we did. Kerri preferred her hot dog with ketchup and spicy mustard. I preferred mine with mustard and onions -- just like my sausage biscuit.

After our hot dogs (it was already 1:30 pm by this time), we decided to head for the Orangutans, Chimpanzees, Bonobos and Gorillas! We spent a solid 20 minutes watching an Orangutan stick his tongue out at some bratty kids. It was as if no time had gone by in quarantine. Kids got on our nerves just the same if not more.

The Chimpanzees were a hoot! We spent another 15 minutes watching them pick bugs off of each other for delicious treats. I let Kerri do the sounding-smart this time. "Did you know, Chimpanzees and bonobos are our closest living relatives? We share 99% of our DNA with them." We agreed that they use their DNA better than we do after watching them sharing food. They pulled at our heart strings after witnessing their compassion for each other. The little baby was more than adorable, so we found a bench to sit and watch. We sat for quite a while drinking our Cokes and definitely sharing smiles.

"Gorillas come in a very close second." I had to have the last smart words. "We share 98% of our DNA with Gorillas. That's just 1% less than the Chimpanzees." We could not find a bench to sit and watch the Gorillas. That did not upset us. We were almost sad. Watching them in captivity, despite knowing they are receiving excellent care at our Columbus Zoo, felt heavy.

At this point, we decided to head for the Polar Bear Exhibit. It was more crowded at the Polar Bears than any other area at the Zoo. When we finally inched our way to the front, we understood why. They were swimming and splashing and waving at all the people. "All the people" is significant here. The Zoo was getting packed. It felt strange because just the day before we were still practicing social distancing. Again, it felt as if no time had gone by in quarantine. Sweaty people pushing to get their own selfish way were getting on our nerves. We let a few little children go in front of us. We had fun laughing and feeling their contagious happiness.

We toured the Zoo like little kids. We awed at the Giraffes and Zebras. We felt all creepy-crawly in the Snake Exhibit. We each got frozen bananas with chocolate that dripped all over our black "Back in Black" t-shirts -- which were making us hot, by the way. We toured the Zoo like little adults, too. We realized we had forgotten the sunblock. I had an in-grown toenail that was starting to throb. Kerri's lower back was starting to ache.

Around 4 p.m. we decided to make it toward the Zoo entrance -- OUR Zoo entrance. The trek to Row Manatee Aisle 360 followed. We didn't even consider skipping.

We were quiet for most of the drive back except when the "round-abouts" presented themselves. Kerri still didn't believe I had mastered them. She wanted to make sure I exited onto the correct road. I did all 17 times. We laughed about how many of these European-style traffic concepts had become so ubiquitous and popular.

We decided to go the back way home. We wanted to drive by our "land before home," as we call it. Our physical home no longer exists because of neglect. Dysfunctional living is one reason why we need to heal our broken relationship. We pulled into the vacant lot which once housed our beautiful home with a swimming pool on 3 acres. We sat and reflected on our day at the Zoo. As we sat in the car, we pulled up our favorite old photo of us from our Sisters: Back in Black Facebook page. Kerri is on her knees in a cute frilly lavender dress paired with her Miami Trace Panther coat. I am standing behind her wearing groovy plaid pants. Our hair is blowing in the wind. We are in our front yard. We re-created that photo last summer. We are not wearing our original ensembles, but our hair is blowing in the wind.

Our fabulously successful day at the Columbus Zoo made our cheeks hurt from laughing so hard. Stopping by our old homestead made the day complete. Seeing the place where we grew up abandoned did not make us cry or feel sorry for ourselves. We didn't have time for sorrow. We looked at each other with grateful hearts because we had actually made it inside the Zoo! We were actually feeling the healing of our Sacred Sisterhood. We are Sisters: Back in Black! Better Days were here.

Better Days ARE here. We recommend a visit to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium for anyone who wants to heal a broken relationship. Watching the animals brings you closer to the person you're with, and connects you to the Animal Kingdom. Make sure to check and recheck your coupon for the specific days it is valid.