So is it “technically” considered stealing, if it is put out to be taken?
Stealing Apples
Having just finished a marathon of art fairs my kitchen counter is brimming with apples. As has become my habit I have returned each weekend with a armload of stolen apples for my horse.
Well . . . technically they aren’t stolen. (I think) I mean if hotels put them out for people to eat for breakfast, they are there for the taking right? In my defense I often look for the bruised and least appetizing fruit. I figure most folks wouldn’t eat it anyway and so it would just get thrown. And thus, the rationalization for my taking apples is complete.
Just so you know my life of crime will eventually end. Last year we planted a Honey Crisp apple tree. (Honey Crisps are my favorite apples. I will spend more per pound on those babies than I will beef.) In a few years (providing we continue to keep the deer and rabbits at bay) we (Chicory and myself) will be enjoying the “fruits” of our (Mike and my) labor.
How the crime spree began
When Chicory was very young and I had just gotten him, I was trying to give him all sorts of treats, (because I was raised that food equals love) but other than grain, Chicory refused whatever goodies I offered.
If your curious why I don’t eat the pilfered apples myself. Well, I am a fruit snob.
The hotels we stay at only put out the cheapest of apples and being a diabetic means whatever sugars I put into my body, have to be worth the spike in my blood sugar levels. So I eat only really good fruit.
In fact, the first time I gave him some apple, he spit it out, waggled his tongue around to make sure absolutely no bits might yet be stuck in his teeth and gave me a very distinct “are you trying to poison me!” look. I pretended not to notice and took another bite of the apple while using my best high school drama class acting abilities, I made it clear that this apple was the best thing ever.
He watched closely for a few moments and then kinda snuffled at me hinting that I should share. I gave him another chunk, and he promptly spit it out looking confused. I continued eating and eventually he’d get too curious and start nosing about again.
As I offered another bite, I warned him it was his last chance. He pushed it around my palm, then picked it up ever so delicately. As he chewed, he bobbed hid head vigorously (You could see the wheels turning) and then swallowed. After a few moments he snuffled for more.
And thus began his love affair with apples. At this point he drools like a Pavlovian dog when he thinks he’s gonna get some. And yes, I do buy him apples now and again. But mostly I get wind-fall apples from neighbors trees. Even after all these years, it’s pretty much the only treat food he’ll eat besides a grain ration. Well that and an occasional granola bar. But really all a granola bar is, is just a grain ration in stick form.
Raven painting
The gallery is still blessedly busy so I’ve no time to begin the Raven over. Hopefully tomorrow or the next day. I’ll post something when I get something done.
Tags: chicory
Awww that’s neat! My cat is like that. The only food treat Ari likes is yogurt. So I stopped getting expensive kitty treats or offering him cheese most of the time, but we have this agreement. Whenever I have yogurt, we share. He gets his spoonful of it and will eat it off the spoon very daintily and I will eat the rest of the container and we’re both good.
And no, taking the complimentary apples is not stealing. They put those out for guests to eat. That’s like taking home the little soaps and shampoos from your room instead of leaving them to be thrown out by the maid. Taking the towels and ashtrays is stealing, but the apples aren’t. Even if you’re grabbing lots of them for a greedy horse. Very considerate of you to look for the bruised and unappetizing ones humans wouldn’t want anyway, considering Chicory wouldn’t care.
Kitten says that horses will go nuts for watermelon rind. I haven’t tried bringing any to Felony yet but I think I want to sometime just to see if she likes it and keep making friends with her.
Yay for your new apple tree in your favorite breed of apple! We had one in the yard back in Kansas and it was so cool. Two years we got harvests, one year it was a big harvest and the other a so-so harvest, one year we got exactly one apple and left it out on the tree as a gift to the Goddess and a plea for more next year.
Very cool that your neighbors let you pick up windfall apples for horse treats too. I remember when I was a kid in a Chicago suburb, two doors down was the last tiny two-acre remnant of the farm that used to be the subdivision and they had tons of apples. They let us pick up windfall apples so I’d bring in bushels of them and my grandmother made pies with them. They were so good. So were the wild grapes.
Robert
I used to share my lunch with Oliver and when he got a little bit of yogurt he knew lunch was done. It was out desert.
I like your leaving one apple as a gift to the Goddess. A tradition my grandma passed on to me when gardening to always plant 3 veggie plants of everything. One for God, one for critters and bugs and one for yourself.