It's not every day you feed a giraffe while wearing a business suit.

We fed giraffes Thursday and it was the coolest. I'm talking they ate sweet potatoes, new potatoes and carrots right from the palms of our hands with their long, black tongues. They are my new favorite animals (besides Macy of course).

Emilie, Shannon and I and a bunch of other cool ladies are on the silent auction committee for Zoofari, an awesome biannual fundraiser for the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo. Zoofari is a big deal - in 2007, more than 1,000 people attended, raising more than $2 million. It draws some of the biggest names from Omaha, including that billionaire guy. Getting a close-up look at these fascinating animals made me realize how awesome the Omaha Zoo is and why what we are doing is so important. It's about raising money to bring captivating exhibits - polar bears, penguins, sea lions and more - to Omaha. Not only is the Zoo important to the local economy (in 2007 it's overall economic impact on Omaha was $86.3 million), it's also the state's largest classroom. Each year more than 85,000 students and teachers participate in the Zoo's school group program and educator training. We're lucky one of the country's top dog Zoos (animal pun intended) is right in our own backyard.

With that, a guilt trip and shameless plug: if you have something you'd like to donate to the silent auction, just let me know. We'll go ape shit for anything you can provide.