3:00 snapshot #712

MAN, I'm far behind. Here's Alexis sitting on the trunk she refinished. I think that could have been phrased to be a mild dirty joke, but I'm tired and in a hurry. You do it.

3:00 snapshot #713

And here's the old stereo cabinet I'm refinishing. I should be done with it today!

3:00 snapshot #714

The view out my office window, now with no snow but extra solar glare and dirty window.

I don't have anything meaningful to add to the Japan tsunami/earthquake disaster. They are the most prepared country for it, which, when you are talking about once a millenium events, turns out not to be all that prepared. I watched the raw footage of the wave crossing into the farm town over and over again, black water full of debris and cars and houses and fire. Greenhouses popping like bubble wrap, buildings lifted off their foundations to join the wave, and acres of farmland turned into salt lakes. And here we go with the nuclear thing: I should be more worried (at least for the poor souls who live near the plants that are in danger) but I'm kind of fascinated. What does a worse case scenario look like? Chernobyl happened behind the wall of Soviet (or quasi-Soviet) secrecy, this disaster is happening below the watchful lens of satellites and 24 hour news agencies.

For Plantmom, and the Captain: Lemurs in the Hammock!

You ask for Lemurs in a hammock, you get Lemurs in a hammock! Here are two or three lemurs playing king of the hammock. Due to the low light in the exhibit, all primates have been reduced to stripey furred blurs. I managed to catch them not moving for one eighth of a second here:



Thanks for your donation! I'll be sending the stickers later on.

If you have a request for a zoo animal you would like me to photograph, simply click the button and donate $5.00 to the New England Chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers! Thanks!

Not a 3:00 snapshot, but shoulda been

The head of the local mounted park rangers came by the zoo to run a workshop on horse handling. One of the Poitou donkeys is behind him.

This 100 species project is a fun one, but my own rules (I have to take a picture of the species) are making it more challenging than I expected. Today I saw our first striped skunk in the yard, and took three pictures, each one worse than the last. Moments ago I saw our first American robin chase off a blue jay (go, robin!). I had no time to photograph either bird. By the time I got my camera, they had been replaced by the first European starlings and common grackles. I managed one halfway decent starling pic. Alexis has documented some other species in the yard: pixie cup lichens and snowdrops; her photos are very beautiful, of course. I have more catching up to do: the next species pics I want to post are full of snow, a substance which is suddenly, blessedly rare in the yard. Stay tuned for more urbpan picspam.