Lincoln Park, Part III

I can't think of a better way to celebrate Friday than with some more furry friends!

This chimp seemed lost in thought

You might not be able to tell from the photograph, but fortunately, this guy was behind plenty of glass



I was smitten with this pretty little bird



A rather stately giraffe

Reindog Parade

This is probably my final post for 2008. Between some minor medical procedures and holiday preparations, I think it's time to declare it winter break (even though winter hasn't officially arrived!). To get you in the mood, how about a few friendly pups from the Chicago Botanic Garden's 2008 Reindog Parade? The Reindog Parade is the only day of the year when dogs are allowed inside the gardens. While the cold and snow made for difficult travels (and some shivering pooches!), it certainly set the mood for the day!

Forget Bama, Meet Ally

Or Allie. I'm not quite sure of the spelling yet. I was informed today that li'l Miss Bama's name has been changed, because Bama sounded too much like bad dog. We don't want that sweet little puppy thinking she's bad, I suppose. So Ally, it is! Of course, her name is derived from Alabama, the home state of a really great guy named Roy, who was kindhearted enough to take her in when she needed a home. Roy is one of my boyfriend's good friends, and now mine, as well. He's been a bit under the weather, and has been poked and prodded and under the knife far too often these days. So perhaps some more puppy love from Miss Ally will bring him a bit of cheer. Enjoy, and send some good thoughts Roy's way, if you're so inclined!

Meet Trixie and Smokey

Trixie and Smokey are my boyfriend's boss' cats. Say that five times fast! Smokey (the gray kitty, of course) is a bit more aloof than Trixie, but they are both as sweet as can be when they put their little kitty minds to it. Having cute little critters like these to visit makes it easier to be away from my cats when I'm in Atlanta.

Ack! And there's that pesky double copyright blurb in my feed again, because my post was short. I'm still not quite sure how that happens. I think it's picking up the text in my sidebar for some reason. But fear not, gentle blog reader(s)! Aforementioned boyfriend was kind enough to let me take a peek at GoDaddy's control panel, and it seems pretty user-friendly. I've always used BlueHost for my hosting needs, but I've had a lot of midday outages in recent months, and I was holding off on moving my photography sites until I was either confident they had the problems under control (no) or found alternative hosting space (yes). By summer's end (probably sooner, but I don't want to break any more promises - we all know how that post a week thing worked!), I should have everything moved over to WordPress, which I prefer to Blogger. Not that Blogger is bad. It's excellent, especially for a free service. But I moved my (now defunct) personal blog over to WordPress back in the pre-widget Blogger, and I'm just not groovin' with the "new" Blogger.

Lincoln Park, Part II

I couldn't let the first really nice day of the year escape without taking full advantage of it. So on Saturday, I headed back to the Lincoln Park Zoo. I also stopped at the conservatory (a bit smaller than Garfield Park Conservatory, which I often visit, and it was very crowded, so not much in the way of photo ops there), cut back through the zoo and then crossed the street and visited the Nature Museum. I haven't had much editing time, since I spent Sunday at a wonderful National Geographic Traveler nature photography seminar.

Here's a peek at each location for now...

Meerkat at the Lincoln Park Zoo


Orchids at the Lincoln Park Conservatory


A butterfly in the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum's indoor "butterfly haven"

Let's Go to the Zoo - Lincoln Park

Although I love my Brookfield Zoo membership, one can only shoot the same white cheeked gibbon or baby polar bear so many times. As cute as they might be, it was time for a change of pace, and a few weeks ago, I decided that meant a trek to the Lincoln Park Zoo. After some deep thought, I realized it had been nearly ten years since my last visit to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Much has changed, but much was still the same. They revamped the gorilla exhibit at some point, but it still gives you an up close view and interaction with the animals. I had remembered koalas, but they must be gone, because I couldn't find them anywhere. The underwater polar bear observation area was still there, though.

It was a cold day, and I think the virus which would eventually morph into my pneumonia had hit, so I didn't last long. I plan on a trip back very soon, and I plan on visiting the Lincoln Park Conservatory, as well as the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum (they have an indoor free-flying butterfly exhibit!) at the same time.

Until then, please enjoy these images!

When I walked in the Cannon Drive entrance, I could hear the growling of the tiger.



As mentioned, the underwater polar bear observation area is still there - and it's still as fun as ever to watch the huge bears swim by the window.



While the cold got to me, apparently the flamingos did not mind it.

Let's Go to the Zoo - Brookfield

Last spring, I purchased a Brookfield Zoo membership as an early birthday gift for myself. It had paid for itself by the time my birthday rolled around. I've always enjoyed nature photography, and while I dream of National Geographic photography, zoos and nature preserves will have to cut it for this midwestern gal for now.

I love the waiting and anticipation. I might spend three hours at the zoo, but only visit an exhibit or two. I have no problem at all waiting for crowds to disperse so I can position myself for the best possible shot. I love learning the different animals' behaviors, and capturing the perfect moment.

Patience has its rewards. Cookie the cocaktoo - the zoo's oldest animal (and the last remaining member of the original animal collection from 1934) came over to the glass and performed a bit for me on my last visit.

Spending nearly half an hour at "baboon mountain" allowed me to capture this baboon in full yawn.



And I was able to capture mother white cheeked gibbon and her new baby by waiting for a crowd to pass on in Tropic World. The photograph was featured in a contest in The Daily Herald.