Wednesday was Wonderful

While its official title is the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo, Animal Planet has dubbed this place "The Little Zoo That Could."

It is little, but it packs a lot of fun into a small space.  They were given a larger tract of land further inland, to be more protected from storms, but they are still raising the funds needed to get moved over there.

Meanwhile, as i noted, they make great use of the space they have.  There are a lot of critters that love to eat the "zoo puffs" that you can purchase, so you get the enjoyment of having your hands licked by sheep and goats and alpacas and deer and a very cute little donkey.  If you want, you can go in to have animal encounters with reptiles, lemurs, and kangaroos.

The lemurs are among my favorites.  They love belly rubs, and for some reason, they always take a shine to #2 Son.  He won't bother to go in with the kangaroos, but the lemurs flock to him.  He really does have a way with animals, i think they sense, somehow, that he understands them and won't hurt them.

Sweetie, as expected, stayed as far from the reptiles as he could.  Little Girl spent as much time at the wolf exhibit as possible.  All of her friends claim she's about half wolf herself.  If i believed in totem animals, i'd say hers was the wolf.

This year, we even got to see Chuckie.  This behemoth of an alligator,  instead of being way in the back of his exhibit where he could barely be seen, was right up front, lying in a puddle of water in the sunshine.  If 'gators could smile, he would have been grinning from ear to ear.  

Chuckie has been at the zoo longer than any other animal.  He used to live in one of the local state parks, but he took to stealing picnic baskets.  Yes, really.  Instead of simply destroying him, park rangers tried to find another place for him.  He was accepted by the zoo and given a new home.

During Hurricane Ivan back in 2004, he got out of his exhibit.  He didn't leave zoo property, he just got into the swamp behind his exhibit to lie low until the storm was over, and it took them a while to figure out where he was.

This year's trip was one of the most delightful zoo trips we've had.  Not too hot, no rain threatening, and we all got to see all the critters we like best, including one i love, the capybara.  Yes, really, there's a special place in my heart for the world's biggest rodent.

Right after the zoo, Sweetie and i made a trip to a Credit Union Service Center to conclude the business portion of our trip.

The rest of the day was slow paced and included some examinations of the insides of my eyelids for cracks, one of my favorite vacation occupations.


Today is

15th Khordad National Uprising -- Iran (1963)

Apple II Day -- the Apple II first went on sale today in 1977
     note that some historians say it went on sale June 10, others say the first models were shipped out that day

Arbor Day -- New Zealand

Curwood Festival -- Owosso, MI, US (over 40 events commemorate the life and work of James Oliver Curwood, the Owosso-born author and conservationist; through Sunday)

Fardagar -- Traditional Icelandic Calendar (time when farm workers moved from one farm to another, the time to settle debts, and until the 20th-Century, the day to start the fiscal year; always the Thursday through Sunday of the 7th week of summer)

Farmington Country Days -- Farmington, MO, US (fun for the family, celebrated the old country way; through Sunday)

Festival of Popular Delusions Day -- begun as this was the last day before D-Day that the Germans could delude themselves that they could win; thus a day to question your own assumptions and try to align your beliefs with facts and reality

Great American Brass Band Festival -- Danville, KY, US (this year's theme is Slides Rule, a Celebration of the Trombone; through Sunday)

Grunklovsdag -- Denmark and the Faroe Island (Constitution Day)

Indian Arrival Day -- Suriname (marking the arrival of indentured laborers from the Indian subcontinent)

Judgement Day -- Fairy Calendar (Nosegays)

June Bug Days -- Baldwin, WI, US (music, tractor pull, free outdoor movie night, and more; through Sunday)

Liberation Day -- Seychelles

Natalicio de Oblang Nguema Mbasogo -- Equatorial Guinea (President's Day)

National Attitude Day -- if this is really a day to celebrate, try to have a positive one

National Gingerbread Day

National Moonshine Day -- with its own sponsor

Nones of June -- Ancient Roman Calendar; related observance
     Festival of Semo Sancus -- god of loyalty, honesty and oaths (one of the oldest Roman cults, probably Etruscan or Oscan originally)

Red Earth Native American Cultural Festival -- Oklahoma City, OK, US (more than 100 tribes meet to pow wow and celebrate their heritage, through Saturday)

Shavuot -- Israel (Pentecost, ends at sunset)

Shelburne County Lobster Festival -- Shelburne County, NS, Canada (celebrating the Lobster Capital of Canada; through Sunday)

Shirane Takogassen -- along the Nakanokuchi river bank in Shirone, Japan (kite flying and kite fighting; through the 9th)

St. Boniface's Day (Patron of brewers, file cutters, tailors; Fulda, Germany; Germany; Saint-Boniface, Manitoba, Canada)

Stevenson Depot Days -- Stevenson, AL, US (bringing back the days when the Iron Horse of the Rails was king of transportation; through Sunday)

Winnipeg International Children's Festival -- The Forks, Winnipeg, MB, CA (a premier family festival with incomparable entertainment and activities; through Sunday)

World Environment Day -- UN


Birthdays Today:

Chad Allen, 1974
Mark Wahlberg, 1971
Brian McKnight, 1969
Kenny G, 1956
Jill Biden, 1951
Suze Orman, 1951
Ken Follett, 1949
Spalding Gray, 1941
Margaret Drabble, 1939
Bill Moyers, 1934
Tony Richardson, 1928
Richard Mcclure Scarry, 1919
William "Hopalong Cassidy" Boyd, 1895
Panco Villa, 1878
Adam Smith, 1723 (O.S. Date)
Thomas Chippendale, 1718
Pu Songling, 1640


Today in History:

Traditional date for the sinking of Atlantis, 8498BC
Titus and his Roman legions breach the middle wall of Jerusalem  in the Siege of Jerusalem, 70
Kraków, Poland  receives city  rights, 1257
The first Great Lakes steamer, the Frontenac, is launched, 1817
Houston, Texas is incorporated by the Republic of Texas, 1837
Denmark  becomes a constitutional monarchy, 1849
Harriet Beecher Stowe's anti-slavery serial, Uncle Tom's Cabin or, Life Among the Lowly starts a ten-month run in the National Era abolitionist newspaper, 1851
Denmark  amends its constitution to allow women's suffrage, 1915
Elvis Presley introduces his new single, "Hound Dog", on The Milton Berle Show, scandalizing the audience with his suggestive hip movements, 1956
The first government of the State of Singapore is sworn in, 1959
The Apple II, the first practical personal computer, goes on sale, 1977
Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi orders an attack on the Golden Temple, the holiest site of the Sikh religion, 1984
A severe heat wave across Pakistan 
and India  reaches its peak, as temperatures exceed 50°C (122°F) in the region, 2003
The planet Venus makes its last transit of the 21st century beginning at 22:09 UTC June 5, and ending 4:49 UTC June 6, 2012