At the Cleveland Zoo. Always a good time...

                                             A day at the zoo.
                                       by Mark William Darus

     Mondays are free at the Cleveland Zoo to residents of Cuyahoga County, so I figured I'd take a walk with the animals, perhaps talk to the animals.

      Keep in mind: People are animals too. Talking with them was interesting to say the least.

      First off, I took over 700 photos. I'm not sure how many I'm going to post here but I know I'm going to try not posting the same ones I did on Facebook.

Listen to song in the link below this as you read this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID239PytIEM

The elephants have a new area to romp about. This area made possible by taxes I gladly pay for.  It is quite large and well planned out. They seemed very happy with plenty of room to move about. What wonderful animals they are.

 

 

Who doesn't love baby animals? Even those babies bigger than a Volkswagen?

 

 

On to other areas.

 

 

 

These are so hard to photograph. There movements are so quick and bouncy!

 

On to the birds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The above I would title: Freebirds.

 

Waterfowl lake. There use to be an ice cream shop in this building. I guess they now use it as storage area.

 

                              Title: No chains, fences or borders on me.

 

              At the point the above shot was taken, I had already taken just over 177 photos...

Fulton rd Bridge as seen from the Zoo. Not so many years ago, before its rebuild, chunks of this would fall, causing the Zoo to construct heavy nets and structures to deflect debris.

 

 

Statue of a wolf.

 

 

Sorry the above shot is so not good. They were not close not moving and the glass shot through  was not clear.

 

 

I caught it's eye! When seen full sized you can even see its pupil! I was blown away when I saw this on my 'puter.

 

Just napping...

 

 

 

 

 

Title: Ahhh, to be Roaming free in Bedford Ohio this time of year.

Bear face-palm.

 

"Why are you making grunting sounds at me? Hoomans, you are strange beasts!"

 

 

 

Do they feed Bengals deer? Sure looks like antlers in the background, doesn' it? Well, considering the over-population of deer in Cuyahoga County, it makes sense to me.

 

The two people in this shot were embracing each other as they walked. This took me firmly as they were the only couple to show any affection to one another the 6 hours I spent at the Zoo.

Titled: To dream!

 

 

On to the Rhinos! Granted, they were sleeping. I did get a good shot of the babe lay next to its mother. On that one, you have to view the full shot to see. I did not catch this when I took it.
                                                      

 

 

Title: Just gimme shelter...

 

 

Hmmm, kind of makes you wonder, doesn't it?

                                              On to Monkey Island.

 

 

 

I loved the teeth shown on this one. Apparently he saw the left paw of the other aiming its head.

Left nailed him, sending him back.

 

Title: Oh, Hell no!

 

Well, I am a male. I liked her hair and everything else from this angle.

She was talking to some animal I could not see. Besides that, what nailed me was the look on her face and stance against the background and foreground. Beauty as my eye and my Fuji caught it.

 

First lion shot. I captured better ones I'll show later.

Riding the tram, this child was always looking about. He was so happy and amazed at everything his eyes happened on. He so often said: "LOOK, MOMMY!" It took me back to long ago days when my own daughters acted the same.

 

A word on this shot: All I was interested in was the 'No eating, drinking...' stuff on the Tram. What didn't notice until I reviewed it was the word 'WAR' in the upper right hand corner. Sure, it must have fully read 'WARNING!' Call it some form of Photographic Freudian slip, yet....

Sitting on the Tram, this wonderful woman waved at us. What I didn't see was the sign to her left. In my opinion, truly words to live by.

 

She also waved at the Tram, it was her eyes and dancing locks that hit me.

Their faces, different emotions crossing them. Contrast.

 

Enlarge to understand this caption: "What the hell is Rubbermaid?"

 

The Jelly Fish. One of the most deadly things on this planet. As they floated about in their dark realm, their own constellation.  Look them up and be amazed as I was.

 

 

Coral and Fish. Don't ask me the what fish these are, but they sure are beautiful.

 

Above: some movements should never be in complete focus.

 

 

 

 

Not fish. In all honesty, I don't recall what animal this is.

 

 

 

 

 

                                                        A feline.

 

Please enlarge this one.

                                                      Couldn't quite capture this one in full focus. Full sized you can see its pupils.

 

 

 

Post to Nature.

 

Boardwalk from the Aquatic, Cat and Primate area. It was on this very walkway that some kid decided to climb its rail. I saw this and responded, aiming toward him seconds before his parents, way ahead of  him realized he was gone. I yelled at the kid "GET DOWN NOW!" This caused his parents, the mother pushing a carriage with one hand and texting with the other and the father talking on his cell, to turn and look. As the kid stepped down, only then did they say anything. I looked at both of them. Granted, my gaze was not the most friendly, but they could have at least said 'thank you.' Like most people these days, they didn't and I quickly called them assholes via a loud whisper as I passed them.

 

She was singing Michael W. Smith as she passed the carriage. Love it!

 

 

Being a Leo, born July 26 1962, that's a Tiger in the Chinese calender, I was they finally awoke before I left.

Bliss?

 

 

 

Enlarged, yet another pupil. Damn, I was so graced this day.

 

 

 

 

The two shots below I was so amazed at how quick my Fuji caught these!

 

 

"He sleeps too much, doesn't he?"

 

 

"Hoomans, stop killing us and taking our lands from us! Give us room to be free."

 

Other great animals. Prairie Dogs!

 

 

 

Hoomans!

 

The pale blue shirt, blond hair, lower back sway and arms that held me against its dark contrast.

Again, contrast. What she wore, leaning again brown wood against the background. 

 

Another bird

 

                                       And yes, fellow Hoomans, they can give us the raspberries!

 

 

Another given to me by my higher power, my god, I believe this shot above to be my best shot of this day as I walked and talked with captive animals no different than us. They held in concrete and metal cages as we are held by the want of coin to sustain us.

 

Sometimes I think we have to stick our tongues out and say: "Thhhhb-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b!

 

Fellow humans, I have to ask this: If you knew you had less than three months to live, what would you share with others?

 

I thank you for your precious time reading this.

Listen to this if you have further time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bHsZLfVg4Y

 

Mark William Darus. 10252012