POSITIVELY ZOO FUN, BUT...

 by Mauverneen

My friends and I decided to go to the zoo. It's been years since any of us have been. Some things change. Some things remain the same. It was a fun day, but...

Oh my! 

Running through the spray on a hot day is so refreshing

It rained on and off, so we checked out a building or two. 

Looks like these two checked us out too!

The Hippo wallowed. (I don't think it's moved in 20 years!)

The Rhino paced

The Giraffes were entertaining

It was a fun day, but.... having been to Africa and seen these animals in the wild, I swore I'd never go to a zoo again. And of course not everyone will be fortunate enough to have that opportunity. On one hand, it's a good thing that the rest of the world gets to see some of these animals, but it's sad too, to see them confined.

Some things are getting better for zoo animals - more realistic habitat, larger spaces for some, etc. but on the other hand, not much has changed. The spaces are still too small, and they are in cages. At Brookfield Zoo, where we went, there are no elephants. Sad in a way, yet, I was glad there weren't any. 

The zoo is expensive! $17. to park and another $25 - $29 per person admission. The butterfly house was an extra charge, the safari train was another charge, and I'm not sure what else was an additional fee. 

So, it's fun to go to the zoo, but...

As always, words and photos are my own, and require permission to reprint. However, feel free to share the blog in it's entirety. In fact, I encourage it! Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com See more photos at 

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-mauverneen-blevins.html

Positively Let Freedom Ring!

 by Mauverneen

Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves. ~  Abraham Lincoln

The Secret Of Happiness Is Freedom, The Secret Of Freedom Is Courage.  ~Carrie Jones

“Life without liberty is like a body without spirit.” - Kahlil Gibran

“The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.”  ~Aung San Suu Kyi

"Lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt, that you can set upon the freedom of my mind."    ~Virginia Woolf

“For what avail the plough or sail, or land or life, if freedom fail?”   ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought."   ~Pope John Paul II

“For everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labour in freedom.”  ~Albert Einstein

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”   ~Nelson Mandela

“Is freedom anything else than the right to live as we wish? Nothing else." ~Epictetus

“Independence is a heady draft, and if you drink it in your youth, it can have the same effect on the brain as young wine does. It does not matter that its taste is not always appealing. It is addictive and with each drink you want more.”    ~Maya Angelou

“We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it.”    ~William Faulkner

“The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.”   ~

Here is the link to my previous freedom post  https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7975895715125837101/7744410871685329246

As always, words and photos are my own, and require permission to reprint. However, feel free to share the blog in it's entirety. In fact, I encourage it! Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com See more photos at 

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-mauverneen-blevins.html