Saturday, March 22, 2008

Easter Egg Hunt: Miami Style

So, it's Easter weekend. Happy J.C. rolls the rock day, everyone. (We can't ever leave the influence of our friends. Sometimes it can be pretty obvious.) This weekend is a big thing at work, and the field behind the sea lion stadium looks like Vassar on Founder's Day, but without the beer truck or the hookahs. There is a carnival, kids running every which-way, music, food, and good ol' fashioned fun. I even got to partake in an animal care Easter Egg hunt, which is decidedly the most nerve racking one of it's kind that I have ever been on. It's kinda like playing Aliens in the woods by Sunset Lake: you're trying to look in 20 different directions at once and make sure nothing comes close enough to touch you. We went into the crocodile paddock to remove some unfertilized eggs that one of the crocs had laid and to rake up the fallen palm fronds and leaves. To do this, two people had to go in with (quite literally) 10 foot poles with padded ends and poke the 400+ lb reptiles in the head/butt to get them to move out of the way of the people who were carrying the rakes/trashbags. I got a pole. I also got to witness how to deal with a charging crocodile and we found a crocodile tooth on the ground. It was pretty freakin' cool. I kept an eye on the crocodiles while the work was going on, and made sure that none got close enough to charge anyone. It was a good day, even with the rain.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Rock the JC Rolls. You've got subsidiary rights: they are granted!

Your work is epic. Poaching eggs from crocodile nests is a fine piece of resumé building... especially since you got to actually use a 10-foot pole. That qualifies you as an Adventurer.