#117 - Take pictures of 30 Non-domestic Animals in their natural habitat

This squirrel was just too cute to pass up :p Squirrels were not what I had in mind when I came up with this goal, but what the hell. It's not a house pet :p I was taking pictures of some trees actually and I turned to my right to walk away and this little squirrel was just RIGHT THERE in front of me just staring at me like this. Too adorable. And he just stayed there frozen until I took his picture and walked away and then of course he jetted away too. Why are squirrels so damn cute??

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Birds - Pekin Duck

And the last bird update of the day, the Pekin Duck...another domestic duck and perhaps the most well known duck of them all. These guys were SO adorable and so cute. They quacked away and waddled their tail feathers and followed me around while I took pictures but not in a mean aggressive way. It was almost like they were just curious. So adorable.

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Birds - Cayuga Duck

This duck was SO SO beautiful!!! Apparently they're a domestic breed of duck that people raise for eggs frequently. His/her feathers were very iridescent with a green hue to them. He/she was very calm too.

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Birds - American Black Duck

This one looks VERY similar to the female mallard! I didn't even notice the difference until I came home and looked at my pictures. This is actually a male american black duck. It's the one in the back with the yellow bill and the darker colors around it's eyes. Amazing how nature is, isn't it?

#66 - Take Picutres of 50 Birds - White Ibis

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Birds - Female Mallard Ducks

I had no idea that female mallard ducks looked so different than the males! I thought these were two totally different kinds of ducks until I looked in my field guide.

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Birds - Male Mallard Ducks

#66 - Take Pictures of 50 Different Birds - Muscovy Ducks

#113 - Walk 50 Trails Update

I decided to drive down to the city today and walk Audubon park's trail. I really don't think there's a more beautiful place in the city. It's so serene, so beautiful, and it's an area in a very busy city that hasn't been touched. There are trees that are hundreds of years old dripping with moss, tons of birds and turtles and squirrels and butterflies, and a beautiful two mile walking track that winds around it.

When I saw my psychiatrist, he said that the number one thing he wants me to start doing right now is exercising, and I see why now. I felt SO much better after walking today and I'm going to try to start doing it every day. In fact, I made a new goal out of it...one that will likely take me 20+ years to accomplish :p But it'll still be a neat one to accomplish someday. It's to intentionally walk the circumference of the earth, which is 24,901.55 miles.

Like I said, walking two miles a day, it's going to take QUITE a bit of time for me to get there :p But if I can get myself to eventually walk/jog/run MORE than two miles a day, this could go much quicker.

There's actually a state park right by my apartment that has a GORGEOUS trail that's almost five miles long, but it would probably take me about five hours to walk it :p And that's because there's also tons of wildlife, birds, flora and fauna along that trail. I'd be going at a snail's pace because I'd be taking pictures of everything, LOL. But I plan on going to walk that before I go back to work.

I'm going to make this part of my routine though. Even when I go back to work and don't get off until 11 o'clock, I live in a gated apartment complex with a nice paved giant parking lot that I can walk and we also have a gym! I could always jump on the treadmill. But I'd really like to start seeing a bit of nature every day. And I felt so much better after walking today :)