My job rules.

So I work at this little Nature Center where I'm responsible for animal care, teaching kids (and adults) about natural history, and a variety of other projects. I really can't tell you more clearly how I feel about my job than this: I love it.

We have a whole host of reptiles and amphibians (collectively know as herps), and four birds of prey (raptors) that cannot be released back into the wild. I get to work with some of the birds as program birds and also get to help out when an injured raptor comes into the Center. For many people locally, we're the first thing they think of if they see an injured animal.

This is Jay, our resident biologist (and all-around-coolest-old-guy-on-the-planet), wrapping the broken wing of a red-tailed hawk. The bird's face looks a little funny but that's because he is actually biting Jay's hand in this photo. Getting bit sucks but it's nothing compared to getting slashed with their unholy talons. You'll notice in this photo that the hawk's talons have been wrapped with tape to prevent injury to humans. (The tape comes right off and doesn't bother their little toes at all.)

I also get to watch our gopher snake eat every week, which, for some reason, never gets old for me. On the other end of the herp spectrum, here are some Spotted Frog (candidates for the endangered species list) eggs, just chilling in our little lake. Sweet.  

And, as a last photo for this completely random entry, we have the evidence of a mink kill. Yes, I said mink kill. We have a resident mink that lurks about the property, starting general mischief and consistently avoiding the prying cameras of both employees. Here, the mink had nabbed a flicker and took it under an overturned boat to eat it. So cool.