Oh, man. Staying up late reading fic + getting up at 4:30 am for work = TEH SUCK.

The zoo's been treating me well! We're finally back open now - the last of the snow was melting this evening. All that's really left are the big piles where the plows offloaded. Yesterday was fun - I did some penguin observations for awhile, and then got to help when Beethoven was weighed. I was the "winch wench," in charge of raising and lowering the sling. Whee!

Today was my first day coming in for early morning food prep. Had to be there at 6 am! Eeep! At least there's not much traffic leaving the house at 5 am. :P And today was also annual physical day for two of the sea otters. So I got to go watch those up close! I even got to touch Nellie while she was under sedation. She was so soft and fluffy! I've felt otter pelts before (they were my favorite prop when I was a naturalist at the Aquarium), but never actually touched a live one! :D (I don't count Homer slapping my hand at the Seattle Aquarium all those years ago - that was just her paw, it was just a quick "give me my damn clam already" slap)

So yes, fic I was reading: Unexpected by Oparu. DUDE. So good. It's a lengthy one... but I just couldn't stop reading to make myself go to bed! :P Sparky, of course... and baby!fic. Baby!fic is love.

Been reading during my lunch break at work... I finished Ingrid Visser's "Swimming With Orca" (OMG LOVE), and am reading the original "Phantom of the Opera" now. Up next is "Eldest"! :D

And I finally passed 2,000 posts on GW! Yay!! I can use a custom avatar now! :D

I smell like doggy. Heehee! Gemma (the 12-week-old puppy) was back today at the Wolf Center, bouncing around and climbing on me while I tried to work. While I was working in the office, I was sitting on the floor while I cut inserts and put them into brochures. Gemma came bounding in and jumped all over me and licked my chin. She's such a cutie, but she's a total attention whore. She also liked to tug and chew on my shirt sleeves, pant legs, hiking boots, and occasionally my hand. And when she accidentally figured out the zipper on my fleece pullover, there was no end to the hilarity. :P In between picking up Gemma and trying to move her out of my lap, I somehow managed to get work done!

The girls (remember our little Mexican jumping beans? :P) were out running around when I got there. Oh lordy, they're so pretty. I also shadowed the manager while she did an education program and tour for junior high kids, so I can learn how the programs work. One of our wolves was howling today - yay! The males and females are separated right now because the females are in heat and we don't want pups this year. So one of the males was standing at the fence, staring at the females and howling. He just wanted some booty! ;) I absolutely LOVE that sound, though. So hauntingly beautiful. If anyone comes across a nature CD of wolf howls, let me know! :D

There was some patchy snow up there, too! That made me so happy. It was pretty much confined to the shade and north-facing slopes (since they don't get sun) but it was still cool to see.

And 'cause I've been reading Atlantis fanfic all evening, here's a few recs:
So Serious It's short. Just read it. :P
Tease That ending - squeeee!
Marshmallow as Metaphor The Sparky cuteness is overwhelming! XD