Brookfield Zoo

Today I went to Brookfield Zoo. I am amazed at how much crap is there to distract children from the animals. I think there are four playgrounds and a merry-go-round. There is also a Family Play Zoo, where, according to their website, children can pretend to be zoo animals or zookeepers.

From my observations, there were more kids on the playground at any given time than in one of the animal houses. I saw kids who went into Tropic World and just kept walking without even glancing at the monkeys. What 3-year-old doesn't like monkeys? As I was walking past one of these stupid playgrounds (there wasn't even a swing set), one little girl was crying because she didn't want to leave. What's wrong with this kid? The zoo has penguins, giraffes and elephants. Why do you want to play at some lame, swing set-less piece of crap playground?

I would not be writing this if it were just a handful of kids. It was a lot of kids who had very little interest in the animals. Not that long ago, all kids loved animals and got excited when the rhino sprayed pee everywhere. I wonder what happened? I'm not that hip with current children's programming, but are there not enough nature shows or something?

My little sister loved Jack Hanna and the Discovery Channel. Zoo animals are awesome. What's wrong with these kids?

And that merry-go-round is uber whack. A brand new house could have been built on that spot instead of that hunk of garbage. Or, for money making purposes, build another store or snack shop.

Little kids should be taught about conservation and the planet and stuff like that. They should be taught an appreciation for wildlife and the rain forest. Obviously, they are not since they are more preoccupied with some inferior, dumb park.

It's not the parents fault either this time! All the parents were desperately trying to sweet talk their kids into looking at the animals. One father couldn't even get his daughter to show an interest in the lion. It's a lion for Christ sakes!

I blame Brookfield Zoo. They don't charge anything to play at the playgrounds, so why have them? Why don't they want the kids to be excited about seeing the animals? If they want the zoo to be more kid friendly, they should have the volunteers interact with the children more so they can learn about the animals they are seeing. Right now they are just sitting behind tables with some snapping turtle skulls and a donation jar.

If youngen's don't start caring about wildlife, there will be no future in conservation and then our beloved animals will die, like the woolly mammoth. ( I love Lyuba. I need to visit her again soon.)

PS: At lunch, a mother changed her baby's diaper at the table next to mine. Disgusting! People are going to eat at that table. When I gave her a disgusted look, she looked at me like I was the one with the problem. What a sick ass!

PPS: There was a couple trying to find the Panda exhibit, because the woman saw a picture of a panda on a postcard at the gift shop. I didn't tell them that 1935 was the last time Brookfield Zoo had a panda but it is now stuffed and on display at the Field Museum if they really want to see it.