This video of the mommy and baby Jaguar's is from March 5th 2010, filmed at Mesker Zoo in Evansville, IN.  The video does a good job of showing just how close patrons can get to the animals and the ingenuity put into the design of the Jaguar cage.

Complete with concrete foot prints and glass cage, it's truly an experience for adults and kids.  I'd also like to mention that it's best to visit the Zoo as early in the morning as possible, it seems that this is the most active time for the animals.  On this particular day the Jaguar was even more active, since it was the first warm sunny day of the year.

Enjoy the Mesker Zoo Jaguar video below:

My wife and daughter were able to go check out the latest addition to Mesker Zoo in Evansville, Indiana.  They were also nice enough to record some video of the Rhino, complete with his punching bag.

I first noticed one of the residents of Evansville on Twitter asking why Evansville stunk.  Figured it had something to do with his specific location.  Unfortunately as soon as I walked outside I smelled what seemed like a pile of rotting wet rags.

Since then there have been 2 others mention the stench that seems to be moving all over the city.  Of course there hasn't been an official response or comment in the media, Hoyt of Channel 14 WFIE made an observation.

Likely farming. We did a story out of Gibson Co. about using turkey litter which has strong smell when it gets wet and warmer.

So, if you are outside today and wondering what's crawling up your nose, it's probably fertilizer.  The warmer temperatures bring out more than greenery and wild life, it also brings out the squiggly stink lines.

*Update

According to Jeff Lyons we are experiencing a weather condition called Inversion.  This conditions normally causes conditions for smog, but in our case can intensify the stench of the city dump and fertilizers being used on nearby farms.

Also, added this to the weather category.

I'm a child of the internet, but even so I still haven't came to terms with buying large purchases online.  Rather, I can't stomach buying hardly anything online, no matter the price.  Some of the problem is that I'm an immediate gratification kind of person, when I buy it, I want it now, now after a few days shipping.  Also, I just don't like the idea of my info floating around and not in the intertubes, but rather to whoever Joe Blow happens to be looking at the order database.

Because of my fears I always price items online and then try to buy them locally.  This usually ends with me paying a little bit more from the store, but a convenience I'm willing to pay for.  My latest purchase has taught me to be even more diligent in my research when buying from a big chain store.

From my postings you can see that I purchased a new Flip Ultra HD camcorder.  I think it's the coolest thing since sliced bread, especially since you can purchase one online for as little as $150 from Amazon.  So, for reasons stated above I looked at the prices on BestBuy.com.  Pricing was within $10, something I could live with, so I took off to the Best Buy on the east side of Evansville.

At Best Buy I noticed that the Flip video cameras were vastly higher than they were online.  Consider that the same camera online was priced $40 cheaper and no indication of a sale price.  Furthermore, there was an open box model that sold for still more than a brand new item at BestBuy.com!

I'm not against brick 'n mortar locations making money and paying for a convenience.  I just don't think they should be taking advantage of people trusting they will get the best price, especially when it's advertised for much lower online from the same company.

The Best Buy employee was happy to match the online price from BestBuy.com, but not from Amazon.com.  The stores policy is to only honor pricing online when the company has a local presence.  Meaning, they would match a Target.com price, but not a NewEgg.com price.  So keep this in mind if you are out buying pricey new toys, check online first and don't trust 'On Sale' pricing at the store.

Spent my lunch break walking around Garvin Park yesterday.  I'll head over there on a regular basis to eat my lunch in peace in my truck, but yesterday I wanted to get some video of the ducks and geese walking on ice.  I also shot some footage of kids that instructed me that they were the only ones that fed the hungry animals, so it was their job to take care of them.

Without question, I know the cold animals appreciated the fresh bread.

I hope that I can film more events and locations in Evansville, as time allows. If you have any recommendations or things you would like to see, please let me know.

Why do you think downtown, in regards to Evansville, is such a bad word?  Anyone you talk to has an opinion and generally it creates a heated discussion on what can, should, and shouldn't be done.  This type of argument generally doesn't happen in comparative sized cities, so what gives?

Is it possible that downtown Evansville has been created without the consent of those that matters, the residents of Evansville?  Consider that some projects downtown have faced tough opposition, no matter the out come for as long as I can remember.  Casino Aztar was the first big change that happened downtown in my life time, at least that had any significance.  In 1995 it was met with lots of promises, a fixed budget, and controversy through it's first year.  Most notably it failed to hire the promised 90% of employees from Vanderburgh County.

Events have become a topic amongst those arguing over downtown as well, specifically over pricing.  Thunder On The Ohio is an annual even that continues to plummet in popularity and face scrutiny by residents.  The 2009 Freedom Festival was no exception and faced opposition from loyal visitors every year, claiming the event was turning into a money grab.  At $20 per person to get in it's easy to see why.

Compare the Evansville Freedom Festival to similar events in our Tri-State area like the Owensboro BBQ Fest, Blue Grass in The Park in Henderson, it just doesn't add up...at least for paying residents.  Why can't we make our events work for the community, instead of be a money making endeavor?  If we're going to run it as a cash cow why not just privatize the entire area, much like Louisville has with Fourth Street Live?

Personally I'm sick and tired of watching all the tax payer dollars to go research firms that yield no results.  How about we stop starting projects where we aren't able to financially support them to completion.  Lastly, can we just slow down and not rush through agendas before the end of our term, I'm looking at you Mayor.  I'm fed up with a very select few not listening to their constituents and making sweeping changes that will force tax payer money to another failing downtown change.

Instead, lets start listening to other cities that have had wild success with creating a downtown where people want to go.  That is unless revitalizing doesn't mean what I think it does and instead our city leaders are more focused on putting money in their own pockets and padding those of their friends.

The snow that dropped on us last night was not nearly wet enough to create a snow ball or a snow man for that matter.  But it does look pretty and hasn't created terrible conditions, as far as I can tell.

I did enjoy the fact that I only had to brush the snow off my windows this morning, instead of scraping and chipping at 1" of ice like last January.  That's right, remember the January 09 snow storm?  This wasn't a storm, this was a light dusting of sprinkly goodness.

Hard to believe that the storm moving through last night was supposed to surpass the nastiness we had in December of 04, at least here in Evansville.  Perhaps we should be thanking our lucky stars we aren't further north.  Now it's time to just hunker down and prepare for the bitter cold. brrrr

Well, we were promised a white Christmas, but we who travel dodged that bullet.  However, it looks like tonight will be the first snow of the year.  Evansville has been under a Winter advisory all day, which will last until 6:00 pm tomorrow, when we will finish up our 3"-5" of snow.  I hope they are right, if it's gonna be cold, at least add some snow so it looks pretty too.

For those looking to make snowmen, I wouldn't get your hopes up, but snow angels should be possible.  According to our local meteorologists it will amount to white dust, which will most likely be blowing in my eyes tomorrow on my way to work.

At any rate, Happy New Year to Evansville, Indiana!  I look forward to developing some reviews, commentary, and meeting those of you in the community.  Let me know if you are working on something you'd like a little more exposure on, especially if it's a good cause.

Thanksgiving means family, friends, food and the circus! A family tradition our whole family looks forward to is going to the circus on Thanksgiving Day. What better way to relax after eating a yummy feast?

The 76th annual Hadi Shrine Circus is coming to Evansville once again from Thanksgiving Day through Sunday. There are two shows on Thursday, three on Friday and Saturday and an afternoon show on Sunday. We have always attended the evening show until we had a daughter. Now we try to make it to the afternoon show on Thanksgiving Day because it is less crowded and easier for her to stay awake for the three hour show. Ticket prices range from $17-$22 for reserved seats and $12 for general admission. We usually get general admission which seems like a pretty good value considering you would pay almost as much for a ticket to the movies these days!

The acts are usually similar from year to year with trapeze artists, performing animals and of course the clowns! I have been every year of my life and even though not much is new each year to the show, I can remember being a little girl anticipating my favorite parts. In this way, I am grateful the circus is similar each year. I know what to expect and I know its going to be fun! The elephants and tigers have a similar act each year but the kids love it when they come out! The Kenya Wizards are a newer act that is always a crowd favorite. They dance to African music and tumble all over the place. Even though they are grown men, they seem to have so much energy and are able to stack themselves on top of one another like incredibly complex cheerleaders! There are also jugglers, tight rope walkers, motorcycle tricks and all types of animals from dogs to bears to monkeys performing in each of the three rings. The circus always begins with a parade and ends with a "bang" with typical circus music performed by a live band from beginning to end.

Last year our daughter really loved all of the music, lights and of course the animals. Experiencing traditions through the eyes of my daughter is what makes my holidays so magical and I know taking a two year old to the circus will be very exciting!

Its my favorite time of year! I love the fall for so many reasons but the most important, as always, are the traditions that are repeated during this amazing time of year. For our family it has always been the start of the craziest months of the year. My career has been in the retail industry for the past nine years. Now that I am lucky enough to just work part-time this will be the first year that my job will take a backseat to the fun holiday events.

Our fall really kicked off with our trip to Boo at the Zoo. It was amazing and spending a whole weekend with my family was a dream come true. It was the beginning of so many family traditions for this time of year. But the month of November always seems to go by so quickly which brings us to Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is becoming one of my favorite holidays mainly because of how little stress goes into it. We always spend the first half of our day at the grandparent's house and then we head to the Circus.

The Hadi Shrine Circus is a tradition for my side of our family. We always go on Thanksgiving day. I can't wait to see how our two year old daughter reacts this year to the amazing show.

I also have a deep love for Christmas and my Christmas season usually starts before Thanksgiving. Perhaps this is because I was raised in Santa Claus, IN. I'm sure working in retail, where our holiday season starts mid-October doesn't help the matter. Its so hard to go to work and listen to Christmas music and come home to Halloween decorations. So this year I'm sure will be unlike the ones past in that I will be begging my husband to start decorating in November.

Sometimes the anticipation is just as much fun as the actual event. This is certainly the case for me this Autumn. So as we are right in the middle of this very fun and very busy season I hope to that it doesn't pass too fast. I hope to focus on what matters most, making memories and spending time with my family.