Uniqueness

Be Who You Are

Be who you are

Not what the world

Wants you to be 

Be proud of your individuality

Stand proud

Walk tall

Embrace your inner freak

For there is only one of you

You are priceless and unique 

By David De'Vere

The Ugly Duckling 

  As I was walking to the park where I usually stand to observe I noticed this unusual duck maybe goose ? But this unusual bird hung out with the ducks well mostly ducks. I wondered if it were just a little duckling that was barely growing into an adult duck. 

  I had the curiosity to do my researching on the baby duck and on how it looked as it was young. I researched what kind of bird it was on Whatbird.com, and it turned out to be an American coot, this bird swam like a duck but was not one. Instead of webbed toes it had lobed toes according to the website, Whatbird.com. (Also shown in my field notes photo). It's natural habitat was the coastal bays and inlets, often on rafts during winter. But what was it doing in the pond? In the website, Whatbird.com, the American coots perfferred habitats are ponds and marshes. 

                   (My field notes photo-10/15)

  I find this duck very beautiful because its' way of how it stands out. Like if it were proud of what it was, no matter if even it knew it was different from all the rest. 

(Why does it have to be windy? Anyways! Well today I'm walking to my observation, but I haven't spotted a lot of ducks or geese. Maybe because of the weather changing? I saw this unusual bird in the water floating with the others. It had blue feathers and a white beak, and strange looking webbed feet that were colored black with grayish/greenish. I wonder what type of duck or to be more specific bird it was. My field notes 10/15)

                      (My field notes photo 10/15)

A picture of the coot in the water from where I was observing it. Then at a distance is the crowd of ducks that stuck close to this unusual bird. 

  Then I noticed the coot slowly start to separate itself from the crew, which was the ducks. I wondered if this bird knew it was different from the rest as the ugly duckling did, although it wasn't ugly it was beautiful which stood out to me. The only reason the coot swam with ducks is because it loves or enjoys to swim like them. 

  Regardless of the coot being different I loved the way it sent messages that showed how it embraced itself. It may have been unique from the rest, but being different is better because it means no one gets to see something like itself often. It's always important to be "who you are," and embrace it, being unique is always a great thing when it comes to people noticing it. 

Works Cited

De'Vere,David. "Be Who You Are."   Theunlikelypoet.com. N.p.n.d. Web. Oct. 26, 2014. 

"AmericanCoot," www.whatbird.com. MitchWaiteGroup. 2002-2013. Web. Oct. 28, 2014. 

 

Curious

"It's amazing how this park has changed since the first day, the trees are turning different colors. Maybe because of the change in temperature! Anyways, I haven't been observing the birds a lot lately, cause there is a lot more than just birds. Today I saw a hole in the ground, I took a look at it more closely and whatever animal did this has amazing abilities but I wonder what animal did this, maybe a rabbit?" (My field notes 10/18) 

        (My field notes photos-10/18)

 A picture of the hole I observed and took a closer look at. I got closer to the hole I saw a squirrel run it's little feet across the other side. I wonder if squirrels can make holes that deep? 

 I researched if squirrels can dig holes and it turned out to be true. According to the web site http://ucanr.edu/sites/Ground_Squirrel_BMP/Biology/Identifying_Burrows/

Squirrels can dig holes up to three feet deep and four inches in diameter. Many of the squirrels that dig up the holes usually end up leaving them abandon because they either: die, there's lack of food, they found a new area to dig, and invasion of pest species.

        (My field notes photos-10/18)

 Squrriels dig burrows usually underneath rocks, logs, or other protective structure. Many of these burrows have interconnected systems with multiple entrances and exits, to according the web site Ucanr.edu. 

 All along I thought it was a rabbit hole, but apparently I was wrong. My curiosity, made me learn new things about squirrels I never knew. It's always a good idea to keep your eyes open and always have a curious mind. 

Proud and Beautiful

Proud and Beautiful 

AFTER you have spent all the money modistes and manicures and mannikins will take for fixing you over into a thing the people on the streets call proud and beautiful,

After the shops and fingers have worn out all they have and know and can hope to have and know for the sake of making you what the people on the streets call proud and beautiful,
After there is absolutely nothing more to be done for the sake of staging you as a great enigmatic bird of paradise and they must all declare you to be proud and beautiful,
After you have become the last word in good looks, insofar as good looks may be fixed and formulated, then, why then, there is nothing more to it then, it is then you listen and see how voices and eyes declare you to be proud and beautiful

By Carl Sandburg  

Always stand proud and beautiful; 

         (Field notes photo 10/2) 

 As this little bush plant I found as I walked the other side of the park. Which weren't much although there were a lot of bushes, trees, and a pond. This beautiful plant was standing out because of the colors of it's leaves. 

        (Field notes photo 10/2)

Another photo of what I call a captivating tree. It brought my attention because out of all the trees, this was the only one that had a yellowish-greenish leave color. Which indeed, I thought was beautiful as well. 

       (Field notes photo 10/2) 

In this photo, it's a quick glance of what the pond looked like from my view of it. I thought the moon was standing proud and beautiful as it waited for it's turn to shine as the sun went down. I also, thought this was beautiful. 

 It's always a good thing to stand out, that way more people can actually notice you. Which it relates to the poem I chose for my blog, because we "listen and see how voices and eyes declare you to be proud and beautiful." 

*(I hope my poem got my point across, even if it made little sense) 

In Beauty There's Ugly

   Today I'm noticing a lot of trash in the park, and also in the water. It seems like us humans don't really care about nature. We're polluting living animals homes, more like destroying their only homes! (Part of my field notes)

 In my last observations I only paid close attention to the birds. But recently I started noticing the little things that occurred in the park. I observed with great care how polluted the birds water is. Do people even care about these poor animals? " We Humans" don't necessarily take in mind what we throw to the water, or even think about who or what we're hurting. Paradise Park is not only a park it's more than just that: it's a home, shelter, free spaced place where one lives freely. There's garbage in the water, and all around the park. 

(A photo of only a section of the water my field notes photos-10/3) 

 This is a photo of the water, specifically a section of it. The park maybe "beautiful" from far away but its "ugly" is only seen if you actually observe with great care. A park should be contained clean and healthy! But it's indeed the opposite. 

The water is no longer clear, it's hard to see inside it. "Around this beauty is ugly". But I wonder how many animals have died because of how dirty the water is? (Second part of my field notes)

( A closer look of the water my field notes photos-10/3) 

 Overall, we shouldn't treat this park badly. We should embrace nature and keep it healthy, also keep in mind what animals live there. The park is not called "Paradise Park" for a reason; we should maintain it a paradise for the animals.