Rogue River Report

We had perfect weather for our Rogue River Rafting Adventure last weekend. Unfortunately I don't have any photos from the actual rafting because I was afraid to take my camera on the white water adventure. But, boy did I wish I had my camera when we got to the end of the run. Graves Creek where we pulled out was the start of a 55 mile trail along the river with spectaular views.

Indian Mary State Park turned out to be a beautiful, grassy campground, packed full of American families celebrating their holiday. It does a heart good to see campgrounds still doing so well – sometimes I worry they will become a lost American icon like drive-in movie theatres or Coney Island.

Check out some pics (the rest are on my flickr page):

Third Eye Blind

My devotion for this band was reinvigorated by a recent concert. They seem like such down-to-earth guys in person and their songs really tell a story you can visualize, relate to, and actually feel. Which is a lot more than you can say for most of the music on the radio these days.

Rumor has it they are releasing a new album this summer. Be on the lookout for “Ursa Major,” it is bound to be awesome.

Memorial Day Weekend

I'm really excited for this weekend. For my first adventure into south-central Oregon I am going to be camping and white water rafting on the Rogue River with a bunch of friends. Plus, our campground has a disc golf course so I just went to the disc golf store and got a driver (actually it's called a #2 roller and it is tie-dye orange) and a putter (it's blue). I had no idea there were so many different kinds of discs for disc golf! I got a disc golf disc when I was 12 for a girl scout event but promptly made the mistake of giving it to the dog.

More about rafting: we are doing a self-guided adventure down 13.6 miles of "some whitewater" and "mostly whitewater" from Hog's Creek to Graves Creek along the Rogue River. I hope those creek names don't actually have anything to do with what you see there.

I'm guessing I'm going to be like the person in the front left of this picture I found: having a great time but not really knowing what to do (or as Gomer Pyle would say with a slight southern twang "Sick as a dog, but havin' the time of my life"):

My Third Press Release

I just sent out my third press release, but what is new about this one, is that it is not about an event, so it required a different kind of writing, and even a little bit of research and fact checking. Read it here (top link under "Recent Press Releases"). I gave a presentation at the local Audubon Society chapter meeting last night. I thought it went well and one of CoosWA's board members who happened to be at the meeting even came up to me afterwards and said "Great speech! None of this would be happening without you." I thanked him politely but at the same time thinking "Hahh, what wouldn't be happening? Only 2 people came to my last meeting!" But then, I realized, although the actual engagement of community members part is happening really slowly, I am accomplishing a lot considering that I started from scratch.

So, the next time you are bummed about work or home and are thinking you aren't making a difference... Just remember, none of the good stuff would be happening without you, and concentrate on that!

Word of the Day: Zeitgeist

Although it was a beautiful weekend for hiking, Charleston is back to being its chilly, drizzly self. No wonder I am looking forward to a long weekend in sunny coastal Virginia, although I wouldn’t mind a good ol’ thunderstorm thrown in.

Thunder snow and narwals… ah the things you will learn at environment.nationalgeographic.com. For example, I learned that a recent study has found that the narwal is now the most vulnerable animal to global warming due to its restricted geographic distribution, specific migration routes, and specialized diet, a distinction previously held by the polar bear. I also was amazed to learn that a blue whale’s heart is the size of a mini cooper (the car that is) and can weigh up to 2,000 pounds (weighing in slightly less than the car).

And speaking of animals affected by climate change, I also recently learned of the plight of the mountain-dwelling American pika. Never heard of it? Me neither, but it’s adorable! It is a small mammal with thick fur, which calls rocky mountain areas with cool temperatures home. Too bad, that type of habitat is fast disappearing due to an overall warming of our climate. To put it more ominously, “scientists are concerned that pikas are now running out of room as they move to higher locations in the mountains.” Noooooo!

Here’s a photo I found of the aftermath of the first Earth Day on the Mall in DC. It’s disappointing to see trash everywhere, the downside of bringing too many activists together in one place, I guess. There is one life goal to live by; try to be less of a trash producer.

The after math – April 23, 1970

Photograph by Bob Daugherty/AP

Angel [for the watershed] in the Centerfold

Page A4, bottom right corner, next to the centerfold… that’s right… my first letter to the editor was published on Wednesday all about “What is the Coos watershed anyway?”

You can probably read it better here, but it is always cooler to see your name in a print newspaper that just got delivered to thousands of people’s doorsteps! Hopefully a few hundred people will read it and gain a better understanding of what a watershed is, check out our website, and either donate or sign-up to volunteer!

Animals Love Me

And I love them too.

Two weeks ago I had some remarkable experiences with other people’s animal companions that reminded me that animals love me. At one friend’s house I was laying on the couch watching the Golden Girls and eating tortilla chips when her huge dog named “Boo” climbed up on the couch. Now, you may be thinking what I was thinking at the time, this dog just wants my tortilla chips. But, no, Boo laid down full length next to me on the couch and rested his head on my shoulder.

Later that night I was laying on a different friend’s couch trying to go to sleep when their dog “Collie Dog” decided to demand an ear rub by sticking her head in my face and whacking my hand around with her wet nose every time I tried to stop rubbing her ears. Finally we both got to sleep, but what did I find when I was woken up by the bright mountain dawn at 5 am but “Christmas Kittie” tightly curled in front of me taking up the rest of the couch.

My brother sent me one of those annoying chain e-mails a couple of weeks ago. I know, I know, but I decided to scroll through the funny pictures of animals. But then I came across a really sad picture (see right).

The person watching these two come together must have been bawling their eyes out by the end. I can only hope that the photographer found homes for the two lonely sweetie pies but I feel more than sadness when I look at this photo. I feel hope that you’re never alone as long as you have one friend, no matter how different you may seem to the rest of the world.

Yay Its May

So, the "swine" flu has reached Virginia, and another 270 square miles of ice has fallen off of the Antarctic shelf, but life continues on in rainy Charleston.

So, on a happenstance google experience today I discovered that there is (was) such a company as Marley Bikes that made really affordable, assemble-it-yourself beach cruiser bikes. They came in three colors (I want the purple). But the company (that even donated 10% of their profits to environmental and humanitarian causes) has gone out of business and I don't really trust the only website that seems to be offering an out of date order form for them. Ain't that just the way it goes.