I've Reached 50 Birds!

Yes, I am ridiculously about this. I've been making guesses about what bird will be my 50th, and I had made the following list: Mountain Bluebird, Mountain Chickadee, Common Raven, any Grebe, Steller's Jay, Common Grackle, Horned Lark, and the like. Really, it would be a matter of where I was.
Here is the little story attached to my 50th bird.
This morning I had scheduled to take my sister's senior portraits after I got home from practice. We had planned on taking "artsy" shots with the sun, but unfortunately the clouds moved in and the sun completely disappeared from view. We got dropped off near a berm that had optimal photographic qualities. After taking a few photos, we decided to see if the pond on the other side had any decent spots. Upon reaching the top of the berm, I immediately exclaimed "American Avocet! It's my 50th!" I had (sadly) been forced into taking off my birding lens in exchange for my 50mm portrait lens, so I did not get any good close-ups of the Avocets. There were also a couple Killdeer, 2 Canada Geese, and many Red-Wing Blackbirds. The major highlight (along with the photos that yielded) were my newest addition to my Life List, the American Avocet, but I also got to see a new state bird, Killdeer.

This is a major step-up for me, however small it may seem. I've only been hard-core birding since I went to see my grandparents in December, although I've been mildly interested in birds for years. I now wonder what my 100th bird will be, and hope that it will be as memorable as my 50th, or perhaps even more so.
Here is my link to my eBird checklist

American Avocets with Killdeer flying in the middle

American Avocets

Sandhill Cranes and Wild Adventures

This weekend, my mom and I decided to travel out to the Nebraska Sandhills to see the Greater Sandhill Cranes with the Boulder County Audubon Society.

We set out at 9:45 on Friday morning for Lewellen, NE. The first adventure was running into a 40 second long hail storm on I-76, which I quickly photographed for documentation.
PS-click on the photos to view them larger.

Our first stop was in Big Springs, NE for a quick lunch where I got my first "official" birds for the trip: male and female house sparrows. I had seen some unidentifiable buteos and something that looked kind of like a grouse while on I-76, but since I couldn't ID them, I didn't count them.

House Sparrow

After arriving in Lewellen around 1:30pm with plenty of time before the potluck at 6:30, we drove over to Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge, hoping to see some waterfowl. On the way to the (closed) visitor center I got many lifers including my favorite bird, the Wood Duck, whom we spotted flying from a wooded marshy area just off the road.

Wood Ducks

Another highlight was the four Killdeer that I spotted (and heard) while heading back.

Killdeer

Just before turning around in Crescent Lake NRW, we watched these White-Tailed Deer.

We had just enough time to check in to our motel room on the north side of Lake McConaughy before meeting at the Old Lewellen Bridge, just south of Lewellen.

Old Lewellen Bridge

Our group had the privilege of enjoying a fantastic fly-in of the Greater Sandhill Cranes just after sunset, apparently one of the better ones that our leader has seen. The sky was clear of clouds, allowing the last rays of the sun to permeate the North Platte and shed a cool glow upon the horizon.

The Fly-In

Sunset

We left fairly soon after the fly-in as to get back to our motel in time to get some sleep before our 5:20am awakening to see the great fly-out at the main Lewellen bridge just before sunrise. Surprisingly, the morning was as clear as the night before and allowed for some great views of the cranes, including the massive liftoff.

The Cranes on the North Platte

The Fly-Out

Sunrise Over the North Platte

A skull believed to be that of an opossum

Once the majority of the cranes had gone, we regrouped and talked about the morning plans. We divided to eat breakfast and planned to get back together at Ash Hollow Cemetery for a beautiful walk through Ash Hollow area.

We all learned about Rachel E Pattison who had recently been married and almost immediately after her marriage, started off on the Oregon Trail. She died at Ash Hollow area of cholera, one among many deaths due to cholera in this area, despite Ash Hollow having the first potable water in 300 miles.

The leader of the group, Steve Jones, lead us through Ash Hollow, along with his friend Jeff, the superintendent of Ash Hollow. I completely forgot about taking photos of the different species of long grass, native grasses, and other plants that we came upon, but I do remember their names. We saw Little Bluestem, Indian Grass, Buffalo Grass, Switch Grass, Canada Wild Rye, some "clown" sage, and a Sandhill x Little Bluestem hybrid.

Also seen (by me only, I think) was a pair of mating water striders.

Aquarius Remigis - Water Striders

Throughout the trip we encountered numerous "odd" things that you normally wouldn't come across in a city, which we spent a good deal of time laughing about.

While en route to Crescent Lake, we had a semi with a trailer chase us up and down the gravel roads in the middle of nowhere. I'm not sure what the semi was doing there or where it was going, but it was too funny to not snap a picture.

I noticed this sign for Omaha Beach while going to our motel just off of Lake McConaughy. I though it was very weird because a) We weren't in France b) Omaha is around 300 miles away c) Omaha Beach wasn't a good place from WWII, and d) The beach isn't really a beach at this part of lake, as far as I know.

I laughed pretty hard at this ironic installment of plumbing at our motel, considering that we were there to watch the cranes.

We saw this sign in Ash Hollow State Historical Area, referring to the fresh spring water that the pioneers found.

Although I don't have photographic proof, I do have a great story of this one. I was in charge of packing all of the food for this trip, so I planned ahead and made granola bars. Here is what I packed: 5 big granola bars, 4 apples, 2 bananas, 2 oranges, crackers, and some almonds. Seems like that'd be good for a few meals, right? Not so much. Before dinner on Friday night, 3 granola bars, 1 apple, the crackers, and half the almonds were already eaten. I had not planned out how hungry I'd be and thus didn't pack enough food. So, on Saturday morning we each had a orange and I ate the granola bar, leaving 3 apples and half the almonds left over. After the fly-out, we were both starving and headed over to Oshkosh to grab a bite to eat. Luckily for us, the local cafe was accommodating and we found 2 things we could eat: a fruit bowl and hashbrowns. The fruit cup, however, wasn't fresh fruit. It was canned plums. Plums! Who eats canned plums? Well, I do, apparently. We ended up having a distinct lack of food the entire trip and thoroughly enjoyed a meal of beans and rice when we returned home.

One of the things that I thought about a lot of the trip was our group. Varied as it was, the vast majority were in their 50s and 60s, perhaps some even older. I was the second youngest and my mom was the third youngest, to give some perspective. Yes, that makes 2 "kids" on the trip, total. It made me realize that this generation of birders and naturalists (those in their 50s and 60s) is eventually going to die, and there won't be anyone to replace them if we aren't careful. Is my generation so removed from nature that they won't have any passion for protecting and preserving it? That whole idea is so disturbing that I'd rather not think of what the world will be like when I'm older.

This trip was almost what I'd call a dream trip for me. It was quiet and contemplative, exactly what I have been looking for. I really loved the feeling of being able to go anywhere and do anything with my life on my back. I carried around all my clothes and equipment with me and left virtually nothing at the motel. (I left my knitting, but I knew I wasn't going to use it anyways.) I really like having that freedom. I don't have to worry about forgetting anything and I actually didn't miss anything at home. It makes me wonder now that I really need to be happy. Perhaps I own way too much stuff that I think makes me happy but instead is clogging my life with unnecessary things.

Seeing these cranes isn't something I'll forget anytime soon, especially with their bugles engrained into my mind. The hauntingly beautiful and old notes that rang across the skies aren't something that you can try to recreate, you have to be there and watch them fly in to the same spots that they've been roosting in for thousands of years to really understand the history and pure beauty of the Greater Sandhill Cranes.

List of birds found:
Northern Harrier
Canvasback
Redhead
Northern Shoveler
Killdeer
Wood Duck
Red-Tailed Hawk
Red-Winged Blackbird
Canada goose
Bufflehead
Double-Crested Cormorant
Common Goldeneye
Mallard
Rough-Legged Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Bald Eagle
Lesser Scaup
Marsh Wren (heard only)
Turkey Vulture
Wild Turkey
House Finch
House Sparrow
Eurasian Collared-Dove
American Robin
Western Meadowlark
American Kestrel
Green-Winged Teal
Ruddy Duck

The Story of Me. Kind of.

I confess, it has been too long since I last blogged. I wish I could say that I’ve gotten lots of new lifers or had amazing adventures, but to tell the truth, barely anything interesting has happened. I got two lifers. One: a European Starling. Yes, they are everywhere and I don’t know how I’ve be continually missing them, but I finally got one. (Or a dozen) 

Two: An American Kestrel. I chased this one down the trail while running. 

I’ve started running again, too, which is a blessing. I love being able to explore the trails again. I’m very behind everyone else on the team, but I’m trying not to let that get to me. I’m at just shy of 3 miles now, which isn’t terrible considering when I started running 2 weeks ago I could only do a mile and a half. I’m supposed to be adding 3 minutes every 2 days, and so far that has been working great. Anyways, let me get back on the topic of my post: My story. 

I’m starting out with these statements because I think they are important to note, so please read them. 

The things I do, the choices I make, they aren’t about other people. I don’t care if people judge me. I don’t care if people think that I’m doing something to be just like them. I’m not. 

I’ve always been interested in the environment. When I was in elementary school, my mom picked up different science books for me to do. One, in particular, was all about birds. I loved it and poured my heart into learning all about them, just like I did when I took botany and astronomy. I remember thinking to myself as I read about orioles and vireos that I really wanted to see one of their nests in person because they looked pretty awesome. I still remembered them before I got interested in birds (again).

When I was around 7 or 8 years old, we drove to our grandparents house in Ohio. They had a forest in their backyard (I was small; it looked like a forest) that I was desperate to explore. I clearly remember talking to one of my cousins about how I really wanted someone to go with me into the forest, and how I wished I would have brought my backpack with me. She jokingly told me that if I walked home to get it, I could be back in two days. I seriously considered it and weighed my options. Needless to say, I didn’t walk back to Omaha to retrieve my backpack. While I didn’t get to explore the forest, I happy to say that it didn’t discourage me. 

As a family, we traveled out to Estes Park nearly every summer. I enjoyed hiking and the mountains more than the shopping (but at that age, I couldn’t tell anyone why, I just knew I’d rather be hiking) but trooped along anyways. I do have a few memories hiking some trails past Bear Lake and being exhausted, but that is only to be expected if you’re at high altitude and new to climbing up big steps (hey, I was young; everything looked big). One day on the trip (tradition!) we’d get up early to get donuts at Donut Haus and travel up to Bear Lake to eat them for breakfast, followed by a little jaunt around the lake. 

I’ve always enjoyed photography, too. In April 2012, my grandpa gave me and my sister (Becca) his old Canon Rebel XT. I didn’t know anything about photography (DSLR photography, that is. I’d entered numerous times into the county fair with my point and shoot, with varying success) except that I wanted to get the shots with the blurry background. That was my first DSLR (I still have it, of course) and the first time I got super excited about taking photos. In March 2013, I bought my own camera, a Canon 60D and lens (Canon f/1.8 50mm EF). That summer I got a job and seriously considered buying a larger telephoto lens so I could get the far-away shots that I so craved. I didn’t cave in until February of this year, when I purchased my first ‘L’ series lens, a Canon 70-200mm f/4.0L USM. I’m now addicted to big lenses and am plotting purchasing a 100-400mm lens for bird photography. 

Speaking of birds, I’m excited to say that they are a new interest to me. Like I mentioned before, I was mildly interested in my childhood, but never pursued it. We would get robins that would nest below our deck, and I (squeamishly, now) remember opening the patio door and seeing all of the robin chicks stick their bills up into the air, thinking that their momma was close by about to give them a snack. I’d pull out my (cheap) point & shoot Canon camera and snap a few shots of them. A few weeks later, I was out on our porch when I saw a juvenile robin fly up and land on the railing. I ran and grabbed my camera and luckily robin was quite cooperative. It stayed there and looked at me. It wasn’t scared, because it stayed there quite a long time, gently hopping from side to side, looking around. One of those years that we got the robins’ nests, one juvenile accidentally flew into our house, got scared, and hid behind a bookcase. I wasn’t there to witness it (I’m still a little angry about that), but I heard a detailed report which included taking out all of the books (the bookcase was around 4’ x 5’ x 1’) and herding the bird back out to the yard, all while keeping our dog from getting involved. 

If you know me, you’ll know that I have a long list of interests. Probably because I get bored (or master it, i.e., knitting) fairly easily. I knit, crochet, spin yarn, draw, do photography, run, climb, some cooking (that’s what happens when you have so many eating restrictions), embroidery, sewing, violin (At least, I used to. I still pick it up occasionally), and maintain this blog. Oh, not to mention birding, as well. Plus camping and hiking. 

I love learning new things, but I really just love a challenge. Learn to ID by sight and sound for hundreds of birds? Count me in! 

It keeps me busy and always thinking, too, which helps as I am often bored at class. 

Basically, that is the story of me. 

Education And Things That Are Overlooked

I've often been criticized for voicing my opinion on going to a public school. I don't see why people should bash a good conversation about education. It's terribly important and seems to be a neglected subject. Perhaps it is because I'm a current student at a school and my opinion must mean that I'm either complaining or whining. But I'm not. I have a genuine concern for how the school system works and how students' attitudes influence their education.
When I go to school every day, I try not to care how I look or dress. I don't want it to distract me from my work. However, it seems as though very few people (next to none) think the same way as I do. I see people almost obsessed with how they look or appear to the opposite sex. I don't go to school to show off or look pretty, I'm going there learn and absorb myself into the textbooks and lectures. People, this is high school. If you are even a semi-normal person you shouldn't be looking for a mate when you're in your teens. Why spend the time dressing yourself up when you could be spending that time learning? Well, because people want attention. They want compliments. They want to feel like someone cares about them or that their "beauty" is good enough to be praised. They are constantly distracted. By phones, by friends, by people whom they don't like and must talk about, by everything but their schoolwork. The system is ruined because these kids can't concentrate on their work and don't care enough about their future to work hard in the present so that their future can come to be.
The people who have their lockers next to mine complain a lot about their classes and teachers and all the stupid work they have to do.
I pity them.
Their education isn't important enough to them to take charge and learn.
Instead, they must talk and complain relentlessly. They don't seem to have a passion for anything besides talking and gossip. How can these people be the future of our world? If we think that the leaders of our countries are terrible, what are they going to be like when we grow up?

I'm quite lucky to go to a top rated high school and learn from passionate teachers. However, I can't say that I'm happy going there, regardless of the stuff I learn. If I learned one-on-one with the teachers, I can say that I'd understand so much more. And that is saying something because I learn a lot each day I attend. A good portion of the students don't care about the work. They talk incessantly and don't listen. I wish there could be a class for only people who genuinely cared. Oh, but there is supposed to be. It's called an AP or Honors class. Except that isn't how the classes are. People are always chattering about their awful weeks or amazing trips to faraway places. School isn't a place for dedicated learning anymore, it has changed into a social palace. Why should you go to school instead of being homeschooled? Because you need to make friends and be sociable! One of the things I get asked the most and also makes me the most angry is this:
"But what about your social life? You need to make friends and be around people!"
I usually answer that I do extracurricular activities and I do indeed see people doing those. They shrug and mention how they could never be homeschooled. I politely smile and walk away. What I'd love to say is that I can't handle that many people at school and I wouldn't learn anything in that environment. But I know they wouldn't understand. How do I know that? Because I've said that before. And it turns out that every single person (besides one) has said that they don't understand.

When I was fully homeschooled, my mother took aside one day per week and devoted it to art. We learned about composers and their styles, music theory, painting and painters, drawing, handwork, writers, photographers, and such. We learned how to use the right side of our brains to develop creativity and let go of our critical thinking when we drew. While I didn't always like the lessons, I always learned a lot. Music was always important in my family. All of us were enrolled in music lessons on the instrument of our choice. I chose violin. I loved listening to all the classical composers as a young child, and just after I turned seven I started lessons. I thrived. I listened to classical music all the time. I couldn't stand the typical music that was played on the radio. It had to be classical. I have fond memories of waking up on Saturday mornings to NPR playing downstairs. My dad would turn on the radio and the beautiful notes would fly up to my bedroom. I remember eating breakfast and listening to the news on NPR. That was my life. Classical music is still my ultimate relaxation music. I close my eyes and fall into this weird state where my whole body stays absolutely still. My breathing slows and I instantly calm down.
Yesterday our track team had a Saturday practice. My coach put on classical music over the sound system. I got a little nostalgic; it reminded me of my childhood. While only one person commented on the choice, I could see that most people wanted some other music. It didn't really bother me, because it is fine for people to have other preferences, but I couldn't help but wonder if they just weren't ever exposed to classical music, or if they always listened to what was popular. I'm not saying that everyone has to love classical, but like its name says, it is classic. Everyone should study it and try to appreciate it.
I think music is something missing in our school system. Yes, there are music classes, but if someone wanted to be a world class musician, they'd have to take private lessons at a expensive institute. Trust me, I know. Good quality music lessons cost good money, and not everyone can afford that. There are so many talented people who don't live in an area where they can get that kind of education. See what I mean?
Music is a gateway to the unseen. It has the ability to heal wounds and tear people apart. A world without music is unthinkable. I don't know if I could live in such a world. A major part of my life has been and will be dedicated to music. I've invested so much time into it. I've poured my heart and soul into it. It's been my helping hand when I can't get up. I'm not sure where I'd be now if it weren't for music and the amazing teachers and conductors, not to mention the composers who made this beautiful world for us to enjoy.
And it's not just music. It's art. Books, knitting, drawing, painting, and dancing.
I know I've mentioned how most people my age don't have a hobby. It is one of the most aggravating things to hear about. I can see how sports can be considered a hobby, but it can't be your life. You'll burn yourself out and will lose your passion for with what you consumed your life. You'll be lost. I know that feeling. You need something to ground you, to help you move on when things fall apart. Yes, running is something you can do almost anywhere and is a fantastic stress reliever, but what happens when you get injured and can't run? When you're stuck on the couch because you overdid it? Things start to go downhill fast when you don't have anything to keep you in line.
I desperately want people of all ages to have a hobby. Something that can calm them down. It instills a passion and appreciation for art. If I didn't knit or draw, I wouldn't have such a deep appreciation for people who enrich the lives of us all. I wouldn't care about the earth because I wouldn't have spent all this time learning about it and straining my eyes to see the details. I can't imagine how awful my life would be if art hadn't been impressed into it over my childhood.
Art is the key to my world. Without art, my world would be lost. I would be lost.
And on that note, I'll take my leave.

Adventures and New Things

Over the past week, I've done quite a lot of new things. I went out to the lake and grabbed a few new birds, tried new foods, and played with my new camera lens.
My adventures started out on Friday morning at 10:38. It was a balmy 3 degrees out, but I wasn't going to let that stop me, so I walked out the door wearing extra layers and headed towards the lake. Once I reached the lake and I saw that it was frozen over and covered in a thick layer of snow, I wondered how stupid I was. What birds would be out in this kind of weather? As it turns out, woodpeckers. I found a Hairy (new!) and 2 Red-Shafted Northern Flickers (also new, but I've gotten a yellow-shafted before). I also got some Oregon variety Juncos, Eurasian Collared-Doves (super common in our area), house finches, 2 house sparrows, a handful of Rock Pigeons, and a robin. (That last one was a little surprising, but apparently they are common year round. You learn something new everyday!) I was so caught up with my finds that I was almost late for class, but luckily I got in there just in time. That was my excursion of the week. Oh, and here are a few photos, too.

Red-Shafted Northern Flicker

This is from a different day, but tucked in between the branches in a Eurasian Collared-Dove

With my 200mm lens this is as close as I could get on the first blue jay that I've seen this winter.

And onto the next part of my post: New foods.
For the past 3 weeks I've been keeping an extensive food diary because I haven't been feeling up to par. Upon analyzing the results, it appears as if I'm gluten intolerant. Great. I'm not exactly pleased with this, but if eliminating gluten makes me feel better, then I'll do it. I'm already dairy, egg, and meat free, so adding another restriction shouldn't be terribly difficult because I've become proficient at reading labels, but it means that I can't eat all the things my family eats. Today I ventured into making GF pancakes, which were a wild success among... me. I ate all but two, which were eaten by curious family members.

The batter cooking

Stacked. Not eating them as soon as they came off the griddle was tough.

I'm excited about trying new recipes now that I'm gluten free. Or at least on a gluten free trial. Tomorrow I'll be making a breakfast smoothie and some rice crackers for a post-workout snack. And that's a wrap for tonight! Be happy and be kind to the earth. 

Not-So-Smart Moves and Drawing Things

Upon realizing who I am and what I want to do, I've entered into the nature world in the extreme. If you haven't read my previous post, then I'll restate something. If I'm going to do something, I'm going to go all the way, headfirst. When I say I've entered in the extreme, I mean that I've divulged myself into piles of information to learn and memorize. Since it is deep winter here, memorizing plants and taking notes on them is a bit unpractical. Instead, I ordered a new camera lens (I call it my "baby") and started memorizing and learning about birds. After all, birds and plants are so interconnected that it's hard to know about one without learning about the other.

Upon yesterday's adventures, I've created a list of things that might seem smart but in reality are not so planned out in the long run.

1.) Sleepytime tea at dinner time when you have a boat-load of school work and other work that needs to be finished before the night is out
2.) Creating note cards for the 285 most common birds of North America
3.) Drawing the bird onto the aforementioned note cards (See some pictures of my drawings below)
4.) Trying to memorize all of the bird calls while still trying to remember 5/285 birds
5.) Watching a favorite TV show when you should be doing other things
6.) Attempting to bird whilst driving around without a notebook and camera
7.) Not knitting for days on end
8.) Playing ping pong

While most of these don't make any sense, they are all relevant to my life at the moment. Let's start backwards.

8.) I played ping pong at a Super Bowl party and re-injured my hamstring. While it was fun in the beginning, I wasn't so happy with the end results, i.e. pain.
7.) I haven't knit since Friday night, or possibly Saturday afternoon. It's slowly driving me nuts. I'm currently on a drawing kick, but that will soon pass and I'll be back to knitting. I'm also avoiding knitting because everything that I want to make I'd have to buy yarn for, which is a problem when funds run out.
6.) Instead of knitting in the car, I'm now sticking my head out the window (Yeah, not in the winter, but you get the idea) looking around frantically for birds. Of course, the majority of birds stay away from busy roads so I'm not sure why I'm wasting my time, but it's fun anyway. I can't see any birds far off without my camera and I can't record anything anyway without a notebook, so I'm doubly wasting my time. Oh well.
5.) While Downton Abbey might be extremely interesting and cliff-hanger-y, I really shouldn't be watching 2 episodes of it in one night when I have tons and tons of homework that is due the next day, regardless of the fact that today is a late start day.
4.) Yeah. I've always loved mornings filled with birdsong, even though I didn't venture to learn what birds I was hearing. Now that I'm interested, I'm trying to tackle this as well. Great idea? Probably, but maybe I should give it a little more time.
3.) I think I've finished 11 drawings. That is 11/285. Smart? Nah, probably not. Fun? Heck yes. And while I draw I cement in my mind the different colors and patterns of the birds that I am drawing.
2.) I've gotten decently far on these, actually. I might be around 45/285. And I'm running out of note cards. And these are only the most common birds in North America. It'd probably just be smarter to buy a field guide.
1.) This one is slightly less relevant than the others, but seriously. I had been tired all day and then adding warm, slightly sweet fluids while the snow fell and the sun went down with the added sleepy-time-ness nearly did me in. I curled up on the couch and nearly stayed there all night, but I managed to drag myself up to bed before that all unfolded. It tasted pretty delicious, though.

Now that I've finished that list, let me go on.
I started the notecards because that is how I learn. Doing and listening. So if I want to learn something, the best thing is to write the information down, talk it out loud and write it down over again. So note cards seem like the logical choice, no? That is what I thought, so I started. Oh, and remember when I mentioned buying a field guide? I'm not 100% convinced that it'd help a whole lot. Like I said, I learn by doing and listening. As for listening, that will come in handy when I start to learn the different calls. I do pride myself in having keen ears. With a little time, I can differentiate footfalls of different people, whinnies of horses, and calls of different animals. (That is, the differences between 3 sheeps' calls and 2 roosters' voices)
I love drawing, too. I used to draw exclusively horses, but after time, there are only so many different horses of North American that one can draw, and since horses are quite large animals, it's hard to get into deep detail with their faces unless you draw them onto massive surfaces. Thus, I've ventured into birds. My first attempts where pitiful, as were my first attempts at drawing horses. After drawing a few random birds and not knowing their ID's I had to learn more. That's when I got curious about different bird species. Visiting my grandparents over Christmas helped as well, as my grandfather is interested in birds, mostly just photographing the ones that come to his feeders. Watching the birds flock to the seed and heated water bath in the frigid temps though the window helped ignite my interests as well. It's where I first recorded, photographed, and drew the sightings of the day.
Anyhow, here are 3 of the note card drawings I've done. Yes, they are all done of 3"x5" cards. Yes, I know that I'm crazy. See if you can ID them from my artist's hand.

I still have yet to take out my "baby" (uh, my new camera lens) for his debut at the lake. With all the snow that has presented itself and my injury, I've been erring on the cautious side of things. Perhaps I can get out before the weekend arrives.
Have a good day and be kind to the earth!

Naturalists, Passion, and the Future

To be honest, I've been planning this post for a few weeks now. When I first heard the term "Naturalist" used to describe someone, I was intrigued. I didn't know exactly what it meant, but I had a pretty good idea. Here is my favorite definition: "One who studies plants and animals as they live in nature."
I can now place a word to my beliefs.

Probably my favorite quote to date comes from a great book on running, Eat & Run, by Scott Jurek.

"The point was to live with grace, decency, and attention to the world, and breaking free of the artificial constructs of your own life."
It was about the Tarahumara, the great Running People, who are efficient and free, and a perfect example for us all.

I don’t agree with the world. Not with the way we handle things, not with the things we call important, nothing. There is a view, however, that I do agree with: We are hurting the earth. And it has to stop.

I know that this might sound depressing, but that is not my point. Before I get to my point, I have to say this: I know that not everyone loves the wilderness, plants, and wild animals as much as I do; I understand that there will always be people who don't want to change for fear of messing up. I know that there are all different kinds of people and lots of them have no interest in preserving the wild or restoring areas to their previous populations of birds, insects, plants, etc. But I still believe that there are a whole lot of naturalists who don't know themselves. After all, I was one of them until I heard the term. I never knew who I was or why I loved the earth as much as I do, or even if there was someone out there who had the same view as I do. But once I opened my eyes to the ongoing efforts to preserve the world, I was amazed. 

I'm encouraged just seeing how passionate young people (like me) are about the natural world. I love reading about their experiences and seeing their efforts to learn about and improve the world. Their enthusiasm inspires me to get out and make the world a better place. They make me realize how I had removed myself but didn't try to replace myself. I didn't try to learn or help in conservation efforts, all I did was sulk in the garden, wishing that I could be somewhere else. I always though of how stuck I was in the wrong city or state, but I never saw or considered the opportunities that were in front of me. 

I really don't like unnatural things, whether that be acrylic yarn, chemicals in our food, or cities. I thrive in environments when the people are conscious of their surroundings and careful with their steps. They analyze and keep track of the natural world, not harming it, but helping it return to its intended state.

I don't see beauty in office buildings or cars, or cities; I see it in art, plants, animals, and the native peoples. In the stars in the sky, the people going out of their own way to protect their land, our land. If we only want to live our lives and not see the world in its intended form, then by all means we should continue on our path. But if we see our world and cringe, then it's time we make our move to change this earth and live in harmony. We're not only hurting the future generations, not giving them the knowledge or ability to let them live in a kind world, but planting them in a messed up place that will soon enough be eaten up and left to die. We're consuming the world, and one day the earth will protest loud enough for every soul to hear.

We as a people have to start changing. We can't continue on the same paved, "safe" road that we are on. Because the world in in jeopardy, and it can't fend for itself with all the damage we've done. 

Maybe we change the way we eat, what we wear, how we travel, and where we live. We could stop factory farms, encourage family farms and CSAs, and support farmers markets. We could have fewer cars, carpool and bus more. We could move on from synthetic materials to natural fibers, such as silk, wool, cotton, linen, hemp, alpaca, and mohair. We could have smaller houses, and for those who want to live in the city, have less land. A bigger lawn only wastes and pollutes more water.

I'm not advocating going to see the National Parks. If you go to Yellowstone in the summer, you'll know why. It's PACKED. To the point of suffocation. The roads are filled with emissions and people not watching where they are stepping. Our sense of the world is lost. The raw beauty that once was seen and protected has now been exploited. Instead of keeping the world natural, we're ruining it, running it our way, and without any sign of stopping it in the foreseeable future.

In order to change the world, we first have to have passion for the earth. In my life, I've seen a lot of success, and a whole lot of failure. I've seen how passion and drive come from the most brilliant workers, and I've seen how none can effect an entire team. Not having passion or drive has never been an option for me. If I've wanted to do something, I want to go all the way. I don't want to stop until I've reached the top, and sometimes that has made me fall back down to the bottom again. I get asked quite often how I can knit the way I do, how I can make the things I do. I tell them it's the hours you put in, it's the time and money invested in pattern searching, technique googling, better yarn, and more expensive needles. Not everyone has a hobby. I know that. And even some of the people who do have a hobby will not put in all the hours needed to become proficient at it. I've done that before, mostly realizing that it wasn't my niche. But I've also realized in the process that a lot of my generation have little patience. They want to be a good (blank) NOW. Technology has advanced where people expect instant gratification. They get apps on their new iPhones that provide exactly what they want, whenever they want it. Or should I say all the time? If you can get instant gratification, why spend all of that time on working on something that is going to take years to become good at? Why not just keep on plugging away at mindless activities until we grow older when they place a chip into our brains, allowing more gratification, more fun, more virtual interaction? You ask why, I'll give you an answer. Because we need to return to the ancient arts. A drive through a downtown cityscape should be sufficient to provide one reason why we need to look behind us in order to move forward instead of sideways. The older buildings that you'll see, the carved stone ones, look at them and compare their physical beauty to the modern day office buildings, built only for function. You'll notice how our image has changed from beautiful and functional to just plain old functional. Beautiful costs too much money, just like quality. If more people just had passion for their work instead of their omnipresent greed for more money, then perhaps the world would have a chance at surviving the ages to come. But with our wicked, polluting ways, our own earth with perish beneath our feet, stranding us to whatever shell is left.

I don't want to sound depressing; I want to fuel passion for our world. I want everyone to know what impact their choices have. But most of all, I want more naturalists.

And on that note, I'll leave you with a picture.