So here it is: the beginning of a new semester, and the
start of the countdown to the end… it’s within sight! Come December, they’re
turning me loose! It’s only a week into the new semester, and already it’s
shaping up to be a busy one, much like the class I just finished up.
Speaking of, NR 490 turned out very well in the end. I’m
almost certain I nearly died though, not only from all the work and hours put
into each plan and presentation, but more so from laughing so hard during the
presentation portion. Anyone walking into the room might have thought they’d
taken a wrong turn and ended up in a comedy club.
The second half of the class turned out much better than the
first, mostly because we had much more wiggle room with regard to creative
licensing. While I’m certain that Kringle wolves and Flying Reindeer probably
won’t gain any brownie points for a future career boost, they did provide a
valuable opportunity to draw up special management objective for species
(however fictitious they may be) of special concern in addition to giving
semi-professional presentations in “real-life” simulations.
All in all, despite much of the frustration that came from
the class, I do think there was a great practical component of it. There is a reason it’s called Integrated Resource
Management. Working in a team with your peers and with most of you specializing
in various disciplines allows everyone to bring something to the table. It
forces you to compromise and work together to devise best management strategies
and objectives for both private landowners and public land.
Almost as soon as class ended, I was on the road, back home
for a few more days before the beginning of the new semester. I was excited to
spend a little more time on the lake, even with the lack of snow. First things
first, I met up with a few friends…just because. There is a new restaurant with
a tap room (a very exciting thought, especially for a college student!). It was
doubly exciting to discover after ordering our beers that it was two-for-one
when two pints were set down in front of us.
But the lake! Yes, I made it to the lake…and it was
definitely interesting, in a good way, as most things are J I was reminded once
again just why I love the more…eclectic
members of my family, namely Grandpa Ron or Grandpa Duck as I always called him.
While we all have our faults and idiosyncrasies that drive each other insane,
one thing about grandpa remains constant: he will put up with just about
anything to be the center of attention, providing endless jibes and
entertainment at his expense. Here is a snapshot of this past weekend’s adventure with OB
Ron:
So yes, there is always something interesting happening at
the lake! Rhonda will live on forever, I think, or least we won’t let grandpa
forget! Fishing was just about as slow as the last time. All I managed to pull
up were two small perch. If Mom had been there, I’m willing to bet the fish
would have been jumping out of the hole! Just isn’t fair…
The new semester has started off fairly well, I think. There
will be quite a bit of group work again…and reading and writing! I guess it’s a
good thing I enjoy both. I’ve already gotten a little too into some of the readings not yet assigned—we have an anthology of
environmental essays and excerpts from books for one of the classes—and I’m
having some flashbacks from high school. Many of the entries and authors in the
anthology I’ve read from or discussed before—Paul Ehrlich from The Population Bomb, Garrett Hardin from
the Tragedy of the Commons, Sigurd
Olson, E.B. White, Annie Dillard, John McPhee from Encounters with the Archdruid, Linda Hogan, Mary Oliver, Wendell
Berry, Barbara Kingsolver from Small
Wonder to name a few. Gahh!!! There are so many great authors out there, it’s
quite ridiculous! I don’t know how to handle it J
I am looking forward to re-reading many of them (even if they aren’t assigned)
and discussing them again, this time with a different lens. I’m looking forward
to writing more also. I can’t wait. Bear with me if this becomes a sort of
sloppy copy slate.Along with my excitement of the new semester, came the first time running with the dogs this season. I can still remember the first time I ran with them, on my own that is. I was riding double and the next thing I knew I was on the sled by myself, completely unsure of my ability to maintain control. I needn’t have worried, I realized. The dogs knew what to do. I had only to trust them. It was just eight dogs and myself running under a starry sky, listening to the sound of their breathing, the runners of the sled scraping along the trail, my heart thumping wildly. It is a moment in time forever seared into my memory.
I cannot thank Miss Samantha enough for introducing me to such an awesome opportunity J I’ve been slacking, I know. I’m trying, really I am!
In spite of the excitement of the new semester, dogs, and Rhonda, a part of me also has also been far too gone in a weird mood these last few weeks, withdrawn into myself. I feel as though I’m suspended, going neither here nor there, just stuck in a moment. It feels very much like the first semester I was in Point—very cold and confused and alone. I’ve no one to blame but myself for this feeling in dealing with the curveballs I’ve been thrown, and more importantly, the curveballs I’ve inadvertently thrown toward others.
There is nothing worse than having your most personal thoughts exposed and then having the one you hoped would never see them, laying on eyes on them. I can’t say for certain they did read those thoughts, but I have strong feeling they might have. I was thoughtless in leaving them out in the open. My insides have been wound tighter than a coiled spring and I can’t seem to figure out how to loosen them (hence my weird mood and the withdrawal). I am not sorry for writing those words. But for the person who might have read them—and if you read this—I am sorry. Sorry for the confusion, the awkwardness, the embarrassment. Sorry that I may have ruined our friendship.
I hope that maybe someday this friendship might be rebuilt…
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