Environmental Art Project

            In the movie “Rivers and Tides,” the artist Andy Goldsworth used solely nature to create beautiful works of art. It showed how incredibly meticulous he is when creating his work. It takes him a lot of time and thinking, but in the end he its all worth it, even if it won’t last forever. One of my favorite projects was when he collected many rocks on the beach to make a large egg. This took time and perseverance for him because his work collapsed on him many times. But he continued on from scratch each time and when he was finished it was cool to see it survive the high tide that covered it. What I really like about this is that none of the rocks he used to make this are perfect, because in nature there are always imperfections. The edges don’t have to be straight, it doesn’t have to have a perfect weight, and it doesn’t have to be the perfect size, but the work of art in the end comes out incredible.

             While watching this movie many ideas came across my mind. Mostly I was remembering the natural art masterpieces I created in my childhood: making snow angels and snow forts in the winter, burying my self in the sand at the beach and making sand castles in the summer, and also raking leaves and making scarecrows out of them in the fall. But for the spring I keep looking outside my window and seeing the snow melt and mud scattered everywhere. Soon the colors of spring will begin to appear, but for now were in mud season. I had no ideas coming to me. So I took a step back and thought about spring for a second and the first thing that came to my mind was baseball.

            I thought about it for a while and baseball describes me. Everything I do and just about every decision I make revolves around sports. The competition, the friends, and the fun of the game itself all make me feel comfortable. I’ve always loved to play baseball; whether it was a Little League Championship game or just a group of friends playing whiffle ball in the backyard, I just love to play. Then I thought about the field itself, no field is ever the same and no field has to be perfect, it’s natural. It’s going to be made up of grass, dirt, sand; you name it, as long as its flat you can play some baseball.

            When I picture a baseball field, it’s unique. Standing on the field I smell the cool breeze and the dirt bow up and into your nose, doesn’t sound great, but you get use to it. You hear people talking in the stands and the wind swishing through the trees in the outfield. The ground is soft, not like an indoor floor, every step is different and you feel grass, dirt, soil and rocks beneath your feet. Running up the base baths feels as if you’re running bare foot on the beach. It’s an incredible thing to be able to play a game you love outside in a setting that is one hundred percent natural materials. Baseball will always be a part of my life either playing the game or following my favorite team the Boston Red Sox.

Unbowed Chapter 1-6

I first began by taking a quick look the back cover of the book and the Acknowledgements to learn something about Wangari Maathai. This was important to me before beginning to read the chapters because I collected a great deal of information about who she is and the changes she's made to help many people and cultures around the world. Her story is very prevalent today as were facing an environmental situation where we continue to dig ourselves into a deeper hole. Making it seem impossible to strike motivation and change in people. Maathai did just that and is a true example of a leader, who even in her childhood was thinking of ways to make life better for people and used that incentive to make a change.
I enjoyed the start of this book, she is very detailed and specific. I really like the first chapter in that she detailed her family and the Kikuyu community she lived in. This is important because its such a unique part of the story. Maathai's writing is active and keeps your attention. Also I really enjoyed learning about the history of Kenya and the area she lives in. Its seems to be one of the themes in the book that over time things change and that we need to make the changes in the right direction, rather than to have set backs.
The first paragraph of chapter six was my favorite part of the reading. She begins with a metaphor to describe how her Green Belt Movement began. She began by planting trees because it was something that she could do. This inspired others and the Green Belt Movement took off. As a leader she took the first step that she could do and let things happen from there. In her writing Maathai connects her present stories with past experiences. I really like this because it helps when trying to relate with the experience making it more understandable. So far I've enjoyed the first sixth chapters, reading usually pretty tough for me, but it wasn't to painful because the writing is very good and interesting.

The Story of Stuff

I believe the video does a great job in achieving its purpose as an eye-opener. It definitely makes you think more about the consumption cycle we are in. It is a lot like Jensen's article "Forget Shorter Showers" in that it is going to make you a little angry because it makes you feel helpless. I do think the video does a great job in simplifying the situation we've created so that the viewer understands. Annie Leonard brings up great examples to make her point. One of the statistics she brought up the stood out in my head was that we have used up 30% of the planets resources in the past fifty years. Thats a staggering number and a tremendous rate of waste. Another point she made that caught my attention was that for every barrel of trash I bring out to the end of the street, that there is approximately 70 barrels of trash in the production of the waste I'm throwing away. Sometimes we become very product oriented and neglect to look at the process and how we get all this stuff. A lot of different people and environment come into the picture of the production and its important not to overlook that. People like to put things we don't want for someone else to deal with and in any case that's not a great plan. All in all I thought it was a good video, a little strong, but it definitely gets its point across.

Center For Human Development

Today I visited the Center for Human Development Center on the second floor in Franklin Hall. This was the first time I had ever been there so to find it I looked it up on the Farmington website and was able to find out more information about it. In my picture is Judy Burdick, she was wonderful and very helpful. She says her favorite part about working for the CHD is the students. Students don't always come in and visit with a positive outlook, but in time and with some positive encouragement and advice students are right on their way.

At the CHD you can find many answers to your questions. As well as resources that you may need to come across in your 4 year at UMF. I might find the CHD useful for questions about the Praxis test. I took Praxis I this fall, but will need to take Praxis II at some point in my college career. The best analogy I can think of for the CHD is that its like a tool set. When you need to fix something or touch up a project you open up your tool box and you find all the answers. That's what the CHD is like, when you go in there your going to leave with answers to your questions. One thing I noticed in Franklin Hall were the small study rooms. I never knew they were there and I could probably look into using them at some point in my career. Overall it was a successful visit and a place I could potentially visit in the future.

Arboretum Tour: Blue Spruce

 It was a cold morning to say the least... Well to be honest it wasn't too bad seeing as 10 degrees Fahrenheit feels like a warm spring day in Farmington nowadays. Apart from the weather my favorite tree was the Blue Spruce. Why? Because it was the closest to my dorm room... just kidding! This tree to me caught my eye along the snowy Arboretum Tour because of it's blue-green, with a hint of silver, color that made it unique. The species is a native of the Rocky Mountains and can live for hundreds of years (UMF Arboretum Tour Guide, Pg. 6). This tree stands very tall in size and is abundantly full of needles, which give the tree its color. A fun fact from the Arboretum Tour Guide is that the color of the needles is produced by surface waxes that protect the needles from all elements of weather that nature throws at it (Pg. 6).

If you ever want to take a second look at the Blue Spruce, you'll easily be able to find it on your way to the dining hall. It's located next to the library and in perfect sight when your walking along South Street. The tree is a beautiful sight especially in the winter months when most trees lack color, the Blue Spruce sets itself apart from the competition.