Further into the abyss-Keith L

This time I went further into the park only seeing that there is more swamp-land. I looked for the mini volcanoes that Tim had found but i couldn't find them but the park makes me feel as if it needs a fan boat and some good ole boys going gator hunting. I don't think that this park really represents what natural Missouri looks like, which is what i believe a park should do. this represents what looks like Mississippi.

Struggle in the Park--Chris

There seems to have been a struggle in the park. Was it the snakes Tim has been seeing? Could it have been a dog or cat from the neighborhood? I don't know, but it looks like a massacre of some blue birds happened at the park. Id there a Sherlock among us? I don't think there will be to much of a case though, no body!

Allergies--Keith L

I Hate allergies..HATE..Went to the park and decided to leave. It was greener and looks better than it did in the winter however, it is still a flood area. I was going to study there in my truck but my allergies are so bad right now. I'm surprised i could keep the camera steady while i was sneezing.
The story i read was something John Steinbeck wrote about how to correctly observe nature. It was interesting and i can see a trend that this section of stories seems to be more deep in thought and reflection than the first half of this semester's stories.

"A Very Warm Mountain"--Tim

Keeping with the Volcano theme this week I read "A Very Warm Mountain" By Ursula K. LE Guin. A Story about the eruption of Mount St Helens. This story caught my eye for two reasons; the first,volcanos are currently in the news and the second reason was I watched the eruption of Mount St Helens while sitting on the tailgate of my fathers truck. Watching an eruption of this magnitude is something that I will never forget.

Volcanos in the park--Tim

I stopped by the park during my lunch break on Thursday, not many people there as usual. Stayed close to the truck while eating my lunch. Then I cleaned up some trash in the main lot; and chased a couple of snakes out of the trickle of water left running out from under the parking lot. I then went to the third parking lot and wandered around the remaining swampy water near the road. I have noticed a few times while at the park that there are little volcanos of mud near the edge of the water. Are they frogs? Are they crawdads? Does anyone know? Curiosity has gotten me,I might have to take a shovel next time.

Aldo Leopold, "Marshland Elegy"--Tim

I read "Marshland Elegy" by Aldo Leopold this week, mainly because the title reminded me of our park. After I started to read about the low hanging fog and the dew the story took me back to the first couple of visits to the park. The story talks alot about cranes, whereas our park is full of Canandian geese. In the end, like our park, the government destroyed it.
I would recommend this to those who enjoy bashing Rabbit Run Park.

All Alone in the Park--Tim

I went to the park this morning. My kids are back in school so I had no company today. I parked in the farthest lot from the entrance. I noticed, as I was driving through that the water had receded quite a bit, at least the parking lot was dry. After parking I immediately went to work filling my trash bag. It is sad to realize how much people dont care about nature, I have been filling trash bags for weeks now and still I have no problem topping of a new bag each week.
While searching near the water line I noticed that someone was careless with fire, probably a cigarette, and had at some point started a small brush fire. The burn mark only covered a small area, but with the dry underbrush and the amount of branches lying around it could have been alot worse.
The ball fields look as though they have been freshly groomed in anticipation of the up-comming little league season. Maybe that will bring more visitors and I wont feel so alone in the park.