Darwin--Keith L

I read The two short articles from Darwin's books and found them to be insightful into looking at the relationship between us and animals and how closely linked we are to them. The writing is a little dry but has lots of knowledge behind it.
When i Went to the park it was greener but I would rather take a walk around our campus than at the park. Our campus is much more green and vibrant.

Darwin--Keith L

Screaming Frogs--Tim

I went by the park last night expecting it to be the same lifeless park I visit every week, but to my surprise there was some activity. One young man was fishing near the middle parking area, not sure he was having any luck. Three other vehicles were parked in the furthest parking lot, however there were no signs of their owners. I suspect they were fishing the larger lake.
I was drawn to the woods by the sound of a loud splash. After trudging through the soggy brush, I stopped to see if I could spot the source of the splash. After standing quietly for several minutes I saw nothing. Suddenly I realized that I was so focused on what I could see that I was missing all the noise around me. The woods had come alive with the sound of frogs, and once I adjusted my focus to the sound, it seemed almost deafining. I couldn't see them but there must be thousands of frogs judging from the sound.
While I was at the park I continued with my earlier pledge to pick up trash. I collected a bag full and deposited it in the trash can before I left.

Slightly greener park---keith

When i went to the park i was hoping that it would be a bit greener for sake of me being able to say something nice about it. It was greener but it doesn't really make the park look like it belongs it will probably just end up looking like an extension to a back yard from the subdivision.

Death in the Open---keith

When i first saw the title to this story it grabbed my attention because i figured it would be dark. When i read it, it was actually rather deep and makes you think a little bit about natures recycling process and how death is natural. I really recommend this to the rest of my group it is a nice little read.

Goose Hunting--Chris

I read an article about the Canadian Goose possibly becoming a game bird again due to the population being so large. That made me want to go and see if the geese at the park were still around. Yep they were still there. They were in the back near the back perking lot. The geese should be safe there, as I found a sign posted at the end of the asphalt trail that goes back near to the lake that said no hunting. I thought the positioning of the sign kinda weird though, I thought it should of been posted at the beginning of the trail. I also thought it odd that the city would even need to post a no hunting sign in a park in the middle of a subdivision. Maybe they had a problem with someone squirrel or rabbit hunting in the woods back there. Well that's all for now, the park is starting to get more interesting now that spring is beginning. I can't wait till the trees get some leaves.

Keith--

So i went back to the park on Monday because it was nice out but the weather did not really change the dull look of the park. If i had to say one nice thing about the park it would be that the trees are nice and straight. I still like Klondike park way more and think that rabbit run park was just a solution to unusable land.

Invitation to the Kids--Tim

Today is the first day of Spring Break for my two daughters: Hannah 10 and Kayla age 7. Both of my girls have bugged me on every sunny day, no matter the temperature outside, to take them to a park so that they could play.
I had a chemistry class this morning and then picked up the girls to run errands, which took us out towards Rabbit Run Park. So I decided without telling them that I would pull into the park and surprise them. My youngest had been to the park with me on one of my previous visits and recognized it right away. Both were extremely excited. Immediately after they jumped out of the truck they asked if they could go play on the playground, I said "Sure,but before you do, you each have to find 3 pieces of trash and place them in that trash can over there." The look on thier faces was of total confusion, cause Daddy never made them do that before. My oldest, I know, wanted to say why? But I think that she realized she could play sooner if she just complied. They both took off in a full run, both in different directions. My oldest came back with the minimum requirement of 3 pieces, deposited them in the trash and then off to the playground. Kayla took her time trying to choose her trash wisely and then came back exclaiming,"Look Daddy, I found five!" Then off to the playground she went.
While they played I wandered around and picked up half a dozen pieces of trash, fulfilling my trash requirement for the week. Hannah soon realized that the bathrooms were locked and told me it was time to go.
I know they both enjoyed the park, and watching them pick up trash like it was a treasure hunt was quite entertaining for me as well. I will probably take them back next week.

Klondike park-Keith L.

I really recommend clicking on the pictures to see them they look a lot better that way. I first stopped by rabbit run park and quickly my head took my to far away escape that resembled a landfill. So I went to a place that i know is one of my favorite parks-(in the top four). i took some pictures and even in the winter months it still has amazing views (other that the power-plant..... ironic that such a nice view is tainted) Even then the park looks infinitely better than rabbit run park. Klondike park is the ideal park. It is away from it all with beautiful scenery and views. In all the other seasons it will look even better. Sorry to dis on rabbit run park so much but in comparison to the parks i am used to, rabbit run is the Chrysler of parks.

Wolf eagle bear:-Keith L.

This weekend i read wolf eagle bear. Go figure it was about a predator and how humans get along with it or not. It was somewhat interesting, it at least was not some pro-liberal agenda about save the animals. It emphasized how bears usually interact with humans. this is not my favorite story thus far but not a bad read.

Trash Day--Tim

Saturday I returned to the park with one goal in mind; pick up some of the trash I had seen the week before. I first collected all the pieces of the car bumper I found last week, Then I took a short walk around the parking lot area and found a Walmart bag clinging to the bark of a tree. I my goal was to fill the Walmart bag, it didnt take very long. I then placed it in the trash can. As I left the park I noticed, or maybe I felt, that the park seemed a little cleaner.
There is still alot of trash out there, but I will be back next week.

"Never Cry Wolf"--Tim

Keeping with the wolf theme, this week I read "Never Cry Wolf" by Farley Mowat. I enjoyed this story which talked of the humorous side of scientific fieldwork and the study of the wolf in it's natural habitat. The story also shows that the wolf is not the menacing beasts that have been written about in other works within the Norton Book of Nature Writing.