A Final Reflection

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

The walk to my reflection spot was notably different than previous times. This morning, there were barely any signs of human activities (probably due to the fact that it has been a dreary day and that it is Easter), but the amount of animal activity was tremendous. Every step I took started a small flock of birds or a couple of squirrels and there was a constant chirping in the background.

The day, although bleak, was brightened somewhat by the lush green of the groundcovers and shrubs that carpeted the banks of the small pool that has become a regular spot of mine. The trees still had barren limbs, but spring was definitely starting to arrive. The water today was higher than I remember it being in the past, and the stream flowing out of the pipe was significantly louder and more powerful. I am guessing that this was due to the rain from this morning, but it didn’t seem like it had rained enough to make that big of a difference. I suppose it does not take much rain to overflow the streams around here though, because the large swatches of impervious surfaces drastically increase runoff during rainfall.

As I was writing and looking around, I could not help but think that in the summer, this would be a great place to swim. It’s private, surrounded by greenery and just the right size for a small group of friends. I am not too thrilled about its proximity to the facilities warehouse and the fact that it is downstream from the spillway, but nothing is perfect.

I was about to leave and was taking some quick pictures when I noticed these weird curly vines all around me. They definitely were not there the last time I visited this spot and I was curious to find out what they were. I tried to look for the plant on the Internet when I got back to my room, but I was not able to find anything unfortunately. If anyone has any idea about what these might be (I posted a picture), I would love to know!

Even though this was the last time I had to be at my reflection spot for class, I am definitely going to stop by before I leave for the summer and after I get back in the fall to see what else has changed.

 

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Clean Campus, Contaminated Creeks

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

Wandered over to the Little Westham Creek with Taylor. After several warm days, the earth and trees were freshly saturated with the morning’s rain. I’ve always associated rain with cleanliness – with fresh air and dust-less streets. I pushed my way through the foliage with this cleanliness in mind, making it particularly surprising to find the creek veiled with a thin film of foam. It was the first time that I’d explicitly connected the rainy-morning feeling with pollutants in our rivers. The only reason the streets and air feel so clean is because the rain literally wipes it all away, carrying it all into the rivers as runoff.

Upon coming back to Lakeview, I read that this foam is a combination of surfactants in the water and increased aeration. Although not all surfactants are necessarily bad (most are simply decaying organic substances), many are manmade chemicals such as laundry detergents and car wax (which are known to be harmful to fish and other aquatic life) and harmful nutrients such as phosphorus. The other component surprised me, simply because the water level was the lowest I have seen it all semester. Often after storms there is an increased amount of foam. This makes sense because there is an increased amount of runoff (meaning more surfactants) as well as increased discharge (meaning more turbulence, meaning more aeration). Taylor and I discussed the low water level, hypothesizing that perhaps the water level was yet to increase from the rain storm, as the soil was likely dry from the warm weather.  This was based on the assumption that the watershed had a relatively low proportion of impervious surfaces – which upon consideration was likely true. Much of the surrounding area is old neighborhoods with an abundance of green space. In fact, campus probably has the highest proportion of impervious surfaces by far.

I thought about our conversation with Andrew McBride, remembering that he said the amount of impervious surfaces on campus is troubling. It’s strange that such an intentional development, one that has unusually high intellectual and monetary resources, is still so environmentally irresponsible. It saddened me to realize that we’re likely the largest contributor of pollutants within the Little Westham watershed. Of course, that’s a bit silly when I realize that college campuses are incredibly densely populated, but I still feel a strong need for our school to be more intentional about its development. Taylor and I have often mused about pervious pavements on X-lot or greenroofed/ solar panel-adorned buildings around campus; although these feel like impossible tasks even with GreenUR’s budget, it makes me happy to know that our Earth Lodge projects provide us with some sort of jumping point.

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Reflection Spot 3: Campus Impressions

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

This Saturday brings us a long-awaited dose of brightness and relative warmth; rarely do I let a day like this go by without a stop at my spot on the bridge. The bricks are chilly against the bottoms of my feet, but the sun grins above. Conditions are perfect for precisely the things that are happening: a track meet bringing students from all over the country to our campus, and a flurry of tours for prospective families. From my lakeside perch, I overhear conversations from the endless stream of runners breezing by and from bright-eyed applicants evaluating a potential new home. And they almost invariably center around our campus’s leafy aesthetic, particularly the lake.

Struck by the almost all-consuming role natural features are playing into these first impressions of our campus, I’ve been thinking back to my own initial encounter with UR. I was here for a tour with my parents over the summer, and with the student body decimated a visual impression was pretty much the only one I could come away with. The lake and the trees still stick out in my memory as essential elements of my notion of Richmond—this, of all the schools I visited, was the place in which I could feel I existed in an ecological space, part of both a natural habitat and the fabric of a city. When I visited again right around this time of year, I was even further won over by the daffodils, spring bursting around every corner.

It’s disappointing to consider the ways my experience here hasn’t measured up to that first impression. Richmond manicures itself to a tee, but the more I’ve learned about the campus’s relationship with its watershed and the real ecological forces at work here, the more I realize needs to be done in order for UR to match up to the impression visitors come away with. I still love the daffodils (though I’ve learned I don’t get along with the pollen that accompanies them), but I hope my time at UR will involve a tangible shift in the authenticity of its nature-friendly image. And I hope especially that the projects our class is embarking on will contribute to that effort!

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Reevaluating Wilderness

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Taylor Holden

While talking about heading to my reflection spot I realized that Kenta and I had very similar spots, so we decided to walk over together this afternoon. When we arrived I noticed two fishermen on the other side of the bank from my reflection spot. I felt uncomfortable sitting right across from them and trying to reflect, so I walked down towards the mouth of the creek a bit further with Kenta. As I sat down to write while Kenta flitted around taking pictures I realized how odd it was that I was so uncomfortable due to the fishermen. They seemed like extremely nice people, and weren’t talking or making any noise at all. Yet I felt completely comfortable with Kenta around my reflection spot, even taking a picture of me at some point.

Perhaps the reason I was so uncomfortable with their presence was because I did not expect them to be there. I knew Kenta would be there; I walked with him. To me, they were intruding on my reflection spot uninvited, fishing in my private wilderness. I thought about how we defined wilderness in class. What made something wild? Was it because you don’t expect to see people there? Sure cars whisked by as I have mentioned before, but people weren’t supposed to be in MY spot. If I had been on the Westhampton Green I would have had no problem sitting down with strangers nearby and reflecting. Maybe this expectation of being alone in nature is what makes a place wilder than another.

That path behind the baseball fields was my personal frontier, a wilderness that only I was supposed to brave (with a friend if I invited them). Even though that place had been touched many times by humans, as evidenced by the trash and road right across the creek, it was still untouched by the masses in my mind. Thousands of people cross the Westhampton Green, it is a part of our campus, but this place was supposed to be the outer edge. It was a place for me to reflect and be alone because no one else should be there.

This concrete private view of my spot as wilderness was inappropriate. Everyone has access to my spot, and I’ve even talked before about encouraging others to experience these fringe areas of campus. Now that I realize this I need to learn to reflect better under situations that I did not expect to encounter. It is not my wilderness, it is our campus’s wilderness.

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Take me away

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

It smells like spring, it looks like spring. Everything is radiating life. There is a light breeze, and the sunfeel warm against my face. The lake is buzzing with activity; both human and otherwise. Right this moment a duck just hopped out of the lake and waddled past me, to receive a complimentary lunch. After the first chunk of bread is thrown, a crowd begins to swarm. A couple of Canadian geese swoop in, followed by a chattering group of mallards. The triceragoose even made a brief appearence, but rather than eat bread (he/she) just swam over, scared the other birds, then swam to the far shore of the lake, and proceeded to let loose a few loud crows. However, soon the flock regrouped, this time with the addition of a couple of ring necked ducks. I hadn’t noticed before, simply because I hadn’t seen one, but the females are completely different than the males, all brown rather than black and white, with the unique white ring.

[I can’t post media…but here is a link to the ducks!!!

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/PHOTO/LARGE/ring_necked_duck_8.jpg

A couple larger grey/white/brown mottled ducks also joined the fray.   (does anyone know what they are?)

A group of people are going through the disk golf course at the far end of the lake, behind me people are filming a kung-fu movie for a film class (I told them I would be writing behind the tree). A family is having photos taken on the bridge. Two young boys endearingly call out to their grandpa, and run to catch up as their make their way toward a fishing spot. Countless people are making their rounds around the lake by various means ranging from a leisurely stroll to a brisk run.

Oops, a frisbee just flew into the lake. The group is trying to retrieve it via (what I think are slightly ridiculous ways). First they try holding hands, with the last person standing on a rock, and leaning out far over the lake. Then they hunt for sticks and take turns executing one footed poses on the rock while trying to reach out and hook it with the stick. I desperately resist the urge to call across the lake and tell them to just wade in and get it/ to jump in myself. But after about 10 minutes of (slightly improved) ballerina poses, one guys decides to just go get it! Hooray success!!!

So many people utilize Westhampton Lake. Not only students, but the general Richmond population as well, particularly families. Throughout this course, I have viewed the natural world through several different lenses, through an ecological/scientific lens, a relaxing and calming state, and an athletically stimulating perspective.

The natural world is constantly drawing people in. In particular people seem instinctively drawn to water due to its amazing calming effects. Yet what about it holds this unique quality? Why are we pulled so strongly to water? Personally I could watch water all day be it the ocean, lakes, rivers, or a trickling steam. For instance at Westhampton Lake, I love the way the sun glistens off the slight peaks, and I could endlessly stare at the continuous waxing and waning ripples. Even the bubbles stemming from the fountain seem like glowing white pearls, each only lasting a few seconds before it fades from sight. Even with the rushing of the road, and my room full of unfinished homework looming in the background I feel at peace. The lake is always able to take me in, and take me away.

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Reflection

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

I went to my reflection spot today, located at the gazebo on the Westhampton Lake.

All I could think was “Spring. YES! Finally!”

Although it was wet, and my friends and I missed the annual Monument Avenue “Easter On Parade” due to the weather, it is still warm.  We are thankful.  (We aren’t sure why it is called the “Easter On Parade”.  The excessive preposition use still bothers us.)

I’m just so happy that it is warm and that we are looking forward to mid-60s weather.  I am confident that we will not have a surprise blizzard anytime soon.  I can sit at this gazebo without shivering.  It is such a relaxing and refreshing feeling to not shiver just by being outdoors.  I cannot stop sneezing, but that is okay because allergies mean that spring is here to stay!

I just started my spring season of track and it was really frustrating to deal with the upper 30s weather the past couple weeks.  It is very, very difficult to pole vault outdoors when it is cold and windy.  By difficult, I mean dangerous and panic-inducing.  I did horribly last weekend at William and Mary, which nearly killed my confidence completely.  Before leaving the meet, I cursed the sky for producing such horrible weather.

This weekend was a different story.  We held our annual home meet, the “Fred Hardy Invitational” at Richmond.  The weather was absolutely beautiful.  It was sunny, warm, and only slightly windy.  I love when I am at a meet and it just feels fun.  It was like I was at a picnic with a bunch of pole vaulters.  Another thing that I enjoyed was the electronic/dubstep music being played the entire time I competed.  I just had so much fun, and I think that I can speak for the rest of my team as well.

One thing that caught my eye was how absolutely beautiful our stadium is.  We practice there every morning at 7:30am, and it just is not the same then.  I think we all take for granted how beautiful the place is.  On Friday/Saturday this weekend our entire campus was swarming with track athletes from all over.  I overheard “This campus is so beautiful”, “These people are so lucky”, and “Where’s the nearest ATM?” from many visiting athletes.

Sitting at my reflection spot brings up memories from this weekend.  I need to stop taking for granted the beauty of my surroundings.  I think that college students in general boil down all of their emotions to either “Stressed” and/or “Tired.”  There are other feelings out there.  It is good to take a break and absorb what is happening in your environment.

In moments where I feel like I am repeatedly expressing feelings of stress or exhaustion, I will try to be more open-minded and positive.  Yes, I get very nervous and stressed before meets, but I can control how I perceive my experiences.  When I entered the meet this weekend, all I could think was “Don’t screw up again.”  I changed my disposition once I stepped outside of my mindset and realized how great everything was around me.  That’s when it became fun.

I think that it is important to reset your mind, preferably in nature, when it gets stuck in the “I’m stressed” rut.  There is a reason why they call it “Looking on the bright side.”  It helps if it’s sunny and warm, but it can be wet and dreary as it is now.  Everybody 🙂 !

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Volunteering at the Farmer’s Market

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

On Saturday, I volunteered to table for the Sierra Club at a farmer’s market off of Forest Avenue.  Having never been to a farmer’s market, I didn’t really know what to expect.  As soon as we arrived, I knew I was going to enjoy the atmosphere of the place.  Artsy people with tattoos and dread locks joined suburban mothers with young children to shop around the famer’s market.  Every booth had something interesting to look at, taste, or smell.  We set up our table for the Sierra Club in order to make people aware of the construction of a natural gas power plant in Virginia and hopefully to get them to sign a petition to prevent board members from approving that decision.  The goal of this protest is to encourage the use of wind and solar power rather than using more fossil fuels to provide us with energy.

Since there were four of us at the table, we would take turns going in pairs to explore the market.  The doughnuts, Chinese food, sticky buns, soup, bread, cheese, and lemonade that we sampled all tasted even more delicious because they were all homemade.  We briefly listened to the local folk band that was playing in the background and browsed at a handmade jewelry stand.  Baby goats, an ewe, two greyhounds, and a bulldog were just a few of the animals that were present at the farmer’s market as well, and they made the experience quite entertaining as well.  When we were tabling, some interesting people stopped by our table to understand what we were advertising.  An elderly man disagreed with some of the information we were presenting and tried to explain his thoughts on the matter, while another man worked for a powerplant and was not impressed with our efforts.  Some people were very interested and supported the cause, signing the petition without even reading it.  Others decided against signing anything until they researched more about it.  We decided that it was a good thing that people wanted to wait to understand exactly what they were signing before they supported it.  The farmer’s market was a great place to have the Sierra Club’s table set up because people were very receptive and open to hearing new perspectives.

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Spring Visitors

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

As I’m sure everyone is very aware of, Saturday was one of the most beautiful days we’ve had in a while. Around 10:00am, I waltzed out of my dorm planning on heading to the gym for a monotonous run on the treadmill, but my plans changed! The birds and sunshine were too good to pass up, so I altered my course and headed towards the water for a nice run around the lake instead. 

After a few miles, I decided to stop and rest for a while at my reflection spot, the tree stump on the Westhampton side of the lake. The changes from the last time I had been there were drastic. Everything just seemed so much more alive; there were families that came down with their kids to feed the ducks and walk their dogs, there were runners (wearing shorts!), there was sunshine reflecting off the lake, and I could feel my toes!

I was quite ecstatic about all these spring-like changes, and what intrigued me the most was a new group of birds making their home in a few of the trees alongside my reflection spot. Although I was quite certain they were not herons, it appeared as though we had our own temporary rookery (of some other type of bird) on campus. As I continued my run after leaving my reflection spot, I spotted the blue heron that resides on campus. However, instead of his usual stealthy perch in the water, he was settled high on a branch alongside the other birds. While I cannot be sure as to why he was doing this, I like to think that he felt a sort of kinship towards to other birds that suddenly decided to grant campus with their presence. Sort of in the same way I felt a kinship to the other woman who stopped in the middle of her run to gaze at the tranquil heron, and in the same way I feel kinship towards my fellow earth lodgers, who would have appreciated the birds just as much as I did. While this was the last time I am required to venture to my reflection spot, I plan to continue my trips there, and I am looking forward to observing even more changes as spring finally begins to arrive in Richmond.


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Treetop Observations

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

Yesterday I returned to my reflection spot in the high branches of a pine tree in the middle of the Westhampton green. The warm sunshine on my skin made me feel as though spring has finally sprung. I thought back to my first reflection in the nearby woods a few months ago when there was snow on the ground. The process of the seasons changing is so slow and gradual that it is easy to miss if you don’t watch for the signs. As always, climbing into the branches of a tree makes me feel alive and closer to nature. Even when I am positioned dangerously far above the ground the sturdy strength of the branches make me feel safe.

I climbed to the top branches and sat quiet and still. The Westhampton Green was more populated with students than the last time I visited because other students were taking advantage of the warm Saturday weather. I watched the people below and listened to their voices. They were enjoying the day, picnicking in the grass and walking in groups towards their destinations.

I noticed changes in the tree. On my way up I saw droplets of sap clinging to the bark. At the top I noticed new growth of pods that grow into pinecones. I wrapped my legs around the branches and breathed in the fresh pine scented air.

After a time I moved down to the branches half way up the tree and to watch two small yellow birds on an adjacent branch. Their quick jerky movements seemed nervous and excited. Their tiny bodies could easily fit into my hand. I realized how much of an intruder I was. This was their domain. I enjoy taking the time to visit and observe this parallel world.

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Sierra Clubbing

Posted on March 24, 2013 by

As most of you know, this semester I am interning at the Virginia Sierra Club in downtown Richmond. It is an unpaid internship, and most of the hours I put in are spent in the office with the staff, phone-banking, sending e-mails, sorting petitions and organizing events and volunteers. Other times, however, I attend the events I recruited volunteers for, train them, and volunteer with them. The Environmental Film Festival was the first such event. Other more recent ones have been our weekly Activist Nights and farmers market tabling.

My favorite part of this job so far has definitely been researching farmers markets and attending them. I get entirely too excited on the websites of the various farmers markets in Richmond, because most of them have lists of who their vendors are and what they sell. This weekend, Meeps, Natalie and I are tabling at the South of the James River market and we CAN. NOT. WAIT. The vendors list includes vendors selling pottery, organic produce, local raw honey, sticky buns, crepes, smores, henna, and artisan breads. Volunteering never tasted so good.

Being an intern and volunteer at the Sierra Club this semester has taught me a TON about work in the real world, what I want to do when I graduate and myself. Communicating with Sierra Club higher-ups, training volunteers and striving to maintain a working relationship with my boss has taught me a lot about conducting myself in a professional setting. And though this experience has made me realize that a political environmental career is not for me, it has strengthened my desire to pursue the scientific end of environmentalism and become a researcher. The long hours in the office behind a desk drive me slightly insane, and I often find my thoughts wandering to collecting data for my research project in Costa Rica this fall. I’m very glad I pursued this internship and recommend it to any student that wants to dip their toes into activism.

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