Camp dreams

Well, the camp dreams have at last kicked in...a week or so later than usual...I was begining to think I might miss them altogether. For those who don't already know, part of my job as the 4-H agent in Gloucester involves taking 180 youth ages 9-13 and 26 teen counselors to camp. I am not completely alone. I go with our Program Assistant, Jackie, and ten adult volunteers...and camp has great summer staff and a wonderful Program Director...but still, as the person in charge of our group, it can get a little stressfull...and I find myself going through the potential issues in dreams leading up to camp. In a strange way I am thankful for these crazy dreams because they sometimes take the edge off, and they are certainly preferable to dreams of correcting the disaster that is my house.

So last night it was the first night at camp, and I was surprised to discover that I had too many adult volunteers. Yes, too many. If you were a 4-H agent you would be laughing hysterically about that last statement.  I don't think anyone has ever had a problem with too many. Most people just don't relish a week with 200 kids in fairly rustic cabins (they do have air-conditioning now...didn't when I went all those many years ago). Anyhow, you'll just have to trust me...you don't get too many people wanting to go to camp.  I am going to ask if anyone has had this issue when I get to Jamestown on the 9th...because now I am wondering... It usually goes like this: I think about someone who would be great to have at camp, and when I finaly muster up the courage to ask, he or she looks at me like a deer caught in the headlights and then laughs...and it is the "You Must Be Crazy" kind of laughter...yep...nine times out of ten, that is how it goes.

So, back to this dream. There are too many volunteers so there is no place for me to sleep.  I go to find my friend Marlie, the Program Director.  I tell her about my problem and she turns into this completely insane monster, day glo-green and all (this is would be so uncharacteristic of Mars, I can't even explain). She tells me I can't borrow the tents because they are needed for OLS II (Outdoor Living Skills) for the Thursday night camp out. I plead for the tent, because it is Monday for crying out loud! The Marlie Monster tells me she wouldn't want me getting used to sleeping in a tent that wouldn't be available the full week. She points her little glowing finger toward the canoe shed and tells me to sleep there.

 I drag my blankie and pillow across the field to the dark canoe shed.  It reaks of musty old life jackets, but I arrange them to make a bed, and I try to sleep. It is too hot. There is no air. I can't believe I am sleeping in the canoe shed. I struggle to even breathe. I toss and turn on the ever shifting pile of life preservers.  There is a mouse or maybe something bigger in the far corner. I really can't believe I am sleeping here. After a few hours I leave the shed. I find a nearby canoe, put my pillow and blankie in, watch the bats flap their wings across the full moon, and I fall asleep. 

Then the dream goes blank for awhile. Nothing.

When it returns, I am awakened by a loud honking sound. I am completely disoriented. I sit up in my canoe and realize I am about to be run over by the Jamestown-Scotland Ferry. Then it ends.

Camp starts August 9. I have 9 more nights of camp dreams.

A duck conversation with a camper

The geese at Beaverdam. No duck shots.

We did a nature camp with 5-8 year olds this week at Beaverdam Park. Chasing ducks and geese quickly became the main activity for a few of the campers...but some of them shared some pretty funny stories about ducks of they once had. Once HAD...yes, even the little ones know that ducks are messy, and not all that fun to keep at home. I shared one of my duck stories with a rising first grader...

Camper: We used to have ducks, but we had to get rid of them...they're messy.
Me: Noah and I had ducks too.  The followed us everywhere, but they they really liked to just hang out on our porch.
Camper: They probably pooped there too.
Me: Yeah, so one day we decided to move them to our farm across the street where there is a nice big pond. At the house they only had a kiddie pool. They swam around and seemed to like their new home, but guess what?
Camper: What?
Me: The next day they flew back home.
Camper: So you got stuck with the poop again?
Me: Well, we clipped some feathers so they couldn't fly so well, and we took them back to the pond. But guess what?
Camper: What?
Me: The next day, I was sitting on the front porch when I saw them walking down the driveway. They just walked home.
Camper: Oh, I know, so you cut off their feet. Can I have some lemonade?

I never got a chance to say that we didn't cut off their feet.

Rambling thoughts from the Fighting Mermaid

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity. Einstein

There are times when I wish I could stop questioning, but it just isn't in me. I spend a lot of time questioning, pondering, meditating on why I believe the things I do, and I am probably no closer to answers than when I first began...I only develop new questions. The questioning can begin with something small, and seemingly simple, and before I have a chance to draw in a single breath the whole puzzle begins to morph and I struggle to put the pieces back, to put the pieces back into a puzzle that no longer has the same shape where the pieces can no longer fit.

So tonight I read somewhere that Jesus was a Conservative and that the U.S. is on a fast track towards Socialism, and now after a few moments in utter amazement, I am contemplating faith and government and trying to understand why I believe the things I do. Be forewarned...you are about to get a glimpse into the workings of a mind that won't be stilled, where the pieces of the puzzle may not appear to fit where they should...this is Krista's brain on religion and politics and to tell you right from the start...I don't buy into either.  If I had to use labels, I guess I would say I am a Radical Leftist Christian Treehugger, but honestly, I'm laughing right now at having written that. Labels don't get us any closer to understanding...

A few pieces of my puzzle.

• I am a huge fan of Jesus. What to say beyond that, I don't know. The personal relationship means everything to me. I am happy to share my own experience, but I am not going to beat you over the head with dogma, because that never really worked for me.
• I believe that God's love is limitless and that the experience of grace is so wildly insane that it defies description. It is life altering... and it exists for everyone. Don't ever let anyone tell you that you're not included.
• I don't think evolutionary theory contradicts a belief in the Creator.
• I believe that the world's major religions share in common a message of hope, compassion and love, and that God gives me the ability to love and care for people of all faiths. 
• I don't think I would use the term "conservative" in any of its meanings to describe Jesus. To me, he was radical, revolutionary, and his love was meant for all.
• I think the best government is one that strikes a careful balance between individual liberties and the good of all.. including the least fortunate and the least deserving.
• I think that the place where we find ourselves now in American politics reflects not the failure of individuals to lead but the failure of the two party system which has so polarized us that we are no longer able to see our many points in common. We make blue and red decisions when we are all just little purple people clinging to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
• I think those who think we are headed toward socialism have no idea what a socialist government really looks like. The short term government solutions to some of our recent financial problems for me just aren't enough to herald the death of capitalism in a country where it is all about the Benjamins.
• I think the way out of the political mess is to rid ourselves of labels, stop the spread of party lies, and be the change we wish to see in the world...yes, thank you, Ghandi...so that means getting our hands dirty, giving up time and money and stepping outside our little boxes to enact positive change.
• I think dealing with differences whether they be politcal, cultural or spiritual requires understanding on a very basic human level. I don't think we get to this understanding without love. We have to care.

Just some of the pieces of my puzzle...
 Peace and Love, Krista

A treehugger's dilemma...

My Favorite Beach

So...I've been preoccupied with the Gulf Oil Spill. An understatement. I have sent letters to congressmen and signed more petitions than I can remember...so please don't send me any more...I no longer remember which I've put my John Hancock on and fear I would compromise them by signing twice. Really.

On Saturday I am participating with the Sierra Club in the Hands Across The Sand event at Buckroe Beach. If you are knew to the Hands Across The Sand phenomenon, you can check it out on fb or visit  http://www.HandsAcrossTheSand.com/ . From 12 PM to 12:15 people across the globe will come together on beaches and parks and join hands to say no to near and off-shore drilling.

I am excited about being part of this, and it is my first event as a Sierra Club member. It is going to be awesome. But the decision to go came with a treehugger dilemma...I'd be driving an hour each way, using up fuel every mile.  And that's when I came up with one of my great ideas...why not host a gathering right here in Mathews...we have beaches. It seemed at first like a great idea...get more local support...increase some visibility...so I let my fingers do the walking and I signed up to host a Hands Across the Sands gathering at Bethel Beach. I should mention it was late at night. I am a nocturnal genius.

That night I went to sleep full of excitement...and then the dreams started...enter treehugger dilemma #2. Too many people...too many people leaving traces even well-intentioned people leave. And all this on my most favorite beach in whole wide world. I've been to alot of beaches...in Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Fiji, Italy, Greece. There was a time when I could say "Let's go to the beach" in six different languages. But, Bethel Beach has always been my favorite and has captured my heart more than any other...the chattering of the ospreys in their nest, the relentless breeze, the many orange and purple skies, and the way the beach is simply never the same one twice...it is all just heaven to me. So, the Leave No Trace educator in me just couldn't risk heaven. And heck, I had just helped clean up trash there with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation...why do it again.  I woke up early and emailed the Virginia coordinator of Hands... to say I'd reconsidered. I'd be attending the event at Buckroe. If you caught it at the right time you may have seen the Bethel Beach event on the Hands Across The Sand map. It was there for a few minutes. Really.

Bethel Beach saved, I was now back with dilemma #1...which I have solved in my tiny treehugging brain by making a list of all the things I will do across the bridge so that the fuel counts for more than one thing.  Trader Joe's for organic coffee that I can actually afford. Habitat for Humanity Restore Warehouse to look for some used windows and building materials. If you haven't been there it is worth a visit... My kitchen is painted with discarded paint that cost $ 1 a gallon, my back porch glassed with used windows and sliding doors which I never would have managed bought new.

Oh, and I am bringing trash bags...to help clean up the traces even well-intentioned people leave...at Buckroe this time. Saturday, June 26 at Buckroe Beach. Gathering starts at 11. Joining of hands 12-12:15. Come out and say no to near and off-shore drilling. http://HandsAcrossTheSand.com/

In Perspective: Visualizing the BP Oil Disaster

It is getting bigger all the time.
In Perspective: Visualizing the BP Oil Disaster: "See how the oil spill in the gulf would look over your hometown"

Sickened by the Spill

Anyone who knows me also knows that I have been deeply affected by the BP oil spill in the Gulf.  I am angry, bewildered, frustrated...on so many levels... for so many reasons that I have put off  writing about it for nearly a month.  I am no closer to being able to wrap my brain around this tragedy than I was in the beginning, but I am blogging on because I am hoping it will at least help me think it through.

On April 20, 2010, an explosion and fire aboard the BP oil drilling platform, Deep Horizon, killed eleven workers.  It also resulted in a massive oil spill that continues to pump thousands of barrels of oil into the Gulf daily.  I say thousands because noone seems to be able to estimate, with any degree of accuracy, the daily volume of spilled oil. BP now states that they are capturing 3000 barrels daily, but there is no estimate as to how much continues to spew forth.

Beyond the tragic loss of human life, the BP disaster will have far reaching consequences for the ecosystem along the U.S. Gulf Coast and it has already impacted residents who depend on a healthy Gulf of Mexico to support both fisheries and tourism. There are so many restrictions on fisheries at present, I couldn't begin to list them all...and despite reports of "clean beaches" tourism is down...so BP has now reportedly given 70 million dollars to the Gulf states to air commercials the company made to promote tourism.  It all makes me sick.

Today, I watched as BP CEO Tony Hayward had the nerve to tell the world that the environmental impact of the Deepwater Disaster would be "very, very, modest." Yeah, maybe in the U.K. The truth is he doesn't know, and I don't know, and I'd guess that most of the experts don't even know... yet. It could take decades for a full assessment...will we watch the marine food web unravel in the Gulf? Will it stop there? How far will the oil travel? Around the Florida Keys? Will there be gaps in spawning cycles? What about migratory birds? What about the loss of marine life we can't see? Oh, the questions are endless, and relentless...and by the time we might be able to see changes in numbers of endangered species, will it be blamed on something else? Endless, and relentless until my brain just wants to explode.

And then there is the BP Atlantis platform.  Just as dangerous, and again, without the acoustic control shut-off system...and that isn't all BP's fault. We don't require them...not part of the rules for off-shore drilling. Our rules are in part to blame. Brazil and Norway have safer rules. 

Our whole energy policy stinks.  We talk about clean energy, but it is just talk.  Instead of pushing through clean energy solutions, the President I've supported ushered in a new wave of off-shore drilling exploration just before the Deepwater incident. Bad timing clearly. I am angry. We are too dependant on fossil fuels. We are all to blame. My car gets good gas mileage, but I drive it too much. I haven't finished the glassing/insulating of my south facing back porch which could have provided some solar heat last winter. I am mad at me.

I have a whole list of idiots whose pictures I'd like to throw darts at: Tony Hayward (BP CEO already mentioned), Rush Limbaugh (for even suggesting that the Sierra Club should pay the clean-up tab), Lisa Murkowski (yet another Alaskan idiot, for derailing the move to increase fines for wreaking environmental havoc)...and yeah, I'm not real happy with my guy in the White House because I need him to take a stronger stand. If ever there was a time to cement a new sense of environmental obligation...this is it.

And then there is my beautiful Chesapeake, my home, my peace, my place like no other...and the thought of drilling off the Maryland/Virginia coast just scares me...and I am hoping those plans will not proceed, but they are far from being tabled...so stand up, my friends, and make your voices count. We could be next.

Angry. Angry and wanting something good to arise from the anger...So, I will complete the porch project, and when I finish paying off the Matrix, the next one will be a hybrid.  And I will have to make better lists so I don't have to drive to the same place twice. And I will keep signing petitions, and writing to our legislators about the need for clean energy, and about ending off-shore drilling.  We must fully understand the consequences of our mistakes...we can't continue to put our oceans and our planet at risk.

At it again...

Since my last blog...

Tomatoes soon!!!

 I have puttered around worked in my mom's garden...

My mom's garden is always a mini wonderland, and always chaotic...We aren't talking nice neat rows...but it is an awesome place, nonetheless. She has everything from Crista tomatoes to kiwi and black bamboo growing in there. 

Noah sometimes helps us weed, but mostly he likes to help plant when he is in work mode...otherwise you'll find him with a net and a bucket "saving tadpoles" in the fish pond. Yeah, we're growing frogs in the house. Once he lost a bull frog in the living room. By the time we found it, it was flat as a pancake.  We might never have found it, but dead things do have a stinky phase. Since then, we've been a tadpole only kind of place.

I have also eaten more than my fair share of strawberries with-

out making a single jar of freezer jam. I even ate some

when Noah wasn't lookin'.  We haven't really even made much strawberry short cake because Noah is a real berry kid. He loves them. He is already eyeing the raspberries and blackberries!

Yum!!!!!!!!

I planted grasses with the Chesapeake Bay

Foundation with the little guy.  This year we

planted along the James at Westover Plantation.

Noah with the grasses...photo courtesy
 of the cell phone as I forgot to charge batteries

...And David and I got married... in one of my favorite places. 

Sunset after the wedding...

I also became obsessed with the BP oil spill and resulting environmental catastrophe ...and I am not exaggerating...but that is another blog on its own. Until then, happy weekend, XO