Sandcastles in the Sand

Today, on my day off, I got up at 6 am, treated myself with some breakfast from BK and then headed to Yankton to play in the sand. Why? Because the Missouri River is about to flood. The Army Corps is releasing water from the dams at record high rates, and I don't think anyone knows exactly what to expect. The news can explain it better than I can:

THIS IS A NEWS STORY ABOUT WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT. CLICK IT.


I really enjoyed my 3 hours spent bagging sand today. It was hard work, but I got to meet some really great people. It is really nice to see everyone coming out and lending a hand. There are literally hundreds of people filling sand bags, and hundreds more helping residents sandbag their properties and move out of their homes. The task is simple, shovel sand into bags, tie bags shut, stack bags on pallets. It takes a lot of hands to accomplish this task, a shoveler, a bag opener, a bag filler, a knot tyer, and a stacker.

Some of the many hundreds of volunteers who came out this morning to fill sandbags

The fruits of our labor, ready to be picked up by residents in need.

Fortunately it seems the town I live in, Vermillion is safe from flooding. I am more than happy to lend a hand to neighbors in need though. I will likely volunteer more time over the next week.

And now let's hope those tornado threats for tonight are just that- threats.

Bed Bugs

Ok, so I don't have bed bugs. But I do have an insanely annoying allergy to dryer sheets. One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone leaves their dryer sheet in the dryer and I don't find it until after I have spent the money to dry my bed sheet and towels. I can live with my towels having been affected, but it is damn near impossible to sleep in a bed that you are allergic to. Not only does it make me sneeze, but I get the added delightful bonus of feeling like I have fleas or perhaps rolled around in a bush of poison ivy. Thank goodness for Benadryl induced comas.

Why can't everyone use unscented dryer sheets? Or better yet, none at all. Liquid fabric softener is your friend.

Done ranting. Guess I'll be rocking the sleeping bag tonight!

And now for something completely different...

I certainly hope at least one of you enjoys a good Monty Python reference.

My mother says that if I have nothing nice to say, I should say nothing at all. Since I am a cranky bitch this week, I will heed her warning. I am going to let Kermit the Frog speak for me today:

Happy Sam Day!

Today is my bestest friend's birthday. I am always sad when I am not able to be with her to celebrate.

Samantha has been my best friend since we were in Mrs. Torelli's 2nd grade class together. I had previously tried to befriend her on the playground in 1st grade, but she threw sand at me. Long story short, Sam is my best friend, and has been for 20 years now. Holy crap. We are old.

Chester Fair, 2007

High School Graduation, 2002

Drunk in our living room, 2007

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAMMY I LOVE YOUUUUUUUUU!

The Rapture

Yesterday was Judgement Day. Or was it?

Today I woke up feeling like I had been severely beaten and perhaps ran over by a semi. Perhaps I was in some epic post-apocalyptic battle yesterday? Afraid not. I can now recall that I was in the front seat of a canoe that met a tree head on. I seem to have wrenched my arm out of it's socket as I tried to keep that branch from ripping my face off. I was mostly successful, as I only lost a little of my lip and a minor chunk of gums. C'est la vie. I am here to tell the story.

This is what happens when your face meets an un-friendly tree branch.

The rest is a bit of a blur. I remember being underwater and then clinging to a tree branch for a bit as I dug my phone out of it's dry bag to call for help. I also recall my 2 co-workers trying to hold our sinking canoe. Eventually we gathered our belongings, bailed out the canoe, dug out the 100 pounds of sand, and got her back afloat. The sun stayed out until we reached our car at our pull-out location 14 miles from our point of origin.

Sadly, when we got back to the car we realized we did not have the car keys. Fortunately we were able to call someone to come get us. The thunderstorms rolled over our heads dropping only a few "fat raindrops" on us as they passed over.

My crew leader Ben, as the "Rapture" was occuring 

Eventually I made it home safely. Some friends of mine from home were visiting. We drank some beers and watched the thunder and lightning. After the storm passed my roommate pointed out a wonderful thing.. a double rainbow occurred. It was fantastic.

Double Rainbow!!! (hard to see in this photo, but it's there)

Yesterday was supposed to be the Rapture. It was not in fact the end of days but it was an interesting day nonetheless...

Curtis

This is Curtis. He is one bad ass betta fish. He spends all day making bubble nests in hopes of meeting the lady betta of his dreams and making adorable betta babies. He is also on guard at all times in case his arch nemesis, Damien comes around looking for trouble. (Damien is actually just Curtis' reflection in a mirror but Shhh,  he doesn't know that).

The Long and Winding [River]

Yesterday we returned to Niobrara. This time we were victorious. We paddled our 2 canoes down 14 miles of the Niobrara River. I must confess I haven't been regularly canoeing since 2008, so my arms are a bit tired this morning.

It appears I am terrible at blogging

Typically I only have internet access through that fandangled iPhone contraption of mine. Fancy as it is, I have not figured out how to access this blog site from it. Needless to say, when I am somewhere with an internet connection it is most likely that I have forgotten my laptop or am too tired to come up with something to write.

But I digress...

Now I will share my latest favorite photo..

My crew and our Chevy Cobalt (taken with iPhone)

Recently our intrepid crew traveled to Niobrara, Nebraska to check out some new potential plover monitoring sites. As you can see from this photo the weather was fantastic (not). Apparently the town had recently planted grass alongside this roadway, causing quite a muddy mess when our Chevy Cobalt pulled over. Luckily the 4 of us were able to push her safely back to the road with a little elbow grease. Never a dull moment in the life of a field biologist.

My friend Jack

It occurs to me that I have never kept a blog before, and don't really know what to write in it. So for now I will just post photos of mine and attempt to explain the story behind them.

Black-tailed Jackrabbit (Lepus californicus) photographed through my spotting scope in Texas 

I met this fellow while doing a regular survey back in Texas. Typically, the jackrabbits are startled by our presence, and would run away as fast as possible. This individual chose to stay put, and watched me intently as I set up my spotting scope and retrieved my digital camera from my pack.

 In case you don't know I spent the last 6 months on Padre Island, TX. I recently moved to Vermillion, SD.  I grew rather accustomed to the warm weather, and spending my free time on the beach. Now I am back to wearing winter hats and gloves everyday. Sometimes my migratory lifestyle has some drawbacks.