Anyhow, today I will hopefully finish the otter pelt. it is thawed and ready to get scraped... and I have the materials to clean and preserve the hide too. wish me luck!
Recent things, three-day naturalist retreat with the cohort- one day of snow science, snowshoe testing and avalanche training. Another day of birding on the Skagit flats... which was awesome! The highlight involves a flock of Snow Geese (Anser caerulescens) moving and flying directly overhead... it was like a swarm of birds.
I have never posted a video before, so we'll see how this whole thing goes.
What else has been going on? My mind has been in shambles at times as I try to cope with living in a small community, lots of schoolwork and no direct competition.
The small community is fine, but I have a hard time finding an outlet... as we are all in this together. some folks have ways to release and "escape" from time to time, but I have felt trapped at times. Yeah, I signed up for this and I will get through it too... but it is hard! Whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.
About the schoolwork... I just have to wrap my head around doing it. Lots of planned social engagements, institute events, meetings and new stuff coming up all the time. Thus the work sits and then gets even harder to do with less time to do it. The best bet is for me to remember that if I am idle, then I probably have something I should be doing!
No direct competition... I suppose sometimes we grad students compete against each other for resources or for face time with institute people... sometimes in class or during projects. And of course folks want their projects better than the next person's/group's... but mostly the work is done to make people feel proud of themselves. There is no real competition... and that is pretty awesome! Especially because we are learning about collaboration- which is often more productive... the issue for me is that I am a competitor.
I don't want to compete with colleagues about resources, jobs, etc. In fact, we are all planning to go different ways after this, so there is no real competition. But what I yearn for is a competition.... like a basketball game, like a soccer match.... some sort of dance of bodies... some sort of physical adjustment and athletic jostling for position or fighting to get the ball. I don't know if it is as simple as physical contact with others... I think it is more of an athletic characteristic waiting for an opportunity to perform.
I have been working out a couple of days a week. I haven't been as consistent as I'd like, but i do my best. And with my limited exercises, time, equipment, and routine, I have managed to see a difference in my body. It has taken nearly three months to see any difference, but now that I can notice muscle definition and overall body health, I am encouraged to keep at it. The hardest part about exercise and stretching is that one never knows if it is working properly... it takes a lot of time to actually see results. At least for me!
that's all for now. so much work to do!
