Swamp Thing
I am still not in Reno. And I still have not heard from JRE08 concerning the details of my living situation out there. I was supposed to have found out on Thursday, and I had planned on buying my ticket then for next Saturday. But now I can't buy a ticket for next Saturday because Delta won't let you buy tickets within a week's notice. So that's lame. Anyway... I'm still here, in Cortland, Ohio, riding my bike, and mulching, and drinking beer, and waiting.
And while I'm here, many of my friends no longer are. Last night was a big(ish) get together at the Lakehouse, around a fire. Today, people left to go back to Columbus and Cleveland and West Virginia. Conversation turned to the subject of: "How many more nights like this do you think we're going to be able to have, with everyone together?"
Dad and I have been hitting the road lately, and my form is pretty good (comfortable), especially considering I hadn't been on my bicycle since October. I ran over a dead opossum's head today... the sound of the skull crushing under my front wheel really (really) bummed me out.
We have a new Wal-Mart going in, right across the street from our current Wal-Mart. As it happens, they chose a patch of wetlands to build on, so apparently they've been shipping in tons and tons of dirt to level and solidify the ground. Which is great. A new Wal-Mart! ...I'm writing letters this week. Economic "progress."
Speaking of environmental degradation:
Knocke emphasizes that there is no final decision about exactly where the border wall and fence will be built. He says Homeland Security will listen to residents' concerns, but he is firm that walls and fencing are coming to South Texas.
That's a big concern to the biologists at the nearby Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge.
"Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge is a really special place," says Nancy Brown, with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The 2,088-acre refuge is considered the jewel of the national wildlife system, she says.
"You can get a 7-mile hike in, or you can do a half-mile and on either one you can see birds at Santa Ana that you can't see anywhere else in the country," she says.
There are more than 500 different species, and birdwatchers pump $125 million a year into the McAllen economy alone. (Emphasis added.) Of course, it's not the birds that will be impeded by a wall or fence, but the birdwatchers.
Brown says the barrier is scheduled to go through two of the three National Wildlife Refuges down here.
"We have 70 miles of riverfront and we are federally owned. It has been stated that federal property will probably be designated as the first place to put fencing," Brown says.
And there is an endangered species of cat, the ocelot.
The ocelots once roamed from Arkansas and Louisiana across to west Texas. Now there are only 80 to 100 cats, most of them in South Texas.
The ocelots roam back and forth across the Rio Grande River. A fence might put an end to them. One way or the other, the border wall is going to test the adaptability of all kinds of creatures in South Texas.
Father's Day = Dad's very own set of Planet Earth DVD's.
And the new Fantastic Four movie sucked. Surprisingly, it was the writing that sunk the ship, instead of the acting. The Silver Surfer, though, delivered the goods, and Galactus' re-visioning was really cool. Spin off!
And while I'm here, many of my friends no longer are. Last night was a big(ish) get together at the Lakehouse, around a fire. Today, people left to go back to Columbus and Cleveland and West Virginia. Conversation turned to the subject of: "How many more nights like this do you think we're going to be able to have, with everyone together?"
Dad and I have been hitting the road lately, and my form is pretty good (comfortable), especially considering I hadn't been on my bicycle since October. I ran over a dead opossum's head today... the sound of the skull crushing under my front wheel really (really) bummed me out.
We have a new Wal-Mart going in, right across the street from our current Wal-Mart. As it happens, they chose a patch of wetlands to build on, so apparently they've been shipping in tons and tons of dirt to level and solidify the ground. Which is great. A new Wal-Mart! ...I'm writing letters this week. Economic "progress."
Speaking of environmental degradation:
Knocke emphasizes that there is no final decision about exactly where the border wall and fence will be built. He says Homeland Security will listen to residents' concerns, but he is firm that walls and fencing are coming to South Texas.
That's a big concern to the biologists at the nearby Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge.
"Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge is a really special place," says Nancy Brown, with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The 2,088-acre refuge is considered the jewel of the national wildlife system, she says.
"You can get a 7-mile hike in, or you can do a half-mile and on either one you can see birds at Santa Ana that you can't see anywhere else in the country," she says.
There are more than 500 different species, and birdwatchers pump $125 million a year into the McAllen economy alone. (Emphasis added.) Of course, it's not the birds that will be impeded by a wall or fence, but the birdwatchers.
Brown says the barrier is scheduled to go through two of the three National Wildlife Refuges down here.
"We have 70 miles of riverfront and we are federally owned. It has been stated that federal property will probably be designated as the first place to put fencing," Brown says.
And there is an endangered species of cat, the ocelot.
The ocelots once roamed from Arkansas and Louisiana across to west Texas. Now there are only 80 to 100 cats, most of them in South Texas.
The ocelots roam back and forth across the Rio Grande River. A fence might put an end to them. One way or the other, the border wall is going to test the adaptability of all kinds of creatures in South Texas.
Father's Day = Dad's very own set of Planet Earth DVD's.
And the new Fantastic Four movie sucked. Surprisingly, it was the writing that sunk the ship, instead of the acting. The Silver Surfer, though, delivered the goods, and Galactus' re-visioning was really cool. Spin off!
