First Day Trip: Glimmerglass State Park

As I have mentioned earlier this week, I was going to start hiking. On Thursday, I had decided that we are going to travel West and explore the nature Glimmerglass State Park had to offer. I have to admit, the trip did not disappoint! There were even some serendipitous post- hiking adventures had.

In anticipation, I woke up a half an hour early this morning. I finished stuffing my day pack with water bottles and band aids (which for the first time I didn't need) and then hopped in the shower. I left my house at quarter to 8 and stopped off at the market to get some trail snacks. I decided to go with the package of Planters Mixed Nuts and Raisins (these were super tasty, I would recommend!) and a bagel for my ride to Albany. I was a little bit late picking up my friend but we got right on the road.

About 30 minutes or so into our ride, I was pulled over for speeding. I really had no idea that I was going too fast, but the officer seemed to be a decent guy. I got off with a ticket for having unauthorized stickers on my rear window (who knew this was a violation?). I didn't let this little hiccup ruin my day as I have in the past. I have really let traffic tickets get to me, which in the grand scheme of things is a little silly. So we continued on our journey forgetting the whole event even happened.


At around 10 AM, we arrived at the park and payed our $7.00 to get in. We drove past the beach and parked at the Beaver Pond Parking area. There, we embarked on our first trail. We headed North on the Beaver Pond Trail, from there we heading to the Meadow, then around Blue Bird. Along the way we encountered some merky ponds and water soaked ground which were tell tale signs of some much needed rain. In the mud, we saw some deer tracks, unfortunately, these were the only sign of wildlife that we had seen.

The vast meadows of golden rod that had quaint purple blossoms scattered throughout and their resident butterflies provided a peaceful setting for reflection. It was so nice to just be outside and enjoy the splendor of nature and my uninterrupted thoughts. While musing on modern life, I realized that I could not go a week with out my computer or cell phone. While I do not necessarily need to use them all the time, I am very embarrassed to admit this, but I am calmed by the sense that help is just a phone call away no matter where I am. While walking around these trails, I realized that I would probably be better off if I didn't know what the internet is. Now that I have instant messaging and online shopping, I do not think I could go back to the way things were.

Instant gratification is infectious and I am not immune. What we, in these modern times, forget is how great it feels to anticipate something. I love waiting for a package in the mail. The process is much like Masters and Johnson's four stages of sexual arousal. Ordering something and finding out when it will arrive is the excitement phase. After the initial excitement, the days between ordering and delivery is the plateau, all building up to the moment the delivery person drops the package off, which is the climax. It feels so great to open the box and see whats inside. After you have your prize the excitement eventually fizzles out, this is until you order you next thing. (And this is evidence that I need abandon my technological ways!)

After hiking around the trails we headed over to the lake. Unfortunately, people were starting to arrive and the early morning solitude was disappearing. After enjoying a light snack, I went to get my tired feet wet in the clear lake water. Unfortunately, this happened to be a rocky section of the lake and wading in was like walking on shards of glass, but I didn't care. After just standing there for a while, I started to skip rocks, which was actually therapeutic. I like watching these flat rocks glide across the surface of the lake, only disrupted by the wakes of passing boats and my unskilled arm. Shortly before 1 PM we got back on the road.

Our ride home was more eventful than our ride there. Riding along route 20, we stopped at a farm stand and bought some fresh picked flowers and juicy raspberries. These were a delicious car ride snack, although my fingers and lap looked like they were covered in blood. Before continuing, we agreed that we wanted to check out a small town deli. Following a bee scare and a false alarm (who knew a place with a full parking lot and a new sign would be closed) we found this delightful little shop along the Turnpike in Delansin, NY. This was quite the road side treasure. It was filled with nuts, spices, candy, cheeses, jams, and fresh milk, as well as an extensive sandwich menu. It took me about ten minutes to make up my mind, but I decided on the Chicken Fajita Wrap, which was delicious. The chicken, peppers, and onions all tasted fresh and delicious within this extra large toasty wrap. I would definitely go back there again (I probably will when I go to court for my sticker ticket).

After this eventful day, I couldn't wait to be home and take a nap. The mercury raised 20 degrees since our initial departure and all that walking and good eating really took a lot out of me. I cannot wait for my next adventure. I am looking north, perhaps the Lake George region, but I have the Scottish games to worry about in a week.

Until next time!

What am I doing with this life.

When is living not enough?

I know, I know, out of context this may seem like a suicidal hypothetical, but to the contrary, my meaning is much different. Life isn't enough when you are just existing. By existing, I mean the mundane routine of going through the motions; waking up; going to school; heading to work; going to bed. Maybe there is some excitement here and there, but for the most part its the same old same old.

This is a shameful way to spend our century on Earth. Especially if you consider how miraculous life is. I don't mean to get too brainy here, but the fact that over 13.7 billion years ago, the teeniest of particles exploded (expanded really) and eventually condensed into planets, which in time developed a life sustaining environment that allowed for complex organisms like ourselves and the platypus(es) to thrive, is mind blowing. Us humans are also lucky enough to have loads of free time, unlike baleen whales who have to eat constantly for half the year or zebras that have to constantly be on guard in order to not be an afternoon snack. I feel like this is evolution saying, "Hey you, whats the point of evolving if you are not going to take advantage of these biological adaptions?"

So I am going to take charge of my life (this is much easier said than done) and start doing things that I really enjoy. For the last four years I have rarely done the things that make me the most happy. That is why I have decided engage in some self improvement activities.

For the last few weeks I have been thinking about various past times that I could pick up and I have come up with four that I want to pursue. If I complete just two of them, I will be happy. These four activities are cooking, sewing, hiking, and meditation. Essentially, as a nature enthusiast with domestic prowess, I am attempting to find joy and fulfillment.

Lately I have been stuck in a funk where I cannot get motivated to do the things I love. But I am a firm believer in the Universe giving you signs, and recently, I have received a few. First being instead of working a 40 hour a week clerical job, I am going to be a governess (technically, I will be a nanny, but since I am educated, I want to give myself more credit than I deserve). This I hope will provide me with more time to do things. The next sign has been a recent (re)obsession with all things nature (of course except fish and birds). I love looking at outcrops, wild flowers, and meromictic lakes. So when my friend proposed we climb the High Peaks in the Adirondacks, I was over-joyed.

While I am in no physical shape to climb the tallest peaks in New York State, I have decided to take small steps. We are going to start hiking nature trails, in three days! Sunday morning we are going to wake up early, hit the road and hike around Glimmerglass State Park. I was so excited that I have already made up an itinerary and evaluated what trails we will hike. In addition to a lake, this particular state park has a historic site and a beaver pond! (Beavers happen to be my favorite rodent.) I get so excited just thinking about this upcoming adventure.

I will conclude with declaring my expectations. I hope to be able to once again enjoy life's simple pleasures (and I am not talking about the laundry softener). I want to enjoy the sounds of water flowing and wind blowing as well as the aesthetic beauty of the sky's reflection on the calm lake waters. I also intend to get in shape for Fall and Winter, my two favorite seasons.

Here I have "publicly" declared my goals for the next few months. I plan on writing about my experiences; spiritual; domestic; or environmental, and track my progress in self rediscovery.

Cheers!

Every person on this planet has their twin...

So it is thought by some that every person on this planet has a twin, or someone who looks just like them. While I wish that I could say mine is Catherine Zeta Jones or Audrey Tautaou, I think I found mine and it is a Buddhist King from the third century BCE...Yes my twin is a male, how disappointing.


He even has the same eyebrows!

I take solace in the fact that Tom Arnold is not my twin, so I guess I can cope with this one. On the plus side, he is wearing pearls!

My Thoughts on Education

Sir Ken Robinson in the following video put into words a lot of the feelings I have about higher education. I often say to people that not everybody needs to go to college, which people often register as pompous, but it is extremely true, and he articulates this much better than I ever could.

Everyone has some talent whether it be math, writing, singing, playing rugby, programming computers, or taking care of animals. Like our planet, there are so many different professional niches for people to fill. Forcing everyone into just one or two is simply snuffing out the potential of those who have a calling for something different. (This is a regurgitation of Robinson's lecture)

Sir Ken Robinson uses the term "academic inflation" to describe the current situation where those with a bachelor's degrees are not guaranteed jobs following graduation like they were thirty years ago. As a student of the Millennial Generation, I felt immense pressure in High School to go to the best college that I could get into, no matter what the cost. As a result, I find myself with plenty of student loans and a job that is as demanding as the ones I held prior to graduating. Do I regret going to Syracuse University? No, after much self- reflection I have realized that I am built for academia, as I lack the artistic, athletic, and mechanical abilities many of my peers possess.

What is alarming is the difference in tuition over the last 3 decades. In 1979, my mother graduated from a public four- year university and was able to work while she was attending school in order to have no loans following graduation. Although I graduated from a private four- year university, I did one year at my mother's Alma Mater and was unable to pay for all of the costs with a white- collar, part- time position. When they told you in High School that public colleges were affordable, what they forget to mention was that if your parents made a decent amount of money, you would get no financial aid, even if they refused to contribute a dime towards educational costs. I found my self looking at taking out $7,000 more a year in loans to attend Syracuse University rather than the University at Albany and at the time it seemed like a better deal. I will not know if I was right for quite some time, but heres hoping that I was.

The purpose of this blog was to express hope for the future. Just a couple of years ago, we felt the economic effects of the mortgage crisis, whether or not we owned a home. While I do not believe the cost of college will decrease, I hope that employers in the future will recognize the capabilities and value of those who do not hold a college degree and shrink the current educational inflation.

As I see it, obtaining a diploma in today's world is like France's Old Regime practice of selling seats of nobility. Those that could afford to pay large sums could buy aristocratic titles and therefore raise their position in society. While much of the unrest in Old Regime France was due to the objection of the Nobility of the Sword (or nobles who held their positions for generations), what I feel will lead to our eventual downfall in this situation will be the loans that people like me have accumulated in order to hold this piece of paper that supposedly sets me apart from my peers and the effects it will have on the entire community. The Nobility of the Robe did not buy their positions on credit, but they also really did obtain some influence.

Since there are so many people who are needlessly going to college and there are increasing numbers of students paying for college on credit, I foresee troublesome financial times in the future. Although I am only a humanities scholar, I can still see the disaster waiting to happen.

With so many qualified applicants and not enough jobs out there, I see why Suze Orman has been telling people not to go to college unless they can afford it. Educational costs hamper those with natural academic abilities. (If I didn't have to work through college I probably would have had a stellar GPA and been involved in tons of activities)

Although I have come off as both hypocritical and self-serving, what I am unarticulately trying to convey is my position on higher education. I am not quite certain how to fix this problem for future generations, but my hope is that our society will realize that there are very talented people out there who don't necessarily need a four year degree to follow their dreams and there are other people who would thrive in an academic environment but simply can't afford it. I believe that educating our citizens is extremely important in our developed society, but there should be options other than buying a degree on credit.

Van Gogh and Peacocks

Why didn't Van Gogh paint peacocks?

The vivid colors used by both nature and Van Gogh only seem like they were a match made on Mount Olympus! (I say Mount Olympus instead of Heaven to emphasize the powerful yet not always exclusively faithful match)

As a lover of post- impressionist art and peacocks, I feel as if I was slighted. (I know I am taking a little too much offense at a hypothetical slight.)

PS- If you know me, you know I do not like birds, Peacocks are one of the very few exceptions.

Career Search

In attempts to enhance my online visibility, I launched a website that highlights both my Academic and Professional experiences. I am hoping that this will eventually help me to replace the High School Rowing results and Facebook profiles, which are the two most frequent hits on Google, with more career focused content.

As a less than tech savvy individual, I am impressed with how well my website came out. I wrote the content in third person, which some might feel is a bit pretentious, but it was not intended to be, at all. The one thing that I have yet to figure out is how to include a photo on the Home page. I have been using Brand-yourself.com, an online reputation management company that was created by a fellow Syracuse University Student. So far I am impressed by the ease of the website, but I need to wait to see if it has had an impact on my job search.

I will report back and discuss how successful this attempt at taking control of my online presence has been.

Until then, here is my Brand-Yourself.com website and a link to my first ever press release!

My Website

My First Ever Press Release

If there are any constructive comments, please feel free to leave them!

I know that these both need a little work, but I am a novice, in time I anticipate becoming a professional.

Book Club of One

I think that I am going to start my very own book club!

While I will eventually love to share this literary fun with others, I would like to first determine the format, frequency, and focus. (Did you see what I did there... alliteration!)

The next book I am going to finish is Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.

Here's hoping this goes according to plan, until my next blog, I will leave you with this:

PS- I should introduce myself, my name is Zoë and I love to use exclamation points.