Inspiring

A smile when there's only frowns
A joker with a laugh so loud
You seemed to always brighten up the room
A voice like a symphony
A heart as deep as the sea
Inspiring, you were someone to look up to

Heather Janssen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go-PTrORE_M&feature=channel_video_title

Fell in love with a smile

    In time, everything falls apart. The things you have and the things you thought you had. They all have to come tumbling down. This truth isn't meant to harm us or leave us in the dirt that is our perceived failure. It's meant to make room for the new. As a being, I personally thrive on the constant changes (as much as I wish not to admit it). I feel that we all have a little longing for the same. We were never meant to have the same thing for any long period of time, as nice as it may be.
    Let there be room for new things, experiences, places, and people. Each and every moment means something if you make it so. People are meant to change each other. He'll always win if he fights to, but until then I want to be happy. New people//new places//new experiences; they make me happy.

"Don't frown. You never know who might fall in love with your smile."

    Life here is becoming more and more like a dream I never want to wake from. I love the "rustic" style home and the overall lifestyle of this area. This life is nothing like I ever could have imagined. I certainly never imagine falling in love with everything I have here. Leaving is going to be much, much harder than anticipated. I don't look forward to that day. The plane ride will be a cold and lonely experience.
    For now, I will focus on the things I have and not a thing more. I have a wonderful "job." I'm surrounded by amazing people. I've found my niche. It's comfortable and heart warming. It's everything I want in my hands as I feel myself being stalked by a thief waiting to tear it away.

     It stormed yesterday. I missed the rain. When I sit on the porch, the rain falls in a drip drop fashion because we don't have gutters. It's absolutely gorgeous to watch... I wish technology could somehow show you what I see. There was a sunset that would leave anyone breathless. The natural world I am currently surrounded by is not one I wish to soon forget.

Those babies aren't so cute and cuddly

Part of animal care is feeding and shifting in the animals every evening. Tuesday, I tagged along with Tom to close. When we got to quarantine, it was time to feed our 3 baby skunks. He prepared the vegetable portion of their diet while I opened the door to give them meat.

Me: "Ew. I'm pretty sure that's not supposed to be happening!"
*shoves face into wall*
--: "What? Is he dead?"
Me: * peaks around wall* "I don't know. YES!"
* shoves face back into wall and squeezes arm*

    The two larger skunks had been fighting over the smaller skunk. Originally, I thought they had ripped a small part of his skin open. Turns out they had ripped his head off and were fighting over the rest of the body. The head was only held on by a small sliver of skin. Possibly the most horrific moment of my summer. Even worse than playing tug-of-war with headless geese in an effort to skin their still warm bodies.
    All in all, a horrible moment that I will never forget. Now I can't look at those baby skunks the same, regardless of how fuzzy and adorable they are. They are vicious creatures.
    We had to bury two skunks that evening, because we had to euthanize one that someone brought in. Sad, sad times.

   Guided Discoveries are almost done for me. My last day is tomorrow. I enjoy working with children, but the past two weeks have been quite a challenge. When you lack interest in what your trying to teach, it ruins the experience for everyone. Thus, I have been putting a lot of energy toward keeping the kids and myself excited. More of a challenge than I anticipated.

    Last night we went to see Zookeeper. Greatest movie I have seen in a very long time. I highly recommend it. :) I cackled the entire time, when I wasn't "aww"ing, as per my usual.

I plan on ending this summer with a bang. I have no idea how, but it is more than deserving of a wonderful ending. :)

    If you've been following the chronicles of Brittany's heart, you know I've been making stupid decisions. He stopped speaking to me (for whatever reason) for a month, and I told myself I would make him sweat it out and not answer his message. Yeah, I made him sweat...... no not really. I answered him two days after he sent it, which is longer than my usual same day response. In other words, I caved as I always do. Sad town.
    I'm working on improvements. No worries. :p

I hoped you'd see my face and be reminded

    This week is AstroCamp. We get to learn about space. :) I'm really just here to stand in the corner and talk a little bit about nature. It's a nice little break from the non stop. 

    It's been a little while since we've spoken last, me and him. About a month now. I won't lie and say I wasn't sad. I left Tampa knowing that we were at a point in the story line where it was horrible for me to leave. I feared that when I returned, all of our progress would mean nothing. I made a promise to myself that my focus would be on New Hampshire and I was doing well. I WAS doing well.
    Dani and I talked about his lack of contact and she argued that I should forget him and move on. I thought it would be a good idea, so I agreed. There I was. Ready, not to forget, but to leave things open for more opportunities. Then I get to work this morning and he responded.
    At this point, I would have been better off without an answer. I accepted that I wasn't a priority and I focused my attention at all the gorgeous and wonderful men New Hampshire has to offer. :p
    The line that did me in. "You behave yourself. Can't wait to see your smiling face again."

I keep making the same mistakes I always make. I allow them to hurt me because in my mind, the good always outweighs the bad. If you've won my heart, I guess you can hurt my however you'd like until I finally break. It's the same from all of us. We never learn from our mistakes.

Midnight swimming and new friends

    Last night I met two of Mike's friends, Derek and Cam, who stayed the night. We had another Intern Cottage Gathering. The Dodge's came over as well. We played games, watched Always Sunny, played poker, went on a small walk through the woods, and danced. :) We also went midnight swimming in the lake. Apparently Derek and Cam missed the swimsuit memo........... good thing it was dark outside. ;p
    Dani and I ran into yet more creepers. As we swam in the dark they insisted on us spending the evening with them in inappropriate manners and were very rude and persistent. Of course, as our luck would have it, our three manly men left us on our own while these rude and disgusting individuals harassed us with words.
    All in all, the night was fantastic. Being surrounded by intoxicated individuals is always an adventure in itself.

    These two new guys were sure characters. Cam only drinks appletinis and is a tall, lanky dancing machine. Derek is a polite (when sober) touchy-feely, and loud individual. They were both very entertaining guys who provided a much needed release from the work week.
    On our walk to the midnight swim, Derek thought it necessary to wrap his arm around me and confess his drunken habits. It's always a wonderful feeling when someone comes up to you and puts their arm around you, no matter how much of a stranger they are (as long as they have good intentions). It's a nice reminder that you're important, or somehow appealing to another person. :)

    Of course the Dodge boys were wonderful as usual. Even after the short time knowing them, we are officially best friends. :)

After looking back, it was a night of laughter and enjoyment. I'm glad we have these nights of release in our busy lives here at the Science Center.

My post for work. Enjoy!

I wrote half of this with a killer migraine last night and the other half this morning after the kids already arrived for class. 

By Program Intern Brittany Mielcarek

I find that it can be easy to forget about the natural beauty around us. My internship here at the science center has been 5 weeks or reconnecting with nature and its amazing beauty.

Something as simple as a pinecone can tell a great story, but only if we take the time to notice it. Education program director, Amy Yeakel, took me and the other interns for a hike up Mt. Fayal as part of our professional development. We came across a pinecone and Amy took that opportunity to explain something we might find on the forest floor. Red squirrels will pull the exterior scales (bracts) off a pinecone to get to the underside of the bracts for feeding. When the squirrel is finished, a bare pinecone is left surrounded by bracts. If you happen upon this in the forest, it’s a sure sign of red squirrel activity.

Naturalist Dave Erler and I cleaned the white tail deer exhibit of stinging nettle. Stinging nettle is a plant covered in fine hairs that contain irritating chemicals and can grow up to 2-4 feet tall. When this plant is brushed up against, these hairs stick in the skin of whatever animal may be passing by. This creates an itchy feeling that is almost impossible to resist. When scratched, the hairs release the irritating chemicals into the skin and the itching becomes more intense and lasts much longer. Before Dave showed me what stinging nettle looked like, the deer exhibit looked like a blur of green and brown. Once I took the time to distinguish between one plant and another, the picture changed. It was no longer a mix of colors.

We passed a tree the other day that had grown is a wavy pattern. I have seen trees like this before, but I had never known the cause. I learned that there is an insect that eats the apical buds off the tops of trees. Apical buds produce the hormones that are responsible for vertical growth in trees. In order for the tree to continue growing vertically, there must be a small amount of lateral growth first. The insects keep eating the apical buds and the tree continues to grow up and then to the side. The tree ends up looking like a wavy piece of curly hair growing into the sky.

This week I’ve been assisting with the Wild Art guided discovery. One of our first activities was creating field guides using Kirkwood Gardens. Page one was a general view of a group of plants. There was little detail but many colors blended together. The next page involved closing in on one plant or one flower and painting the details in. This was a reminder to me about the importance of fine details. Not only is the big picture important, but each individual aspect is equally as important.

The trees and plants around us have stories to share is we take the time and care to listen. If take time to actually see and learn about the natural world around us, we can truly benefit from all it has to offer.

Remember that every part of nature has a purpose. A dead tree is just as vital as a live tree. Each and every organism serves a purpose, although we may not know it at first. I would like to encourage all of you to take the time to reconnect to nature. Spend an afternoon outside with friends and family. Your backyard can be as much as a natural adventure as a hike to the top of a mountain. You just have to take the time to find it.