our hull aground

if i were to make an excuse for not writing recently, it would be how busy i am, how much i've been writing for my classes, the research i've been doing, the games of settlers of catan i've played to keep myself sane.

but i don't need that i guess. what i need is more of a reason to write on here, to feel like it's worthwhile, not just for me, but that others enjoy it. and maybe they do, but it's hard for me to let them when i don't write. so i'm to blame, and i'll try harder.

i can't wait to tell you the stories i've thought of lately, and even more importantly, i can't wait to tell you about what's happening in my life right now--teaching at saint olaf college, a place where students seem just as engaged with the course as i am, where they seem motivated to learn environmental history. it should be a good thing.

the following song has one of my favorite rhyming lyrics of recent days: dirigible and untraceable--i'm not sure how this guy pulls it off. i like the flow and beauty of this song, but just as importantly, i've been reading an amazing book lately: the pine island paradox by kathleen dean moore. in it she reflects on environmental ethics while blending those thoughts with her experiences on and around an island in alaska. i appreciate her book so much that i sent her an email today, and i hope she responds sometime. so making our homes on the water is something i'm thinking about lately, my times spent in boats and in the water itself these many years. in particular, i have some of the most vivid memories of fishing and boating with my family on lake thompson in east central south dakota. really just a big slough, it's become a lake and stayed that way the last twenty years. amazing place.

sons and daughters by the decemberists

When we arrive, sons & daughters
We'll make our homes on the water
We'll build our walls of aluminum
We'll fill our mouths with cinnamon now

These currents pull us 'cross the border
Steady your boats, arms to shoulder
'Til tides are pulled our hull aground
Making this calm harbor now home

Take up your arms, sons and daughters
We will arise from the bunkers
By land, by sea, by dirigible
We'll leave our tracks untraceable now

When we arrive, sons & daughters
We'll make our homes on the water
We'll build our walls of aluminum
We'll fill our mouths with cinnamon now

Hear all the bombs, they fade away