Diversity

This is a post about the changing nature of life, decisions, diversity and open mindedness.

Obama
I am about half way through Obama's book "The Audacity of Hope" and I am very impressed. He is articulate, thoughtful, collected and centered. The thing that sticks out to me the most is his respect for people of different opinions. He is willing to listen and find common ground. He recognizes that we are all constitutionalists. That;

for all out disagreements we would be hard pressed to find a conservative or liberal in America today, whether Republican or Democrat, academic or layman, who doesn't subscribe to the basic set of individual liberties identified by the Founders and enshrined in our Constitution and our common law: the right to speak our minds; the right to worship how and if we wish; the right to peaceably assemble to petition our government; the right to own, buy and sell property and not have it taken without fair compensation; the right to be free from unreasonable searches an seizures; the right not to be detained by the state without due process; the right to a fair and speedy trial; and the right to make our own determinations, with minimal restriction, regarding family life and the way we raise our children.

So why does it seem like there is so much controversy? Aside from the media, which is not happy with a story of cooperation and compromise, it's because we disagree on how best to protect these rights. I think most people believe that they are right and that they act ethically, but the reality is that we all work with an extremely limited and different understand of what the world is and how it works. Should we then abstain from making decisions until we have all the information? Waiting until we completely understand a problem before making a decision would result in a state of utter paralysis and nothing would get accomplished. If we waited for science to tell us what is and is not healthy to eat, we would all starve to death. We have to eat and we have to make decisions. The lesson is to find a balance between progressive and conservative decisions.

Tortoises

Currently, there is a law suit pending which may inhibit us from doing our work on the desert tortoise. Let me say right now that I am not a spokesperson for USGS nor am I involved in the administration and I don't claim to know much about the situation at all. The Center for Biodiversity is suing to stop a project in Southern California to move tortoises off of Ft Irwin Military Reserve across a fence onto BLM land. Now the reason I am a biologist is because i believe in protecting biodiversity so you would think I would agree with the opinions of an organization called the Center for Biodiversity. But I think this is a dangerous move. The danger is that Ft Irwin may decide to disregard environmental law in the interest of homeland security and start training on the land without moving the tortoises, which is a bad precedent to reinforce. The temptation is to vilify the opposition, which i see done all the time amongst scientists. Because they have an opinion that we disagree with they must be stupid, or ignorant, or evil. But maybe they really do want to see the desert tortoise survive and feel this is the best way to go about it. It doesn't seem to be constructive to put them down as inferior human beings.

Diversity
I think that our strength as humans comes from our diversity. The founding fathers disagreed vehemently about the role of government in our lives, the role of religion in the government, and many other things, and after the constitution was drafted they continued to debate in the Federalist Papers. And it doesn't stop there. New bills are passed every day. Obama explains that the majority of those bills are not new laws but clarifications of old laws either strengthening or weakening a position for or against something. Nothing is really final and people change their minds all the time. I believe in competition and capitalism, economics and ecology, evolution and the survival of the fittest. But I also believe in tolerance and compassion. In nature it's all red in tooth and claw, existence or extinction. But for humans life is less permanent and dichotomous. This is getting long and I have more to say about diversity but for now I will close by asking that we be tolerant of other peoples views and forgiving of their decisions. They are just decisions made under a certain set of presumptions and circumstances. Embrace diversity and we may be better off for it.



PS to Jeff: Feel free to syndicate if you think it appropriate.

Motate

I walk.

I ride.

I drive.

I scoot.

Obama

Tarantula!

Please don't confuse my action for decision

After much deliberation and hesitation, I have accepted a permanent position for the USGS here in fabulous Las Vegas, NV. They are offering me a raise (more money than I've ever made before), a dependable income, and very valuable experience (lots of projects and some more responsibility) at a fairly prestigious institution. The commitment is scary and I would prefer a different biome but in the end I do enjoy my work and the prospect of not having work at all was too scary. It has significant implications but I think it will be good for me.

The idea of living in Las Vegas is really more strange than actually living here. It's an "honest city not pretending to be anything but what it is." There is always something happening and good food of every nationality, many places are open 24hrs. I've become something of a vampire here; avoiding sunlight, staying out late, sucking blood and what not. The weather is becoming more tolerable as we approach winter. It's in the 70's and 80's now but after July and August even temperatures around 105 seem cool. I have a cheap apartment in a good location, right on UNLV campus. It's not the Bellagio but it's close, literally 4 Las Vegas blocks. I still drive to work but on the weekends I can bike to anything I need. I plan on getting a smaller car for trips to the mountains though. Some of my liberal and conservative habits have changed along with ideas and ideals.

So anyway, that's life. Not always what you expect but generally good.

Buy it, use it, break it, fix it, Trash it, change it, melt-upgrade it

I purchased a new computer this week and since it's 113°F outside I've been spending the days with it in Panera under the a/c. My old computer had become so unreliable I didn't want to do any work on it. At least that was my, I think justifiable, excuse. Everything was broken on it. I'll try not to spill coffee on this one. It feels good to have a dvd burner that I can back up my data on. Also, half the weight and a smaller size mean fewer bruised thumbs from picking up the computer with one hand.

It's been sometime since my last post. I'm still in Las Vegas, still working in the Mojave. One of my life goals since high school has always been to become an itinerant biologist and it's something I've spent 10 years in college to become. It's still a goal for me but the allure of a dependable income is hard to resist. Being out of school and with no serious notions of returning I am now faced with the necessity of creating an enjoyable career and lifestyle for myself in an economically sustainable way. So I've decided to stay on at USGS until the end of September to make a bit more money in a position I enjoy. Unfortunately, I seem to be increasing my spending lately so I'm going to have to get serious about my budget and stick to it to get my credit cards paid off. Once those cards are taken care of and I have some money cashed away I will feel at liberty to quit my job and move on to the next place.

Small living.

One big expense I am anticipating soon is an apartment. During the week I have and expansive desert floor and infinite ceilings but on the weekends I've been living in a mobile 32 square feet with 4 foot ceilings. Since I spend most of my time in the field sleeping under the stars, I felt it was unnecessary to depart with $500/month for a weekend shower. But with the extreme heat advisories lasting until midnight recently, I am beginning to seriously reconsider this position. I feel like a vampire here sometimes as I watch the sun creeping into my shade and I inch back to avoid frying alive. Hard plastics melt, fruit rots in a matter of hours, and trim is falling off of my truck.

It's been almost a year now since I had a permanent residence of my own. I've learned a lot from the experience. For example, I can shower with between two and three gallons of water. I've also learned that there are lots of other people that live in their cars. I'm still sleeping on the same full sized bed I was when I had an apartment and even when I had an apartment I didn't like spending time there so my life isn't that much different. My most missed conveniences are a private bathroom and kitchen.

Gandhi said "Live simply so that others may simply live." I try. I've been wondering if I would leave less of a footprint by not living in an apartment or by not driving. I think it's a toss up economically as well. Certain things just cost more if you can't purchase them in bulk. I'm considering joining the Small House Society. I believe I have an "unconventional spirit coupled with down-to-earth practicality". In contrast, the scale of things here in Vegas is ridiculous.

Other thoughts.

I had lost 25 pounds since moving to Nevada and reached an acceptable 159#, that was until Fourth of July BBQ and mild beverage consumption. The fireworks on the strip were disappointing but the Bellagio had an impressive water show with patriotic music. Work is still good. We've complete perennial surveys for burned habitat. Plant identification is sometimes frustrating. Soon we will be working on tortoises. Vegas will effect me much more than California did. I may need to wander.


Favorites of the moment;
casino: Mandala Bay
internet access point: Panera
internet tool: del.ic.ious
books: The Sun Also Rises, Religions of the World series by Chelsea House publishers
word: ridiculous
bands: Sexy Champions; Project Jenny, Project Jan; The Broken Remotes; Apes and Androids
Unexpected favorite drug of the moment: jäger and coke
plant: YUSH - Yucca shadigera
technical advancement: a/c
experience: Unexpectedly running into someone I know in town. Even better because I only know three people here.


P.S. -- Personal notes to distant friends:

• Thanks to Mandy for posting the picture of us at graduation.
• Sorry to Jeff, I am no longer planning to be in Colorado in August, maybe October.
• Thanks for the comment Melinda. I'm not sure I'll ever have an affection for the desert the way a native would.
• Chels, We will talk again someday, I promise.

Work and Travels

I am finding it difficult to keep regular updates. My excuses are a sporadic schedule, travel, and a lack of discipline. But this weekend I get a five day weekend so I can't use those excuses. Today I am in Desert Hot Springs, CA visiting Ceri and pretty much being lazy, surfing the Internet.

Tacos y Más Tacos

Mexico was big fun. It was basically a taco run. I ate eleven tacos of five varieties at five different taco stands. So good.

Our trip took us down the 15 from Las Vegas to Tijuana, and then down Baja 1 to Ensenada where we stayed Friday night. We got a hotel at La Mision where for $40 we got two rooms and cable TV. We wasted an hour and a half on Los Simpsons and half of a Futurama. In Spanish Futurama was funnier. After some tacos we spent some time at the Jazz Cafe. I liked the dark, blotchy colors, the split levels, and the windows. The webpage is not the great.

Saturday we drove to San Felipe for más tacos and Cinco de Mayo. Cinco de Mayo was not celebrated. Instead, the prominent celebration was the Oscar de la Joya vs Merriweather fight. After tacos we walked on the beach and drew pictures in the sand. Anine wanted to see the fight so we walked around looking for a bar. We settled on a place with outside dining and view of the TVs. However, we were distracted by the night life and ended up watching very little of the fight.

Although there were quite a few tents set up on the beach in San Felipe, it was far too populated at midnight to expect to sleep without interruption so we drove north for a few miles until we found a campground on the beach. We made a fire and told a mix of true and untrue stories to each other.

Solvang

The next weekend was a trip to Solvang, CA for the Wine Country half marathon. I didn't run but Ceri and three of her family members did. The night before the run we ate at Pea Soup Anderson's. I had the bottomless bowl of pea soup which filled me after a single bowl. While the others ran I walked around Solvang looking for a coffee shop to buy a pastry and coffee. The locals hadn't heard that a half-marathon was scheduled for the weekend but luckily I was able to find a single coffee shop open next to the Hans Christian Anderson museum. Overheard conversation included a description of a firehouse BBQ where "Uncle Eddie", as in Eddie Van Halen, had sold a guitar for $12,000 to benefit the fire department. On Sunday, Chris purchased a motorcycle in Santa Barbara. Now I am contemplating taking a motorcycle safety class and getting my license.

Mojave Field Work

Work has been going well. We finished the annuals surveys two weeks ago and have been working on road restoration projects. These involve running a tape measure down a trail that had been restored by various treatments and counting all perennial plants that fall in the path. Specifically, we are looking for seedlings but these rare. Ideally there will be more in the treated areas than the untreated areas, indicating that the restoration is working. I'm not sure how the different treatments will compare but it seems like the best thing is just to keep the vehicles off the trail.

After 8 weeks working for USGS I am almost half way through my appointment. Hiking all week, sleeping under the stars, and generally being away from society has been good for my mental and physical health. I like the people I work with and I learn new things about the desert and desert plants every day. I have also lost nearly 20 pounds since starting work here. The heat hasn't been a problem with the highest temperature experienced so far at just 100 degrees. I drank 7 liters of water and gatoraide that day. The temperature drops to 50's and 60's fairly quickly after nightfall. During hot days we set up a tarp off the truck and break from noon to 3pm. Generally we read, write in our journals, eat and play games during this time.


I think it's funny that this truck has about 1500 miles on it and have already destroyed one running board.

Ok, I'm tired of being on the computer so I'm gonna quit writing. You will notice that I have posted some links to my galleries on the right. In keeping with my sporadic nature I have them spread out over three google accounts. Someday I plan to consolidate them into a single account.

Hola todos,

Sorry for not posting last weekend. I went climbing at Red Rocks instead.

This weekend is Cinco de Mayo so I'm going to Baja with two of my workmates.

Hasta luego y Feliz Cinco de Mayo!



PS. Thanks for the dedication Jeff. I did read your post.