Stories

  • A much needed update

    View on Kennedy Peak Originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. Wow. I realized I haven’t updated this place in quite some time. A lot has happened in the past year. I went back to Ferry Beach (www.fbes.org) in the fall and had some fun on the coast of Maine with weekends in the White Mountains again. I spent the winter in Hagerstown unsuccessfully looking for a job. And now I’ve finally found one in Luray, Va with the Sheridan School’s Mountain Campus (www.mountaincampus.org). I work at a facility nestled up against Shenandoah National Park, and literally somewhere in the photo above….

  • Chicago

    On Monday, I went into Chicago to meet up with the elusive Gloria Mui who I haven’t seen since Medfest 2005. She was in Chicago for some pharmaceutical conference. So yesterday I took the train into the city, and actually missed the train I wanted because I couldn’t find a parking space in the first lot. Well, I got into the city and met up with her and we took the L out to the Garfield Park Conservatory. The greenhouse and gardens are a bit larger than those of Lincoln Park, and much nicer too. I really liked their fern…

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    Porcupine Mountains, Memorial Day Weekend

    Lake of the Clouds Originally uploaded by Up Nort. This Memorial Day weekend was exactly what I needed. It was a weekend away from civilization getting some good physical exercise and getting in touch with the real world. The Porcupine Mountains are simply amazing. Its Michigan’s largest state park and on a scale of 1-10, I give this park an 11. Parts of the park are covered in old-growth timber including some impressive hemlock stands. Other parts were once mined for iron and are covered in a very healthy secondary growth. Several spots are muddy and wet with marsh marigold…

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    Observations from my Weekend

    Everywhere I go I make observations on the world that would be great commentary for this journal. Unfortunately, I never write them down and most of these notes get lost in the millions of thoughts going through my head. But I will try to recall what I can. Observation no. 1: Zoos Last weekend I went into Chicago to visit Lincoln park and wandered around the Lincoln Park zoo. As a kid, I liked zoos and then I kinda lost interest with all of the fakeness. Lately I’ve been into checking out various city’s zoos to see how they compare….

  • Illinois

    On Mount Moosilauke Originally uploaded by mineral2. I’m in Illinois now and will be here for a good majority of the year. While I’m living 40 miles in the Chicago suburbs, I’ve already taken a trip to the Mississippi River to see the Bald Eagles and am planning a weekend to Nebraska to watch the mass of Sandhill Cranes as they stopover on their migration north. As the spring approaches, I hope to go south to some terrain that is reminiscent of Alabma. I also plan to go northward to view the waterfowl and the flowers of the North Woods….

  • Photos

    Mount Adams Summit Originally uploaded by mineral2. Well, I’m finished scanning 5 of 6 rolls from the fall. It sounds pitiful, but there are lots of great shots. Last Fall I shot off 9 rolls between Alabama and North Carolina. In the spring, I topped that with 13 rolls including the hike in Virginia. Add 2 more over the summer and the 6 from the fall and I’m up to 21 for 2006. Actually, I finished off number 22 yesterday, but I probably won’t have a chance to scan that in for a while. Look for a White Mountains gallery…

  • Virginia

    I’ve been in Marion, VA now for over a week. Its been pretty nice. So far I’ve been up on White Top twice with the lovely presence of snow up there. I’ve been hiking up Dickey Knob for a decent view and up Molly’s Knob for a better view. I’m still exploring and getting to know the area. There’s tons of hiking, but the back roads can take a while to get there, so its not all as close as it looks. The nice part is the closeness of the Appalachian Trail. While the Mid-state Trail was close to home…

  • Maine

    I’ve been in Maine for the past 9 weeks teaching outdoor education at the Ferry Beach Ecology School. Its been wonderful up here, though its gotten quite cold rather quickly. On weekends I have been hiking up in the White Mountains getting some great photography shots. Unfortunately, none of the computers I work with have a firewire card I can use my scanner with. But new photos will hopefully be up before the month’s end. My White Mountain adventures have been strenuous, but fun. It started Labor Day weekend with Mount Lafayette, the 5200 foot giant at Franconia Notch. The…

  • Photography

    Grafton Street, Dublin Originally uploaded by mineral2. I’m scanning old photos again. Its the first time in probably a month since I’ve been archiving photos. I skipped over a few and am doing a more “recent” set from the summer of 2001. Ireland. Its 6 rolls of color and one of black and white. I’ll probably post a few up here as I scan them, but expect the full set on the website when they are all completed. To scan after this: London 1999, 2000; Scotland 1999; Drew University 2000, 2001 and some random bits in between.

  • Canoeing

    This weekend I went canoeing down the Juniata River with my girlfriend, Erin. We had a blast. We only got rained on once while on the water, and then we waited it out under a tree to minimize the soaking. We put in at the riverside park in Huntingdon, PA and took out about twenty miles downstream at Newton Hamilton. See the map. Look at the river rather than the road. The wildlife was awesome. I had 44 bird species. Highlights include a Bald Eagle, 24 Common Merganser, and lots of Wood Ducks. We also saw a family of River…