"Why can't we have a park for people?"
I love being a park ranger. One of my favorite aspects of the job is talking to visitors. But there are times when a visitor will come in with a question or comment that you just don't know how to respond to. Well tactfully anyway. Today was such a day.

A gentleman came into the Visitor Center and informed me that he just moved here from New York City and was interested in learning about the lake and fishing opportunities. I gave him a map and told him where he could launch a boat or fish from the shore line. We chatted a bit about the types of fish in the lake and animals he might see then he looked at me and asked, "Well what about snakes?" "What about snake?" I said. "Are there any in the area?" he replied. "Yes sir there are snakes here at Falls Lake." I responded. The man then got this very disgusted look on his face and said, "Well you would think a place like this would have a management plan in place to control snakes." I wasn't real sure how or if I should answer this. I tried to be as polite and tactful as I could be. I said, "Sir this is the outdoors. It is a natural area and you will encounter things that you would commonly associate with nature...snakes included. We do have a management plan in place here for snakes...we leave them alone. That is our plan and it works really well. Snakes are a valuable part of the ecosystem buy helping to maintain rodent and amphibian populations...yadda yadda yadda." He then looked at me with even more disgust and said, " I just don't understand why we can't just have a park for people. " Then he turned around and headed out the door.

Maybe if he wants a park for people he should head back to NYC where everything is paved and buildings block the horizon. I can't imagine not being able to get out of the city and hike out into the woods and see birds, deer, turkey, and snakes. It is a great way to relax and just de-stress from the pressures of life.

"How long can men thrive between walls of brick, walking on asphalt pavements, breathing the fumes of coal and of oil, growing, working, dying, with hardly a thought of wind, and sky, and fields of grain, seeing only machine-made beauty, the mineral-like quality of life?" (Charles Lindbergh)

You tax dollars hard at work...
Mood:  energetic
Well it looks like kite tubes are on their way to being banned. The Corps and the National Park Service has been trying hard to banned this product from its lakes and rivers. The company who makes the product has started to recall them. For those of you who have never heard of a kite tube, they are the latest in water recreation. It resembles a regular tube that you hook up to the back of a boat but this tube, when the users pulls up on the handles, soars up in the air like a kite. Sounds fun right? Wrong! These tubes go anywhere from 30 to 70 feet in the air. Like a kite,when the tube tilts just a little, the wind pushes back down causing the person on the tube to crash into the water. Falling from the height these tubes get, would be like falling from a 3 to 7 story building. When you hit the water from that height it is like hitting concrete. There have been close to 40 accidents (include a broken neck, punctured lung, chest and back injuries and facial injuries)in the short while these thing have been on the market. A few have resulted in death. We have had two injuries on my lake this summer. There is a warning on the tube that say, "Never fly higher than you are willing to fall."

You can see a picture of the tube on this website. There is also a video but I couldn't't get it to load. You might have better luck. Wego Kite Tube

Monday! Do I really need to say any more
Mood:  not sure
I am early ranger today which has its own pros and cons. The con part - I have to get up at the crack of dawn. The Pros - I get to see the lake just as the sun comes up and I get to leave early. Whoo Hoo!
The weather over the weekend was wonderful. It was cool with low humidity. Today it is suppose to get hotter and the humidity has already risen quite a bit.

My weekend went well. I went to an animal show on Saturday and it was amazing. He had more animals this time including a Great Horned Owl which sat there and stared me down with a look like it wanted to rip my eyes out. A very intimidating animal. Dan (the guy doing the show), at one point came over to Tanya and placed a hissing cockroach on her shoulder. Tanya went all stiff and just kept whispering to me, "Take it off...pleae take it off. Becca I mean it. I swear our friendship will end here and now..take it off." I went to pick it off her and it hissed and Tanya screamed at the top of her lungs. I laughed so hard I thought I would pee myself. Sorry Tanya but it was pretty funny and you were not in any danger. Thanks Dan for sending me the tickets.

We then went downtown to a free concert. The headliners were the Spin Doctors. I thought they had died back in the early 90's but apparently they are about to release a new album. First on in 11 years. We didn't stay to hear them though because we were getting a little tired of all the people.

Yesterday I spent the day running errands. I had to get a new litter box for Fenwick. The old one I stopped working last week. The new one is awesome. Much quieter than the old one and also has an air purifying system. Just what every cat needs. LOL Fenwick was a little hesitant to use it. Apparently when the air purifying thing came on it made a noise that only he can hear. He backed away from it and just stood there with this strange look on his face. Evey once in awhile he would take his paw and just barely touch it. For awhile he just laid there and watched it. I guess waiting for it to do something. I am hoping today he will get over his fear of it.

A friend posted this list on his myspace page and I couldn't stop laughing. It is funny because it is so true. Girls...If you want a good laugh. Guys...if you want some pointers.

40 mistakes (most) men make in bed

Interesting Horoscope
Mood:  flirty
My horoscope for today:

The current aspect indicates that your social life may become quite lively, and there is every chance of a very delightful encounter with someone who helps to make you feel really good about yourself. This may not result in an immediate passionate affair, but there is certainly quite a powerful connection between you, and it is this that will keep you both entertained for some time to come.

Social life may become quite lively? More so that it already is? Good Lord! A passionate affair? Boy I could use one of those. LOL

It is Friday and I can't wait for the weekend to start. This week (even though I had Tuesday off) has drug on way too long. We are releasing more water today which should make the kayakers very happy. The weekend events went well and we had zero drownings at my lake. Yea! Makes me a very happy ranger.

This weekend we be spent doing "me" things. I got tickets to this animal show thing. I went to it last year and I was shocked when I opened my mailbox the other day and saw a letter from the guy who presents the show and free tickets for me and my friends. *cheer* Last year after the show I went up and talked to the guy and as we chatted his albino skunk climbed up in my arms and went to sleep. He was so impressed that he asked me to sign up for his mailing list. He said he would let me know when he did other shows in my area. I never heard from again until the letter and tickets arrived.

Other than that it will be laundry and running errands. Maybe I will even have a chance to work on my dress.

Thank God for the Rain
Mood:  mischievious
It has been so hot here the past two weeks. With the humidity it has felt like 100 degrees (37.7 c for all my overseas readers). The raining today has dropped the temps and should stay that way through the weekend.

Yesterday was just miserable. My boss and our co-op took the boat out yesterday morning to inspect the tower. They got out on the water and the battery died. We then had to try to load the boat back on the without any power. At one point I hit my arm on the wench and now have a nice scrape and bruise. Then I came back up to the office and our forester was taking care of a dead tree. I helped load up the debris as she cut. By the time I was finished I could have wrung out my clothes. I was just soaking with sweat. Which made the rest of the day just unbearable. I wanted so bad to run home and shower.

Last night my friend Tanya came over so that I could teach her how to work her new MP3 player (we both got the same ones). Tanya, I love you to death but I honestly thought I was going to lose my mind. These little players are so simple to use. I felt like was teaching someone who didn't speak a word of English. We finished up about 8:45 and I quickly went to bed. I was EXHAUSTED!!! I think I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! The weekend will soon be here. YEA!

Give me chocolate or give me death!
I don't know what is wrong with me this morning. Well actually I do know what is wrong with me...PMS. I am eating everything that is not nailed down and if it is made of chocolate... all the better. Our co-op student made no-bake peanut butter cookies and I can not stay out of them. Damn her! They are really good though and I am not really a peanut butter fan. They taste like peanut butter fudge with oats in it. Will have to get the recipe.

Big holiday weekend is here and we are trying to do what we can to not have another drowning. Keeping fingers crossed that parent will put their kids in life jackets and will keep an eye on them at all times.

We have this new thing that pops up on our computer everyday called the town crier. It is used to post information that normally clogged our email....retirement announcements, birthdays, meetings, etc. Well this morning it pops up and the following message was listed on it.

"If you CANNOT read this message, please send an email to (block for privacy) as soon as possible so we can get the problem fixed."

Someone in our district office isn't taking there Ginko Biloba because their brains obviously aren't functioning on all cylinders. If you can't read the message then how on earth are you going to respond to it? With the mood I am in today I really felt like writing back telling her that I couldn't read the message and watched them try all day to fix the problem.

Tongue Tied in NC
Mood:  lazy
I don't know what is wrong with me this morning. I am early ranger today and as part of that job I have to record the lake elevation and safety message for the day on our office voice mail. It took me ten tries to get it right. *sigh* luckily no one was around to hear me mess up. Would have made it worse.

I stopped by the Doctor's office Friday after work. She did a few more x-rays and said the break appears to have healed. So I was finally able to take the boot off. So happy!!!!

Saturday night I had a friend from Maryland stop by for a quick visit. He is driving down to Georgia and needed a place to crash. He doesn't believe in cell phones so I had no idea what time he would be arriving. Which meant I had to stick close to the apartment. I did manage to get some shopping done. He finally arrive around 6PM and we quickly headed out for hot wings (which I had been craving). It was nice to just sit down and chat. We know a lot of the same people. People who I haven't seen since I left Maryland. It was great to hear all the gossip.

Sunday we went down to Tir Na Nog for brunch before he decided to get on the road. I then walked down to meet up with Tanya so that we could go to this wine tasting thing. The wine was ok, but don't think I would ever buy a bottle. When we decided it was time to leave, we opened the door and saw that it was raining. And not a light rain either...a DOWN POUR! The streets were flooded and it was raining so hard you could barely see. My car was park about 6 blocks away. By the time I got to my car...I was SOAKED!. I know that we need the rain but it is all getting a little old.

I will be MP3'in in the park like everyone else
Mood:  hungry
I normally go walking out at Shelly Lake in the evenings after work (well until I broke my foot). As I make my way around the loop, everyone I pass has these really cool MP3 players and there I am with me big outdated CD player. I hemmed and hauled awhile about whether I should spend the money to buy one of these cool new toys. See, I suffer from buyer's remorse so whatever I buy, I end up feeling really guilty about it and I wasn't sure I wanted to put myself through that with something so trivial. I mean I have a CD player...it works really well, but it would be nice to change up my music instead of just listening to one CD.

I was browsing around on Overstock.com last night and I found a player that I think will suit me just fine and it was half the price of a new one. It only holds about 120 songs but that is perfect for me since it only takes me 8 songs to do two laps around the lake. It is very small...a little larger than my thumb and also has a FM radio with 20 presets. It is factory reconditioned and doesn't come with a manual but I was able to download one from the manufacturer website.

Basically what I am doing here is trying to convince myself that I made the right choice. I am sure once I see that it has been shipped, the buyers remorse will kick in. sigh*

On the work front...We are still releasing 2500 cfs which has brought the kayakers out in droves to paddle the rapids coming out the tailrace.

Last night while I was locking up I noticed that someone dumped a very floral couch on our access road. One of the rangers is out there now trying to dismantle it so we can take it to the dump. What a pain. The dump is only about 2 miles from the park so why not take it over there yourself instead of dropping it off on our access road. Or better yet...call Goodwill. They will come and pick it up for you. How aggravating!

The foot is feeling better and I plan on stopping by the Dr.'s office tomorrow after work to see if I can take this boot thing off. Yea!

Zoo News
For those of you who have known me for awhile know that I used to work in a zoo before I got a job as a park ranger. For those of you who didn't know...I used to work at a zoo.

It is a small privately owned zoo in Thurmont, MD called the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo. That is where I met my best friend Justin. His mother, June was the head of Animal Care and Justin and his brother Pete worked for her.

They have a rare tiger there named Kashmir. He is orange with Cinnamon stripes and it was always the hope that he would breed. He just never seemed to be interested in any of the females offered to him. Well the zoo borrowed a white tiger from another zoo and about a month ago the female tiger gave birth to 3 cub.

Take a look at the article for the local paper. Justin mom, June is the one holding the cubs in the picture. Tiger Cubs

Are We Back to Normal Yet?
Mood:  spacey
Well congratulations to the Hurricanes for winning the Stanley Cup in game seven. I must admit that after they lost game 5 and 6 I didn't think they would actually pull it off. Yea Canes! I am hoping that now that they have won, things here in town will get back to normal. Hockey as been in this state for 9 years now but basketball has always been the dominate sport. Which was nice because tickets to the hockey games were cheap. Well when it was clear that they had a shot of winning...everyone in town jumped on the hockey bandwagon. You drive downtown and there are Hurricane flags and signs EVERYWHERE. Last night they had a ceremony at the RBC center and today they are having a parade. I am hoping after that things will clam down. People will put there red clown wigs in an drawer and traffic will turn back to normal.

I am duty ranger today and I soooo do not want to be here. We started doing water releases yesterday and one of our gates wouldn't go all the way up. Now it wont go down. One of our rangers has been down trying to fix it. I feel so bad for him. The tower is a hot place to be and there is hydraulic oil everywhere. Yuk!

For some reason today, I can't stop yawning. I got plenty of sleep and I drank 3 cups of coffee this morning but I am just dragging. It might be time for a sticky bun.

Monday again? Didn't we just have one last week?
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: Another Bites the Dust
Well the foot is healing. I haven't had any pain in it for the last 2 days. I am hoping that the Doctor will let me take this boot off on Friday. Keeping my fingers crossed. I am duty ranger Wed and Fri. Should be interesting since I can't get around much. Thanks to Tanya, Andy, and Richard for the ice cream, cookies, wine and dinner from Firebirds. You made me a very happy invalid.

This week should be quiet. My boss is in Atlanta for a budget meeting and our forester is in Maine for training. It should give me a chance to catch up on stuff. I love my boss to death but he has problems with some of the computer programs we use. So about every 10 minutes I am running into his office to fix something. I don't mind though. He goes out of his way at times to make sure that I get rewarded for the job I do and to show me just how much I am appreciated. He has signed up for a 120 day stint in Iraq. It will be rough not having him here.

Dress update. I have finished the underskirt and the sleeves. I just have to hem it and add the grommets to the over dress and then make the veil. Whoo Hoo the end is in sight. Just for future reference...the next time I say I am going to do a project like this...someone talk me out of it. I have about lost my religion with it several times. *sigh*

Just call me Gimpy
Mood:  don't ask
As some of you know, on Sunday I tripped over my cat and injured my foot. I didn't pay too much attention to it because the pain wasn't pain and there wasn't any swelling.

As the week went on the pain got worse. Wearing my steel toed boots and standing on it at work was just getting to be unbearable. So last night on the way home from work I stopped by the Doctor's office so she could take a look at it.

They ended up having to do two sets of x-rays before finally discovering a small hairline fracture on my 4th metatarsal(the toe beside the pinky toe). Because of its location they couldn't put a cast on it (THANK GOD!!!). Instead I have to wear this lovely foam boot for 3 weeks.

It actually isn't too bad. The only rough part is trying to get up and down the 3 flights of steps to my apartment. This weekend I plan on just taking it easy. Maybe I will make it a pajama weekend and have someone bring me ice cream and cookies. :)

The best thing about this whole thing is that I now have health insurance so my entire office visit was only $18. Whoo Hoo! It is great not to be a lowly seasonal employee anymore.

I have started building my Ark
What a day yesterday. The center of Alberto hit Raleigh yesterday morning and the 2 inches of rain predicted turned into almost 7. It caused major flooding, shutting down streets and even a large shopping mall.

It was our Corps Day yesterday and we planned on a cook out and some badminton. Only half the people who RSVP'ed were able to make it through the storm. We grilled on the porch and instead of badminton we put together puzzles and played cards.

My boss let us off 30 minutes early and it took me awhile to get home. Some of my normal roads were closed due to high water. I got home and saw my apartment complex in shambles. My apt is okay. I live on the 3rd floor so I am far from the water's reach. The apartment on the first floor had about an inch of water running into the front door. A huge oak tree at the entrance of the complex split in half and fell into the near by parking lot, destroying two cars. There is debris EVERYWHERE!. the crew worked late into the night and were still working this morning when I left to go to work. Hopefully things will be cleaned up when I get home.

At the lake we have a ton of debris in the water and some trees down on the trail. Our normal lake level is 251.5 feet above mean sea level and we are expected to crest this afternoon at 256.00. Hopefully we can open the dam and release this water before the next rain system hits.

Today will be spent calling contractors to see about cleaning up some of this debris and helping the forester clean up the trees on the trails. I am just thankful that the next couple of days will be rain free.

If you are interested in seeing some video and photos of the flooding here in Raleigh visit WRAL NEWS

My Horoscope for today
A celebrity whom you admire, probably a woman, could actually be introduced to you today, rebecca, perhaps as the result of a lecture or book signing. This could make a profound difference in your life, as this person may be an inspiration for you. A romantic partner could meet her as well, and the two of you should have a lot to discuss over dinner. Relax and enjoy your evening. It could in a very subtle way change your life.

Oooooo maybe I will meet Oprah!!!

Pictures
Pictures from my trip to Nags Head

Pictures from my hike to Hanging Rock

And they're off!
Mood:  energetic

Well the race Saturday went well. My friend Marie and I both walked it and my other friend Carol ran it. We managed to do it in 58 minutes and 2 seconds. Woo Hoo!

There were so many people there. They said on the news about 20,000 people showed up to race or give support. At one point we got to the top of a hill and could view the sea of people in front and in back of us. It brough tears to my eyes. The race managed to make over 1 million dollars. Most of which will go towards breast cancer research as well as to educate people on how to check themselves for lumps.

It was a worth while day and I feel like I really accomplished something.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing by the pool. It was so nice here Saturday and Sunday. Well except for the rain showers Sunday night.

I did manage to injure my lower leg and foot on Sunday. I was getting ready and I turned around not knowing my cat was right by my foot. I tripped over him, twisting my ankle in the process. *sigh* I am hoping it will heal by Wednesday so that I can take on my co-workers in the Big Badminton Challenge.

I finally purchased a data stick so I can bring my picture files into work and load them (work computer is MUCH faster)I am working on uploading some photos now and as soon as they are loaded I will post them here.

Race for the Cure
For those of you who can't race this weekend but still wish to contribute you can pledge money through my page on the Komen website. Please don't feel obligated. It is just incase you want to.

Race for the Cure Donations

Random thoughts
Mood:  happy
I don't know why but I love the new Terminix trucks. Seeing the trucks drive by with a huge plastic bug on top that wears a top hat and white gloves for some reason makes me giggle.

My friend Bill has gotten me addicted to a show on the Discovery Channel called "Deadliest Catch". For those of you who have never seen it, it is about crab fishing in the Bearing Sea. I admire those guys. I love to fish but there is no way in hell I could do that job. 48 hours with no sleep. Working in temps at or below zero. Those guys are tough.

I find myself glued to the tv Tuesday nights to cheer on the Northwestern with captain Sig Hansen and his crew. I just love Sig. For those of you who like the Northwestern as well.. they have a website where you can read more about them and purchase items from their store. I want one of the "I'm a Sig Girl" t-shirts. :) The Northwestern

I am racing in the Race for the Cure on Saturday. Well actually I am not "racing". I will be doing the 5k recreational walk. My view on running is only if something is chasing me. There are 3 of us from work participating so it should be fun.

I have been invited to go crappie fishing on Sunday but don't know if I will go. We are having our Corps Day next week and I need to go and pick up the decorations and the ingredients for my famous pie. Plus I don't really care for crappie.

I think that is all the random thoughts running through my brain so I will end it here.

What people will do when they don't know they are being watched.
Mood:  don't ask
This morning I was just working away on my computer when one of the other rangers calls me over to look at something on the security camera monitor.

I go over to the screen and what do I see...two people in their early 70's "going at it" on top of the dam. I don't mean just kissing. I mean down right dirty making out. The guy was rubbing the girls butt and lifting up her shirt to look at and kiss her breast. Then he undid her pants and at one point had both hands down inside there.

It is sweet to think of two people that age still madly deeply in love with one another but seeing it out there in the open is just down right nasty.

I think I have lost my lunch and I haven't even eaten it yet.

ugh! Get a room.

Just Weird
Mood:  mischievious
Okay so the date today is 06/06/06 which in itself is freaky. I just had to take a meter reading on our copier and the count came to 6660. I think I am just going to go home and hide onder the covers for the rest of the day.