I'm a Reel Lawn Mower!

Our landlord has graciously provided us with a lawn mower for the lawn out front. It is our neighbor's job to do it, but he has mysteriously disappeared and has been gone for a few weeks. So Mark and I have taken up the opportunity to do some yard work. However, there's only one small detail; the lawn mower looks like this:

EEK! Has anyone else tried mowing a lawn with these things? It is quite the effort. No wonder everyone back in the day was so skinny. :) But there is something satisfying about being able to mow a lawn with it. I love it! 

A Few of My Favorite Things...

When I was in Seattle, I stopped by a little store called Fireworks. It was in the SeaTac Airport, although I know they have several other stores in Seattle. I saw some soaps that were "all natural" so I gave some of them a sniff. They all smelled AMAZING! But my favorite one of all was this...

This soap by Pacifica smells so unbelievably delicious...I bought two of them! (One is for a gift, but I admit, I'll have a hard time giving it up!) And it doesn't say it on the package, so I don't know if it is a fluke or something, but one side has an exfoliating scrub. It feels like a dream! After my bar is gone...I just might die if I don't get another to replace it. 

And my next favorite item:

Can't beat 10 dollars from a street vendor! As long as I tried to refrain from buying the 80s style shades, I just couldn't take it any longer. By the way, the stripes are GOLD. I am in love. I admit I look pretty amazing in them, (ha ha)but I think Mark looks even more amazing. 

Oh, Seattle

Well, we did it! We went to Seattle this past weekend and it was a blast. We both loved it up there and it didn't even rain the entire time! It was actually really hot. But we really really enjoyed it. Luckily our hotel, the Ace Hotel, was located right in downtown, so we got to walk everywhere. (By the way, if you are ever going to Seattle, I would recommend the Ace. Cheap, affordable, and the beds are incredible! The only downside is that it is European style, which means you share a bathroom. It wasn't a problem at all and the bathrooms were clean and always open. There are rooms with bathrooms in them, but they are more expensive.) Anyway...where was I? Oh yes, most of the downtown attractions were within a few blocks of where we were and also right by the water. Just perfect.

Eight Belles

I was so saddened to hear about the tragic story of Eight Belles over the weekend. She was the filly who ran in the Kentucky Derby and placed second...only to shatter both of her ankles at the end of the race. Since the injuries were so extreme, she was euthanized on the track, with only ambulances to block the view of the spectators.

I can only hope that another horse won't have to die in this sport for some rules and minds to change. I definitely don't think this is an "honorable death" for a horse, and I don't think that any horse would choose to run until it's ankles shattered unless it was forced to. 

In the meantime, rest in peace Eight Belles. I know many people will miss you. 

Holga!

A few months ago, I rounded up about 25 dollars and bought a Holga. I don't know how many of you know about them, but I was intimidated for the longest time! The film is medium format 120 film, and they are a little more challenging than just using a 35mm film camera, mostly because they are just a plastic toy camera. But on President's Day weekend, Mark and I went home to Bear Lake and I got up the courage to go out and take some pictures. Some of them may be a little boring and gloomy, but I am just so happy they turned out! I am also glad that I was able to get some vignetting on my pictures.  

Black Bear Resort

For those of you who want to see what some people are planning on doing with Bear Lake, take a look at Black Bear Resort's website.

Bear Lake Doesn't Need Any More Bears

For a final in one of my classes, I have agreed to write an article instead of taking a test. Any topic. When I briefly thought about the subject that I wanted to investigate and write about, only one thing came to mind: Black Bear Mountain. I have heard so many rumors that I thought it would be a good way to dig to the bottom of the rubble and come up with the truth. But I think the truth might be a little too much to handle.
Next step was to pick people to interview. My father seemed like a good person to question; with 30 plus years with the Forest Service and working directly with the area involved, he would be perfect. Today I interviewed my dad, asking him several questions, mostly about the proposed area and what would be the possible effects to the environment. As you can expect, my father is not in favor of the idea. I'll give you a few reasons why:
1. Part of the proposed area sneaks its way into the Paris Peak Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA). An IRA is an area that is 5000 acres or larger that is designated as roadless. Simply put, an area that does not have any roads that have been constructed and/or maintained. The Forest Service has been putting more value on roadless areas, because they are often seen as sanctuaries for certain animals and plant species.
2. Black Bear Mountain basically wants to swap land with the USDA Forest Service, allowing these areas in Bear Lake to become private. This means that if they acquire this land on the Worm Creek IRA and the Paris Peak IRA that these areas will no longer be public land administered by the Forest Service. Black Bear Mountain will have complete control over the land and can do anything they want with it. They offer to swap land that they own somewhere else (such as in Island Park) with the land in Bear Lake, and in turn give the land in Island Park over to the Forest Service.
3. Part of the Worm Creek IRA is identified as deer and elk winter range critical. The creeping of the cabins by the lake northward only means less and less areas for these animals to survive. Taking away more critical land for them only means more damage. Among other possible environmental impacts include: loss of cattle grazing in the summer, impacts in important grouse populations, and impacts on creeks and fish populations.
Environmentally speaking, these are pretty important arguments.
And that's as far as I've gotten and I'm pretty opposed to the idea myself.
For so many years I would sit in my front window and just stare at Paris Peak and the surrounding mountains. I don't even want to imagine the scar of a ski resort cutting across the areas around and perhaps on the mountain itself. Many may claim all the economic benefits of such a resort, but is it worth it? Aren't there other ways to build the economy? I was searching for anything I could find on the resort when I stumbled across this page. The article by Kate Carpenter was so upsetting I could barely make it through half of it. Ski lifts? Golf courses? A water park? A ZIP LINE?

I can't help but think that the developers of this resort are being so selfish and greedy.  Is paying the environmental bill worth it to destroy such a gorgeous area? Why can't a beautiful area be left untouched and why do people feel the need to take over everything? Brad Auger, a developer for Black Bear Mountain proudly claims (according to this site), "There is nothing that we are going to do here that's going to impact anything in a negative way." 

I think he should try telling that to the hundreds of deer and elk who live there in the winter. I think he should try telling that to the grouse that call that area their home. Most of all, I think he should try telling the people of Bear Lake that one of their most beautiful mountains will never be the same again. And it is all for the sake of someone wanting to be rich.

Granted, the Forest Service has yet to accept or deny this proposal for the swapping of land, but I sincerely hope it doesn't happen. I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. The developers of Black Bear Mountain will probably come and go, developing other lands, but the people of Bear Lake will be the ones who will wake up every morning to such a black reality.