No bird soars in a calm

What quote am I vibing? "No bird soars in a calm." Wilbur Wright

Pounds of Trash Removed from the Wild These Past Two Weeks / All Time: 38 / 209

This week, I only made it out for trash pickup on three days (but on Saturday I did a double!)

But there was a nice variety of conservation and the outdoors throughout the week.

On Tuesday, my friend Jane and I went to see The Swamp at The Lyric downtown. This is a PBS documentary that came out in January based on a book of the same name. The documentary follows the path of unfortunate choices made by land prospectors and politicians in the effort to drain, develop, and monetize the Everglades - these choices have led to a lot of problems that are trying to be solved today. A perfectly balanced ecosystem developed by nature that has been set asunder leading to the extinction of species, the deaths of humans who shouldn't have been living where they were living, and continued problems we have yet to see the extent of, including the algae issues here on the Treasure Coast. It was a well-done movie, and I highly suggest you give it a watch if you have the chance!

Wednesday was monthly trail maintenance at Seabranch Preserve. This is the last until the autumn because it is too hot for the volunteers to do such work in the deep Florida summer. Loppers, fancy weedwackers, machetes, and rakes - a group of volunteers working to make the trail comfortable and safe for all to enjoy. I like this work because it lets me learn more from the Americorps volunteers and Parks employees that lead the teams.

My trash pick up this week was more frustrating than usual. I think I finally figured out why on Saturday evening when I was picking up on Monterey Road. When I am doing beach cleanups, a lot of the trash is from the ocean, and I can blame it on "someone else" - rum bottles from Cuba, toothbrushes from a foreign land or another community that have decided to wash up here. When I am cleaning up my neighborhood, the beach parking lot, or another inland area - I am picking up proof that my neighbors don't care. People I probably smile at when I walk by them in CVS. People in front of me in line at our local restaurants. It can be frustrating, so I will focus on alternating these kind of cleanups with beach cleanups, and other methods to keep from getting burned out - a common problem with trash warriors!

Today's quote was a good reminder that sometimes we need a little turmoil to really make things happen - that's the dream.

An ocean - active, alive, and endlessly powerful.

The parking lot of Bathtub Beach on Monday morning after Mother's Day. It was disgusting...

...but I did find $20.

May 13. Bathtub Reef Beach. 13 pounds, 31 bottlecaps.

Check it out!

Paige and Barbara are my Americorps pals - I have done several projects with them via Florida State Parks!

May 16. Kanner Highway. 7 pounds, 3 bottlecaps. 1 Air Jordan...

...and a bundle of losing lottery tickets.

Another turtle nest! The joy of morning beach walks in spring.

May 18, morning. Santa Lucea Beach. 8 pounds, 13 bottlecaps.

Another beach cleanup, another bundle of imagined scenarios that might have led to undergarments being abandoned on the beach.

May 18, evening. Monterey Road near Ocean. 10 pounds, 2 bottlecaps. A chunk of carpet, a soccer ball. And I forgot to take a photo. I blame it on the water on my ear that was causing dizziness and ear ringing. (All officially diagnosed, and healed!)