Calculating my Ecological Footprint

http://blog.beliefnet.com/faithfunnies/2008/05/index.htm

 When I took a look at my quiz results, I was shocked. Right now it would take 3.4 earths if everybody lived by my lifestyle to sustain in this earth. One of the things that I thought would be one of the more sustainable was the highest, food consumption. I know I do not eat a lot, I eat little portions and most of the time I do not even finish that, but I know that I do not eat organic and I eat a lot of meat, poultry, and pork. I have been hearing lately that eating meat can actually hurt the environment more than just eating vegetables and fruit.

The one that surprised me the most was the my public and personal transportation. it was the second highest in my rating for consumption. Earlier this year I had gotten a new car that gets thirty some miles to the gallon compared to my last two cars that only got around 13-18 miles per gallon. I was surprised because I do drive a lot and I never take public transportation. Though, if I had taken this last year it might of been around the same because I live on campus and I do not live with an extra person who uses my car.

I have been trying to make sure that things are turned off and unplugged when not used like fans, lights, computer, cable box, etc. I used to recycle all the time when I lived with my parents and sister but now I do not at all. I really have been wanting to change my ways and recycle again but it is hard because I do not want to walk out and put it in the recycling compactor plus my finance does not do it so there is no inspiration there.

http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/organic.html

 One thing that I know is going to be harder is eating organic foods. I have wanted to go organic but being a college student and the prices for these types of foods. Sometimes organic food does not taste as good though. I think personally that the world in general should ban pesticides and other products that harm the earth. One thing I know will probably never happen is me eating meat. I like meat and the only thing I think of that I could change is eating organic or natural meats.

http://www.nextnature.net/2008/12/i-want-my-organic-coke/

 Here are some of my consumption habits in the past twenty-four hours:

1. Energy Consumption- In the last 24 hours I have used the television for a few hours, the fan is constantly on in the bedroom, my phone was on the charger all night.
2. Fuel Consumption- I drove to work and  back, I put gas in my car last night, drove to school and back today, drove to Chick-Fil-A and Panda Express.
3. Food Intake- I ate Stuffed Crust Sausage and cheese Pizza Hut pizza with a small coca-cola, ate a hot dog and chips with milk, and ate chicken from Chick-Fil-A with a large coca-cola today.
4. Water Usage- I drank a cup of water last night from my PUR container and took a shower this morning for about fifteen minutes.
5. Packaging- I made a ton of subs in the deli and I wrapped them in paper and put them in paper sub bags, put meat and cheeses in plastic bags, used paper today to take notes which were in a binder, my food last night was in a plastic Ziploc bag and today I ate Chick-Fil-A in paper bag and the nuggets and fries were in waxed cardboard, I also drank my one coke in a wax paper cup and my other in a foam cup.

Field Trip - Campus and Trails

http://www.manhattanconstructiongroup.com/kraft-construction/projects/by-type/education

 The Campus Field Trip I had at the beginning of the year was interesting. Our tour guide Erica mentioned a lot of things that I had never known about the school before then. Like that Howard Hall was considered a sustainable building just by how the lights are different, the air conditioning, and how the building was built in general. Another thing that I thought was cool was the advertisement boards they have outside and how they have solar panels on top so that way they can capture the sun and then during the night they are lit by no electricity at all.

http://audubonoffloridanews.org/?p=4757

The first field trip we went on I thought was a nice trip. I had pretty much had a stressful week by having a paper turned in earlier that day and having the field trip was a nice way for me to calm down and actually not stress out so much. One of the things that really caught my eye was the three pictures of Florida from before humans, when humans started taking over, and present time. I thought it was horrible how humans had come into the Everglades and started to take over by draining out the swamps and marshes to make neighborhoods and cities for the benefit of humans. Even though we learned the hard way, I liked how now humans are starting to put the Everglades back together.

Another thing I that caught my attention was how Erica pointed out that some of the Bald Cypresses in the Corkscrew Sanctuary could possibly be over 500 years and the fattest/largest ones are the oldest. We did see one that was around 200 years old and it was a pretty big one.

http://www.robsheppardphoto.com/downloads.html

I also like the water lettuce that we saw as we walked by at one point. There was so much of it and it covered all of the water that we could see. I am not sure if you could eat it or not, Erica never said. Probably not though it does not look like something you could eat.

http://erikakentcolloquiumblog.blogspot.com/2009_04_01_archive.html

The recent campus trail field trip was interesting. I liked how it was a nice day outside. One of the things that I learned that I had no idea about was the huge water collector that froze water overnight and then during the day it melts and cools off the buildings around campus.

The trail was a nice at first. I felt like I was in a jungle. Then though it started getting really muddy and wet and it was not as fun anymore. I could not see what was in the water so it was a lot harder to walk around and it kind of made me paranoid on whether or not I was going to get eaten or bitten.

But it's okay I survived the swamp!

Incoming Reflections

http://ruby.fgcu.edu/courses/ndemers/colloquium/colloq.html

              http://ruby.fgcu.edu/courses/ndemers/colloquium/colloq.html

My first expectations coming into this class was low. I did not like the fact of having to take a required course that I knew I did not want to take in the first place. I had heard many bad things about this class like that this class shoves information down your throat without giving you a chance to think about your own opinion to what you were shown or told.

http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/family/kids-parenting/good-old-fashioned-playtime-00000000008312/index.html

My experiences in nature before this was just being a kid and going out and playing in my neighborhood all the time on my bike or rollerblading. Since I also lived near the Southern part of the Everglades I have gone on fun trips there like on air boat rides (which is my favorite experience), canoeing, camping, hiking, etc. One of the experiences I have had that has turned me away from liking the fact of me trudging through mud is my fourth grade camping field trip and the first thing we did when we got there was go slough slogging. I hated it and almost lost my shoe and ruined my then favorite pair of jeans. Which is why since then I have never gone on a nature field trip in jeans or in sneakers unless I know the trail is going to be paved or wooded.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-557697/Alligator-blood-used-fight-MRSA.html

While on that camping field trip my fourth grade class, my ranger, and I went on a hiking trip at night and on our way back we encountered an alligator laying out in the middle of the trail. We all had to stand back as the ranger walked up to it and tried to get it out of the way. We stood there for about twenty minutes until the alligator moved and we were on out way back to the cabins.

http://www.windsun.com/Photovolaic_Systems/Lightning_Protection.htm

I have taken a class similar to this my Freshman year called Environmental Biology of SW Florida. It was a good class, but since I am not a girl that likes to tread through the swamp and the mud at all so I did not really enjoy it that much.One of the things that turned me off from that class is the fact that the teacher did not even care about the whole fact that we were in knee deep water and it was thundering and lightning outside. I really did not mind it until a bolt of lightning struck right in front of my face. I jumped ten feet in the air and screamed and when my teacher asked what was wrong, I told her and she told me to stop being a baby. I really did not appreciate the fact that she did not care for my safety.

My fear and anxieties about this class is that I am going to get hurt somehow, get struck by lightning this time, or get bit by an alligator, snake, etc. Even through I grew up on an island I have a micro-sized fear of dark, murky water that I have no idea what is in it.

The goals for me in this class is to become better acquainted with nature and to get over my fear of dark, murky water. I would also like to learn more about what I can do to make this plane better for the future. Also, I would also like to get an A in this class.

This class would be an important part of my education because I can become a better citizen of this world by being educated on how important it is to take care of my world to make this a better place. It is important for my major because it will make me a better politician by knowing some of the important things we need to take care of in this world.