Let me explain why I have not written an update for the past three weeks... it's not because I've been off traveling to exotic wildlife refuges, rather I've been right here in Boise. I spent these past weeks as a member of Team Echo- the Boise based team that does lots of data reconciliation and contacting refuges to start planning future hitches. That means lots and lots of time on the computer- making maps, writing emails, color-coding spreadsheets, making spreadsheets to organize spreadsheets, color-coding those spreadsheets according to how other spreadsheets are organized, etc, etc. It was a good month, but too much time staring at the screen. So that is why I did not write-- the idea of MORE screen time after work was sickening.
What came out of it is plans for Hitch 2, which starts Monday. Myself and Toji, the other half of team echo, made all the primary contacts with Region 4 (that's the southeast) and as we peppered the regional map with pins indicating where we need to go, four different trips emerged: one to Florida, one to Georgia and South Carolina, one to Mississippi and Arkansas, and one to Louisiana. I will be going to Florida. ahem:
Unfortunately all the refuges we will be visiting seem to be coastal, so I will have to work on the beach. For three weeks. woe is me.
We'll also be taking a long weekend (hopefully) to explore the Everglades, which is a place I've always wanted to see. Our other weekend we plan on making the drive to New Orleans to see an Old Crow Medicine Show concert.
But enough speculation on my Florida trip. I'll fill you in on how it goes when I come home at the end of April.
I can tell you a bit more about my time in Boise. It was great to have some time to explore the city and also pretty nice to have an entire apartment to myself for a few weeks. Despite rainy, chilly weather, Toji and I got ourselves out and around town. We went to some hot springs outside of Boise where we met some eccentrics and sat in warm pools while it snowed on us. We checked out some excellent local restaurants- including the Boise Fry Co. where you can choose your potato and the cut of the fry, and then dip it into any of the 10 or so dipping sauces they have. We spent plenty of time at the climbing gym. Biked all up and down the greenbelt. Picked up trash on SCA's portion of the greenbelt. Checked out the capitol building. I'm sure I'm forgetting some things, but you get the idea. Boise is a great city- there's lots to do and see.
Working out of an office was an unfamiliar feeling at first. Since for the past two years my work has been mostly field-based and kind of centered around moving. So the 7 hours a day at a computer was a little distressing at first and Toji and I usually walked home together in sort of a daze, massaging our wrists to ease the soreness you get from clicking a mouse for too long. I think we adjusted after about a week, but it was rough. And reminds me how much I do NOT want that for my job right now. I'm happy to be going back into the field- not that we don't all have our fair share of squinting at computer, and worse, Trimble screens, out there.
I'm going to give you a few pictures: one from our volunteer trailwork day with the crew in Boise. And some from my first hitch that I think are nice.
