The Appalachian Trail

Okay, I'm from Maryland. Born and raised Marylander. I honestly thought I've seen it all. But not after last weekend. Maryland does have awesome views, critters and scenery rivaling those at the Grand Canyon or Mt. Rainier.

And Maryland is not remotely even close to flat. Just take a look at the trails in the pictures below... We trekked from sea level to almost 2,000 feet then back to sea level. Here's a map of the trail... follow the red dotted line... that's the AT.


It took Summer and I 3 days and frequent side trails (for a hot shower, a beach, a monument, etc) adding up to about 50 miles. One of the best hikes I've ever been on... the Appalachian Trail from Pen Mar, Maryland (PA state line) to Harper's Ferry, WVa.

Hey, do any of you know of a deaf person who's HIKED the entire Appalachian Trail (someone who's hiked the entire 2,000 mile trail in one setting from Georgia to Maine)? The average person finishes this in 6 months.






Can you identify the creature in this picture?



The Lipstick of the Forest



Washing dishes the Eco way



Annapolis Rocks. Whoa!



Weaverton Cliffs. I'm on the Md side, overlooking Harper's Ferry and the Potomac River. On the other side of the river, left side, is Virginia and on the right's West Virginia.


Back to Civilization. Unfortunately....

Do You Live in a Fat State?

Check out CNN's study of obesity in the US from 1984 to 2004... Which state are you?
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/fit.nation/obesity.map/

All I can say is two factors contribute to this:

1) the processed food craze (fast foods and instant dishes)... that, we all know already...
and
2) our middle-class obsession with doing things easier and faster by using gadgets - instead of manual labor like our ancestors did - are simply making us fatter.

take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator
walk & bike instead of drive
stir by hand instead of using a mixer
chop instead of using an auto-chopper
scrub the floor instead of mopping
brush ur teeth instead of using electronic brushes
cook instead of microwaving
wash dishes by hand instead of using the dishwasher
air dry your laundry instead of using the dryer
garden instead of shopping
read instead of watching tv (yes, turning pages is better exercise than pressing the remote!)
if you gotta drive, then drive a stick shift instead of an auto

can you think of more?????

Are We All Worker Ants?

"The worker hordes who built the pyramids of Mesoamerica were not more miserable than the ones who built the pyramids of Egypt. The workers of Mesoamerica merely perceived themselves as having an alternative to misery, which they eventually exercised (by walking away). We didn't, so we slogged on, building a ziggurat here, a Great Wall there, a bastille here, a Maginot Line there--and on and on and on--to the present moment, when our pyramids are not being built at Giza or Saqqara but rather at Exxon and Du Pont and Coca Cola and Proctor & Gamble and McDonald's"

"Beyond Civilization", Daniel Quinn.

What does this excerpt from Daniel's book mean to you? Do I walk away from what I have now and live off the land, off the grid, powered only by the sun, wind and water like I've always wanted? Or do I plod along in what I always do, just because I want a comfortable life with all the reassurances of health insurance, life insurance, and retirement savings and continue to help build America, Deaf America with countless other worker ants? Is it time to walk away? If not, when? I know I will walk away. But when is the question.

And when I do, I'll be building my own Taj Mahal...this way... EARTHSHIP The photos above are of an Earthship I slept in for my birthday weekend about 30 minutes away from Taos, NM. One of the most beautiful houses I've ever seen and slept in. Unbelievably serene. And I invite you to join me.

Check out a great Earthship presentation: http://www.earthship.net/earthship_neworleans.pdf

To check out more of Quinn's work, go to www.ishmael.org

The World Walks. Bikes. Carpools. Takes the Train. Metro. Bus. Except Us.

We have much to learn from the rest of the world.


'nuff said.

From The Economist http://www.economist.com/images/ga/2007w27/Petrol.jpg

I found that through this cool site: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/a_picture_is_wo.php

Recycle? Cool. Reuse? Champ. Reduce? Even better!

I used to think recycling like mad was enough. But we now know that recycling (which is great) is also energy-earth-consuming (the amount of energy and water that goes towards recycling paper, plastic, etc).

So what simple things can we do on a daily basis that will make a huge difference? Here's my top ten.

1) Don't buy soap dispensers in plastic bottles. Buy (or make) soap bars. They require much less packaging and there's no plastic bottle at the end to recycle.


2) Quit the Q-Tips! First of all, they're not healthy for your ears! And billions of them end up in the landfills. How gross is that?! Simply use your cloth towels to clear your ears, some use water, and I vouch for ear candles!

3) Ditch the plastic zip-lock baggies. Try to use reuseable containers instead of baggies, and at the last resort, use aluminum foil (which can be recycled).

4) Take the metro. Walk. Bike. I find myself using my car less and less, and boy, I'm saving a lot on gas & car maintenance! And getting fit instead of sitting in my car!


5) Get dreads! (Or have short hair, or simply just shower less). Much less of a water bill to pay and we use less shampoo/conditioner/soap, etc, saving money on that too!


6) Use deodorant balls (or go without deodorant). The plastic thing that the deodorant comes in is just completely unnecessary and only fills up our landfills. This also applies to whatever you put on your lips - if you can, use small cups that hold vaseline or whatever you like to put on your lips, and refill them instead of disposable lipstick containers. Or go Aveda, they refill most of their containers.

7) Go electronics instead of paper. Need directions to a particular place? Email it to your pager instead of printing it out.

8) Unplug everything, and plug in only when using. You save loads of money this way!

9) Say no to receipts (ATM, gas station). Just say no and you'll be protecting yourself from possible on-line theft.


10) Lastly, say NO to all the plastic/paper bags thrown at us at every store counter. I was buying gum at a gas station and they actually tried to put it in a bag!

11) Refill & bring your own hard plastic container for your coffee/water instead of buying disposable water bottles.

AND Check out www.idealbite.com -- they have excellent simple ideas we can do everyday to reduce our footprint on earth :)

And of course, go organic, that applies to food and clothing! More ideas? Do share!!

Our July 4th Climb

One of the advantages of climbing on July 4th is that everyone else is busy doing other things, leaving the cliffs quiet and undisturbed for us! Don't tell anyone else, though... maybe we'll do this again next year ;)


My dad, nearly 70, climbs like he's Spiderman!


My mom still worries, though. Danni the dog is unsure.


Belayin' my ma. Dad worries, but in a different way :)


Pumpin what's supposed to be called biceps


Wondering which way is up?


Me, my dad and my sister Rayanne, the climbing pro.

Happy 4th from the mountains between Breckenridge and Keystone, Colorado!

Stress Relief: Go Jump off a Cliff

into the freezing Colorado River after a couple of hours rafting :) The best thing you can do for your mind, soul and body! Photo taken July 1st, north of i-70/Silverthorne, CO.

(the uncropped photo below)

Gliding Around the Northern Part of Lake Tahoe

In this ASL vlog, my dad shares our experience riding in a plane with no engine- which was towed to 10,000 feet (by another plane with an engine :)) and then detached. We went up June 27 (Wed) and were saddened to see and smell smoke as we flew around the north part of Lake Tahoe, which was overcast with smoke.

The Greenest Ski/Snowboard Areas

Go support the top ten resorts by skiing there this coming winter!
And e-mailing a piece of your mind to the worst 10 resorts.
http://skiareacitizens.com

What Are We Made Of?

Click here to visit this Time magazine photo documentary of what the world eats...

Gawd, I Need To Get Out More

DeafDreadlocks: FAQ & Myths

In this vlog, Raychelle discusses two different types of dreadlocks, the curly-natural way and the straight-artifical way. She had a dreadperm, done by Hair Police in Minneapolis (www.hairpolice.com). She also disputes some nasty and horrendous myths about people with dreds!

Isle "My Feet Hurt" Royale National Park

Six days full of excitement on a remote island in Lake Superior - living off the food in our backpacks, with no one in sight. Biggest mistake: we packed too lightly. On the 5th and 6th days we resorted to licking our used tea bags and debated eating them. And no, thankfully, the ranger station at the other end of the island opened up their small store one week early just for us (they open on Memorial Day), so we didn't have to eat our used tea bags :)



Grand Portgage, Minnesota: Only a few miles from the Canadian border, we boarded our ferry. It cost us 157 George Washingtons each for a round-trip ferry and for six nights on the island (not in a lush bed and breakfast, mind you-- but in our own tent!). We began our hike on the western end of the island at Windigo, with wide eyes and an aura of cockiness on Wednesday, May 17th 2006.



Little did we know of the trails of tribulations (misspelling intended) we were facing. Raychelle was attacked by baby leeches, the phantom toilet-paper pirate and a faulty peg leg. Rachelle was pummeled by her very own boots, which proceeded to devour her heels like a pack of malnourished piranhas. An aerial attack squadron of lethal Minnesotan mosquitos were also part of our valuable nightmar- erm, memories.



Rachelle and her perservance was rewarded with a very rare wolf sighting, and Raychelle was rewarded with a nice stab in the back from Rachelle's trekking pole only to miss the wolf by seconds... and yes, we survived our trek to Rock Harbor, 45 miles to the east.

Our Time Is Up

If you haven't, watch this movie NOW. "An Inconvenient Truth" with Al Gore. It can be rented at any video store. Making a few changes in your life will make a big difference in the lives of your children and your grandchildren.



Can you imagine, your grandchild saying, "I will never know what it is like to go to the beach or play outside. There's no ozone there anymore, so everyone has to stay indoors. My grandparents were lucky. They went to Key West in their dingy, gas-guzzling car during their sophomore year at Gallaudet. I'll never understand what that's like. Oh well." You're probably rolling your eyes, and saying, "Oh gee, another dramatic vegetarian". Truly, I wish I was being dramatic. Go watch the DVD and make changes in your life for your grandchildren and their children.

This gives practical tips on how to make a few changes in your lives and make a difference for your children's children.
www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction