A Brief Haitus....

So, I've quite neglected to update this with my plethora of adventures.....so here it goes for an update on where I've been meandering!

-Meandering at my parents' house in the Poconos!
When I last left you, I had shared my explorations at the creek/waterfall/old abandoned mill. I neglected to share pictures of the pine forest along the dirt road that I often find myself exploring in the mid morning when I intend to go running....but end up off the beaten path..



I found this pleasant path in the woods to the left of the large collection of pine trees that will be pictured below. I thought it to be incredibly beautiful that there was this opening leading me through the forest, a canopy over my head composed of energizing sunlight and a calming breeze flickering through the trees.


I also believe I neglected to acknowledge my encounter with a mountain lion on this particular meandering. As I was coming up the dirt road (finally running and focused on staying on the road running!) I came around a corner and was confronted with a REAL LIVE MOUNTAIN LION! It was sauntering down the middle of the road...in mid day. I have a few photos, but they need to be zoomed in. I will say that after this encounter, my dad and I came up and scoured for prints, and found a few paw prints as well. It was a breathtaking, frightening, encounter.


-Meandering in the Catalpa Tree
At my apartment, that I share with two of the coolest, best friends, from high school, we have this GIANT honking Catalpa tree that sits in our drive way, occasionally making our cars all gross. However, this tree has amazingly large branches, and iron rail road ties in it, perfect for climbing. It was an absolutely beautiful Sunday afternoon, and I had a TON of reading to do for classes....so I grabbed my books and sat myself down in one of the branches facing out toward the creek. Despite being situated right next to the M&M Mars factory (which is a blessing because of the chocolate scent! but a curse because of all the traffic!!!) , sitting in this tree is one of the most calming and centering experiences. There's something about sitting in a tree, immersed in sunlight that helps me focus and actually retain what I'm reading.










-The Creek
Also located directly between the M&M Mars factory and the house/apartment thing I live in is a quaint creek, often filled with a myriad of ducks. I found myself feeling quite afflicted with an ailment on Thursday, unable to concentrate and only wanting to sleep for days on end. However, a suggestion was given to me by a friend equally as zany as I, that I go for a creekventure to cure my boredom and perhaps lift my spirits, since nothing makes me happier than being in a body of water.




Despite the fact that I live in a bustling town, and right next to an incredibly busy road by the factory, the creek is sunken in, below the roads. Once you walk down through a little patch of woods, you're immersed in the sultry sounds of running water and quacking ducks. It's certainly one of my favorite escapes, and is certainly indeed a pick me up. Nothing tickles my fancy more than plodding around in some water, escaping the woes of homework and life.





-Chickie's rock

Finally, the weekend was upon me, and it was filled with copious amounts of old friends! I was surprised to have made contact with one of my friends who I would only briefly talk to, and he had to come to Harrisburg for the week and he came and visited me! I love surprising conversation with old friends, and exciting outings like the ones that followed.

So, Saturday a fine group of three friends and myself decided that we needed to go on a woodsventure, and since Mike is recently an avid rock climber, we'd check out Chickie's rock so he could see the rocks, and I could just run around in the woods and TannaLeigh and Ryan could see the beautiful view and run around in the woods with me. I must say, Chickie's Rock has one of the most beautiful overlooks to the river, and on a sunny day the river glistens and gleams.
Below is a slide show of some pictures from that day, since quite a few were taken at Chickie's.



-Govn'r Dix!
After our adventure at Chickie's Rock...that ended in us deciding NOT to take the normal path back, making our own, getting ensnared in Devil's Snare and having to cast some spells (mostly Incindio! and Expecto Patronum!) to get out...we made it back to the car, found out that Sheetz is sacrilegious in that they sell Pepsi and Coke from the same fountain, and made our way to Governor Dix. Which included me missing the turn like 923874029834 times. Oops.

And along our way to the top, we stopped a few times to look for some suitable rocks to climb, and eventually after getting slightly lost and ensnared yet again, we found a nice V0 to try. I'm happy to say I made it up, my first real experience with natural rock. We kept on climbing (and singing "Don't Stop Believing" on our way to motivate us...)and we finally made it to the top...and inside the tower is a strange assortment of ladders! But the view from the top was worth it :)



After this epic adventure, we went to Dinosaur rock to show Mike and Ryan this strange assortment of rocks. It's also known for its climbing, so Mike brought along a crash mat and had a good time bouldering, while Ryan got stuck in a crack and I somehow found my way to the top (only to be met later by Mike, who actually climbed properly whereas I just....questionably made my way up there)

At Dinosaur Rock, it started to get dark :( and we headed home for an evening filled with tacos, scrabble and battleship. Not a shabby day meandering at all!

I also adventured to Hershey Park this weekend. But I don't have any pictures....it was fabulous though!



Also, since this is my soapbox to ramble on about things about...I'd like to take this time to speak out and say that everyone should take time to bask in nature once in a while. Walk in the grass without shoes on. Climb a tree. Jump in a creek. Find out where that random path goes to. In my journey through life, I'm finding that to maintain a centered, balanced and general happy disposition toward life, immersing myself in nature is one of the things that helps me to achieve that.
Along with that, there's also the theory of orgone energy...i invite you to wikipedia that, and maybe I'll go on a schpiei about it in a later post.

Alas, for now I need to go to band and play my heart out through music...which I also feel is good for the soul.

Project Forward Leap Adventures

Here is a lovely slideshow of the meanderings my students and I took over the summer in the Project Forward Leap program...

Meandering on the Internet....

So, it's come to be assigned to me that I must meander the depths of flickr and find some pictures that tickle my fancy.


Here's a couple to tie you over until I actually update my blog about the old mill....











Yo, here's a sweet picture!













If you haven't notice, I'm quite taken aback by
the woods, wooded paths and other nature
findings. I think there's only few things more beautiful than nature in itself. Most of which are organic in nature anyway....

Including my shoes! The shoes in this photo need to be talked about. They're Vibram FiveFingers. And I found out from my neighbor back home that they're vegan, too! I'd like to acknowledge the fact that these shoes are the best things I've ever worn, especially because they do allow you to feel like you're walking barefoot, and I can go rock climbing, running, exploring, hiking, jumping in various bodies of water and to school all in the same pair of shoes :)



Although, walking barefoot in the dewy grass is still one of my favorite things to do, and I will take them off to walk in the grass or to walk on solid, smooth slate within a body of water...which will be featured via pictures of the old mill once I get to my laptop.

First Meandering of the Semester!

Most recently, on the first day of the semester Monday August 31st, I found myself meandering around some lovely woods located behind Founder Hall. A couple of my friends and I thought it appropriate to go on an adventure, and with some creative exploring we found a lovely path in the woods and a frisbee golf course pictured to the left.













Aside from an excellent adventure in the woods, we also found ourselves privvy to the discovery of many swamps and bodies of water. We wove our way through this frisbee golf path and eventually found ourselves back around Founders. We continued on meandering and we found this marvelous little creek. It's located over past toward the Leffler Parking Lot and the Engineering Club Cabin!
















All in all, it was a good day, and a marvelous meandering to be had on the first day of the semester!


Stay Tuned for my next meandering!: Visiting the old Mill in Dingmans!

First Post!

For my first post, since I'm in a building and barred from the outdoors during our class time, I find it moderately difficult to meander around. Instead I will give a taste of my adventures this past summer, and where my meandering brought me.

This summer was filled with the drone of employment, and being stuck inside the bank (until I quit!) However, with the help of my summer class (Yea Geosystems!) I found myself immersed into wonderful places in nature that I never would have discovered on my own. (And some that I did discover on my own, and with the help of others)

-Chickies Rock
-Hawk Mountain
-Dinosaur Rock
-Knoebles
-Hershey Park
-Centrailia
-Tenting in the yard!
-South Bethany Beach
-Yellow Breeches Creek at Messiah College
-FallingWater
-Kentuck Knob
-The Old Mill in Dingmans!
-Walker Lake
-Lake Stillwater
-Skytop Resort
-Seven Springs
-Dewey Beach
-Grace Road
-Area 51
-The Catalpa Tree in my driveway!

Although these locations seem very vague and insignificant, I find it incredibly pertinent to note that they're full of veritable beauty. This summer has been a journey within itself, living away from home and discovering places where I feel at home.

I hope to update with pictures, to chronicle and bring to life all of the places I have visited this summer and all the adventures I have been on. I also hope to update upon all the forthcoming adventures in the near future because as the North Face seems to exclaim I need to "Never Stop Exploring."