52 Parks ~ 52 weeks

Looking back over my blog I realized that I have left quite a few of my National Park Service sites off here!  Here is a list of all the places I've been to so far:
Kingsley Plantation
Ft. Caroline
Timucuan Preserve
Gullah-Geechee Preserve (part of the underground railroad)
Marjorie Rawlings National Historic Site
Cumberland Island
Ft. Frederica
Ft. Pulaski
Andersonville POW camp
Jimmy Carter Historical park
Rev. Martin Luther King Historical monument
Dry Tortugas National Park
Everglades National Park
Kennesaw Mountain National battlefield
New Orleans Jazz Museum Historical monument
Jean Lafette battlefield
General Grants Tomb Historical site
Federal Hall (Washingtons first inauguration)

I am not sure at this point (week 33) that I can overcome the 15 park  deficit that I've created...but I'm not going to stop trying!! And yes, for almost ALL of those parks... I had on my waterproof Timberlands!!

Some of my favorite photos can be seen on my Etsy site! Never give up..."Don't give up, don't ever give up." Jimmy V

Mind set on memory

I don't know if its lack of sleep or illness that has my mind set on memory today.  I had a girlfriend at church tell me one time that she'd give up her kids before she gave up her husband.  And not too many years later she had an affair and divorced her husband.  I've often wondered how that happened, what lead her to that place- where was she in her thinking? And where was I?  Where were any of her friends/family? Someone had to be close enough to her to see what was going on and wave a red flag in front of her face and say "What’s going on here???!?!"

I think we all need friends who are bold enough to stand up to say…hey stupid! What are you thinking? If not that bold then: Hey girlfriend-talk to me- tell me what your line of thought is here- where are you going with this-what do you think is going to happen if you do this?

It doesn't have to be just about relationships either- although that does seem to be the biggest problem we've got.  And for the record, I'm not one to get relationship- Do this to stay together- advice from because Kim Kardashian had kept her marriage together longer than my four month fiasco!

I can tell you this- women you need friends- AND fans of your marriage around you.  If you have a friend or family member who is not a fan of your marriage, be careful taking advice from them.  Keep in the back of your thinking: “misery loves company" And question if they're attempting to get you to join them!  Look at their track record in your life.  Have they consistently rooted for your failure so they can once again be the "I told you so"'s in your life?

I'm reading a book called Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ by Jeanne Guyon and remembering, rethinking, and wondering where I left my friends, family, and faith to fend for themselves.  Get yourself off your hands...best advice I've ever gotten!! 

52 Parks ~ 52 Weeks

I was sidetracked by an injury for a couple of weeks, but I think I can still make a legitimate stab at accomplishing this goal.  Last week, the day before the Zimmerman verdict, I found myself in Atlanta dreaming.   At lot has happened in the 150 years since the  American  Civil War but sadly a lot has remained the same.  We are still a nation that is polarized by internal wars of race and class and economic standings, and rights and freedoms... internal wars.  King James translated the words:  ^"And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand." Mark 3:25   Yet here we stand...internal wars.  Dr. King had a dream, a vision, of us all standing together, not with internal wars.  His dream is still just as much alive today as the eternal flame at his resting site.  If you find yourself in Atlanta anytime soon, be sure and stop by and check out the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. historic site.   Until then, here is a few shots of the day.  The house of peace, the eternal flame, and a shot of reflection.  Enjoy! 

National Park Week

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings  house and farm yard a National Register of Historic Places -listed in 1970.  If you are not familiar with her, she wrote The Yearling.  I was so impressed with her.  Had we been alive at the same time, I bet we would have been best friends!

While in the area I stopped at Paynes Prairie. Not a national park but a state park of Florida.  I was excited to visit this place because it has bison, wild horses and a bald eagles nest!  I was able to get a photo of the nest but not the eagle.  I would loved to have caught them in flight!  It was a dreary day with intermittent showers but occasionally the clouds would hold their water and allow me to snap a couple of shots.  I am trying to learn the art of capturing a refraction in drop of water.  I was able to snap two, but they're my first two.  I expect to get better with the next outing!  

This week is National Park Service Week.  Grab your Timberland's and find a trail! Don't forget if you can't find a trail, make your own! 

I am happy to report that, depending on where I stand on my scale I have lost somewhere between 28-38 pounds.  I have not changed my diet yet, and I'm sure that if I could give up my sweet tea, or maybe Frosty Flakes I could lose more.  But I'm not one to turn lose of things, or deprive myself! HAHA!  If you have a couple of hours this week, find a trail.  It's much easier to endure than running, or walking a treadmill, or even walking the block!  Have fun, stay safe and let me know how it's going for you.

Guns vs Sugar

Our country was founded and built on a bill of rights that we "hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

Now, because of ignorance and a glaring mental health issue our government has decided that it has the power to alter our constitution without following the founding due process. Guns are no more the issue than food is reason for diabetes. Excess sugar causes obesity...should it be allowed? The amount of people who die in this country from complications of diabetes: In 2007, diabetes was listed as the underlying cause on 71,382 death certificates and was listed as a contributing factor on an additional 160,022 death certificates. This means that diabetes contributed to a total of 231,404 deaths. (From http://m.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetes-statistics/ )

In a STARK contrast to "In 2010, there were 19,392 firearm-related suicide deaths, and 11,078 firearm-related homicide deaths in the United States.[7]"

And with diabetes on the rise the death toil from that is FAR greater than that of gun violence.

Thorough the corse of history we can see a plethora of examples of where a government disarms its people and then the people are unable to defend themselves. (It's usually centered around a socialist takeover of society.) If socialists principles were the best then the founding fathers of our country would not have risk their lives to create and defend this nation, they could have stayed where they were.

52 Parks~52 Weeks Fort Frederica National Monument

I have been "schooled" in what constitutes a National Park...and that there are only 59 National Parks.  I have been to two of them this year and am only planning on going to 8 more.(Note: since 2009 I have been to an additional four parks that I am not repeating this year.)  However if you go to the National Park Service's web page you can find a plethora of other parks that fall under National Historical Sites, Scenic Trails, Heritage Areas, Seashore, Military Park, and Recreational Areas as well as others.    It is from this list of National Parks that I have chosen my 52 parks in 52 weeks personal challenge.
For today's adventure I chose Fort Frederica National Monument.  Today was the annual celebration of the fort.  I sat down with General Oglethorpe and asked him was the weather this cold on the day of their original arrival.  He told me that they actually arrived in June and that it was hot, and he wouldn't be dressed in his red coat but rather his whites.  I asked him why we celebrate Fort Frederica in February and he replied that I would have to wait and ask my yet to be formed government.  I thought he was very witty and funny, however my dear General I have found that you did in fact come here in February.  Here is a link to a simplistic timeline of your life! And here are a couple shots of the day.  Do not wait for a "family vacation" to think that you can go to a National Park (and support the National Park Service while doing so!)  So grab your waterproof Timberland's and find a trail, or monument or battlefield...

52 Parks~52 Weeks Still At It 2-TORTUGA!!!

On Thursday I visited Everglades National Park. On Friday I took off for Dry Tortugas National Park! I wore my waterproof Timberland's even though I also wore a bathing suit under my clothes. I wasn't sure what to expect when I got to the island. After all it was a little cold in Jacksonville FL when I left, I couldn't imagine that the water would be warm enough to venture into. You can only access the Dry Tortugas via boat or plane. I took the Yankee Freedom boat and I'm glad I did. My only regret was that I did not camp overnight on the island. Once I saw the "set up" for the camping, I would have fit right in with my personal tent! I plan on returning with camping gear and kayaks to visit the Dry Tortugas again. On my cruise over there was a man who told me that 15 years ago at the age of 16 he boarded a homemade raft and set sail for Miami, however a storm came and almost destroyed his raft and they were marooned on the Dry Tortugas, now he is a tax paying US Citizen! It was very touching! While at the park I decided that even though I have never snorkeled before in my life, and I do not know how to swim I was going to get a waterproof camera from the Yankee Freedom store and head out to the reef. I have not gotten my pictures from the disposable camera developed yet but when I do I will post them too. When I got back on the boat, I looked overboard while still docked and saw this guy. The park ranger said, Oh that's a harmless shark...he wouldn't hurt you." I told her that if I would have saw him while snorkeling, I would have died...because I would have had a panic attack and drowned!! *The shark was bigger than me* After snorkeling I re-boarded the Freedom, grabbed a lunch and headed for a picnic table. I saw that I still had over an hour before we were heading back to the Keys so with camera in hand I set out around the inside of the fort. In the lighthouse tower I took a series of photos that have the strangest blue light shape in them.  I have seen the round "orbs" that people claim are haunting, however I get those all the time...I call them lens flares.  I can not exactly explain these shapes though.  In one of them you can almost envision  a head, hands and feet on the blue shape!  I showed them to a park ranger...he laughed and asked how long I had been in the sun!  Then it was suggested that I find on Facebook someone who works in the bookstore, because he is a true believer in the haunting of Fort Jefferson!!  I'll post the pictures here, and you can decide for yourself!  

52 Parks~52 Weeks

Last week I did not go to a national park because I knew this week I would be hitting two. Unlike my first post of two parks-in-one, this was truly two distinct parks in two days. For day one I visited Florida's Everglades National Park. All of the comments I heard were similar to: "I've been coming here for years and I have never seen this many alligators out like this before." I didn't have the heart to tell them that the gators knew I was coming today and THAT must be why they were putting on a display! The park itself is a peaceful drive through the Everglades with ample places for you to stop and take photos or begin a hike away from the crowds but it also has the "popular" mix of trail and boardwalks that do not require hiking boots. However if you DO own a pair of waterproof Timberland's the park has a "sludge" trip that you can take, guided or solo (just make sure you take or tell a friend where you are and when to expect you back;) I have 198 fantastic photos! But to save on Internet space (haha and your attention span...) here is a sample. Look for day two under my post (Still At It 2-TORTUGA!)) for my second park of the day, Dry Tortugas National Park.