Journal #8 - Downtown Ft. Myers

The trip to downtown Ft. Myers was a lot of fun. I especially liked how this was educational, but not boring in the least, and their was an activity for us to do. The activity was more entertaining than having to listen to someone talk to us and explain what there was to see. I'm the type of person who likes to explore on my own, so being in downtown Ft. Myers was a great experience due to the fact that there were a lot of signs depicting the history of the city. My favorite part was how art was integrated throughout the city. There were many art musuems and even art displayed on the city buildings. The painting of the indians was beautiful. Aside from the paintings, there were many different displays. The light globes in the Hotel Indigo were very artistic as well as the fountain with the alligators around the base. Downtown Ft. Myers seems like a great place to go again just to take in the scenery some more; I just hope that the next time I go, it won't be raining. Another neat part of downtown Ft. Myers was the dock with the different boats. I enjoy being around water. I kept hearing splashing around and tried to find a fish but to no avail. The only thing I would have liked would be to go inside some of the shops. The store fronts seemed intriguing and it would have been cool to see what else some of the stores had to offer, or some more of the art. Along with the art theme of downtown Ft. Myers, I thought that the area with the theatre was amazing. If we had more time and if I wasn't worried about completing the scavenger hunt, I would have stayed there to read all about the different plays that were put on and all that was involved, i.e the lighting and set designs. All in all, this type of trip is something I would enjoy doing again.

Journal #7 - The One-Degree Factor

The video we had to watch, the One-Degree Factor, was a very interesting one to watch. I always try to strive to be knowledgeable about what's happening around the world today, even if it isn't in the United States. This video was shocking at some points because usually, one doesn't think often of crabs or other animals like caribou. I happen to love animals of all kinds very much, so this was great for me to learn about. The part where the caribou would sometimes get stuck in the snow to die was alarming, even though the dead caribou does provide a food source for the other animals. I can only wish that more people would watch this sort of video and be more aware of how global warming, or the climate change since that's what people like to call it now, is really affecting us. At one point, no one thought that tearing up the Everglades would do any harm, but it did. After watching the One-Degree Factor, I was encouraged to go on the internet in order to see how I measured up with what was spoken about in the movie. I did something called "Your Carbon Diet." In this activity, it lets one see the amount of average electricty used in items such as television (200 kWh, 188 lbs co2), household aquariums (300 kWh, 280 lbs co2), and computers (675 kWh, 630 lbs co2). There were other items listed such as our cooling and heating units, washer and dryer units, and kitchen appliances (fridges, ovens, microwaves, etc). What was also included with the averge amount of electricty was the efficient amount, which was obviously less than the average amount. People should realize that they can make a big difference simply by using lights that use less energy in their home or even unplugging the microwave or chargers for cameras and phones when they are not needed. 

Journal #6 - Corkscrew Sanctuary

When I first learned that I had to take this class, I figured it would be the worst class here at FGCU, with the exception of math classes. Through the years, I only continued to hear bad things about the class. However, the first field trip to Corkscrew Sanctuary proved those rumors wrong. I actually am starting to enjoy learning more about nature. I feel that without this class, I wouldn't know as much about what is going on in the world, nor would I really go out of my way to learn about the things that may not have interested me in the first place. There are some things that I pay attention to, specifically animals, but this course is just broadening my education, more so about the environment we live in. During the trip to Corkscrew Sanctuary, I learned that the trees there are some of the oldest trees around which was fascinating. I was visiting a part of history. Also, I learned more about how some species of birds have gone extinct. Concurrently with this class, I am taking a class titled Science in the Movies. In that class, I learned about specific birds that have gone extinct such as the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, California cockatoo, and so forth. The reasons for these birds to have gone extinct are the same reasons for the birds at Corkscrew Sanctuary: overhunting and the fashion of feathers in women's hats. While being at Corkscrew Sanctuary, I saw a Pileated Woodpecker which is similar to the extinct Ivory-Billed Woodpecker. It was amazing how significant the size of the Pileated Woodpecker was. Corkscrew Sanctuary is a secluded reserve, so that makes it much more easy to see nature as opposed to being more in the city area of Estero. Because of this, I enjoyed greatly being able to see such birds that I normally wouldn't get the chance to see or remember to look out for. The one thing I was surprised that I didn't see were the alligators. We did happen to see them on the way out though. However, all I hear about how there is an over population of alligators, and yet I hardly see them anymore. The main animals I wish I had seen while being at Corkscrew Sanctuary were the otters and maybe even a large cat. It seemed that we just learned a lot about the trees, which were mainly the same ones I learned about at CREW. All in all though, I would definitely go visit Corkscrew Sanctuary again when I had the time, specifically when the weather turns cooler. With the weather changing, I can see the difference in the trees and the types of species at Corkscrew Sanctuary.

Journal #5 - My Favorite Place Within My Community

My favorite place within my community would have to be the small adoption center at PetSmart at Coconut Point. This adoption center is partnered with Friends of Gummi of Naples. Every Saturday and Sunday, the volunteers of Friends of Gummi help numerous cats and dogs (who are brought to the store on the weekends) get adopted. Throughout the week, the cats are held there and those who work at PetSmart get them adopted out. I started to volunteer for Friends of Gummi in June, and I do not plan on stopping anytime soon. When I graduate from Florida Gulf Coast University and find my way back home, I will continue to volunteer for an animal shelter. I truly enjoy being a part of such a gracious cause, one that unifies the community. I've met some amazing people through this organization. My favorite part about volunteering is being able to spend time with the animals, especially the kittens. Spending time with them is a very important job because it consists of socializing the animals so that they can be playful when they go to what Friends of Gummi calls their "forever home." This prevents animals from being brought back to the shelter, which is what Friends of Gummi prefers the adopters to do rather than putting the animal out on the street if the animal doesn't work out with their lifestyle. One of my other favorite things to do while volunteering is informing people about the animals. Having lived with animals for many years myself, I tend to know a lot about taking care of them, so I love to answer any questions people may have. Also, by informing people about the animals, it helps clear up any misinformation they may have heard in the past. For example, one weekend there were three Pitbull puppies looking for homes, but were slow to be adopted out because of their breed. Pitbulls have a horrible reputation because people, like Michael Vick, brought attention to the breed by having dogfights. What people don't seem to know is that Pitbulls are one of the better breeds who are great with children. What I like to tell people is that any animal can do rotten things. It just depends on their upbringing. Even a Golden Retriever, who everyone views as a family dog, can be vicious. If one withholds food and/or treats an animal badly in other ways, than of course it isn't going to be the nicest animal.

Journal #4 - Erik Assadourian Article

When reading Erik Assadourian’s article, I found the information to be things I was already familiar with. However, I did enjoy the clarification of certain things. Considering the fact that I live in the United States, I sometimes forget that things that may seem normal to me may be strange to someone in other countries and vice versa. Americans thrive on eating meat, whereas there are some countries that are completely against the consumption of animals. What I was not familiar with too much was his information about consumerism. The numbers of how much we’re spending are outstanding, and the numbers only continue to rise. What I like most about this section were the graphs as it makes the information visible and stand out. I feel as if this information should be readily available to everyone in order to have a more informed America. We, as consumers, need to go in the opposite direction and not try to spend as much and not leave beyond our means. My favorite thing that I learned from Erik’s article was the idea of goods being “cradle to cradle” as that would be incredibly helpful, especially with sustainability. I just don’t think it is an easy objective for some as an unfortunate truth is that certain people simply don’t care about recycling. This is due in part to the media and politics. There are some that say recycling and doing other helpful things really don’t help at all, so this gets people down. I think people would get a reality check if they all did an ecological footprint chart. I know that when I did it, I knew immediately what I had to cut down on and make changes.