The Neighbors

As the sun beats down on my legs it warms my skin to the touch. I try to keep my head under the shade, but as time passes, the earth moves and the sun encroaches upon my face. I get up and immediately feel the burn of the cooking concrete on the pads of my feet. I briskly tip toe to the cool grass lawn where the moisture has been retained in the soil. I look up and hear a shake of the palms that are above and see a crow fly away. Then a few minutes later as I lay on my back with my head facing the cool blue sky, I see the crow return to the opening that it flew away from. It must have a nest inside the thicket of palm leaves. The palms must provide a cool well shaded nesting spot for the crows. As I continue to watch the palm I begin to notice four distinct zones that give the might palm its character. The trimmed band where the palms used to be, the lower dying palms that are of a faint brown color and limp, the middle of the palm tree where the branches are dark green and extent horizontally casting a great uniformed shade zone just like an umbrella would do. The last of the zones is a top of the palm. Here grows the new branches, and they are young and tender extending up in an erect fashion to the sky above. I then notice that there is a pine like tree that stands next to it. This pine towers over the palm, yet their branches extend towards one another like the handshake of a neighbor. These trees share homes to many of natures beautiful creatures, and as the wind picks up the branches of both trees sway in harmony rustling out the bird that live within. The birds swoop down to the grassy knoll where I lay and peck at the ground in a quest for food. A few minutes pass, and birds come and go, yet they eventually will return to their homes of the neighboring trees.

Montana de Oro

I was planning a trip to Montana de Oro today, and along the way into the park, I just had to stop and take in such an amazing view. I pulled my car off the road, and hopped out and went and perch myself on a timber fence. As I looked to my right I could see the three smokestacks of Morrow Bay, then Morrow Rock, and the bay. My eyes were so captivated with so many things for it to comprehend. I then followed my eyes along a strip of sandy beach that separated the ocean from the bay which lead up to the beach below me. It was still a long ways away from where I was because I was so high up on the hill. I could hear the constant gentle roar of the ocean’s waves beating down on the coast. The sets of waves coming in were incredible. I was able to count at times as many as five waves all waiting to crash into the shore, and continue to let people know they were there. As I watched the water I began to see some movement between me and the ocean below. I refocused my attention, and saw horses walking on the winding paths above the dunes. Then I saw a hawk circle and swoop down into the brush below. It was odd watching a bird fly from above. It felt as if I was being taken out of my body. The wind blew and the air began to chill a little bit. I then was going to head back to my car to get a sweater when I noticed an unusual plant. The plant looked to be a dead tree or brush, but there were many of them. The bare limbs were silver and black color in the shade. The branches appeared to be vine like, woven and twisted together like twine. I wanted to know more about them. I moved into the land and finally reached one plant. I gave it a little tug to see if they were alive, and the plant held together strong. The branches of the bush were bristly like a gorilla hair bark, but firmer. The particular tree had no leaves on it. Maybe it was just not the season for it to be in growth, but it sure began to stick out even more in a landscape of light greens and yellows. I worked my way back up to my car and then continued on my trip down to the beach.

Mountain Chain Interrupted

I went for a bike ride today to get a break from studying. I biked up Highway 1 and over to Los Osos. I was captivated by the beauty of all the surroundings especially the estuaries and the winding streams that run through them. As I continued on I began to get tired and turned off the road into a street that was empty. I began to look at the hills and I noticed that they were a little different than what I am used to seeing. These hills that comprise of the seven sisters seem to be taking on something new. It might be because the rain has brought new life to the hills and the greenery has begun to spring up and overwhelm the rocky sides with soft life as supposed to the dry jagged rocks. It is a beautiful sight to see, as my eye traces up the ridge, my vision becomes obstructed by a low cloud that passes over the top of the mountain. The edges of the mountain are softened and it blends into the cloud. I continue to gaze upon the mountain and notice the amazing colors of the patches of rocks that still remain uncovered by the spring growth. As time passes, so do the clouds, and to my astonishment I see power lines coming over the hill. The tower is atop the mountain pinnacle, and a sense of disgust comes over me. I am angry because this once beautiful sight is now ruined with the power lines that I didn’t even see before. My eye draws down along the lines, and I see many more towers that I shouldn’t have had to see. There was a sense of natural unobstructed beauty at first glance, but once seen clearly, that has all vanished. This sight in my opinion is just another defecated landscape that I don’t want to wander into.

Dirty Carrot

Today for class we hiked around the Cal Poly fields, agriculture units, and the organic farm. During our trip we were able to walk through an opening in a fence and into the organic farm. We got our shoes muddy and we picked up the earth and held it in our hand. Dirt is often overlooked. It is seen as a thing that holds a negative connotation, like “your shoes are dirty” or “you my carpet dirty.” Why is it that this life giving substance from which everything comes from is so bad. I am not sure, but I do know that people do not say “why are your shoes covered in life.” As we progressed on our trip we ended up in the Cal Poly Organic farm when we were all given carrots. Typically the carrots that I eat come in a plastic bag and they are smaller than my pinky finger. Not today, these carrots were large, they were not a uniform size and shape, they had their stalk on them. It looked like the carrots that Bugs Bunny would have eaten. They were still dirty. I began to wipe off my carrot and thought to just a few minutes earlier how the dirt provides life. I then stopped wiping off the carrot, and took a bite into it cautiously. This was the sweetest and tastiest carrot I have ever eaten. I could taste the juices, and the sugar from the carrot. This one carrot alone made me want to buy a share in the organic farm. I am planning on doing so for spring quarter because I can’t wait to taste the rest of the vegetables that are grown organically.

The Wind’s Silent Tree

Today I decided to go for a drive to check out the new San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden building. It is an innovative building in the way it is constructed and how eco-friendly it is. As I was leaving I noticed a field between the entrance road and the playground area. There wasn’t much to it, it was just a plain open field with some trees, however it caught my eye. I was drawn to it for some reason. Today is a cool day and the wind is blowing at a constant rate. The fields are becoming green with the rain, and the weeds are infiltrating the land and consuming the bench posts and table legs. As I sit I see the blades of grass move in the wind and reflect the light back to me. The weeds with yellow flowers sway like a tall banner in the wind. The trees are bare, the intricacies of the branch structures are revealed. Their mass is evident, yet without the leaves, they bring individual identity. Something still doesn’t seem right with the trees. They are not blowing in the wind. They are remaining motionless. They don’t have their sails that created that “wooshing” noise of the wind. This lack of sound and motion I think is what drew me in. It started to think how peculiar this is because typically if you want to know if it is windy, you would look up to the treetops, but instead today you must focus on the blades of grass. As I look further into the field I notice a few crows that are taking shelter from the sun’s light under the picnic tables. This is just one more creature that relies on the tree leaves protection. I begin to notice more and more birds over by the creek edge of the field, They seems to be ground birds that fly in and out of openings in the creek side thickets. The sound of the babbling brook sends a long needed sound into the air. The water crackles on rocks and purifies the environment. Today the field was empty, it seemed as though today nature owned the land, however I know when spring and summer roll around the field will not be this peaceful. I take joy in days like these.

The Elephant Seals

Today on our way out of Hearst Castle, one of the people at the information desk gave me a flier about the elephant seals. I became very interested, and I decided that I would go check it out. I drove up along the Scenic Highway 1, and came to a turnout. I parked my car and began to walk up along the sandy tunes to a point where I could see these massive creatures. I recall seeing a video on you tube once of an elephant seal crushing a car, so I knew I had to proceed with caution. As I walked along a path I began to see hundreds of the seals as I turned a cove. They were extremely large, and their roars could be heard before they could be seen. I sat atop a little cliff about ten feet above the beach. One seal came in from sea and began to approach another. Then all of a sudden they shifted their weight backwards and began to fight. They stood up to a certain degree and barked and hit each other. It was clear to me that the one that came in from the water was more dominant because he then went up and approached what seemed to be a mother and its baby. There was no reaction from the mother so it must have been the alpha male. They began to rest as the sun was beginning to fall. I thought that it would be a good idea to observe these creatures from my point, and not enter their habitat like so many other tourists were doing. None were ever in danger, but it did upset and made a few scurry away. It was interesting to see the beaches and think how crowded they once were. I apparently visited during a time of the year that mating was just finishing up, so there were not as many as there usually are. As I watched the people walk away I see the footprints that they leave, and as I watch the seals move, they too leave a track. All of which gets washed away everyday as the tides rise. That realization enabled me to have a greater connection with the animals and the land.

Hearst Castle

Today I drove up to San Simeon to visit Hearst Castle. I bought tickets to the experience tour which was to give us a general overview of the complex. Our journey began at the visitors center where we boarded a bus that was going to take us to the castle. The drive was about five miles to get to the top of the hill where Hearst Castle sits. Once we disembarked the bus, I had this sense of power overwhelm me. The surroundings made me feel important. I felt as if I was a visitor of Hearst Castle when the elite used to visits William Hearst. We began the tour, but the entire time I was enamored with the beautiful view it had to offer. The gardens were spectacular the architecture was spectacular, the animals that roamed were spectacular. But the view of the California coastline set it apart from any other castle. I sat on top of the pool changing room and gazed over the property. When I looked to the back of the property it reminded me of the views that I had from atop rockslide ridge. It was hard to take in a moment for too long because the tour made us keep walking. I would have given anything to just sit and relax for a day at the castle. On the way down in the bus I was able to see some of even more animals, and different views that were not just as beautiful as those on top of the hill. From the whole experience at the castle, there was one thing that kept me wanting to go back, and that came from watching the video after the tour ended. The video showed clips of how Mr. Hearst would take his guests on horseback rides of his land. I know that would have certainly been an amazing experience.

Restoring a Community

I had a site visit today for my EDES 408 Class. Our class is about the implementation of sustainable strategies in the community, and our group has chosen to help out the San Luis Obispo women’s transitional housing. The site itself is a beautiful plot of land Brizzolara Creek and San Luis Mountain. However, it is in an area that is very rundown, and part of our goal is to be able to revitalize it with sustainable principles. While I was on the site I walked up to the back of the property and noticed that there was a fence that separated the creek from the houses. It was really unsightly because it created this barrier between “nature” the creek, and “human living” the houses. I immediately thought that we could restore this area by removing the fence and adding some native shrubs and berries that would keep the boundary, yet it would also maintain the natural beauty of the creek. The site also had two very old avocado trees. They towered above many of the units in the complex, and provided a nice shaded area for the residents. Unfortunately they are so old that the residents can not pick the avocados because they are so high. Our group discussed some aspects of how we can restore a sense of nature to the site, and because the site is paved over we decided that we want to add a permeable paving system so that we can have the rainwater runoff soak back into the ground removing any pollutants from it, while adding a more natural soft landscape with grass growing between the pavers. I also feel that if we were to add a community healing garden to the complex then the residents would be able to fresh food from their own garden.

Rockslide Ridge

Today for class we hiked through campus to the top of Rockslide Ridge. Along the way I discovered so many new parts of campus that I never even knew existed. The hike began by walking through gardens of different regions of the world, and then we hiked up through what seemed to be a water runoff trail. We passed a pond that was built by Cal Poly students, and then ventured on further up into the canyon. As we approached Rockslide Ridge, the first thing I noticed was how steep it was. Based on past experiences I knew it was going to be a tough hike. As we began up the hill I wanted to blaze my own trail. I didn’t want to follow anyone else. I wanted to look to nature to guide me up the hill. I began to run up and got fatigued very quickly. I began to slow down and choose my path in order not to get poked by the native brush. The rocks were not stable so I had to choose wisely as I hopped up the ridges. It seemed to me that there was not much of a trail to climb until I noticed a pattern. I began to see the “drains” of the hill. I began to notice that there were paths that were covers by unstable rocks. They were placed there by water runoff or earth movements that have allowed the rocks to tumble to a settled position. The journey was great and each time I rested I would be able to see more and more of the surrounding views up until I came to the pinnacle. I was given a breathtaking 360 degree view. My eyes darted from looking at Cuesta Ridge to Morrow Bay to Pismo Beach. The view made me feel as if I was lifted up into the sky. I stood atop one big rock and basked in the setting sun. I then began to really look at the rocks. They seemed to be slashed and sculpted from the elements. The colors blended in so well that it was hard to differentiate between them up close. Only once I stepped back I was able to see the yellows, browns, and oranges that gave the rocks their colors. We were then lead to the cliff of the ridge where we were shown the event that named this Rockslide Ridge. It was scary getting close to the edge because it seems unthinkable that half of a mountain could have just fallen the way that it did. I learned today that even the calmest and most peaceful areas in nature an still contain great power that can alter the land.

Focus The Nation -Business Seminar

Dr. Kate Lancaster - Associate Professor, Accounting Department

-Product Stewardship
- Need to close the loop of a product life cycle and reuse the waste
- Cradle to Cradle philosophy
- Interface, Ray Anderson and Bio-mimicry
- Triple Bottom Line (People, Planet, Profit)
- Urges all to vote their values

Dr. Norm Borin - Professor Marketing Department

- Need for sustainable consumers
- Ski resorts try to deal with warming by making artificial snow, but this severely drains water resources for local towns
- The questions is how do we get the consumers to switch to green products
- 3 types of consumers
-- periphery consumers = only doing it because it benefits them in some way
-- mid level consumers = does because it will affect household and community
-- core consumers = willing to pay premium price for goods that are green

Dr. Eric Fisher - Professor, Economics Department

- Weightless Economy
- Service Economy
- We are polluting less, but we consume more so the emission levels are about the same.
- CO2 emissions last long periods of time and there is no immediate stop or fix to it
- Green is a 12 trillion dollar economy

Christopher Perello J.D. - Lecturer, accounting Department

- Doom and Gloom thoughts
- The market will react to stimuli
- Need to make green more profitable in the short run so business will adapt it into their business plans
- Business will not consider issues unless they have to
- Good thing is they are going to ban plastic shopping bags in California
- Believes forced government actions must occur
- Good business practices like Patagonia

Focus The Nation -Agricultural Seminar

Dr. David Headrick - Professor, Horticulture and Crop Science

Impact of Insects
- Speaks on how climate change will affect us
- Insects will expand and contract area range due to the changes in temperature
- Incests also change how much they grow based on temperature and climate
- We could potentially face an incest invasion, not like biblical plagues
- Insect pest cause severe damage to crops 2nd highest rankings of crop loss only to weeds
- USDA is monitoring where pests go so that they can track and prevent them
- There is a giant need to have an abatement district set up to protect when insects arrive

Dr. Stu Styles - Director, Cal Poly Irrigation Training and Research Center

Impact on Water Resources
- Reduced snow pack
- Earlier snow melt means harder to control water
- The water temperature will rise and impact the ecosystem
- Sea levels will rise and the delta will rise and affect the levee's and flooding impact
- 2/3 of all drinking water in California comes from the delta system
- Increased drought will occur
- The current snow pack which is 15 million Acre feet, and will be reduced by 25%
- Growers will need to change their cropping plans to accommodate for water levels
- We need to understand our carbon footprint
- Need for farmers to switch from Diesel engines to Electric engines
- Need to improve water delivery system
- Need to switch over to drip irrigation
- Drip irrigation will increase food output for input of water

Ryan Rich - Four Elements Farm

- It is essential to have groundwater
- There is a great deal of focus that needs to be paid attention to water conservation
- Planted many of his crops in areas that were already wet areas on his land
- 2005 the cucumber beetles destroyed his crops
- very important to know what is occurring during the seasons so that farmers know when the best time to plant their crops
- Uses dry farming techniques
- When there was a freeze he only lost 1 tree out of 400 (large applause)

The Ridge Line

As I gaze from my apartment balcony the day after a heavy rain, I can see Madonna Mountain clearly. The rains have come and purified the air and brought a brisk chill to the air. The wind moves in with a gently push, just strong enough to notice it upon your skin. Clouds are white and light on the edges with slight darkness to their cores. They float across the sky slow enough to set and define the ridge line of the hills. they bring contract to the ridge and magnify what is up on the hill. I am able to see trees, shrubs, and even two hikers. With all the rain we have been getting, the slopes of the hills look brown from the churning of the dirt as water runs down its side. The muddy landscape is speckled with patches of grass that seem to emerging along the hills. As I sit, I begin to feel the sun that was once hidden by the clouds warm my skin. As a reaction, I look to the sun. I know that it will blind me eyes, but it still holds such a power that makes me look. I refocus my attention on the hills, yet my eyes still hurt, and I close them. I listen. I hear the gentle wind, I hear birds chirping, I hear leaves rustling, I hear my heart beating, and then a car drives by and pollutes the moment. As I look again at the ridge, my eyes move down to the swaying of the tree tops in the foreground. Then my hands go cold and my page goes dark. A cloud has passed once more and blocks me off the suns warmth and light. I accept that there will most likely be more rain and dark overcast days, however my heart longs for the sunny days of spring to come once more.

Shaver Lake Snow

Enough of staying inside, I don't want to be warm anymore. The snow looks like its a lot of fun. I want to go outside and explore. I wasn't expecting there to be a lot of snow on the ground when I made this trip, and I know it will soak right into my feet. Oh well.
I walk out the door and with every step I take, I feel the my feet grow colder. I cross the road and hop a gate into a snowy patch. I know I shouldn't be here, but I want to explore. I come across a tree that has been cut down. The only remains of such a mighty redwood is its stump and a few cut pieces that are waiting to be hauled off. I sit here wondering what was this open pasture. I perch my self up onto the stump and gaze about. This land does not seem right there are too many trees around for this void to exist. I begin to walk through the snow and feel the topography of the ground below. There are certain points where the snow has been packed and my foot rest atop the icy snow, and then there are the other points where my foot sinks through the powder. The snow began to get too deep for my comfort levels so I decided to stop and excavate a little. I was not prepared for the snow and I did not have gloves, but I was on a mission to see what was once in this opening. I began to kick the ground with the heel of my shoe to break up the icy top layer of snow. Then my hands starting lifting the snow up and aside. I shook of the cold and dealt with the fact that my fingers were now numb. I kept pushing and moving and scraping snow about. As I was reaching under the icy layer I felt a very hard material. It was a concrete cinder block. I then moved away more snow saw even more. Then I stopped. I retreated. I knew all too well that this site was going to be a home some day. That discovery just sunk me into a state of sadness. The fun of exploring nature had come to a screeching halt. The adrenaline that had kept my fingers and feet from feeling the cold ended. I began to shiver. I went back into the cabin and sat by my fire to warm up.

Pirates Cove Sunset

I stand before an opening. All color has been shrunken into a tunnel and darkness surrounds. The sun is setting ever so slowly and the reflection of light off the waters edge and extends the horizon into the sky. The color are beautiful and contrast the cave that I am about to enter into. As I walk through the cave a sound seems to permeate from the ground and the I feel that air rush about me as I pass through this "wind tunnel." I am curious. I continue to walk forward and notice that at the end of the cave there is a cliff. The sound of crashing water on rocks still draws my curiosity. I creep to the edge of the cliff and look down. As the waves come in and out the water fizzes and foams about the rocks that protrude from are below. I decide to sit and just lay back. The ground is cool and I can almost taste the saltwater of the updraft from the ocean crashing below. I hear birds chirping from behind and birds cawing from above the sea. I decide to move up the cliff and climb now on top of the cave that I just passed through. It places me into a whole new perspective being up another 15 feet. I hear new noises that were not present before. They are the sounds of others who have come to enjoy this magnificent sunset at Pirates Cove. I hear them approach with excitement in the air. The couple approaches the entrance and then silence falls as they take in this stunning view.

A Torched Landscape

"California Indian tribes practiced grassland burning to improve the ability of the land to support game species...and favored fire-adapted plants such as the California native grasses, which are well adapted to periodic fires."- Cal Poly Land: A Field Guide

After reading this passage about the Cal Poly grasslands, I remembered an incident in early July. I was moving into my new apartment, and was woken up by the sounds of helicopters buzzing above. I looked out my bedroom window to see the hill which held the iconic "P" ablaze.

Almost six months later, I decided to hike the "P" once again. Before I began my hike I looked up the hill to see a distinct squiggly line from where the fire had once been. So then I began to hike, but it did not seem so much different from what I last remembered. The grasses were yellow in color, and we have not had that much rain to turn them green yet. I continued on and once I got higher up the hill it became even more apparent that a fire had torched the hillside. I became distracted looking to where the fire lines were and journeyed to the edge. I wanted to stand one foot where fire was and one foot where it remained intact. I continued on my hike now up in the burnt region and completely lost the trail. I thought that if I kept hiking up the hill, that I would eventually hit a part of the trail. After a few minutes of looking I spotted the trial, however I would have to hop and skip over some plants that were burnt by the fire. The one plant that had a lasting impression on me was an aloe/cactus/yucca plant. The sharp blade like leaves jutted out from the pineapple shaped core. The leaves were brown and the tips were charred black like wooden barbecue skures that had been cooked to long. The body of the plant was brown and not in its natural color, although, its root structure must have still been in tack for when I nudged my foot on it still had a tight grip to the rocky ground below. I encountered many of the plants along my hike to the top. Most of them looked dead, but I did find a few that showed some signs of encouragement. Below all the charred leaves, new sprouts were beginning to make their way out into the landscape. This certainly was a welcoming site. I knew that it would just be a matter of time until the landscape was restore to what it used to remember it as. Once I got to the peak of the hill, I was able to have an unobstructed view in 360 degrees. I shook my head thinking how close our campus and my home was to being burnt down. I am relieved to know that the resiliency of nature will bring it right back.

Field Trip to Poly Canyon

Today was our second class meeting and we hiked up into Poly Canyon, however, it was not the ordinary walk that one might have done before. after a few minutes of walking we took a left and walked onto a trail that I had not even seen before. We crossed over a creek by stepping on stones, we walked over tree branches that had gown into the hillside as if the tree had fallen, but it was still alive. This was not just the ordinary hike, because it had rained the day before and the ground was slippery. I had to pay careful attention to the ground as to make sure I would not fall. It was a totally different experience for me and hiking. I normally would look up and around me when hiking on a trial, but today I looked down and watched every step.
Once we got into Poly Canyon we rested inside a recreation of a Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome and began to listen to nature. As the class grew silent I begun to head a stream babbling, and a few birds chirping. Then all of a sudden the noise was interrupted by thunderous pounding that grew ever so close. I looked over my left shoulder, and saw nothing, I snapped my head around to the right and the noises grew louder as if they were right upon me. I still saw nothing. Again my head turned to the left and twisted my torso to see if i could find where this rumbling was coming from, and out of the corner of my left eye I saw three horses galloping away along the hilly ridge. The experience only lasted a few moments, but it seemed as if the initial fear had placed me into a slow motion state making this seem longer than it really was. I was puzzled as to why this noise was so loud and seemed so close, and then I realized we were seated in a natural amphitheater. This brought my senses to the next level, and I could not only hear nature with a crisp clarity, but now I could feel it. I am now feeling as if I am one with nature, and not a bystander of it.