boredom and the National Park Service

I've had entirely too much time on my hands this weekend. On one hand, it's been really nice, not having much to do, spending time with Jeff's family. On the other hand, it has made me feel lazy and gluttonous, since the only memorable things that take place during a boring weekend are meals and movies and conversation (or silence, depending on the mood and choice of company you keep.)

Bill Bryson's, "A Walk in the Woods," has kept my entertained at times, however, and I am now enlightened and slightly enraged (overstatement, really) about many people's lack of care for nature and animals and the pure, didn't-need-man's-help-in-the-first-place beauty of the woods and the water and the mountains (and all other forms of nature which some of us find beautiful.) Being a geography minor was one of the best things about college. Global warming and glaciers and pictures of mountains and valleys were shown to me, before the aforementioned became political issues. Ah, I am a treehugger at heart, I suppose. I care passionately about the earth and its beauty. Yet, don't I lend to its demise? Don't I drive a car and use products that aren't earth-friendly? Idealistic to say I would give up all of these things, but I do try to be earth-conscious, touting use of such product names such as BioKleen, Method, and Dr. Bronner's (not to mention the natural supplements I began putting into my body about a year ago.)

It's useless for me to sit around and feel guilt-ridden about some of the nitpicky ways I give a helping hand to hurting the ozone layer, but in my eyes, it is most certainly NOT a waste of time to be more conscious of my actions and product choices.

Interesting that Bryson talks much about the National Park Service in the book and their lack of help for the parks they supposedly service. Why, it is no stretch to even say they have contributed to the neglect of much about nature. Bryson even suggests that their lack of funding compared to a decade ago could be the best thing for the woods, since they didn't need the Park Service to make it in the first place, and may not need them to make it now (unless hikers increasingly become careless and don't heed the use of trash cans and the 'if you find it there, leave it there' rule.

but now I am ranting