We treat Earth Day like a New Years celebration in that we make annual commitments that benefit our local community. We celebrate the outdoors deliberately. This planet that God gave us is unique and designed expressly for us, so why not take care of it?
Why try to effect change locally instead of globally? Well, since the facts are now coming out in droves that;
- this so-called man-made global warming is nothing more than another cyclical event
- Al Gore’s movie “An Inconvenient Truth” was assembled with computer generated images from a sci-fi movie (ABC News), and charts, graphs and data streams were manufactured and skewed to fit his agenda
- The new fluorescent bulb replacements that are supposed to make a major impact against the supposed carbon footprint quotient are actually manufactured in foreign plants using coal powered burners which of course completely reduce their carbon benefit to less than zero; making them a nuisance instead of a benefit.
Then, what are we left with? We are left with the common sense behavior that folks should be expressing every day of their lives anyway; regardless of the fractional changes in the Earth’s ambient average temp. We should all just be good American citizens.
After all, is not this the greatest country on the globe? Are we not the first country to establish national parks? Do we not run to everyone else’s aid in time of need, including Islamo fascist countries who are hosting those who are trying to kill us and their neighbors?
Why should America live like and look like a third world country with trash just lying around in heaps? Let’s get back to what used to be popular for decades.Let’s clean up America.
And, small changes made locally can certainly make a difference globally; with much more motivation.
This year, my wife and I decided to ride our bikes more often. On Sunday, I rode my bike to church. She plays violin in our church’s music program so she had to drive, but we’re working on that. Weekly we take the bikes to local bike paths and photograph wildlife and clean up around garbage cans. Anyone can do these activities. One doesn’t have to be an outdoors video producer in order to effect change in one’s environment.
Find something you can do and make plans to do it on purpose. We have set aside Thursday, Friday and Saturday as our possible bike riding days as weather permits.
Here are some photos from recent bike rides on the I & M Canal trail that runs along parts of the Illinois river and spans from the Joliet area west towards Ottawa, and the Old Plank Road trail that runs through Frankfort.
An American Black Duck, Old Plank Rd
Old Plank Rd
Antique concrete marker on the Old Plank Road trail
Wild flowers on trail's edge, Old Plank Road
Old Plank Rd
My faithful "Boss 7-Speed" purchased from Grand Schwinn Cyclry in Morris, Illinois
Part of the Old Plank Road still visible
The Old Plank Rd trail pedestrian bridge going over Rt 45 in Frankfort
Sequence of shots capturing a great blue heron taking flight on the I & M Canal
Turtles on the canal, "catching some rays".
One of the many water rats that make their home along the canal. We first thought he or she was dragging along a green plastic pop bottle. It turned out to be some fresh greenery that had been harvested nearby.
A common scene along the canal which runs adjacent to the Illinois River. The Illinois River is one of the busiest commercial waterways in the state. Many goods are transported from the east coast, along the Great Lakes, down the Illinois to the Mississippi, and finally reach the Gulf Coast.
One of the reasons we're riding our bikes a lot more for recreation and local errands.
All photos by Stu Marks
What are you doing? Reply here and share with others what efforts you are making to make a change in your local environment.