"the imperfect process of perfecting a craft"

Every once in a while you come across of body of work that strikes a chord inside you, and all you can do is let the vibrations ripple through your deepest thoughts. Your fears, your dreams, your failures, your triumphs. "Made by Hands" is a short series documenting people who are what they create. They live and breathe their art, and it is very obvious once you watch the videos. It is the same kind of passion and spark that keeps me searching in photography. It's not the kind of drive that can be faked. You just know it when you see it. 

I chose No. 2 The Knife Maker to share with you first because there were several things he spoke about in the video that really resonated with me. This series is about finding your passion. It's about finding a community of people who are as equally driven as you. It's about understanding that it's going to take plain old hard work to get where you want to be. And also knowing that there will be stumbles, scrapes, and scars on the way. 

back in town

My best friends are home. It's always so good to see them, even if this time it is only for a week. We make the most of it.

Where else would they be?

This makes me happy.

back again

Morsel

Third year of college: check.

To commemorate the beginning of summer and the ending of many things, my friend Jordan and I went to Morsel, previously known as Nook, to get us some biscuits and gravy. The coziness that was once Nook is mostly intact, just with the addition of some questionable paintings and an iffy music choice consisting of Top 40 hits. But that's OK. The biscuits are still spectacular.

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I've been gone from the blog for so long it seems silly to even try and recap what has happened in the past quarter, let alone the past year. All I can really say that might begin to describe this year is that it keeps getting better and better. I realize it sounds shortsighted now, but I thought things couldn't get any better after Peru. What could possibly trump the experiences I had and the people I met? 

I stepped into Gould 114 the first day of winter quarter knowing that I would enjoy the intro course to the Community, Environment, and Planning (CEP) major, but I had no idea that it would change my life. This class changed the way I approached my education, it changed my attitude about the possibilities after college, and it introduced me to a handful of people who I am lucky to call my friends. They have inspired me, encouraged me to challenge my beliefs, and pushed me completely out of my comfort zone. 

The class pacified my frustrations with the environmental science major and consolidated my desire to find a program that was more attuned to what I wanted from my time at school. Getting accepted into the CEP program was definitely a highlight of my junior year. It means that I will be here for an additional two years instead of one, but it feels so right. There is no way I am letting it go, especially because I know that this is exactly what I wanted and exactly what I needed...

Then a couple of months later, I met another group of people that would, again, change my life. 

This crazy bunch right here is the Light Green group (aka TOAST) from the 2013 HOBY Leadership Seminar. Over the course of just three and a half days, we laughed, cried, and grew together as a family. I won't even begin to summarize what all went on that magical weekend, but just know that the folks pictured above are some of the most talented, supportive, loyal, driven, entertaining, and inspiring people ever.

They are all going to do great things, so keep your eyes peeled. 

And what's next for the blog? Well, there's no time like the present to get this thing back on its feet. I am going to be working/interning in Seattle this summer and hopefully that means more opportunities to go on jaunts around town. Hopefully some hikes, maybe a train ride, mostly likely a trip down to LA. Who knows what else I come up with, but I am determined to keep this space moving forward!! 

Cosmic Rays | Part 3

Rough skinned newt. Don't touch it, or smoke it. 

This was the leg of the canopy crane that used to be here at Wind River. It only existed for about 10 years before they made us take it down, but during the time when it was functional, the allowed scientists to study the forest canopy like never before. It used to be that in order for you to study the upper tiers of the forest, you would have to climb the trees, which is physically demanding, or you'd have to take single branches down (shotgun) and study them from the ground. The crane allowed scientists easy access to areas that no research has ever touched, letting them discover species and processes that are unique to the canopy!

The crane now operates acts as a site for carbon sequestration research. Preliminary research has found that forests - even the slow growing, decadent old-growth forests - are carbon sinks, meaning they take in more carbon than they let out. Forests regulate atmospheric carbon levels and global temperatures. This is why forests are important, people!!

There is also some awesome soil science happening at Wind River, mainly because of the methods that researchers are using to acquire data. Usually, if you wanted to find soil moisture levels, you would have to take a field sample, mass it, dry it, and mass it again to find how much water was lost. This techniques leaves a lot of room for error, and is terribly time consuming. Another problem with soils is that current satellites can only measure a depth of 1 in. of soil, which leaves much to be desired. But who would have thought the solution to this problem might come from cosmic rays?? That's right, I said cosmic rays. The rays that originate from supernovae and have been bouncing around our universe ever since the Big Bang and could tell us a lot about the origin and age of the universe.

The neutrons from the rays are inversely correlated with the hydrogens in the soil water, so if researchers measure the electrons that are proportionate to the neutrons, they can know soil moisture levels on a large scale and at a greater depth (up to 2 feet compared to 1 in. with satellite capabilities).

One of the largest pinus ponderosa in the region.

We drove a little through eastern Washington on the way back.
There was a huge backup in the middle of nowhere, a perfect photo op! 

Hills and clouds. So beautiful.

JULIANNNN

Texture Hunt | Part 2

Are you tired of this view yet? Because I'm not. 

Where the game "hot lava" has some real-life applications. 

This is our professor: Jerry Franklin, the old-growth guru. It feels like he's been a part of every important paper and documentary about modern forestry. Here he is in a documentary about the forest service at the Mt. St. Helens observatory. We weren't even surprised. 

Quick stop at Multnomah falls because why not?!

Char Burger. It lives up to the hype pretty well. 

This is the room where the class would gather in the evening. Jerry would stand in front the Gifford Pinchot portrait, with the fire crackling in the back, and tell us stories about his experiences in the woods. It wasn't a bad setup. 

Snake Pit | Part 1

After 2 months of being presumed dead, my camera decided to start working again...!!! I guess it was done being waterlogged and missed my company. I have definitely missed having my camera around, so you can imagine how overjoyed I was to discover it working again. And just in time for the 3-day field trip this past weekend. I am born again. Invincible. Limitless.

Anyways, this weekend was the second and last field for my ESRM 315 class. We drove down south to Mount St. Helens, stayed in the Wind River Field Station, visited the dry forests near Mt. Adams, and then drove a bit on the east side before cutting back through the Cascades and back home.

I've blabbed for long enough. It's time for photos. 

ROADTRIPPPP

Beautiful, right? Nature bounces back with such gusto. 

I probably could have stood there for hours. 

After watching a film on Mount St. Helens, the curtains would rise and the mountain would be perfectly framed in the window. Bravo, architects, bravo.

Early seral ecosystems are full of life! So much light, so much warmth. It was obvious that the landscape experienced a dramatic change not too long ago, but I'm always surprised how quickly new roots take hold and start to build almost immediately after a high intensity disturbance. This sort of open and dry terrain gave me instant flashbacks to Peru. We trekked across similar dry mosses for hours and everywhere you looked you were surrounded by mountains. It hit me pretty hard, especially because I didn't expect it. 

I'm Alive

HI.

I wanted 
to let you know 
that I 
still exist. 
Procurement 
of a new 
camera 
will happen 
by the end of this month. 
Get excited.