keep on keepin' on

We've had a pretty good variety of projects the last few weeks. Let's see....

At my IP, I finished my grant proposal for a workshop on freshwater pond ecology. Hopefully the money will come through so I can start planning. I also went out into the marsh a little bit to start documenting the presence of spartina cynosuroides (a saltmarsh plant) on the Cape! I got a little muddy, but it was fun.

My COD day (in the AmeriCorps office) is working to plan Blitz week. We'll be doing a week of educational programs and service out at Thompson's Field, an open space in Harwich also used as a dog park. AmeriCorps works every year to maintain the park keep it an open field habitat. We're also planning an afterschool program for elementary school students called "Kids Go Green" where I'll be running activities on recycling and energy conservation in the next few weeks.

Last Friday 5 of us worked with the Mashpee shellfish constable doing shellfish propagation. We spent the morning in the water cutting open oyster bags (cold, wet work!) and then the afternoon building cages for future propagation projects.

Over the holiday weekend, 5 of us went to New York City. Some of my housemates had never really been before, so we did some of the essentials - the Guggenheim, an off-broadway musical, and the Statue of Liberty. I made sure to stop at Ellis Island and say hello to the family (good old John John). On Valentine's day, we all went to Serendipity in Manhattan for dessert. We had a celebrity couple sighting at the table next to us, and enjoyed what must have been the MOST ENORMOUS sundaes I've ever eaten. We finished out the weekend with an improv show at a comedy club.



Yesterday we went to a herring run in Yarmouth. We cleared the banks of overhanging plants and anything growing into the water, and raked out the bottom of the run to help the herring get through. It was sunny but a chilly day to be in the water... but it's amazing how warm we stay when we're working!



My friend Nicole tried to escape halfway through....

And of course, there's always time for some sunsets.

busy week!

It's been a pretty crazy week. Last monday, we did a day of service with the Army Corps of Engineers, who run the Cape Cod Canal. We spent the beginning of the day getting a tour of their headquarters and control center, and also learned about the history and management of the canal. After that, my group worked removing an invasive species called the Tree of Heaven - we cut some down and drilled others with holes so our service partner could come back in the spring and kill them with pesticide. At lunch, we took a trip out to Mashnee Island (where we'll be doing beach grass planting with some school groups later on) and our service partner gave us a tour of some areas of the island (and free lunch!) All of this combined with the sunny, 50 degree weather made for a fabulous day.



In contrast to that we had Thursday.... instead of going to the office as usual six of us went out to Harwich to work in the Bank Street Bogs with the Harwich Conservation Trust. They have a grant to turn these bogs into an open upland habitat, so we helped cut and clear woody trees from the area. It wasn't bad work, but it was COLD (a high of about 20 with some horizontal snow in the morning) and definitely felt like a long day. Hopefully it will warm up a bit before we head back this Thursday. (check out my orange monster outfit!)



I took Friday off to play tour guide for a friend that was visiting from Maine. After a day of cold beaches and general exploring, we headed up to Maine for the weekend with two of my other friends from AmeriCorps. We went to stay with her in Camden, which also happens to be the site of the INTERNATIONAL TOBOGGAN RACES! We spent an afternoon watching toboggan teams - we didn't preregister so we couldn't compete, but it was pretty great to watch. Plus, they sent a national geographic camera crew down the chute, so look for us on TV (incredibly quickly)!

Today we worked with Mass Audubon, a pretty frequent service partner. We did some trail maintenance and vista clearing at one of their properties in Barnstable. Nothing too exciting, but it was a nice day to be out on the trails.

Not too much else new going on at my placements. At my Tuesday placement I'm working on a grant proposal for a workshop I'll hopefully be planning this spring, and tomorrow I'll start going out into the marshes to work on a plant monitoring project. Probably heading to NYC for the long weekend.