Yes, quite literally what the title says.

I was out biking the other day, figuring I should get some exercise, fresh air, and sunshine, instead of being cooped up in the house playing Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility all day long. (Though I have to admit I still long for the days when I played Toontown. I did broach the idea of a month's subscription to my mother, which she immediately struck down. I'm already computer-addicted enough as is, I suppose.) So I decided to stop by the nearby park.

A very pressing matter in the town I live in is the bird population. We have astounding numbers of ducks, seagulls, geese, and pigeons. There are now signs at various bodies of water, such as at the reservoir and at the park I just visited, telling visitors not to feed the birds so that they'll continue with their usual patterns of migration instead of staying here permanently to gorge on bread crusts.

In fact, they've gone so far as to provide brochures in three different languages - English, Chinese (Mandarin), and Spanish, to "educate" the citizens about why we shouldn't keep the birds around. Something about how the birds poop in the water, which in turn makes the water dirty and gets them sick. (But wait...If they don't want the birds around anymore, shouldn't they just let the birds get sick and then die of their own accord? Oh, right, they wouldn't want to spread bird flu or some other disease. Or tarnish their reputation with the blood of several thousand innocent birds. Reminds me of the passenger pigeons being driven extinct.)

I saw some of the Canadian geese who have taken up residence at the park, and notice that they'd had their children (they're called goslings, right?). I thought it'd be nice to get close and take some photos of them. Here's a few shots...Sorry that they're a bit on the blurry side. Aren't the goslings so fuzzy-looking?





But while the goslings went on eating the grass (that's what it looks like, though they're actually eating the bugs), one goose stood guard. He stood there looking around suspiciously. Whenever I made a move he opened his mouth and hissed, showing his tongue. One time I tried to approach quickly and he ran towards me, flapping his winds and hissing like crazy. I hastily retreated until I was far enough that he decided I wasn't dangerous. It was actually a little fun, in a twisted way, taunting the goose. I don't want to risk getting bitten, though. I've heard goose bites are quite painful. But it would be nice to have animals that don't run away, growl, or try to bite me when they see me and actually meet an animal that likes me for a change.

Labels: animals, bird, birds, canadian geese, disease, geese, goose, hygiene, migration, park, pollution, sickness, wild animals

No, I did not take a trip out to somewhere, though it may look like I have not been updating much lately. This is not the case. Although my previous two posts, "Germ Factories" and "Thick as Thieves", are supposedly posted on Monday and Wednesday, I actually posted them on Wednesday and Saturday. (I wrote the posts, but posted them later, so what shows up as my posting time is actually the time I started writing them. Sorry if that sounds confusing.) I kept on forgetting to post them until I had already turned off the computer.

Recently, at my house, we had a leak in a pipe. Although I was unperturbed, my parents were not happy because leaks waste water. They've been discussing and worrying for a while, and then finally they had to go out and buy a new part for the pipe. While my dad was out buying the new piece, the water was turned off at my house. When I got up in the morning, I tried to turn on the water to brush my teeth, but nothing came out. I asked my mom, "Where is the water?" She said that it was turned off and that if I wanted to brush my teeth, she could give me some water to gurgle with (probably from a water bottle or something D: ). I declined, figuring that my dad would be back soon.

Then I thought of another dilemma. If the problem could not be fixed, I would not be able to wash my hands after I used the bathroom! I began to panic, thinking that I would also be unable to shower and so I would have to get a YMCA membership again just to use their showers and toilets. I used to have a YMCA membership, back in the day when I was still doing swimming, but no longer...It's kind of sad. I hope I still know how to swim sufficiently. I heard we have to pass a swimming test when I get to high school (treading for 15 minutes or something like that).

Luckily, my dad soon returned and I was able to brush my teeth. It was then that I realized how reliant us humans have become on our modern amenities, like electricity and running water and cars. I once read a book called A Time Apart written by Diane Stanley. In this book, the main character, Ginny, goes to a farm designed to be like one from the Iron Age, where she lives and works with other people who are participating in this project. They are going to live like people used to, using the tools and raising the animals of the people who lived back then. It was rough, not getting to wash much and all, but then when there were power outages in other parts of England, the people at the Iron Age farm were totally unaffected. I think that's pretty cool, that living without the complex things we've invented can actually be better than our modern 21st century lives.

This reminds me of something else I read about. There was an article about the FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), which used to be part of the main Mormon church but split from it because they still practice polygamy (having multiple wives). The LDS, the main Mormon church, decided to abolish the old tradition of polygamy because they wanted to be more accepted in the world, since polygamy was not looked upon fondly. The FLDS still sticks to the original tradition of having several wives, however.

At first I held a rather critical view towards them, because really, I don't like the idea of polygamy. One man having multiple wives means he will have many children, and I want to prevent overpopulation if it is at all possible. That also means some men won't have wives, which reminds me of what China might turn out to be like (some folks would rather have sons than daughters, so there ends up being more boys, and thus some men will not be able to have girlfriends or wives). However, women in FLDS seem to be more valued since they can bear children, which is interesting, because in some societies women are LESS valuable even though the purpose of women is believed to be bearing children. This means that although the society of FLDS might appear to be a patriarchy, it actually is sort of like a matriarchy. I approve of having a high opinion of women because I am rather discriminatory towards males (Sorry if you are male, but it is true in some aspects).

If your husband had other wives, you'd think that it would create jealousy. One woman said, however, that "I came to realize that this is another test that God places before you - the sin of jealousy, of pride - and that to be a godly woman, I needed to overcome it." I think that's a good way to think of it. I believe you should learn to overcome your weaknesses, and it will make you a stronger and better person. And a few people don't mind, but actually help add a wife to their family. One woman was very happy to have another wife in her family. The new wife is actually her biological sister. She had an unhappy marriage, and so her sister had been thinking, "I knew my husband was a good man. I wanted my sister to have a chance at the same kind of happiness I had." That's really nice of her. I don't know if I could do such a thing, because I am not necessarily the most compassionate person, and I have never had any siblings...

I still personally would not want to have to share my husband with someone, but I think the way of life of the members of the FLDS should be respected too. The children grow up without TV or social pressure, which could be better for their growth, although they may be unprepared for the real world if they ever go out there. I think it would be nice to sing and to worship twice a day. I am an atheist myself, and I've always wondered what it would be like if I had a religion. My parents don't seem all that interested, but I am.

Labels: a time apart, children, electricity, flds, gender, hygiene, iron age, jealousy, modern, mormon, plumbing, polygamy, post, religion, survival, swimming, water, wife, women, YMCA

Top ↑