Allie's Nature Blog

Tuesday, Feb 24, 2026 I thoroughly enjoyed todays in class activities. The romanticism vs. enlightenment activity had me engaged and thinking hard about which it could be. I found the paintings were the easiest to tell, the music in the middle, and the writing was the most difficult. This activity and the discussion of how we are in an enlightenment period currently made me think about if we would switch to romanticism again anytime soon. While we learned what romanticism looked like in art, I’m curious what society looked like at those times. It is hard to imagine medical research and the excitement for new innovations slowing down, but I also see some people wanting to return to “traditional values” and I guess that could align with the idea of romanticism because our presenters explained that it more spiritual and traditional.  The second activity we did was one of my favorites. I enjoy getting to go outside whenever we can, especially on a nice day like today. The addition of t...

Saturday, Feb 21, 2026 A reflection on the “Economy” passage. To be honest, I had to work to comprehend what Thoreau was trying to say, and even then, I don’t think I fully understand. I believe part of it is how differently the same English language is spoken nowadays, and another part is that he is talking in sort of metaphors that I do not understand. Additionally, his way of writing is quite interesting. He writes in these short little spurts, not full paragraphs. It made it difficult to follow because his ideas are not concrete sentences and the words he used are no longer used today. One quote that I did cause me to pause and think was “what a man thinks of himself, that is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate”. I agree with Thoreau on this. If you think you are unworthy or unable of accomplishing something, you will never try and therefore never get it. However, if you believe that you will be successful, your mind thinks about it more, makes different plans to help y...

Saturday, Jan 31, 2026 This journal entry will be a reflection of my reading of our first two chapters of Edward Abbey’s Desert Solitaire, “The First Morning” and “A Serpent’s Paradise”. To me, they were two completely different chapters that evoked different reactions. “The First Morning” made me think and reflect about myself more, while “A Serpent’s Paradise” made me sort of chuckle and felt more like a tale, and less like a non-fiction writing.  On the first page of “The First Morning”, Abbey talks about the idea of a “one true home’. This made me reflect a lot, because my mind went to multiple places that feel like a true home to me. I thought about sitting out on the dock at my grandmother’s lake house, I thought about walking through the pine trees in the Bitterroot Forest, and I thought about listening to the waves while sitting on a beach in southern California. Maybe this means that I have not found my actual true home, but I feel lucky that I love so many places my heart...

Tuesday, Jan 13, 2026 For my nature walk after class, I decided to go on my walk along the Trinity River. Growing up in the Seattle area, I enjoy being around water. While the Trinity does not quite compare to Lake Washington or the Puget Sound, I find it familiar and comforting. During my walk, I noticed ducks floating in the water, the strong winds rustling through the trees, and the clouds parting in just the right way to allow beautiful sun beams to peak through. I do not often think of the clouds as a large element of nature, however on Tuesday, they were the main character of my walk. They seemed moody, almost indecisive whether or not they were going to create a storm or if they would pass and let the sun shine down below. I was enthralled watching them on my walk. To say the least, I thoroughly enjoyed the assignment. In terms of the environment and issues surrounding it, I would say I am opinionated on issues. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, we went camping, hiking, fishi...