community service

my employer is quite generous in that they allow us to take up to two half-days with pay to participate in community service activities. i took advantage of this last friday, spending the afternoon at fullersburg woods forest preserve in oakbrook, il.

we had a nice lunch upon arriving at noon, applied bug spray and headed into the woods. our guide, jim, pointed out poison ivy, hornet's nests, etc., then pointed at what we were to destroy. they had us lop off a bunch of brush that was being too aggressive and threatening to decrease the diversity of plantlife in the preserve. it was a lot of fun, and as far as i know, nobody got hit by the poison ivy. (i do still think that i'm immune - there is no reason i shouldn't have acquired it at some point in my childhood woods romps back in michigan - but that's not something i'm going to test and find out.)

afterwards, we had some time to wander the preserve's trails, got a little muddy, saw the old mill they have there, and walked along salt creek. it was a great afternoon out (much better than under the fluorescent sun in cube land) and it was fun to do something good for the community. actually learned quite a bit about the area, too, which was nice.