Nature: A Definition

What is nature? In the simplest of terms, nature is exactly what you make it. Nature can be out in the Badlands of South Dakota, Michigan Avenue in Chicago, the Boundary Waters of Minnesota, or Times Square in New York City. From a single tree planted on the sidewalk to the vast forests that cover parts of the country, nature is everywhere. It’s inside every single life form on this planet. Hell, we’re not too different from animals, even though we like to pretend we are. What happens when a dog or cat senses something it doesn’t like? The hair on its back and neck stand up. Does not the same thing happen to humans?

I think of nature and of human nature, and how they relate to one another, and see many things within humans that I see within nature as well. It’s almost scary, to be honest. However, human nature, and nature itself, have some very different practices. Kathleen Moore states, “Our temptation is to design arrogant policies and make dubious decisions, and then we end up doing up doing to the natural world what ticks do to us, except that ticks have the good grace to drop off when their stomachs are full.” Sadly, her words ring forth with the chimes of beautiful, brutal honesty. In nature, we see harmony, balance, symbiosis, and natural solutions to any problems within the balance. Somehow, humans messed up along the way. Moore sums up fairly well by saying, “Shit happens, we say. And sometimes it does. But the fact of the matter is that sometimes, shit doesn’t just happen. Sometimes, human beings deliberately create the conditions under which shit is more likely to occur.” Nature always finds a way. It takes humans a little longer and a bit more heartache to figure that lesson out.

Nature is not just a physical state of the world, nor is it an almighty entity that laughs at our frail human mortality. Nature is a powerful force, capable of sustaining fragile lives one minute and sending the strongest of creatures to their deaths in the next. Nature has a way of knowing when it’s been hurt, when to heal its wounds, and when to reclaim what rightfully belongs to it. In The Pine Island Paradox, Moore relates a story about how she and her husband pay to have a dam on their property demolished, only to find that the demolition did more harm than good. They set out to finish the job themselves, and at first, the Marys River sluggishly reacts. However, when she reflects on it ten years later, Nature has healed itself and found a way to make things work. She does state that “an earth that is at once functionally forgiving and thunderously vengeful raises all the familiar questions of redemption and remorse. When it comes to the earth, can there be redemption in good works?” Yes, there can be redemption, and there almost always is.

Another person who seems to understand this balance that I keep getting on about is Scott Russell Sanders. In Sanctuary, he states, “From the clustering of galaxies to the spinning of quarks, we find an intricate order whose laws we may decipher but cannot alter.” Humans always tell tales of ‘blazing trails into the untamed wilderness’ and brag about their apparently ability to domesticate nature, but they seem to enjoy living in their blissful ignorance. We can shape the land to fit our needs. We can make trails and portages, farmlands, and cities, but if we left it alone for an extended period of time, Nature would come back to claim what rightfully belongs to it. As I stated before, Nature is not a dog or an ox, a creature that can be tamed and forced to bend to the will of man. Nature is a wild beast, and will not hesitate to lash out and attack when we go too far.

So, what is nature? Do I actually have a good final summation, an answer that you’ll actually like? Probably not, but I can try. Thoreau says that humans need wildness like a garden needs nourishing muck in order to flourish, and I can agree. We live in symbiosis with nature, constantly playing off of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. We are also constantly engaged in a fierce battle for dominance with each other, constantly trying to outdo the opposing force in a futile attempt to reign supreme over them with an air of triumph and false hope that the victor shall stay dominant in this relationship. But, inevitably, there will be another challenge, and the fight will begin anew, and will stay that way until one side finally wipes the other out and condemns itself in the process.

Nature is everything that shapes our world. Be it a tiny mouse in the walls of an apartment building or a mammoth blue whale swimming in the open oceans, Nature is everywhere. It is everything that we want to be, and everything that we are. It lives, dies, and is reborn constantly. It is a vicious circle, and a circle of life. You ask, what is nature? I say, decide for yourself.

Singing Sweet Home Wautoma All Summer Long

Hey kids,













So, here's the deal. I'm living at my lakehouse in Wautoma for an unknown amount of time. Originally, I was only going to be living here until November, but somehow, work opportunities just keep rolling in for Jimmy and I. Oh, yeah, I forgot that. Jimmy's living up here in Wautoma with me, and we're working the same jobs. It's a beautiful, beautiful thing to be living with and working with your best friend. I dare you to find something that compares to what I'm doing right now.

I know most of you have heard me talk about Wautoma and the lakehouse, and most of you are probably sick of hearing about it. However, the thing that no one understands is that this is my escape from the world. Don't get me wrong; I love my friends, my family, and my lifestyle, but nothing compares to what Wautoma has always offered me. Sure, there may not be a whole mess of women for me to hit on, or the comforts of living in a bigger city, but all of that is completely irrelevant here. Out here, I can smoke in a bar. I can go out to a bar and get drunk on less than $20. I can go into a quiet little dive that has a pool table and Johnny Cash on the jukebox without having to worry about getting bothered by some bro douchebag and his sorostitute girlfriend because I don't look the norm, or because I'm "hogging the pool table," or because I put my "shit music" on the jukebox. I can breathe a little easier, lay on my back and look at the stars, and take a canoe on the lake so I can fish to my heart's content without someone telling me to get off my ass and do something productive. Yard work isn't a chore anymore; instead, it's just another way to kick back and relax. Grilling is an everyday activity that never gets old, and no matter how cheap the beer is, it always tastes better after a hard day's graft.

This is my happy place. This is the place I envision whenever I need to be cheered up. This is the only place in the world where my depression can never get to me or bring me down. I can put my feet on my table, crack open a cold beer, and just set back to watch the sun set over the lake. There's no drama with women, no strife with my family. It's just pure, unadulterated RELAXATION.

For those of you that I left back home, I will miss you, and I'll make sure to visit a couple times before I move back home. Until then, beannachd le, and make sure to have a drink for me, ok? Until then, best wishes from Jimmy and I!

Peace
Love
Unity
Scotch

Skinhead Dan

New and Improved RANT! Now with 10% more venom and hatred for humanity!

Ok, fucksticks, I'm back. Time for yet another rant, because obviously my attempts to kill my liver aren't working and it's apparently illegal for me to round all of you up and beat you like red-headed step-children. Seriously, you need more productive lives like a hooker needed a father-figure in her youth.

First off, PEOPLE WHO KEEP BITCHING ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIPS VIA YOUR STATUS UPDATES! STOP IT! You are seriously the laziest fucking people I've had the displeasure of knowing, and if I knew how to delete people off my Facebook, I would just so I didn't feel like pulling my eyes out of my own skull with a spork. If you're in a relationship, and it's not going too well, and all your attempts to fix your relationship have failed, GET OUT OF THE FUCKING RELATIONSHIP! It's not that hard! Common sense [and I know most of you lack it] dictates that if you know why you're not happy, and you can see the solution to making yourself happy, you should take that solution, BUT NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

O. Instead, you spam Facebook with these desperate attempts for attention by either talking shit about your insignificant other, or by putting up music videos, and quizzes, and bumper stickers, and all the other shit that you can find that lets the world know YOU ARE NOT HAPPY. Guess what? Grow the fuck up and stop being a little pansy. Hell, I know I'm not the happiest person, but I know how to make myself happy, and get rid of the negative influences in my life. Stop being a little bitch, and grow a fucking pair.

Next on the list is the assholes who show up on Dollar Beer nights and act like everyone should know their fucking names. Guess what? It's Dollar Beer Night, and I don't care if you're a regular. Unless you're the owner, the bouncer who wants to kick my ass, or the bartender who is getting me my beer, go the fuck away, and stay out of my conversations. I'm out to enjoy my crappy beer, have a few laughs with my friends, and enjoy a nice night out. Instead, you assholes either randomly insert yourselves into MY conversations to talk about bro-douchebaggery that no one cares about, or you just stare at me from across the bar because either 1) The women I'm hanging with are hotter than yours, 2) Because I have tattoos and a personality, or 3) Because my friends and I aren't plastered in name-brands and designer clothing because we have some dignity left and aren't complete corporate whores. So, here's the deal. Either shut the fuck up and quit staring at me and my friends, or grow a pair and throw a punch. Either way, I win. Douche bags.

Last on my list is people who keep talking me like I'm their best friend, I owe them something or I've majorly wronged them. Guess what? I'm not going to apologize. I apologize to someone that I've truly wronged, and trust me, those people know who they are because I've actively sought them out to make my peace with them. Other than that, if I said something to you or did something to you, you probably fucking deserved it. Same to the effect of people acting like they're my best friend and we're all tight and shit. Get over yourself. I have some close friends, and only three best friends. Other than that, you're a casual acquaintance that I mostly enjoy the company of. If I have only hung out with you a couple times, that doesn't make us best buddies. If I constantly call you to hang out with me, or to go out and have some fun, that makes us close friends. If you don't fit those categories, you're just a friend, or a casual acquaintance, so stop overcompensating. There's a reason I never call you, and it's a damned good one. YOU GET ON MY FUCKING NERVES.

Welp, I'm out. I hate all of you, you're the reason I drink, yadda yadda yadda.

Peace
Love
Unity
Scotch

Skinhead Dan