conservation work
i'm heading off to one of the last remaining tallgrass prairies in ontario today. southern ontario used to full of tallgrass prairies, but after people had spent a couple hours basking in the beauty of native grasses, flowers, and wildlife, they got to feeling peckish and decided to plant food crops there instead. i'll be collecting seeds for species preservation (in the event that something happens to this patch, or for future conservation projects, etc) and then get a special edition guided tour through the grasslands and facilities that haven't been opened to the public yet.

plane tickets
i'm very much looking forward to a three week virginia hiatus. if you haven't received the frequent, abundantly clear memos, i love the pants off my family. well, maybe i should avoid using that expression with reference to relatives...
anyhow, my happy heart is just swelling like a well-fed parasitic worm.
also, can you believe my first semester is almost over?

lemon balm
i went to an herbal medicine workshop a couple weeks ago. this week it was as if fate heard me begging to apply some of herbal medicine knowledge, because i was blessed with a viral something-or-other (doesn't look to have been swine flu, as nice as it would've been to get that guy done). traditionally there's not much of a viral attack plan other than sleeping, drinking fluids, and wishing imminent death. however, one of the herbs featured in my workshop was lemon balm which, among other great things, is reportedly effective at not only improving viral conditions but actually erradicating viruses. so i made multiple cups of tasty lemon balm tea and coincidence or not, my fevered illness only lasted for 3 1/2 days.