(With apologies to the Beatles.)

As of this date, we are dead center in the middle of winter and so far old man winter has proven to be quite formidable.  The other day, it was warmer in Juneau, Alaska than in these parts of the Georgia.  Go figure.  The cold weather has turned our lakes and ponds into frozen slicks for weeks. Unfortunately, this is not an annual condition around these parts and most folks, including pet owners, are unaware of the dangers associated with walking on ice.  An old farmer once told me a tale that involved a blind bull that turned up missing one day during a hard winter. He looked high and low for the animal but came to realize that the hole of in the ice on his pond told the story of the bull’s fate. So please make sure that leave you the ice skating on the rink . . . and that’s no bull!

Several years ago, my wife and I became the happy owners of a 1957 mobile home trailer that measures 80’ by 10’ and serves as our family gathering point on Lake Allatoona. Lake Allatoona is a 12,010-acre reservoir that was built by the US Army Corps of Engineer back in the late 1940s. Its primary function was flood control, but now recreation is king; in fact, Allatoona is the most-visited lake managed by the Corps. While I enjoy very much the warm season activities that the lake provides, I also equally enjoy the solitude of the lake during the winter. I go there often to seek refuge from the “daily grind,” while enjoying the sights and sounds that the lake has to offer. This may include the spectacle of the migrating Sand Hill Cranes seeking bed for the night, or the laughing chatter of ducks, but also I go to hear nothing at all- except the howling wind and the lapping waves. 

Thanks for listening and until next time, 

Jim

Jim Lanier (right) accepts the Going Green award.

The Going Green Award is given to CAI member companies that have demonstrated adoption of the “4 R’s” (Reduce, Recycle, Re-Use, Re-Buy). Award recipients are selected by the CAI Georgia Chapter Green Committee.

Our mission is to promote sound stewardship of land and water resources, so "going green" is a natural part of living up to that mission. All of our Going Green initiatives help minimize our corporate footprint on the environment, as well as keeping thousands of pounds of trash out of our watersheds, and several thousand more pounds out of landfills. We recycle office materials and product containers used in our operations; schedule conscientiously by grouping treatment visits geographically; transmit reports and invoices to our clients electronically; and maintain an ongoing sports equipment recycling program through which balls retrieved from client lakes are donated to youth sports organizations.

I am probably in the minority in my appreciation of summer thunderstorms. The sights, sounds and smell of a storm, in most cases, are a welcome occurrence in my view. The highlights include the tall stately thunderheads, especially in a late afternoon sky -- an awesome spectacle of color and form. The slow rumble of thunder and the nighttime fireworks are special as well. One of the first meteorological questions I posed to my father as a child involved my curiosity about the distant lightning shows at night, absent an accompanying thunderclap. I was informed that what I was witnessing was “heat lightning.” I don't know how this term was coined, but it suggests that heat lightning is in some manner different from the more common “window rattlers” that cause your dog to seek shelter in your lap. Now I know that lightning is lightning, but distance is the key. I will say that I have observed that the nighttime shows of “heat lightning” are not as frequent as I remember as a child. I wish they were.

Until next time.

Jim

The others joys of summer for me include a plethora of physical activities like gardening, hiking, water sports, kayaking and biking -- activities that help to provide mental and physical relief from the stresses of everyday life. But I also very much enjoy the sights and sounds that accompany the summer landscape. This list is long, but some of my favorites include: the hum and chatter of a hummingbird as it diligently attempts to ward off other hummingbirds from its feeder; the rolling slow and deep rumble of air crashing against air during a summer thunderstorm; the lightning bugs, whose gift to the visual senses are the small floating specks of light that dance in the night; and finally, the undulating drone of the cicadas and the katydids that envelopes the late evening and nighttime world.

Enjoy the season and until next time,

Jim

With summer season upon us, the good ship Aquascape Environmental has been sailing “full steam ahead,” addressing the various lake and pond issues that seem to pop up overnight. In meeting with lake and pond owners to review their issues, one of the comments that I commonly hear is, “I've had this lake for many years and I have NEVER had this problem before.” In response to such remarks, I take a moment to slowly remove by bifocals, and explain that I used to have 20/20 vision and now I don’t. I get a few puzzled look until I explain an important limnological fact: Things change, including lakes and pond. Some understand and some do not; either way, I press on toward addressing the issues at hand.

Until next time,

Jim

The sights and sounds of Spring are upon us, as well as the warmer and longer days. To most folks the onset of Spring brings both a physical and emotional “rebirth” from the long days of Winter as we venture out from our caves (homes) and back into the wilds to explore the wonders of nature. The physical rebirth is the process that often involves rediscovering muscle groups that have not been utilized for some time and the emotional rebirth is the process of “pulling” yourself away from the couch or TV. I for one am especially looking forward to water related activities such as canoeing, kayaking and other aquatic sports -- sports which I have little enthusiasm for when the thermometer is below 60! Yes, I know this should not be a factor in my enjoyment of these activities, but it is.

So, we move on to my dilemma:

While I look forward to the warmer days of Spring and the even warmer days of Summer to follow – I also have remorse about the passing of Winter. Why, you ask? For starters, to me Winter is a time of “regrouping” from the hectic days of Spring, Summer and Fall -- when “taking care of business” means watching over hundreds of acres of lakes and ponds so our customers can enjoy them. While the daily journey during this time period is challenging and rewarding, it can also tax your mental and physical resources. The result is probably very similar to what a river guide feels like after completing a seven-day trip down the Colorado River via the Grand Canyon: Joy in the accomplishment, but relief that it's over.

The other faces of winter that I will miss are probably too numerous to elucidate but I will offer a sampling of my favorites. On the subtle side of things are the form, textures and colors provided by the trees during a Winter’s hike. The shades of browns, blacks and grays of the stately trees provide a contrasting starkness to the forest’s bare winter landscape that accentuates the visual senses. Once the leaves appear on the trees this feature gets lost in the dominance of the green forest. I shall take the liberty of re-wording a cliché and note that when Spring arrives “You can’t see the forest for the leaves.”

I also must add the Sycamore(Platanus occidentalis) to this category; it seems to show off its glorious wintery white coat of bark the best in the final minutes of sunlight during a cold Winter’s day. Once that is visually experienced, it is not soon forgotten.

Some of my other favorite Winter moments include the usual things like:

• sitting next to a warm fire in the evening after long hours of venturing out in the frigid air,
• the vibrant colors of a winter sunset,
• the aroma of fresh split oak firewood,
• the distinctive smoky flavor that envelopes the olfactory nerves as a result of a campfire just prior to the onset of rain,
• the “calm” of a deserted lake while the wind is howling at your face. 

As Winter comes to a close, I will keep these visions in my head and will eagerly await their return. In the meantime I am dreaming of new “wet” adventures and of the sore muscles that will surely follow.

Until next time,

Jim