The assigned reading on the Everglades made me think back about a couple of things. Prior to coming back to school, I worked for a company that located underground buried electric cables for LCEC. I covered all of Collier County and parts of Lee County. Although I spent the majority of my time on Marco Island, I was also responsible for locating all lines within the Big Cypress National Preserve. I traveled U.S. 41 from Naples to Everglades City, and then up State Road 29 into Immokalee. I used to spend my lunch hour parked on the side of 41, watching the alligators in the canal on the north side of the road. Over near Freeport, there is a waterway where every now and then you could see a couple of manatees playing, and there are some beautiful views out on Chokoloskee Island. One afternoon while traveling north on SR 29 from Everglades City into Immokalee, I saw a black bear cross the highway, climb over a guard rail, and it jumped into a ditch full of water. It looked like it was after something, but as I got closer; it scooted off into the woods. During the rainy season, I even saw several otters playing in the ditches over in the Immokalee area. It was a great area to have to work in. The second thing that the reading reminded me of was the only time that I have ever been camping in the Everglades. It was in April of 1984 when I was seven years old. 
I’m not sure where we actually were, but it was a spot that my step-father knew of. We camped out for the weekend, fished, swam, and hiked all around. I remember swimming in the water and seeing alligators. I grew up on a canal with alligators, and we swam in the water all the time, so I didn’t really have a fear of it. That’s funny though, because I would never do that now, and I probably wouldn’t let my children either. Anyway, I spent most of my time there fishing and I know it’s hard to tell, but if you look closely at that picture of me holding up a bobber, there is a fish on the hook. It’s really hard to tell, so take my word for it! The best part of the whole trip is that we went out there to celebrate Easter weekend. My mom and my aunt’s had made sure to bring all the Easter baskets, candy, and of course, chocolate. By Sunday morning all of the chocolate had melted and left a mess in our baskets. It’s funny now, but not so much when I was seven.
I’m not sure where we actually were, but it was a spot that my step-father knew of. We camped out for the weekend, fished, swam, and hiked all around. I remember swimming in the water and seeing alligators. I grew up on a canal with alligators, and we swam in the water all the time, so I didn’t really have a fear of it. That’s funny though, because I would never do that now, and I probably wouldn’t let my children either. Anyway, I spent most of my time there fishing and I know it’s hard to tell, but if you look closely at that picture of me holding up a bobber, there is a fish on the hook. It’s really hard to tell, so take my word for it! The best part of the whole trip is that we went out there to celebrate Easter weekend. My mom and my aunt’s had made sure to bring all the Easter baskets, candy, and of course, chocolate. By Sunday morning all of the chocolate had melted and left a mess in our baskets. It’s funny now, but not so much when I was seven.
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