The Art of Chillin' Out and the "Great Outdoors Month"

At halfway into the month of June, it's a good time for a reality check.  Where are you with following up on the Presidential Proclamation of May 31st to make June 2011 the "Great Outdoors" Month? 

For me, it always takes a little getting used to...going from the teacher-mode of 110% end-of-the-school-year "Busy-ness Blast" to the relaxation brain of "Woo Hoo, Summer Vacation." 

Mentally, I do get there pretty quickly. Even sleep-wise, I can easily fall into that "sleeping-in" mode.  But, logistically, I think there is something about my growing "To Do" list that starts sometimes Mid-March.  From then on, about everything through May winds up in world's biggest dump pile in my garage, basement, closets, scary bedroom corners, etc.  Along the "domestic goddess side," I have so many home-improvement plans ahead, most of which involve the word "organization."  (For me, a degree of of summer structure is good--but I don't want too much; I just want that organized outer world, which ultimately leads to a more organized inner world.)

Then too, I'm faced with the beauty of these 2-3 uninterrupted months, and all these things I want to do, so I become the "Energizer Bunny" on that front, still in "worker bee" mode.

Sunset on a Chesapeake Bay creek.

It's around about here--a week or so into summer--that I drive myself crazy, and try to remember it's summer, for goodness sake!

I forget...or have forgotten...how to chill out.

So enter President Obama and his proclamation for June 2011 to become "Great Outdoors Month."  To see his full proclamation, verbatim, go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/05/31/presidential-proclamation.  The gist...get outside, get away from the TV, go have fun, and work to continue our national legacy of conserving land for everyone's future.  As a follow up to The First Lady's "Let's Move" program, the new dietary guidelines of the Daily Plate (as opposed to the Food Pyramid), and February's report "America's Great Outdoors: A Promise to Future Generations,"June and the onset of summer is the right time for all of this. 

Check out the "America's Great Outdoors" video: 



Geocaching at MD's
Patapsco Valley
State Park

I know for me, going out for a hike in the neighborhood park or a splash in our li'l above-ground, backyard pool helps me to bask in the glorious weather we've had this week.  It helps get me out of my house, out from in front of my computer (to which I tend to find myself glued). 

Likewise, a jettison out in a friend's boat at sunset to skim across the water on the innertube helps me feel that summer fun freedom. Along those same lines, a trek to a state park (today, to Maryland's Patapsco Valley State Park to partake in our 3rd MD Park Quest) gives me quality time with my kids, the rocks, the salamanders, and the geocaching quest which taps into each of our critical thinking skills. 



Rock Climbing & Crayfish Searching.

 All of these things drag me away from the looming laundry, the daunting dishes, or the compelling urge to clean that garbage heap of a garage.  All of these chores tend to pull at me sometimes when I'm home, making me forget what the lazy, hazy days of summer should be.   

 

So, on behalf of Green Team Gazette, spend a hunk of the rest of the month of June outside.  Do it for your president; but more importantly, do it for you.  June 2011 only will come around once--make the most of it!

For more info on any of the above info, go to:

Salamander Finds.



--The White House Proclamation for June 2011:  http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/05/31/presidential-proclamation-great-outdoors-month



--America's Great Outdoors:  http://americasgreatoutdoors.gov/ or http://americasgreatoutdoors.gov/2011/02/16/a-promise-to-future-generations/

--USDA's My Plate: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

--Let's Move:  http://www.letsmove.gov/ or http://www.letsmove.gov/get-active

--Maryland Park Quest:  http://www.dnr.state.md.us/parkquest/index.asp

June calendar pic from http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=june+calendar+2011&view=detail&id=770349CE84F37912072DB1143CA4724E98F12F66&first=91&FORM=IDFRIR

All other images from my camera...outside...this June!