Speechless

Hello Everyone!

So, contrary to the title of this new addition I am not at a total loss for words....
or (after sitting here for a solid ten minutes) maybe I am...

Although Miss Ohio is quickly approaching (2 days left to go!) and last minute errands are slowly becoming full day adventures and quiet thoughts of, "Do these shoes really 'go'?" become tearful online searches and frantic trips to every shoe store in a 5 county radius, I still cannot make myself turn out the light and fall asleep (currently it's 2:50 am and I have to rise at 6 am...crazy, I know). However, this BP Oil Spill has me all kinds of fired up! Whatever your view on the disaster I believe everyone agrees it is just that, a terrible (scratch that)...monumental, disaster.

After spending an entire semester, almost solely, devoted to sustainability and environmental learning, after contributing community service for environmental issues for 7 days, from 9 am to 5pm, on the Delaware Seashore with 12 other students, after merely being a citizen of this planet I find it absolutely disgusting that 17647 barrels of oil are pumping out of control into our ocean...everyday.

This disaster is so upsetting because not only did it kill 11 people but it is also affecting immeasurable amounts of wildlife animals and plants and the end to the destruction cannot even be estimated.

Although difficult to find how we, as mid-westerners, can contribute to this problem I urge everyone to become more informed about the products you use in your home(http://www.theredwhiteandgreen.com/2010/05/05/oh-the-irony-dawn-saves-wildlife-with-oil-based-dish-soap/ Did you know that a former board member of BP was also, simultaneously, a board member of Dawn? Or that, although BP markets its product as eco-friendly it's actually created from petro (aka: oil).), the produce you purchase at the store and the daily activities you engage in contribute to the destruction of the environment. Simply learning more about products, foods and activities can help make a small impact on the planet and help us all move towards a guaranteed future. Consider, knowledge and a better understanding, as a gift to the land that we have taken so much from and hurt in so many ways.

See you soon!
Ashley

P.S. It's now 3:52.