For this entry we must write about our favorite place on the FGCU campus and what makes it attractive to us. This is a tough question. The natural environment of the campus has always underwhelmed me --like those vast expanses of Bahia sod and uninspired trees and bushes arranged at the edges --nature on human terms. However, there are several spots I believe were left as they were found with wooden bridges to take us across to campus. I like looking off into these places at the squirrels, rabbits and turtles as well as the many clumps of native plants and those invaders brought here by earlier settlers to make Florida more 'habitable'. Although I have come to term these bridges as 'bridges of death'.

On my second day at FGCU I slipped and fell on one a destroyed a brand-new pair of espadrilles and tore up my knees and legs. These bridges grow moss and get slippery in the morning as dew settles upon them or when it rains. I avoid them as I am always slipping or tripping --and I often get my shoes caught in the cracks. Lately, I have noticed poison ivy growing through the sides, waving its lethal tendrils at passer-by. Eek.

I also like the water features. Though I am pretty sure they are man-made lakes/ponds, native flora and fauna have moved in. Turtles, alligators, and fish. (Although some of those may not exactly be native --I think I've seen some koi.) I love the outcropping of beach sunflower near the library's lake. The little sunny blossoms always make me smile. Though I think my favorite water feature is near Parking Lot 1. At different times of the year I see different wild flowers, there isn't much at the moment as it is 'winter'. The lily pads make me smile too. And I love how the water ripples on a windy day or flecks and waves in the rain. It makes me feel somehow serene --even though my fibromyalgic body is screaming from the hike. I've included a photograph here that I took with my phone a couple of weeks ago on one of those rainy windy days.