Amanda and Amelia Spend a Rainy Day at Rend Lake

Amelia and I visited Rend Lake on March 28, 2009 which is located in Whittington, Illinois. Rend Lake was built in 1965 for 60 million dollars as a joint project with the Illinois Dept. of Conservancy District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The lake is 18,900 acres. The authorized purposes of the Rend Lake project include flood control on the Big Muddy and Mississippi Rivers, water supply, water quality control, fish and wildlife conservation, recreation and area redevelopment. Today, Rend Lake is a multi-purpose project designed to enhance the region's quality of life. It supplies over 15 million gallons of water per day to 300,000 people in over 60 communities. With marinas, boating, water skiing, camp sites, nature trails, golf, picnicking, swimming, fishing, and hunting, Rend Lake is one of the premier vacation spots in Southern Illinois. Rend Lake is a relatively shallow reservoir, productive for sport and commercial fisherman. All species of fish that are common in southern Illinois can be found at Rend Lake, including an abundance of large crappie and channel catfish.

From the Wham building on SIU campus it takes 35.09 miles to get to Rend Lake, which makes a round trip of 70.18 miles. Amelia traveled a total of 3183.19 miles this semester!!

Amelia and Matt visit the Miner's Memorial in Zeigler

Amelia and I visited the Miner’s Memorial Monument which is located in the small town of Zeigler, Illinois. We walked to the location of the monument and were joined by my fiancée, Brittany. The visit was made on Saturday April 18, 2009. The Miner’s Memorial is a very historic monument in Zeigler that was established to salute those who answered the calls and made a hard working living working in the coal mines in the past and currently. The memorial was dedicated in 1974 and replaced the Miner’s Fountain Memorial that existed previously. A quote from the city of Zeigler website notes the importance of this monument to the community:

"Zeigler's Coal Miners"
In the early years of Zeigler, most miners lived near the tracks, With their families in the little houses, that was known then as " The Patch"Each day they'd leave with their buckets in hand, and off to work they'd go,walking to work at the Zeigler Mines, thru the rain and thru the snow.
Many of these fathers and sons, worked daily side by side,in areas of the dark black coal, that was neither tall nor wideThey carved out their family's living, in these dark thick walls of coal,and labored hard day and night, to mine the "Zeigler Coal"
Down the shaft they would ride every day, to the bottom of the mine,to the darken hole far underground, where the sunlight never shinesIt was dark as a dungeon everyday, and nearly twice as cold,and it was here that they spent their day, mining this rich "Zeigler Coal"
Deep in the ground in this mine everyday, these men and young boy's toiled,as they carefully spotted and then blasted thru, the thick black layers of soilThese men were the "Zeigler Miners," who worked in the darkness and cold,and with their aching backs and swollen hands, they mined the "Zeigler Coal"
These men were the pioneers of mining, behind their coal black face,and they still remain the hero's and legends, that time will never eraseEveryday they worked dangerously hard, in their daily race against time,far underground in this forsaken hole, that the company called " the mine"
A lot of good men died underground, too soon before their time,and the sad news traveled quickly, to other towns and to their minesThere were always the cries of sorrow, and the sting of the lasting pain,that resembled the quill of a crying whistle, from a nearby passing train
Many memorials stand today, that salute those who answered their call,and prayers are said nearly everyday, for those who gave it their allAnd for all the brave coal miners today, who mine our nations coal,Let us give thanks unto the good Lord, and ask him to protect their soul

Raymond D. Null




From the Wham building on SIU campus, it takes 21.55 miles to the Zeigler Miner’s Memorial, which makes a round trip of 43.10 miles. Amelia traveled a total of 3113.01 miles this semester!

Ameila & Latricia Visit Garden of the Gods

Amelia and I visited Garden of the Gods which is located within the Shawnee National Forest. We traveled by car but we also did a little hiking. We visited Garden of the Gods on April 11, 2009. Garden of the Gods is a wilderness area that is over 320 million years old and covers 3,300 acres of amazing old growth forest. The sediment rock and the fractured bedrock in the Garden of the Gods have created a variety of interesting rock formations that are representative of a number of different objects such as the famous camel. The Garden of the Gods has two main trails. The best known trail is the Observation trail and River-to-River trail. From the Wham building on SIU campus, it takes 40.27 miles to the Shawnee National Forest, which makes a round trip of 80.54 miles. Amelia traveled a total of 3069.91 miles this semester!

Jodi and Dalton take Amelia to the St. Louis Zoo

We visited the St. Louis Zoo on April 5, 2009. The Zagat Survey named the St. Louis Zoo the #1 Zoo in America. The Zoo began in 1904 with the World’s Fair Bird Cage which is still an attraction at the Zoo today. In 1910, a group of community leaders organized the Zoological Society of St. Louis. The Zoo will celebrate its 100th year next year. The St. Louis Zoo is Located in Forest Park and sits on 90 acres. The St. Louis Zoo is home to over 18,000 animals, 700 different species. Some of the highlights of the Zoo include, the Donn & Mary Lipton Fragile Forest, an outdoor habitat for chimpanzees, orangutans and lowland gorillas, the Penguin and Puffin Coast, River’s Edge, home of the Asian elephants, hippos, cheetahs, black rhinos, spotted hyenas, red river hogs, and bush dogs and Big Cat Country, home of Amur tigers, African lions, Amur leopards, snow leopards, jaguars and cougars. Along with the animals the zoo also features the Zooline Railroad, Sea Lion Show, Children’s Zoo, Conservation Carousel, Wild Adventure simulator, and 3-D movie. The Zoo is open year round, except December 25 and January 1, admission is always free. Round trip from Wham to the Zoo and back Amelia traveled 227.98 miles for a total of 2989.37 miles.

Lori, Joey and Danny Visit the War Memorial in Steeleville

We visited The War Memorial in Steeleville near 4:00 p.m. on April 3, 2009. The War Memorial has no official address that I can access online or in my telephone directory. It is located on Broadway Street in Steeleville. It is right next door to The Steeleville American Legion. Amelia travelled round trip about 81 miles. In total, Amelia has travelled 2,761.39 miles. Steeleville is a very patriotic town. It values the sacrifices its veterans have made by having a Memorial Day Celebration each year. This somber occasion starts with a parade to the park (directly across the street from the memorial). It features speakers, prayers and observances, and ceremonial tributes. One of my favorite parts of the ceremony is when a speaker comes to the podium and names all of the soldiers from our town who have died in any war since The French and Indian War. This sparsely populated community has a remarkable amount of people who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. This observance starts at 10:00 a.m. on Memorial Day. It would be worth your while to come see this event.

Amelia and Ashley with Mr. Lincoln

Amelia and I travelled to the State Capitol Building in Springfield, IL on March 20, 2009. We went to the Illinois Reading Conference first before heading to the State Capitol Building. From Wham to the hotel, we travelled, 169.03 miles in my car. Then we took the bus to the Prairie State Convention Center which was 4.52 miles. After the conference, we travelled back to the hotel for another 4.52 miles and changed our clothes for a night out downtown. Amelia and I went in a friend’s mini-car back downtown to the Cold Stone Creamery before heading to the capitol building which was 5.46 miles. It was around 9:30 p.m. and the temperature outside was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Of course we needed ice cream when it was cold out. Amelia and I were in the car with four other girls. We looked like clowns coming out of a clown car. We drove from Cold Stone to the State Capitol Building about .55 miles. We parked across from the Illinois State Police building to get close to the State Capitol. We walked about 1/5 of a mile to the statue. I found a statue of Abraham Lincoln that was 10ft. 6 in. tall. My picture is hard to see Amelia and me with Mr. Lincoln, so I apologize for not getting a close up. Amelia tried to get on top of his shoulder, but I was afraid that she would get stuck so I had to hold her near the palm of his hand. This statue was dedicated on October 5, 1918 which was the centennial of the first meeting of the Illinois General Assembly. Amelia and I traveled a total of 184.28 miles to get to the State Capitol Building. For round trip, we travelled 358.77 miles. Amelia has travelled a total of 2,680.39 miles so far this semester.

Amelia and Tierr travel to Florida

Amelia and I went to Treasure Island, Florida for spring break 3/7/09 - 3/14/09. Our condo was located on the beach overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. We traveled 1866.08 miles round trip via car. It was a very long ride but well worth it. Amelia has traveled a total of 2321.62 miles.

This is Amelia on our balcony with the Gulf of Mexico behind her.