Imagine taking the time to go into your backyard, or the nearby woods, or even a pond close to your home, to catalog all the life you found in it. Not just the deer or snakes or fish, but the birds and insects, reptiles, plants and fungi and everything else biological or botanic. Imagine how fascinating that would be. At Great Smoky Mountains National Park they've been working on just that, and what they've found has been incredible.

St. Louis wants to revitalize its waterfront area. A former senator has a plan, but the development of new attractions would have to be done on land currently managed by the National Park Service. The city wants the land back, but there isn't a lot of support for that idea outside of Missouri.

Wolves in Olympic National Park? I thought that issue was played out in the late 90s. I was glad to learn that the spark of idea had not died, and during a recent meeting on the Olympic peninsula the general attitude of the public surprised me. Instead of fear, there was excitement for the idea. "Bring them back," they said.

Brace yourself, I'm about to delve into one of those public conversation taboos. You know, you don't talk sex, politics, or religion in public. But at times I find the debates spurred by symbols fascinating. And, of course, religious symbols seem to spur the most debates. The one I want to focus on involves Mojave National Preserve, where a federal judge has ruled that a cross can no longer stand atop Sunrise Rock.