Caving in Popp's Cave

A couple weeks ago three of us, Julie, Kate, and me, drove out to Richland Center to check out Popp's Cave. I'd been there before, but it had been a few years and Kate had never been caving I was eager to show her how cool it was.

a drip in a small pool

cool formations

We wondered around the cave for a few hours, took lots of photos, explored various openings, and ended the day with a trip to the infamous Mud Room.

me, Kate, and Julie after venturing into the Mud Room

We also saw lots of bats, probably 50. In the past I've only seen one bat so it was neat to see so many. We were careful not to touch them or shine our lights on them too long. We didn't want to disturb their slumber.

the bats all huddled together

Julie crawling through a tunnel

I'll be back at Popp's Cave next month with a group of Madison College students. It's going to be great muddy fun!

Get an email when new post is added

Great news! If you would like to get an email when I add a new post to this blog you can. Just enter your email address on the sidebar to the right. You'll be sent a confirmation email to verify. Then, wa-la! You'll get an email anytime I post.

Enjoy!

New Photography at Manna Cafe

I have a photography show up at Manna Cafe through the month of October. It's all new work from 2010 including prints from Alaska and some Miksang style work.

Here are two in the show:

Row Boat, Harbor Cove, Alaska

Jellyfish Dance, Harbor Cove, Alaska

Let me know what you think of the show!

I'm going around the world!!

Eeek! I have some very exciting news and now I can make it public. My partner and I both get to travel around the world next year! We'll be working for Semester at Sea for four months and traveling to 11 countries. Some of you may remember that I worked for them in 2005 and, in fact, was the whole reason I started this blog. Scroll back to those early posts to read all about that voyage.

view from ship of sunset near Russia, 2005

If you are not familiar with Semester at Sea, let me fill you in. Basically, they have taken a cruise ship and converted it to a college campus complete with a library, computer labs, student union, classrooms, faculty, staff, deans, etc. While we are at sea, classes are in session and things move along like any college (well sort of), but then when we are in port (usually 2-6 days) everyone is free to travel and explore on their own. There are some optional coordinated field trips so you can be a part of a group if you'd like, but most of the time we get to explore on our own. It's all very cool. There will be about 800 students and an assortment of faculty and staff.

During the voyage I'll be a Living Learning Coordinator and also the Career Development Specialist for the students. We leave in early January and return at the end of April. Here is our itinerary:

• Nassau, Bahamas
• Roseau, Dominica
• Manaus, Brazil
• Takoradi, Ghana
• Cape Town, South Africa
• Port Louis, Mauritius
• Chennai, India
• Singapore
• Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
• Hong Kong/Shanghai, China
• Kobe/Yokohama, Japan
• Hilo, Hawaii
• San Diego, CA USA

If you've been to any of these places and have travel advice I'd love to hear suggestions. Personal stories are always better than travel guides. If you'll be in any of these places let us know - perhaps we can meet up (hey, you never know).

During the voyage I'll be posting stories, updates, and photos here on this blog. To get an email when I've posted you can "follow" the blog by joining on the right.

Bon voyage!! (well, not until January)

Join my newsletter!

I'm starting a newsletter related to creativity, leadership, teambuilding - all things I'm passionate about. It's related to my business Climer Consulting - which continues to grow and gain speed.

I'm inviting you all to join my newsletter. To join click on this link and add your email address. Or you can just email me directly. You can unsubscribe or change your address at any time.

The first one is coming out in a couple of days!

Book review - Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Recently, a colleague of mine was bemoaning about how new pop culture business books come out and everyone thinks they are these brilliant insights into life, when in actuality they are just the same stuff presented in a different way. She's right. She was particularly talking about the book Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. I was curious so I picked it up from the library. I was happily surprised with the book. It's a great book about an incredibly dysfunctional executive team and how they turn themselves around. I loved that it was written as fiction with a message - a leadership fable. I learn really well through stories so this worked for me. It's a short book, quick read, and great stuff.

As my friend said, there isn't anything new in this book, but the concepts are presented in a unique way that really make sense. It helps put the concept of teambuilding and the value of a team into a more concrete, graspable format. As Lencioni says, "...genuine teamwork in most organizations remains as elusive as it has ever been." I couldn't agree more. The more I work with different types of groups the more I see the behaviors outlined in Lencioni's book.

The book is less than $6 at half.com. What would happen if your whole team read this book then committed to doing the tough work to become a real team? I can imagine amazing results!

Join me - Door County Sea Kayak Symposium

Only six weeks left until the Door County Sea Kayak Symposium! If you are a kayaker or want to learn to kayak this 3-day event is a ton of fun. I'm inviting you all to join me and 30 other instructors July 9-11 for a great weekend of paddling in Door County Wisconsin. The weekend involves land and water classes, kayak tours, slide shows, and some of the best kayak instructors from the region and the U.S. The fee includes dinner, which is served under a huge tent and usually involves a slide show of the day. You'll meet many other paddlers while paddling in beautiful, clear water. (If you are from Madison this is a nice change.) This will be my third year teaching at the symposium and it's a great experience - relaxing and engaging.


Check out the website at www.everyonepaddles.com for details about class choices, cost, photos from previous years. There is a limit of 200 paddlers and it's nearing capacity so sign-up soon!

Hope to see y'all on the water!

LeaderShape 2010

I just finished leading a LeaderShape session with Georgia Southern University students. It was a great week! I co-led with Khadish Franklin, a PhD student at University of Maryland. We had a blast!

In case you aren't familiar with this amazing program...LeaderShape is a 6-day leadership program designed to help college students become amazing future leaders with a strong emphasis on living and leading with integrity. It's an intense, rewarding week that leads to profound change for many of the students.

I am honored to be a part of LeaderShape as one of their Lead Facilitators. I get to help young adults build their leadership skills and develop a deeper understanding of themselves, a truly rewarding task.

Thanks to all the students and the other faculty who made the week so great!

In Our Heads Art Show

In Our Heads - reception March 6, 2010

Joint show with Amy Climer, Julie Koenke, Amy Mietzel, and Jo Jensen.

Dates: March 1-8, 2010, Artist reception Saturday, March 6, 5-8pm. Come visit!

Location: Commonwealth Gallery, 3rd floor of the Madison Enterprise Center, 100 South Baldwin St, Madison, WI 53703

view map

Come visit us at the reception! We'd love to see you!

Climer Consulting is open!

It's official! My new consulting business is open! A few months ago I opened the doors of Climer Consulting, my consulting and training business and I am proud to say it is growing and gaining speed. Through the business I primarily focus on the human elements of organizations and groups. I facilitate programs around teambuilding, leadership development, creativity, and strategic planning. I also consult on topics such as experiential education and program design, leadership development programs, and creativity. I'm putting my expertise to work and it feels great!

To learn more, visit my new website at www.climerconsulting.com.

I welcome your thoughts, feedback, and questions!

My etsy.com store is open!

Last week I opened my etsy.com store and the sales have started!
Below are images of a few items in the store.

detail of "Untitled No. 1"

detail of "Twenty-two"

"Martini"

kids tie dye t-shirt

detail of hand dyed silk scarf

At the store you can buy my fiber art, tie-dyed kids t-shirts and onsies, silk scarves, hand-dyed fabric, and more. If you've never been to etsy.com it's a great source for all sorts of art and hand-made items. It's easy to buy and if you are in the Madison area you have the option to pick up your items and avoid shipping charges. The address for my store is www.aeclimer.etsy.com. Enjoy!

Swimming with the Manatees

Julie and I went to Florida over Christmas to see my family. One of the highlights was swimming with the manatees at Crystal River Springs. The water coming from the spring is 72 degrees year round. In the winter the rivers and oceans drop below 72 degrees so the manatees come to the spring where it's warmer. It's super cool to swim with them.

Here we are just about to get in

Setting out

The adult manatees seem rather indifferent to the people, but the babies come right up to you and love to get petted.

Young manatee with another snorkeler

This baby was coming right up to me. It clearly wanted to get petted. I was trying to take it's photo and had to keep backing up in order to get it in focus. Their skin is really rough and covered in barnacles.

Young manatee

Getting a breath

Julie swimming along

Manatees are pretty slow moving animals. They primarily use their tales, but also have fins on the side to help propel a bit, especially if they are going slower or turning.


The water from the springs is crystal clear, but b/c there were a lot of people some of the silt on the bottom got stirred up.


Boats are one of the major dangers to manatees. The one below had part of his tail cut off, likely from a boat propeller. Most manatees have some physical scars from boats, either missing parts of tails or big scars on their backs.

Manatee with part of tail missing

The weather was about 50 degrees and overcast. The water was 72 degrees, which fortunately was warmer than the air, but we were pretty chilled after swimming.

Julie and my dad on the way back to the dock

In order to protect the manatees boats must maintain idle speed or slow speed in the entire area around Crystal River Springs. Here's a sign stating the law.

No wake zone

Pelican

It was a super fun day, although a bit chilly. Next time we'll bring the full wet suit instead of just shorts and a Hydrosilk top. I hope we can go back next year!