A Walk in the Woods

Googled "Bill Bryson" and read a little about him on Wikipedia.  He is one of those gifted writers who can write about a variety of widely different subjects.  He wrote travelogues, nature, popular sciences and the English Language.  But then again rich experiences surely grant rich and versatile writings. 

Just started reading A Walk in the Woods, and its hard to keep a straight face reading this book on the subway.  For a lot of people, hiking in the woods and be surrounded by miles of impenetrable nature is such a romantic notion.  And so far, A Walk in the Woods utterly dispels that notion, though it is done in such a coffee-choking manner.  I was told by a friend that hiking is actually a very dangerous business.  Though it is not absolutely necessary to be armed to the teeth with professional and savagely pricey hiking gears, without the right hiking attire and with the wrong parts of your bare skin exposed, you could get a deadly tick bite and lose sanity (if not your life）for the rest of your miserable life. 

 I was appalled when I read about what the National Forest Service really does.  At first, I thought America should be really proud of how much of its woods is still left unspoiled, but then it turned out that one of the FS's primary functions is about building roads in the forests so that private timber companies can access untapped resources.  I suppose for most people who have a heart for things that grow, especially for things that have been around for so long, it is in their innate nature to sense something is amiss when we have to chop down thousand-year-old redwoods and whatnot for no apparent pressing reasons. 
And for someone who loves books and owns lots of them, I am very aware that books come from pulp come from trees, and I do feel more or less conflicted that the pages I am leafing through everyday were once actual leaves and sprigs.  I am a keeping a close watch on Kindel and Nook, I think sooner or later I will switching to a more green and sustainable mode of reading.  Though I suppose browsing second hand bookstores can be, for the moment, considered acceptable.