Creatures
The morning greeted us with bright sunshine, crisp air and an azure blue sky as we stepped out of our hotel room, situated on the property of the Wafloy Mountain Retreat which is butted up against the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It is the one park that has managed to stay open during the government shutdown, thanks to the insistence of Tennessee governor, Bill Lee. The sun was just beginning to peak over the treetops, beckoning for us to pause a moment and let it's rays caress us as we took a selfie. We headed along the drive toward the meeting place, a lodge housing sleeping quarters with bunk beds, and an industrial style kitchen visible from the comfort of couches and reclining chairs arranged in a half-circle in the large, open meeting room. A foozball table and a ping pong table were on either side of the main entrance door. People stood in several small groups, talking and laughing, but mostly talking with an intensity that is common among experts in scie...