For my first – and most likely only – jacking of a trade, I felt humanitarian and hit up the Committee for the Preservation of Wildlife.

What better way for a guy who avoids the outdoors at all costs and used to sleep in the car during family camping trips to get to know Mother Earth?

The group has been around since 1972, when it was founded to petition against the removal of the forest adjacent to Montgomery Hall. The trees are still there, so I guess we know how the petition turned out.

The CPW meets at 7 p.m. every other Monday in Montgomery Hall, Room 441. But tonight’s location was an exception.

The term “wildlife” includes frigid, post-sunset evenings in Illinois, so the group held this meeting at the firepit near the East Lagoon. Lucky me.

Temporarily, I avoided pointing out how ironic I thought it was the CPW was burning wood and newspapers, while a pillar of smoke circled in the air.

But I could only bite my tongue for so long; I had to ask.

“It’s not that bad,” said Eric Althoff, a senior biology major and secretary of the club. “It’s nothing compared to the emissions of a car. It’s not like we’re using weird chemicals to keep it going.”

That shows how little I know about the environment. I was the guy who spaced out, forgot he was with the CPW, tossed a gum wrapper into the blaze and panicked for the rest of the hour-long meeting that the tinfoil would be discovered. It’s not like I could have blamed somebody else for it.

Despite the cold, more than 25 students came out. The group has a mailing list with more than 100 names on it.

Tonight’s topic: nothing.

Usually the CPW has a specific cause to discuss at the meetings. Maybe it was because the meeting was outside and freezing or because there were several protocol issues to discuss, this meeting lacked a true rallying point. Past meeting topics have included overfishing the oceans and animal-fencing next to highways.

I wasn’t sure if the group would be for the fences to protect the animals or against the fences because they altered the natural habitat.

“We’re a bit of both,” Altoff said. “One thing we’ve proposed are overpasses or underpasses so the animals can travel around the roads.”

One topic discussed was the ongoing campaign to remove polystyrene from all residence halls. (No, not the quintessential ‘70s punk rock icon Poly Styrene; they discussed the mega-polluting material.)

“Most schools don’t use it. It takes up tons of space in the landfills, and it isn’t biodegradable,” Althoff said.

One suggested replacement comes from a company called Earth Shell, which makes food containers entirely from potato starch.

Also discussed was the group’s pumpkin sale fundraiser, the upcoming Midwest Environmental Ethics Conference in Rockford and the repainting of the bird silhouettes on the parking garage.

The meeting concluded with perfect campfire conduct: s’mores.

I left the CPW meeting with a slightly better understanding of wildlife and what nature really entails. For example, I now know concrete benches do not produce much heat and that the smell of a bonfire will never fully leave my clothes.

For the record: I felt guilty cutting across the grass on the way back to my car.

See, I underwent a change after all – maybe it was because everyone was watching me leave.

Columns reflect the opinion of the author and not necessarily of the Northern Star staff.