When: Sunday–During the Afternoon- 3/4/2018
Weather: Intermittent Rain, but warm-high 60’s
Observations/Thoughts
All of these drizzly days are playing havoc with my walking. I want to walk and I continue to have obstacles of the wet variety thrown in my way. Often, I just have to suck it up and accept parts of me will get wet. The umbrella does provide protection from the rain not angled and altered by the wind. The sleeves of my swinging arms and the cuff of my pants are likely candidates for dampness. The modified walk with restrictive arm movement (the one holding the umbrella) just has to be good enough.
- Squirrel: The rain wanted to try and sneak in from the front. I tilted the umbrella slightly to give extra protection. This works well if the rain does choose to accept any nudges from any stray wind gusts. The point of all of this is the umbrella is angled and not upright. On the sides and under the umbrella, I catch glimpses of rapid movement. I could dismiss the flashes as mirages or hallucinations. I could blame them on the refracted light. However, when I follow the flash and dash to its destination, it is comforting to see a squirrel peaking from the tree. My vision is good, and those who criticize dogs for being easily distracted by squirrels are unsympathetic. Maybe a dog is just seeing movement around the hair that is in his eyes. The flash of motion is what he sees as the squirrel emerges from his shaggy mane. If I were a dog, I would be chasing the little mammals as well.
- Sidewalk Coveting: When I started my walk, there were two men walking with a dog. The men were not interesting, but the dog caught my eye. He looked like a husky. had a big tail and coloring like none previously seen on MY sidewalk. The mist soon became another of my sidewalk companions. The umbrella popped out pretty quickly for me. The three of them kept the same pace even when the sprinkles began. As we neared the bridge across the little creek, I noticed a car park there. There is not usually a car parked there, but there is not a car park there. As the threesome neared the car, it was clear it was theirs. The sidewalks are pretty good in our neighborhood. It would not make sense for them to drive to that spot when they could have left their front door and began the walk. So, my conclusion was a case of coveting. It wasn’t our neighborhoods grass that was greener; it was our sidewalks that were wider, and I guess better…
Walking Down Life's Road With Andy 