Well, it was another sweltering morning, but luckily I left early enough so that only the return trip was hot and sticky. The humidity was high and little drips and drops once again speckled the concrete where they had plopped down from the gutters or car bodies.

My destination was just up and down Emmons Boulevard, to the train tracks and back, usually an easy, four-mile, round-trip trek, but I was getting tuckered out on the last leg of the trip. By the time I neared home, my sleeveless tee-shirt felt moist, as did my lanyard; even my madras seersucker clam diggers felt clammy as their puckers went kaput and the fabric lay limply against my legs.

As I unlocked the door and stepped into the cool house, I truly wished I had been as scantily clad as this little fellow above.

My pal Leslie posted this interesting-looking bug on her Facebook site a few days ago, along with the comment “this little Walking Stick came by today to say hello”. Several of her friends, including me, commented on how long since we’d seen one of these creatures, and I added to my commentary that he stopped by for “Throwback Thursday”. You might remember me sharing the escapades of Leslie’s garden frog a few weeks ago, so, I told Leslie she has the best critters in her yard and I only get those big, fat, ugly garden spiders – ugh!

I figure that with all the walking I’ve done this year, especially in this heat and humidity, my physique should resemble this slender Walking Stick, or, at the very least, that of “Gumby”.

Today the new Dr. Seuss book debuted, courtesy of a recently discovered draft that was written and illustrated long before his death in 1991. It is entitled “What Pet Should I Get?” This Walking Stick might have been one of my “outdoor pets” when I was a kid. Oh sure, I had my little budgie “Skippy” and dogs named “Fritzy”, “Cocoa” and “Peppy” while I was growing up, but when I was with my playmates , we would capture and keep some oddball critters, much to the chagrin of our parents.

Growing up, there were many carefree childhood Summer days spent down at the meadow area at the foot of our new sub. All the kids from the cul-de-sac would gather, then cross the street carefully, sometimes hand in hand, and we’d head to the meadow where the creek ran through. There we would run off all our excess energy and explore that little nature nook. We’d giggle at grasshoppers that we’d capture in our bare hands, holding them hostage between splayed fingers. Their jerky or fluttery movements would tickle our hands and leave “tobacco stains” on our palms and fingers as well. We’d pluck furry caterpillars from the bark as they inched up trees or bushes, then squeal in delight as we touched their bristly texture. And, so also it was with Walking Sticks, or the occasional Praying Mantis, which we would gaze at in wide-eyed wonder.

Oh … to be a kid again sometimes, though I know I’d not get so touchy-feely with any of these insects, like in the past. Though I’m not bothered by placid insects, or, even worms, it is the creeping and crawling pests that would never be a pet and really and truly “do me in”.

I added four more miles to my total and I’m still hopeful to get to 300 miles by week’s end.

I’ll leave you with a quote by Dr. Seuss; it’s just one of my many favorites by him: “From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere.” ~Dr. Seuss