When I left on my walk this morning, the wind was whipping about, threatening to snatch my woolen hat right off my head. I placed my hand over that hat to hold it in place and knocked it askew, causing tendrils of straw, er … hair to escape, giving me a rather disheveled appearance. I’m sure the squirrels in the Park didn’t mind – they didn’t seem scared when they saw me! Hmm.
Yup, it was another blustery day, but not as bad as yesterday thankfully.
I knew I’d better get myself down to Council Point Park before the squirrels forgot who I was, or they started questioning me: “so what’s with this new three days away, one day here routine?” A week ago I missed three days in a row due to all the rain, then went there Saturday before Elizabeth Park, and now another three days has passed before I returned to my favorite nature nook.
It could just be my overactive imagination in play, but I like to think that when my contingent of furry peanut pals see me entering the Park via the parking lot, there are whispers, then squeals, the likes of Alvin and the Chipmunks, that proclaim “Linda’s here!”
I arrived at the Park and almost immediately found myself making apologies to Parker by the parking curb. I told him it had been too rainy for me to visit and he likely didn’t come down from his nest anyway. He appeared to be listening attentively, so I bent down closer and gave him more peanuts. I turned around to leave and found a woman bus driver who had come out of the Park’s restrooms standing there smiling. She said “I was watching how that squirrel came over to you and now is sitting there next to you eating peanuts.” I whispered “he’s my favorite, but don’t tell the other squirrels that.”
At the beginning of the trail I was welcomed by a passel of squirrels running toward me and following behind me along the trail. While I was scattering peanuts on the perimeter path, I told them the tale of the squirrel at Elizabeth Park with a colossal attitude because I was too close to his tree, and how I told that squirrel that “I’m kind of a big deal at Council Point Park and all those squirrels like me!”
I doled out peanuts and everyone went into munch-down mode. I had brought extra peanuts as I know they are still intent on hunting and gathering nuts for the Winter. They’d better hustle hiding those nuts because here in Southeast Michigan we’ll get our first taste of the white stuff this Friday, just a dusting for our part of town, maybe a slushy inch in the northern and western ‘burbs. Well, say it isn’t snow! A mere month ago I’m sure we were in shirt sleeves. I’m still waiting for the real Autumn to stand up and take a bow – if it wasn’t for the beautiful colored leaves, I would not know what season we were in. It was hot and rainy – now it’s colder than normal and snow is lurking nearby. So many of those bright-colored leaves are now carpeting the ground thanks to yesterday’s very high wind gusts.
I got my five miles walked on this dismal-looking morning. A pale sun peeked between the clouds for about five minutes, but the rest of my journey was gloomy and gray, just as it’s been all Fall.
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Miss Linda………………………………I especially liked: “Linda’s Here!”……………………I can picture Mr. Parker eating away at your feet………………………..I was a bit chilly with the wind this morning……………..I guess I’ll have to dig deeper and get ALL of my winter woolies out too.
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That Parker is like a pet dog who runs to see you when you arrive home – he is very sweet and can’t you picture them sounding like Alvin and the Chipmunks? Yes, I abandoned the scarf and putting it back on again.
What happened to Fall? It was nothin’ special and are all your pretty leaves down your way?
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Ha great post L. I do enjoy squirrel based posts in the morning. 🙂
They’re a jealous lot though i hear beware 🙂
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Thanks Michael – you’ll give credence to the idea that they should have their own page … a few weeks ago I caught another squirrel doing the “climbing over my shoes and begging routine” that I thought was uniquely Parker so he has an imposter and they are very competitive for food now that we are getting colder temps. I put food in front of one and another comes along and pushes him out of the way – I’m sure they know there is plenty for all of them. I may have to start declaring them as dependents.
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Hmm
Sounds like a squirrel scam to me…
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Love the picture you chose to lead your post, and that you have such furry little friends who missed you (as much as you missed them!) and your peanut feeding sessions. Way to get a nice long walk in to prepare you for the snow tomorrow. I’m guessing there might be some fun photos of the squirrels confused by the snow and how to find their peanuts when you toss them about?
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I like scarecrows Shelley and I sometimes use their pics for the header pic in the Fall, especially if I can find “girl scarecrows” … I wasn’t sure if this one was a girl and I had a hat on that got knocked around in the wind so I looked like this I’m sure. I’ve lost a couple of hats … one I was able to retrieve so not technically lost and the other flew off onto a branch over the Creek.
In those days I never carried a camera on me while walking – it would have made a great picture. Probably some squirrel took it home for his nest. 🙂 Those squirrels will come out in Winter and run around and I try to get down there and walk next to the trail, on the grass, so I can still get the ambiance of the Park and feed the squirrels too … but the asphalt is often slick even in October or early November. It is unfortunate we are having snow or wintry precip this early … I hope it is a fluke and we’ll just have cold weather, but they say snow is in the forecast next week as well. Not measurable but any kind of snow is a pain you know where. Did I send you these pictures Shelley? I sent these two pictures to two people this week as they asked me if I see the squirrels in the Winter time? Someone asked me about squirrels hibernating and I think I will collect some photos of their nests. They are pretty much adapted to the snow, however, the young ones (which I can tell by their skinny tails) will be interesting to see their first reaction to snow. The younger ones are still skittish sometimes with me, less so as the cold weather began and they are hungry to eat.
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Ahhh….I hate to read about weather forecasts containing the “s-word”. It is so funny how your little furry friends miss you when you don’t go to the park for a few days. And you wouldn’t want the other squirrels to know that Parker is your favorite! They might be heartbroken1 🙂
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And now they are calling for some on Saturday morning and next week one morning. Fortunately I don’t live in the northern suburbs where snow is always sure thing, and we might get the dregs, but the idea of snow this early is not a nice thought. All those squirrels are pretty friendly, but Parker does stand out in a crowd. I think they are quite competitive with one another as well. Perhaps even jealous that one gets more attention than the others – I do believe that.
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Yikes! Snow already? We rarely get it before Thanksgiving. Usually the first week in December is our first although this year has been so weird.
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The snow will fly beginning around 4:00 a.m. Friday they say – we’ll likely get brushed and Saturday morning less than an inch but very cold and blowy. More snow on Tuesday – this time for everyone and possibly an inch or better. Too early for snow!
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We have had early snow some years but it’s unusual. One year we had a really bad snow with 6″ on Oct. 30. The leaves were still on the trees so there was a lot of damage and outages from fallen branches. Good luck to you. The first few snows are pretty, then I’m done with it.
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Our county was not as bad as the northern counties, but we still had a wintry precip and it will be worse tonight. They are saying temps in the teens/20s and will be icy and slick in the morning. I had a hair highlighting appointment for tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m. and cancelled it – not worth trying to drive in slick weather and I would have walked as it is only 3 1/2 miles round trip, but not worth it to fall either. If I try to garner walking miles once it is snowy out, I walk two blocks over to Memorial Park and walk on the grass. And I only do that if the streets or sidewalks aren’t slick. So I won’t even do that tomorrow morning. Maybe I was too confident that I’d get to my goal?! Grrrr!
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Oh how sweet. Three days away and you were missed so dearly. You must have made that woman’s day, listening to you talking so lovingly towards Parker 🙂. I hope the upcoming snow won’t be too problematic for you and still allows you to get out and about.
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She was really tickled about it Zena – I do think it made her day. She was kind of incredulous that Parker had run over and was not afraid at all of me. I am hoping the weather doesn’t mess up walking or trips to the Park … the snow came too suddenly. We usually have the really cold mornings where you have to watch for a little black ice on the perimeter path or you see your breath coming out of your mouth, but rarely do we have snow before our Thanksgiving, the last Thursday in November.
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You must have made her day ☺.
Hope the snow does not get too bad with you. We have hardly any over here but people have a total meltdown when it does come.
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I realize it is November but we had such a rainy Fall, I feel like the nice Autumn we usually have just zoomed right on by this year.
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Busted! You were caught chatting with Parker, which is a good thing. I’ll bet it warmed that woman’s heart to hear you.
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She did get a kick out of it Anne … I didn’t know she was behind me and he was fixated on getting peanuts, plus he had decided he had waited patiently long enough. 🙂
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This fall weather really has been as much of a disappointment as the spring was and now everybody is throwing around that 4 letter s-word like it is no big deal. Grrr! Can’t we just go back a month or so???
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That’s how I feel Ruth. Paul Gross on Click on Detroit said, the first week of October was the only nice time in the month of October. That was approximately one week. I’d like to go back as well. Suddenly we have Winter and snow! Hope you don’t get too much snow – they are forecasting 1.5 to 2 inches in the wee hours of Friday and more over the weekend and next week as well. Not big loads, but still a nuisance.
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We have a large Oak Tree in our yard and squirrels are coming around to get the acorns. I’m glad that they eat them (or store them) since we walk the dog back in the yard now and then… and acorns are mildly poisonous to dogs.
Our two pet parrots would eat nothing but nuts and seeds (but too many of nuts/seeds are not good for parrots).
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It’s good if the squirrels store those acorns. When we had our Oak trees before they got carpenter ants, the squirrels would eat them there and you’d hear all the noise from the acorns when you’d mow the lawn. and had to worry an acorn would shoot into your mower (or an eye).
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It’s great you got your miles in. It really does feel like we missed Fall this year:(
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I just commented the same thing to a fellow blogger from Canada – she doesn’t say what part of Canada she was in. I sent her the link to our all-Christmas music station and said it was appropriate they “flipped” today because we have snow coming overnight. Not a lot, but still … sigh. More Tuesday – time to drag out the lug-soled hiking boots!
If you like Christmas music, they stream it online now until 12/26: https://wnic.iheart.com/
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We might as well be into Christmas … heard on the radio that 37 new Hallmark movies are coming out for 2018.
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Ok I’ll take the Christmas movies, but you can keep the Christmas music!
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We got 1.3 inches of snow at the airport – not far from where I live. I cancelled a hair highlighting appointment I had for tomorrow as we are getting a wintry precip overnight so I knew I would not want to walk that 3 1/2 miles round trip either as I had an early morning appointment. And so it starts and I hope I can still make my goal … I’ll do what I did in the past, and walk a few block from my home on the snowy grass to get to the goal. SMH.
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Oh my! I can’t imagine having snow already. It’s called for this weekend, but about an hour away from us. I live at sea level so don’t normally get much at all!
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I ought to live there too or somewhere warm – we are supposed to be having an El Nino winter … doesn’t look very El Nino-ish to me!
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No I think they get stuff right so rarely that it’s not worth looking at the forecast!
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Agreed — we have a cold week ahead, potentially snow on Tuesday. Must. Improve. More. To. Walk. Many. Miles.
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Lol you can do it!!!!
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Sure gonna try AJ!!! I just read a post on Twitter by a fellow blogger who I follow here and on Twitter too because she is an avid walker in Maryland and her Tweets are usually about walking. This was a Retweet about an elementary school in Maryland encouraging the students there to “read their height” … so isn’t that cool? You probably could read your height, if you had all books, no e-books, so wouldn’t it be fun to encourage your students next Fall, at the beginning of the school year to do that? Get a yardstick … are kids taller than 3 feet (or a centimeter stick I guess … LOL), or you could get a measuring stick made up (your Dad will do this for you and have fun painting it … just one stick, not one for each kid, and challenge your students to read their height. You set the example! I don’t know if your kids are too young to do this, but I like this concept … the person in charge of “media” at the school said:
“Trying to read MY height in books this year. Finally read enough to make it to my knee!” I just went on the Media Center’s website to see if they had a picture of the measuring stick – it is an outline of a person. If you go here and at the right side of the screen it shows their Twitter feed and you can see a picture of the woman’s books up to her knee. https://education.fcps.org/nmes/mediacenter
I think the yardstick would be better for the kids though – make them more competitive!
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That is so cool! I’d have to read a bunch of thick novels! I did make a goodreads goal which I am very close to making:)
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GOOD for you re: Goodreads. A fellow blogger in my Patch.com blogging group was big on Goodreads and she made recommendations and review on there and would post them within our group. I thought it was a fun idea and at first I didn’t notice the figure with the books to the knee, but I went back to see if there was a link to send you, so I edited my original post and sent it. Do you think your kids are old enough to read a pile of books? I think it would be fun to try if so. Otherwise, maybe pass it along to teachers in the older kids grades.
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I will definitely pass it along to the other teachers as most of my kids can’t read yet
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I wondered about that – I was trying to think where I was at that age … I had mastered my basket of Little Golden Books … committed them to memory I think 🙂 I think it would be a great challenge, especially if the other teachers are avid readers – I know you are, so I thought of you right away. You have the bucket list for your students.
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I actually work with several avid readers so I’ll mention it at our next staff meeting
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That Parker is SOOO spoiled! Hahahahaha
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He sure is Diane! I am happy to do it as he is such a cutie.
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When I was looking out my kitchen window this morning I noticed two squirrels trying to get up onto the feeders. Only one succeeded. We didn’t really have that much of a fall here either, but there are still leaves on the trees. Fortunately it’s supposed to be sunny and cool here for much of next week. Happy Walking Linda! 🙂
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Our squirrels started foraging in late August when we had an uncharacteristically cold two weeks. Then we had a month of uncharacteristically hot weather. We had some sleety precip last night – in the northern and western suburbs they had snow, we just had a dusting and we’ll get more tonight and next Tuesday. I’m hoping the walking won’t be at a halt for too long. It is supposed to be quite slick tomorrow – temps in the mid-20s (20 degrees below normal now). Yikes! My squirrels in the Park may have a few days before I get down to see them. This is more like December-January weather according to our weather forecasters.
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Brrr! So cold already! It’s been a rather dry and hot summer and fall here. Hopefully winter is kind to us. I love snow, but only long enough for a winter walk with my camera. We’re up on a steep hill and when we get a rare snow or ice storm we just stay home because people here don’t know how to drive in bad weather. Hopefully your snow won’t be too bad and Parker will get some peanuts! Have a good weekend Linda!
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You too Sabine – I hope the snow is short lived. I’m not ready to drag out those lug-soled boots yet nor give up on the walks to the Park.
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