WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY

… and Columbus Day as well. There was no walk for this Canuck today since it was a soggy, drizzly early morning, so I decided to grab a little more snooze time. Instead of pumpkin pie, sleeping in was my Thanksgiving Day treat. For dinner, I’ll have a turkey sandwich and that’ll satisfy the holiday fare requirement for 2014. This is a picture of me proudly proclaiming my heritage sometime in the 90s. Unfortunately, my mom, who was a good half-foot shorter than me, cut off part of my head in the picture. I was originally planning to attach a photo of some Canada Geese grazing at the Park to this post, but after Googling around a little bit, I found out that Canada has no national bird, but the provinces each have their own representative bird. Since I was born in Toronto, Ontario, my national bird would have been the Common Loon. I really didn’t want the word “common”, nor a loony bird associated with me, thus this picture of myself in one of my favorite sweatshirts. Through the years, there have been alot of people that I’ve known, through work or school, that never knew I was a Canadian citizen. It is not that I am ashamed of my heritage – it just doesn’t come up in casual conversation anymore. But, back when our family moved here from Canada in 1966, my schoolmates teased me horribly about my Canadian accent and my proper Oxford English. So, I tried to say as little as possible and emulate my peers with their lingo and pronunciations. My mother, however, refused to acquiescence to anyone, and for the rest of her life continued to say words like “chesterfield” instead of “sofa”, “toque” instead of “cap” and “serviette” instead of “napkin”. I am more keenly aware of being a Canadian this week as I must renew my green card, something that now happens once a decade. Once upon a time, all we did was obtain a card from the post office and send it in to the government every January … that card merely confirmed that we were still living in the United States. Then, about twenty years ago, we had a form to fill out, special pictures to be taken and had to make a trip to the police station to have fingerprints done. From there we had to get validated at the U.S./Canada border. My fingerprints were too blurry to be used – way too many years of typing and, who knows … maybe even all the accordion playing. They had to be redone. It was a little embarrassing. The procedure next morphed into an electronic application and capture of vital info in 2005. Now, the entire process is done through the Department of Homeland Security instead of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. I applied a month ago because my card expires in February 2015, but I passed muster and got my appointment right away. I go this week to have my fingerprints, photo and signature captured electronically for DHS’ digital files. I also had to pay a $450.00 fee for the application and electronic capture. I have promised myself that I will become an American citizen before I have to renew my green card again. Since Canada is our neighbor, it is a shame that I cannot just become one of you without all this fanfare; after all … Canadian Thanksgiving and Columbus Day are always celebrated the same day – hint, hint.

When I scurried out the door for my walk this morning, I quickly hurried back into the house to grab a heavier coat after the cold hit me like a ton of bricks. Yikes! The frost is not only on the pumpkin, but on the grass, and likely most of the annuals took a direct hit last night as well.  We were blessed to have another beautiful weekend day for our Fall chores, or visits to the apple orchard or cider mill, or, perhaps to pick a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch. On a beautiful Fall day, the possibilities to enjoy the outdoors are endless, and I spent my “me time” walking to and from and around Council Point Park. I arrived just as the sun was cracking through the clouds and brightening up the sky, but it sure wasn’t providing any warmth, that’s for sure. As I passed fellow walkers on the trail, we mumbled our morning greetings to one another through frozen lips. Since it now so chilly when I walk, I am encumbered by gloves and a zipped-up jacket, so it is not so easy to access the camera if I see something spectacular that I want to share in my blog. By the time I remove the gloves and unzip the coat, I’d better hope that the subject of the picture is patient – like this guy. I’m convinced this is the same heron I saw the other day when I missed my opportunity to take his picture. It was the same old dead tree with him perched on a large branch, nearly blending into the scene. Well, I saw him and crept over quietly, hoping he would not be startled like before and just fly away. I shot a few pictures of him from the trail to ensure I had at least one photo, before I inched closer. He didn’t move, but posed prettily – well, I don’t know just how pretty he was, but I thought he was regal looking in a blah sort of way. I took more pictures, and he just sat there, so I moved on. I walked the entire loop of the Park which is two miles, and then started back at the beginning of the path once again. I passed him by and he was still in the same position, which suggests to me that he is either very old, very cold, or, perhaps he has taken ownership of this half-dead tree. The ducks were quiet this morning, maybe in deference to the Great One who was perched high above their little alcove, or maybe the water was too cold for dunking or getting more than your feet wet. They were just placidly paddling along, adding to the ambiance at the water’s edge. When the sun finally began to shine more brilliantly on the Park, the trees were bathed in bright sunlight and they looked like a large tapestry of rich Fall colors had been strung from tree to tree in beautiful hues of crimson, ochre, rust and green. I added another five miles today toward the ultimate quest of 500 miles – just 65 more miles to go.

It was a stellar Saturday weather-wise, and you’ll not hear a comment or complaint from me about the chilly temps. The sun was shining brightly when I left the house, and, as I arrived at the entrance to Council Point Park I saw alot of activity in the pavilion area. There were refreshments on the picnic tables and more long tables heaped high with bright blue tee-shirts emblazoned with the white logo “Walk4Water.org”. I stopped to inquire when the walk was taking place and what Walk4Water was about. I found out it was organized through Helping Hands International and people are sponsored for miles walked. The walkers try to raise money to provide water wells and purification systems in Kenya, where women and children walk an average of four miles daily to collect drinking and cooking water. I was asked to join the walkers, but the event didn’t start ‘til 10:00 a.m. and I didn’t want to stay at the Park for the next three or more hours. I will plan to do this event next year, since this is the 8th annual walk held at Council Point Park.

Once I left the hubbub of activity at the Pavilion, the Park path was rather quiet. I didn’t see any of the regular walkers whom I chat with at the Park to inquire if there have been any more deer sightings since earlier in the week. Yesterday, I walked to Meijer to pick up some groceries so there were no remarkable tales to tell of flora or fauna as I made my three-mile round trip. I was nearly solo on the trail, yet I strained my ears to identify the bird calls in the early morn. I heard a few peeps and cheeps over the occasional quacking of a group of lively ducks in the Creek nearby. I peered through the bushes and reeds at the mallard males who were having their morning ablution and I saw much wing-flipping and flapping and tail-shaking going on to get those beautiful, iridescent teal heads and exquisite plumage spanking clean. Nearby, some female mallards, wearing their drab colors, similarly dipped and splashed to wet their feathers. On the second loop around, down near the marshy banks of the Creek, I took this picture which I’m calling “Ducks on a Log” … this is where the ducks landed after their quick dip in the chilly Creek water. They were either sitting huddled together or occasionally preening themselves after their bath. Around the bend, I stood on the cement precipice that I used to refer to as “Duck Landing”, where I had still another vantage point to watch my fine-feathered friends. In this distant shot you have a faraway view of ducks in a row, lined up with their brethren. It was a peaceful scene and I took several photos, and have a beautiful silhouette of the group of ducks on the log to share at another time. No other critters to speak of, except for a squirrel or two, but I surely got my “duck fix” smack dab in the middle of the City at my favorite nature nook. A beautiful Fall day, and a walk in the Park – memories were made on this outing, some to be visited down the road in my mind. I leave you with a quote which sums it up for me:

I believe that there is a subtle magnetism in Nature, which, if we unconsciously yield to it, will direct us aright. ~Henry David Thoreau

Another brrrrrrrrisk walk this morning. It was 41 degrees when I left the house, so I added warmer gloves. I felt like one of the ladies at the Red Hat Society as I was sporting a red knitted headband and dark purple shorty gloves. That was not really a good look when paired with a mint-green jacket, but I was warm and comfortable and that’s what counts. I know that it is getting colder outside, when I am not so apt to bound out of my cozy bed when the alarm clock goes off. In fact, this morning, the alarm went off and the furnace was just kicking on, so I decided to stay curled up in bed, snuggled under the blankets, until it shut off. Well, that was not a smart move because I fell right back to sleep and woke up with a start about an hour later. Oops! I had to scramble to get out of the house on time, as I am pushing for longer walks before the later sunrise happens in the next few weeks.

I hustled through the neighborhoods, pausing briefly to look for Ruby sitting on her porch, swaddled in afghans, but she was missing this morning. Perhaps she has decided it is too cold now to take her coffee out there to watch the world go by. Just as I was ready to cross the street to the entrance of the Park, I heard honking overhead and looked up to find a large flock of Canada Geese directly above. I stopped in my tracks and grabbed the camera as the sky was so clear, I knew I could get a nice photo to accompany my blog post. But, the geese were somewhat conflicted as to what direction they were supposed to be going – first they flew in a linear formation, then did a quick about-face and got into V-formation. Clearly, the signal caller should get a goose egg for his directions. The flock never flew down to the ground, but kept going in a circle. Perhaps they were taking flying lessons before departing for a warmer clime. It was a bit amusing to watch. Finally, they settled into the traditional V-formation and soon they were gone from sight.

I stepped onto the trail, and shortly thereafter, still another group of geese passed right overhead. I saw several walkers whip out their phones or cameras to take a picture of the flock, as did I. My fellow walkers were probably all thinking just as pessimistically as me “this really means cold weather isn’t too far off.”

I kept one eye trained toward the Creek for the doe which was sighted yesterday, and then I ran into Charlene who actually saw that deer. She said she had just watched the animal ordinance officer dropping off a large raccoon and setting him free at the banks of the marshy Creek. The officer said the raccoon had been running around a neighbor’s yard. I didn’t see that raccoon, but as Charlene and I walked along, we rounded a bend and there was a gargantuan Great Blue Heron sitting on a dead tree branch. I had already pocketed my camera and had on my gloves because it was so cold. I was much too slow to cast off the gloves and get the camera out and focused, because that big bird suddenly took flight and disappeared down the center of the Creek. That was a missed photo op for me because he certainly was up close and personal to the trail. So, tomorrow there will be more Fall flora-and-fauna watching at Council Point Park. I’ll be sure to check out the brush and water for a deer, raccoon or heron. I’m happy to hear the beautiful weather will continue through the weekend.

… she isn’t in the least red-faced about it! So, did you peer out the window, clad in your pjs, early this morning to catch a glimpse of that Blood Moon and the moon eclipse, or did you hit the snooze bar for some more zzzzzzzzzzzzs? I did take a peek, but the windowpane’s reflection didn’t do the moon justice so there are no photos from me. The pictures of that Blood Moon were amazing; it’s a good thing it isn’t Halloween week or everyone would be making Dracula jokes for sure.

I headed back to Council Point Park this morning. It was a very brisk walk and the wide open areas of the Park caused the wind to whip around and nearly take your breath away, especially if you were walking at a good pace. Just like the leaves that have dropped off the trees, the walker population in the early a.m. has similarly dropped off, and more than a few familiar faces were missing today. The first loop I walked solo. Soon I joined up with Cindy, whom I mentioned in in my post last Monday, after she showed me all the duck hideaways that she knew of, so I discovered where the ducks have been hiding since Spring. We talked and walked while enjoying the beautiful morning. The songbirds were trilling, the ducks were lined up on a log and quacking away and then that pleasurable ambiance was suddenly interrupted when a Canada Goose plunged into the Creek with a kerplunk, then much splashing ensued. A fellow walker came toward us, all excited, as she had just seen a deer in the water by a wooded area. We walked another loop, hoping to catch sight of the deer, but it eluded us. Maybe next time. We parted and I headed for home, head bent down as that wind sure had a bite to it, which seemed only fitting, being on the dregs of the Blood Moon and all. As to seeing red – well my cheeks were bright red by the time I got home and have a look at this tri-colored tree, with the focal point of crimson red – a jewel in an otherwise blah landscape. You are awesome Mother Nature.

What’s that? Did I really see a wisp of breath in the cold morning air? Well, I guess so, since it was only 43 degrees when I left the house this morning. It seems that Fall’s chilly temps arrived much too quickly and have now apparently settled in for good. What happened to those warm and sunny days from just a week or so ago? I decided to walk straight down Emmons Boulevard to the River this morning, but, as I drew near, I heard the train rolling along the tracks and blowing its whistle in the distance, so I made an abrupt U-turn just short of the tracks at Alfred Street. The walk through the neighborhoods and down the Boulevard was nearly as pretty as going to the Park. Most of the Honey Locust trees that line the streets have already turned a golden hue and started depositing their tiny leaves and straggly stems into the sidewalk cracks. We used to have a locust tree and through the month of October, you could never keep the sidewalk and driveway clear once the leaves started to fall. It was a big mess and the leaves were so tiny, they were hard to sweep up and you sure couldn’t rake ‘em. At the other end of the spectrum, were the fallen Crimson King Maple leaves, which sometimes appear to be as large as a man’s hand. Often they tumble down from the tree face up, and are perfect specimens as they lay there on the lawn or sidewalk, dewy looking, unblemished and still beautiful, until someone comes along and tramples them down. I watched a couple of squirrels duking it out for a single greenish-looking acorn. They were so intent on which squirrel would get this nut goodie, that they didn’t see me ‘til I was almost upon them, and, then they bolted as fast as their short legs could carry them, chattering away to no one in particular. In their haste, neither one thought to grab that prize acorn before taking off. I love the Indian corn decorations on front doors. I saw a nice beribboned swag today and it made me remember a time several decades ago when my mom and I visited a roadside stand while taking a Sunday drive in the country. We bought some produce and a pretty swag of Indian corn to hang on our front door. It looked so festive … that is, until a few days later when little bugs started climbing out of it. My mom went to get the mail and saw little worms clustered on the Indian corn – in one swift motion, she picked that swag up and tossed it into the front garden. That was the end of any Indian corn harvest door décor going forward.

I was positive, that after the gusty winds from the past three days, all the leaves would have wriggled free from the branches and would be scattered on the grounds and trail at Council Point Park. Well, happily that wasn’t so. I only got one lap in this morning before it started sprinkling, so I abandoned the second lap to head for home. Sigh. It was gloomy and the sky was very gray when I departed, and, though I planned to wear a woolen cap and gloves before embarking on my trek, I decided to take these cooler Fall temps in baby steps, so I just wore a woolen headband and light gloves. I’ll bide my time and table the heavy woolens ‘til at least the mid-way mark of October. Shortly after I arrived at the Park, a few rays of sun pierced those darkish clouds and lit up the sky, albeit briefly. The sun made an encore performance as I was rounding the bend past this beautiful maple tree, all ablaze in glory, but shortly thereafter, the sun disappeared once again. It looks as if Mother Nature took her paint palette to the Park and cherry picked a few select trees to brighten up with Fall colors. She dipped her paintbrush into the brilliant hues … a dollop of crimson here, a dab of golden yellow there, and, finally a smidge of burnt orange for good measure. Voila! A cornucopia of color. I think Mother Nature is quite the artist and gets an “A” for effort for the job pictured above.

It was blustery and the winds were gusting mightily when I left the house this morning on my walk. I left later as I wanted to pop in at the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market to take some pumpkin photos, but there were no pumpkins or unique-looking gourds to be found. I saw a few Spaghetti Squash and Butternut Squash, both of which are rather blah looking, so I just wandered about taking in the displays, while getting a flavor for Fall, and snapping a few pictures as I meandered through the Market. There were rows and rows of maple syrup and honey, perfect for drizzling on pancakes or cornbread, and, I saw specialty baked goods like homemade apple cake from the veggie vendor where I took these shots. The Farmer’s Market flags were whipping around furiously and looked like they might fly right off the pole where they were anchored. The vendors were still selling personal watermelons, peaches and pears, and some apples as well. Hard to imagine eating watermelon with the temps as low as they got last night. I have to make a trip to the cedar closet for some warm woolens before I venture out tomorrow. The “Farmer’s Almanac” Facebook site suggested the Autumn months are as follows: October – breezy, November – wheezy, December – freezy. They got that right!

It is nearly five years since my mom has been gone, yet her various “momisms” still ring true, and, I am often reminded of them. I define her “momisms” as those voice-of-experience pearls of wisdom, dispensed in small doses, as well as predictions doled out about me for long after she was gone. I heard these “momism” alot while I was growing up, and, only now that I am older, can fully appreciate them.

As I was curled up in bed this morning, I was reminded of one such “momism” … “just you wait – you’ll see”, which generally went hand in hand with prophesizing about getting older and what would happen.

My walk was cut short by drizzle yesterday, and, though we didn’t get the predicted storm, (which was A-OK with me), the collective weather folks’ forecast was for a soggy start to our Saturday. I’ve been really busy with work since Labor Day and last night I nodded off while proofreading something on the screen … luckily my forehead did not land on the home keys. I shut down the computer and marched off to bed. I figured I’d sleep in and skip the walk this morning. The luxury of not pulling the alarm on the clock felt so good, and, even though there were other things I most certainly could have accomplished besides walking, I figured sleep took precedence over all of them.

But, this morning, bright and early, I awoke at my usual time. I pulled the alarm clock up close so I could see the time, since I’m blind as a bat without my glasses. Grrrr – 5:00 a.m.! Well, I put the clock back, punched my pillow, rolled over and snuggled down to return to sleep. But sleep eluded me. I tossed. I turned. But, defiantly I refused to get up and stayed in my fetal position, tucked under the warm blankets. Finally, I succumbed, and in a sluggish manner, trudged out to the kitchen to make coffee, breakfast and begin my day. I didn’t walk since I had heard the soft pitter patter of rain on the patio roof recently, and, besides … it looked gloomy out.

As I nursed my second cup of coffee while sittin’ in my jammies, I remembered my grandmother, who worked in downtown Toronto until well past her 65th year, often bemoaning that she still continued to rise at 5:00 a.m. long past her retirement. As a young girl, her statements seemed just incredulous to me. My mom, also succumbed to a similar fate, having gotten up dutifully with my father every day during his working years. I said “that will never happen to me because I’ll always be tired and be able to sleep in” … she said “just you wait – you’ll see”, which was followed by her standard tagline of “I probably won’t be around but …” and the phrase was repeated.

So, on this sopping-wet Saturday, which will find most people similarly getting a sluggish start, and then hunkering down inside where it is warm and dry, I had to share this picture of an extraordinarily large slug that I saw on my walk the other day. It is the likes of him (or her) that makes those iridescent, glistening trails on the cement sidewalks and driveways that you see when the sun glints down at just the right angle. The picture of it would be rather unremarkable, except that its head and antennae in the shadow makes it look a little like an alien creature. Well ‘tis the season for creepin’ you out with critters, large or small, rain or shine.

That wind was whipping around at 22 miles per hour when I departed for my walk today. Not many leaves had fallen around my house as of yesterday, but they sure were scattered here, there and everywhere by the time I returned from my walk.

My friend and neighbor, Marge, hightailed it down to the river’s edge in Wyandotte to take some sunrise pictures – one of them is above. I secretly think Marge was also doing research to determine if that ancient mariner’s line about “red sky in the morning … sailors take warning” was true. That slightly reddish-looking sunrise might be a precursor to the storms we are expecting later today.

As for me, I wasn’t as adventurous, and took just a petite promenade, since it was cut short by sprinkles. I hesitated to hurry home just because of a few sprinkles, but good thing I did, because the sky opened up and the rain pelted down shortly after I got in the house.

As I trekked around Ford Park, managing to get in two loops around the entire park, the leaves were scurrying across the lawns and I walked through a huge pile of leaves which were swirling and dancing around my feet. They tickled my ankles which are still clad in low-rise walking socks. I passed some dried-looking ornamental grass that was waving wildly, bending almost in half, but still looking quite festive for Fall. Unfortunately, the gusty wind has already wreaked havoc with harvest and Halloween décor. I watched tall cornstalks tethered to porch railings and lamp posts, straining to break free and small decorations were already skittering across several lawns, probably lost forever to their original owners. I passed several garden flags which were furiously flapping in the breeze … there were the usual “Harvest Blessings” and “Welcome Fall”, plus flags showing team spirit for U of M, MSU, the Tigers, Wings, and, yes – even the Lions. I suspect we’ll be seeing alot more Detroit Lions flags flying this year.

I hate carrying an umbrella, preferring instead to be an optimist, but in my journey today I spoke with a gentleman who had come outside on his front porch to retrieve the newspaper. He turned out to be even more of an optimist than I am. I stopped after he said “good morning” and we chatted about the warm day and the excessive wind. I said that the gusty breeze meant the stormy weather expected later in the day was well on its way. He replied “if we didn’t have rain, how would we keep our sidewalks and streets clean?” … hmmm, well that is an optimistic viewpoint about the rain. I was polite and nodded my head that this was true, however, I did not add that perhaps Mother Nature has provided a power wash many times during the past few months.

A 2 ½-mile walk now seems like child’s play to me, but it was better than nothing, as I continue striving to stride toward the ultimate goal of 500 miles before year end. I leave you with this quote …

“I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” – Jimmy Dean