Todays Walk 1.006

When:  Late-afternoon Thursday
Weather: High 40’s!! Mostly cloudy with very limited sun
Observations/Thoughts

• Abbreviated walk: I was a little bit sick today.  Not horribly sick, but enough that my voice made it impossible to hide.  I chose not to take the extra leg I have been taking to try and get my walk over 4 miles.  If I wrote “abb wk”, it would have been abbreviated, but it would have left the impression I was doing lots of situps this week.
• Multiple leaf drops:  My daughter has raked twice. I have raked once.  And, we are fixin’ to need one more raking.  The neighbor has not raked at all.  I am sure we are getting some of her leaves introduced into our yard as an ongoing gift.  The pine needles were heaviest in the earlier drops.  The rain visited before the last raking.  The trash man felt those as he threw them in the back of the truck.
• Animal droppings:  It seems not everyone is capable of cleaning up after their dog.  I know many do, but a few don’t.  Possibly, I am falsely accusing the innocent.  There are coyotes, bobcats, and other various creatures running around.  If I cared to learn my “skat”, I might be able to determine which critter owns what.  I feel confident I can identify most dog droppings.  There are other “leavings” that seem to be composed of hair.  The most interesting one is a dropping containing numerous “pumpkin seeds”.

Todays Walk 1.002

When:  Before dinner on December 31st
Weather: Cold with very limited precipitation
Companion: Oldest Daughter
Observations/Thoughts

This walk was all about checking the roads.  The morning roads were not so kind.  The freezing rain peaked mid-morning–just as we were going-to/leaving church.  My oldest daughter had been very excited about the New Year’s Eve party her friend had planned.  The slipping experienced during the morning caused my wife to cancel the plans the adults made to spend time with friends.  (They live about 30 miles away.)  The adults didn’t want to let my daughter party if the adults didn’t party, so my wife canceled her activities as well due to the weather.

This walk was meant to prove the roads were fine and she should be able to drive to the party.  Besides some excellent conversation with my sassy daughter, we did not have exactly the results she was hoping for.  The roads may have had some minor moisture.  As she desperately sought to gain my vote, she ran toward the road and rapidly stopped.  She didn’t slip, so the roads must be safe.  Right, dad?

The roads were the easy part. As part of the walk we went over a bridge.  It was the bridge where the concern came about.  (It was bridges where most of the excitement occurred this morning. )  The bridge caused here to slip as she crossed it.  Her excuse of, “not being able to walk and talk” did not convince me.  (I consider driving and talking to be more difficult.)  Additionally, when I went to get pizza, I slipped a little.  I told her if she could come up with a route WITHOUT bridges, I might consider it.

Unfortunately for my daughter, my wife was shooting everything down.  In desperation, she came to me.  She sat on my lap and offered a scenario where she wouldn’t have to drive and I would ONLY have to drive one way.  I accepted the terms.  My wife took more convincing.  When I argued the case on her behalf, my wife relented.  After her friend’s dad agreed to bring her home, the energy flowed back into my daughter.  She knows she owes me.  And, with her graduating this from high school in 2018, it is good to have some favors in the bank.

Happy New Year!