Funky Friday: Take a Walk

 We had a couple of very windy days, and about half of the leaves blew off of the trees, down along the River more like 90% of the leaves blew out of the trees last weekend.  I went down for a walk in the swamp at Dyke Marsh. And I had a chance to indulge in one of my favorite rituals, something I have enjoyed since childhood. 

Walking through ankle deep leaves, shuffling my feet and kicking the leaves out ahead of me.  I can remember doing it on the farm as a kid, on my way to and from the school bus, or heading around the corner to see my grandmother before they went to Florida for the winter.  It was something I missed doing when I lived in central Florida where there are not a lot of deciduous trees, and the trees that do shed their leaves don't do it in a massive drop like this. When I moved back north, and went to law school at the University of Louisville, I indulged. There was a square behind the law school, between the Speed Museum of Art and the law school, ringed with massive oak and maple trees. The leaves would get half a foot deep there for a few days in the fall, and I would go out and walk across the middle of it. Dean Torbeck saw me doing it one day, and called me into her office to say how it looked like so much fun. It was. It still is. 

If the leaves are falling near you, take a walk. 

The Thursday Ramble: Walking Around the Neighborhood

Ronald Reagan's son is the official spokesperson for this foundation.

Treat others as you would want to be treated, unless you are a masochist, then just hate yourself.  

I am not sure how staying sexy keeps you safe. But I will try. 

Certainly the masked, armed, kidnappers need to go. ICE is short for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They talked about calling it the Department for Immigration Enforcement,  or DIE for short, but decided that would be unpopular. Congress really needs to take up Immigration Reform.

My sister loves her grandsons, but it is the dog that comes to spend the weekend with her. Hmm? 

My World of Wonder Wednesdays: Does Anyone Know What Day It is?

Well, yesterday had two posts, including my weekly Wednesday Wonders?  I know how that happened, but I have no idea how I missed that mistake. 

It has been a weird week. A weird couple of months. 

My World of Wonders: November 10, 2026

What have I been up to in the kitchen?  A chicken pie, with a top crust of cheddar mashed potatoes, pizza, meatloaf, baked potatoes and pumpkin pie. 

Who have a talked with this week? Amy, Anna, Susan, Giuseppe, Rafael, George, My Sweet Bear, Naja, Marcel, Jose, Mary.

Where have I been this week? A long walk in north Old Town Alexandria, Trader Joe's, the gym, the pool, another really long walk, out to lunch three times. The library, and the swamp for a nice walk. 

Who did I reach out to? Doc Spo, Tim, a couple of emails.  There is a YouTuber I watch, who did a post encouraging us to reach out to people and let them know you are thinking of them. Just one call or email could make all the difference in someone's life. 

What have I been thinking? When I walk, I do so in silence, and I hear things, before I see them. I heard the telltale tapping sound, looked up and there was a woodpecker on the tree. I saw it with my ears, before my eyes.  If I had been listening to music, or podcasts, I would have missed it. 

What am I seeing? It is that glorious colorful season, the leaves are turning. An incredible to to take a long walk.  The wonderful sound of the falling leaves. 

Wisdom of age? Make eye contact. When you are walking or driving, make eye contact with drivers. If you don't see their eyes, they may not see you. You may have the right of way, but if you are not seen, you are at risk. My father called that "dead to rights, but dead just the same." His instructions on driving have stuck with me all these decades later.  

Travel Tuesday: Great Lakes

Lake Erie

Lake Michigan 

Sleeping Bear Dunes 

Milwaukee

And it is Fitzgerald Day

 

Monday Moods: Really how are you doing? Are you getting the help you need?

 My father named me to settle his estate when he died, almost ten years ago. If I went back and read my blog posts from that time, it was a challenge. One family member was, and still is mad that I was named to settle things, despite the fact that I accounted for every dollar and declined a fee. A couple of banks and securities firms tossed up every obstacle they could think of.  I moved the estate and my personal accounts from a brokerage in despair over the incompetence.  

In the middle of this I was talking with a collaborator on a research project on the phone on day, and he simply asked "are you getting the help you need?" Without thinking, I answered "no- not really." I got up and closed my office door and took a few minutes to compose myself after that call. And then I addressed the issues. For me that was taking some personal time. Finding and reading books that helped support my mental health, grief and healing. Finding a couple of people to vent to. I had been so wrapped up in trying to resolve the issues, that I was not taking care of myself. We all need to do that. 

From time to time, we need to ask, How am I really doing? Am I getting the help I really need? And go with how you feel.  Seek out the things that you know will help you.  If you know what you need to do to stay healthy and take care of yourself, allow yourself to do it. If you don't know, find the resources, reading, listening, counseling to find the help you need.  

One of the biggest things that I needed, was someone to listen. Not to try to fix things, but to allow me to vent and verbalize my thoughts and feelings.  

I need to remind myself to take care of myself, we probably all do. 

These are challenging times, take care of yourself first. 

The Sunday Five: Breakfast

1: Do you eat breakfast everyday?

2: How do you cook an egg? 

3: Bacon or Sausage?

4: What is your typical first meal of the day? 

5: Should baked beans be a part of breakfast?

My answers: 

1: Do you eat breakfast everyday? Yes, from childhood into my 30's I skipped breakfast, but not anymore. 

2: How do you cook an egg? Fried, poached, omelet, or scrambled. 

3: Bacon or Sausage? Yes. 

4: What is your typical first meal of the day? Toast, and iced coffee, about once a week I cook something special. 

5: Should baked beans be a part of breakfast? I am mystified by my English cousins eating beans for breakfast, a cultural curiosity. 

Please share your answers in the comments. 

Saturday Morning Post: Painted Rocks

This was a thing a few years ago, painting rocks and leaving them in public places for people to find little works of art. I did a little of it in 2020-2021. It is simple, the raw materials are rocks, paint, or paint markers and a little imagination. Painted rocks are fun to find in random places, these were on a picnic table near the local hospital. A little something to brighten a stressful day.  

When we think about art and creativity, brightening someone's day is a worthy goal. It may be someone you know, or it maybe someone you will never meet. If your art can lift their spirits for a moment, you have made the world a better place. 

A high school friend of mine in Florida was into rock painting. But Florida has very few rocks. She was buying bags of landscape rocks at the local builders supply. I mailed her a box of rocks, I tagged a few of them with where they came from, the shore of the Potomac River, along a trail at Mt Vernon, the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Washington State.  The rocks made her day. I had fun collecting them, and sharing them. Connecting our art. I have one of hers, painted as a sheep. She died a couple of years ago. 

The rocks connected us, brightened our days, allowed us to be creative. Go be creative this week. Leave some rocks out to brighten a stranger's day.