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August 31 HikeI went on a hike today. Not a leisurely stroll, not even a brisk walk, a hike. Like, up hills and shit.
A couple of months ago I noticed a hiking trail just outside of town, and I've been meaning to explore it all summer. Today I finally did.
Hiking was a regular activity in my early childhood. Either my Dad or my Pops, or sometimes both of them, would take my sister and I out once or twice a month. We'd hike the Bruce Trail near Hockley Valley, or the hills just outside our town. Dad or Pops would point out various flora and fauna, everyone would have their own walking stick, and a good time was had by all.
Imagine my surprise when I found myself being a little paranoid on the trail today. It wasn't the hiking I was nervous about, or the fact that I wasn't familiar with the trail (after all, I could see town from where I was, so I wasn't worried about getting lost), and I was fine while I was in the cleared areas...but once I got into the woods, that's when I got a bit uncomfortable.
Too many Blair Witch flashbacks, I guess.
The hike was pleasant enough at first, walking on a slight incline, enjoying the scenery and the multitude of grasshoppers (sweet jaysis, some of them were soooo big I'm sure they had skeletons) almost flying into my face every step or so, I thought "Ah! This is good."
Then I rounded a bend and realized the slight incline was now a very sharp incline. And here I was without my mountain climbing gear, or fellow climbers to eat should something terrible befall all of us.
I made it up the steep hill just fine, marvelling at the prettiness of it all, the seclusion...then I was faced with how to get down the hill. Shiat, if I thought going up was steep, I had a lot to learn about steep.
As I was mostly sliding down the hill (on my feet, not my ass, thankfully), I remembered that when I hiked with Pops, I always had a walking stick, and situations like this were exactly why one should have one with them while hiking. I settled for grabbing trees on my way down.
Halfway down the hill, faced with an even steeper decline, I decided I'd rather not risk life and limb, and that going back up the hill was the best way to handle this particular situation.
Once I reached the top, stopping to catch my breath, I heard a series of sticks break.
And then I remembered a story that was in the local news earlier this summer, about two black bears being spotted in the area. Pretty much the area I was currently in kind of area. Funny how the mind works, innit? I'd rather face the Blair Witch than a black bear.
The sticks breaking was nothing, of course (or at least nothing that I could see), so I carried on.
The rest of the hike was enjoyable and uneventful, except for once I thought I heard a monkey hooting (improbably, yes, but not impossible. Right?), but it turned out to be a child. A family was entering the trail as I was making my way towards the end of it.
That's my story, and I lived to tell it. I wasn't confronted by black bears, or deranged mountain men, or even a monkey.
It's all kind of boring, now that I think about it.
August 17 EeekGenerally speaking, I don't condone killing stuff. I had a pet spider at work for weeks (her name was Lenora...she was a quiet and gentle soul) until some fraidy cat killed her. She was literally this *big, legs and all, so I don't see what the big deal was.
So anyway, I don't dig killing stuff. Except....
...there was a mouse residing in my domicile. I tried to coexist peacefully, cleaned up it's turds (seriously, on the counter? Disgusting), made sure my cupboards were crumb free lest that encourage the wee pest...I didn't even mind so much when it nibbled on the nectarines in the fruit bowl (taking just a few delicate bites out of each of the four nectarines...)
...but the night the little beggar was rustling around under my bookcase while I was trying to sleep, and then the next morning I discovered it had chewed thru my phone line? That was too much.
Mickey had to die.
And he did, the very next day.
Let that be a lesson to any other mouses thinking of staying chez Tuckle.
(please gawd, let there not be any more!) August 12 To My One Faithful ReaderSo, Deb was complaining that I never blog any more. And I can’t think of anything blog worthy at the moment and I just had a piece of ice cream cake and I may or may not be hyper.
Here’s a list of what’s in my purse at the moment, because it’s totally random:
The Usual Suspects: Wallet Cell phone Blackberry Keys Nail file Gum Pen
Then it gets to be a bit much: iPod Digital camera Bottle of Advil
And then it just gets crazy: Stick of deodorant Makeup bag Small bottle of perfume (apparently I fear the stank)
But the craziest thing of all in my purse at the moment? A jumbo bag of chocolate chips. I bought them at lunch and didn’t want them to melt in the car, so I brought them in.
Best of all, my purse is on the small side. Awesome! |
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