Post Tax Weekend

Part 1

I walked alone on Saturday. I expected rain, which did fall on other parts of town, but I didn't have any during my walk. It was very overcast and gray - but no rain.

As I expected, there were far fewer cyclists on Saturday. The MS 150 ride was scheduled from Houston to Austin beginning early in the morning and lasting through the weekend. I think I only saw a dozen cyclists and of those only about 4 or 5 had cycling jerseys on. Nearly all of them were truly recreational riders. No one was whizzing by the walkers and most were moving very sedately. It made for a much calmer day.

The wildflowers are already fading. The bluebonnets that were so bright just two weeks ago are fading in color and dying back. The Indian paintbrush seem to be a hardier variety of flower. They are still bright and strong against the tall grass. There are some beautiful purple flowers that have three petals. I hope they are still there next week so I can take some pictures. They are really pretty.

I decided to try for the next benchmark on the trail. That meant adding about 2 miles to the walk. I figured I would try to go as far as possible and turn around when I had had enough. Oddly enough, I made it the whole way. Even better, it took me 1 hour to do the first half and 1 hour to make it back to the car. I am pleased that I'm keeping my pace as even as that. I figured that the second half was covered at a much slower pace. It really hadn't occurred to me to check my time at the mid-point of the walk. All in all, I'm very happy with my progress.

Part 2

It was awful dragging myself out of bed this morning. I even went to bed before 10 last night - almost unheard of for me. It was a gray and humid morning with rain hanging in the air, just outside my reach. It would have been repressively hot if not for the breeze that blew almost constantly right at ground-level. The wind was at my back on the front end of the walk. On the way back, it was pretty much in my face. It was a steady, low breeze that worked well to cool me off. The rain actually held back until I was back at the head of the trail and started in earnest as I drove back home.

I don't know if it was the weather or the lighter traffic on the trail, but the wildlife was much more in evidence today. There were several rabbits that didn't even bother to move off the side of the trail when I walked by. There were far more squirrels running around and playing together. I even saw a squirrel walking next to a bird for about 30 feet along the path. The bird would walk a few steps and the squirrel would follow along. Then the bird would move again and the squirrel would follow. Finally the bird flew on to a low branch and the squirrel jumped into the brush. I have never seen anything like it. I also saw a jet black squirrel. I've never seen a completely black one. It was almost like a shadow sitting on side of a tree. I had to get up right next to it to really see that it was a squirrel.

I was taking a drink and happened to be looking up at the sky as a pelican flew over. I haven't seen a pelican this far from the coast, but I guess it was flying toward one of the many lakes north of the city.

It was an interesting walk. I didn't even have any music in my head today. I was just open to everything around me.

I walked the full 7 miles again today. I was pretty stiff when I got home. I probably over-did and will most likely be paying for it all week.