Out and About, “Echoes of My Neighborhood,” Almost-November entry!

10-29-16 Bixby’s tail is down; he doesn’t like all the remaining debris from Hurricane Matthew either.  It’s eerie walking by and hearing something rustle inside the stack of branches, and the debris has been all over the place for three weeks.  It seems they are slowly getting it cleared away. Our walk was otherwise very pleasant, though. He even met a dachsund mix that was very friendly!

Since I missed pilates, I took to foot with Bixby for the 2 mile round trip to the post office.  I am determined to stay resilient and healthy, so I had to do something.  What happens right away? Bixby makes a mess on a neighbor’s lawn. Luckily I had a “poop bag,” since rules say I must use one. However, I won’t carry that thing all the way to the post office! A return home to dispose of it and wash my hands puts me off time, so I instead go the other way for a shorter walk, and now I must drive to the post office later. I could’ve just left it, but would I be fined? What are the consequences? I hate that rule. However, if I was the neighbor, I’d likely be unhappy with someone leaving their dogs mess on my lawn too.  At any rate, walking the other way provides some interesting sight-seeing and is a far different view from the walk to the post office.  I’ll share that one at a later date!

Walking gets my brain going.  I’ll start thinking,   This is what it would be like if we run out of fuel and no longer have the use of cars.  Could I handle it?  I’d like to think so.   The geography of “my side of town” would change drastically, though.  It would certainly decrease.  It’s neat though, as you walk along, you notice things you normally just breeze by when traveling by car.  I can walk fast, but not so fast I can’t notice my surroundings!

Above is a family-owned meat shop that has been a mainstay in my side of town for years.  It’s really neat to go inside; there is a small country store feel to it!

The view on this route is lovely, although nature is fenced in.  It is well-manicured and evidently belongs to the owners of this particular neighborhood.  A fenced in forest, quite interesting.

This is one of the retirement communities in our area.  There are probably three on this road.  Bixby stopped to sniff this lovely foliage, but would not pose once I got the camera out.  I won’t complain since he is usually quite cooperative!

I only took a few pictures, since my main objective was to get a good, brisk walk. Much as a girl can do that while stopping every few minutes when her canine companion needs to sniff something or mark his spot.  He is a wonderful companion, though, and he gets me outdoors a lot.  These longer treks get boring with no one to talk to, so Bixby solves that dilemma.  Well, he doesn’t talk, but he does communicate.  He gives me those looks, he stops, he notices things that I don’t and takes me to another level of living.  God bless him.

“Echoes of My Neighborhood” is a weekly blog topic started by Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha at http://acookingpotandtwistedtales.com.  You can find some of her “Echoes of My Neighborhood” posts at http://acookingpotandtwistedtales.com/category/travel-2/dubai/echos-of-my-neighbourhood/  Jacqueline lives in Dubai and has quite an interesting neighborhood!  You should go and check out her blog.

 

 

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Nature on My Morning Walk, #echoesofmyneighborhood #4

 

Photo: A wonderful juxtaposition- A Florida palm and a Canadian Goose!

Come with me on a morning walk through my neighborhood.  Today was a treat, with visits from geese, ducks, and squirrels in addition to our usual view of flora and fauna.  They seem to love our lakes in my duplex community.  My dog was in canine heaven!  I didn’t get up as early as I’d like, so the sun was in its full glory and the brightness shows in my photographs.  The sunlight seems quite powerful here in Florida.  Still, there was plenty of nature around for me to photograph and enjoy!  It sure got Bixby excited…

Have I ever mentioned how life-changing it is when you haven’t had a dog in a long time, and then you welcome one into your heart and home again?  Since adopting Bixby, I have seen more nature and more sunrises than I had seen in the last ten years, at least! The responsibility of taking him out to relieve himself doesn’t feel much like responsibility on a summer day, when I am on my own time.  It is more of a pleasure, and sometimes an adventure.  He loves running into some wildlife on our walks!  What a splendid way to get closer to nature.

“Just let go of the leash, Mom.  We’ll make it look like an accident.”

Sure, those geese can be loud and messy (think of the poor sidewalk), but I really like hearing their call.  I think Bixby does too.  He looks a little frustrated here.  I think he wanted to get much closer to them than I would allow. 😉  Well, I’ve heard they can be quite mean when they feel threatened.

Let’s not forget about ducks!  This is right before they took flight.  They sensed they were being stalked….

Ears automatically perk up when we see more feathered friends.

Sometimes Bixby will pull on that leash and get right up close to those birds.  That’s when they fly off, making all kinds of panicky, warning noises.  He looks back at me as if to smile, saying, “See, it was just in good fun.”  Perhaps it’s just part of the adventure of life for him.  I call him my furry toddler.  He helps me see lots of things through the eyes of a child and that is such a pick-me-up.  He seems to have a forever toddler’s spirit.

The birds have all run off.  He tried to chase some squirrels, too, but those things will skitter up a tree so quickly, I couldn’t even get them on camera!  Bixby stands at the base looking up, as if he’s wondering, How did they get up there?  He truly seems to stand there and think about it for a few minutes.  He seems really curious about the water, but I don’t think he wants to jump in.  Well, I’m not really sure.  At any rate, it was a great morning for a walk in my neighborhood!

Echoes of My Neighborhood is a Thursday blog challenge, initiated by fellow blogger Jacqueline Obyikocha, who blogs at http://acookingpotandtwistedtales.com .  Jacqueline is very supportive of other bloggers and always inspires me with her poetry and photography.  Please stop by and peruse her blog.  While there, you should also visit her Echoes of My Neighborhood posts, or you can get to them directly at http://acookingpotandtwistedtales.com/category/travel-2/dubai/echos-of-my-neighbourhood/   You won’t be disappointed!