Toward the end of last week I decided to get back on track and start walking outside again. Waiting until early evening proved to be a good idea as the weather cooled a little, however the mosquito's were vicious. Early mornings on the weekend tend to work out better. I wish every day could be a weekend because I love walking in the morning. There is nothing better than having the sidewalk to yourself except for an occasional jogger or fellow dog walker. Sadie seems to do better in the early morning also. My initial thought was to get up an hour earlier every morning and hit the pavement with my four-legged walking partner. This morning my alarm went off and reality set in. Sadie was snoring away and I didn't want to wake her. She looked so peaceful. (not a valid excuse). So my walk will be after work, which really isn't to bad. The humidity and oven like heat seems to have taken a break.
So each day, with poop bag in hand, Sadie and I have set out for our 2 mile walk. I make sure she's hydrated and has made her deposit prior to leaving. I have taken to counting how many houses we go past before she feels the need to poop. The first day she made it about 3 blocks and decided to squat and poop on a semi-busy street. Nice. Nothing better than picking up poop while cars are buzzing by. Day two she waited until we were almost back home which I thanked her for. I've begun to carry two bags. One for the early deposit which I can usually find a garbage can to dump it in rather than carry it 2 miles. The other day I took Bella along also, who managed to make the entire trip without incident. By yesterday I thought Sadie would get the routine under control and be able to make it without me having to stoop and pick up poop. No, we made it four houses away and there she went. I thought for sure she wouldn't make the rest of the trip without doing it again. Even went an extra 1/2 mile. She made it! We'll see what today brings.
I like walking the neighborhood. It beats walking in the house staring at the TV. Each day I try to change up the route a little to take in some different scenery. Strolled past my elementary school and saw that they have grades K-4 through 8th grade now. Wondered if they still play dodge ball on the lower playground. The lower playground was only for the 6th graders when I attended the school. Funny how it made us feel so grown up, but yet cut off from the rest of the school.
I live in the neighborhood where I grew up so it's interesting to see the changes. Walking past former classmates and friends homes I sometimes see their parents still live in the homes. Wondering how many of my classmates bought their parents home like I did. Last night I took the path through the park that we used to hang out at. When Ben and I were younger we used to get with friends and being that the park was not developed yet, would go and have bonfires deep in the woods. Had this whole set up with logs to sit on and a small fire pit we dug out. We used trees that were down , branches and leaves to keep the fire going. The path is now asphalt and I can still see the spot we hung out at. We hung out there for an entire summer and never once had anyone come through. Of course the area was not to developed and the woods was pretty thick. There used to be a fairly large pond that I learned to ice skate on. My dad would come with us and I would skate and my brothers would sled. We had the park to ourselves. The pond has now been drained and covered up and I'm pretty sure the hill shrunk. The park is built up with basketball courts, a baseball diamond, soccer practice and a playground. The kids all looked to be having a good time but I wonder if they'll have the memories that I do.
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