Overcast and cool at 7:04 a.m. on the prairie trail.
Out walking
Category Archives: nature
Up early again
A rhythmic thrum-thump woke me just after 4 a.m. Certain that the HVAC tech had (perhaps wittingly?) dislodged something during yesterday’s clean-and-check, I leaned against the unit with a mug of coffee, analyzing the fan’s every noise before conceding that all seemed fine. By then, my husband had joined me, so we stepped outside to look at the moon. And thrum-thump, thrum-thump! Music? Was someone hosting a party? Where? And why had it begun after 4?
Grateful the source of the noise wasn’t in our house, we finished the morning chores, grabbed some breakfast bars, and headed to the conservation area.
Early rising
Taken yesterday at the end of our walk.
We rose before 5 a.m. yesterday and today to ensure we enjoyed two walks in one of the conservation areas this weekend. The trails we love are all relatively near, but we have limited time most weekday mornings. In the twenty-ish minutes it takes to drive to another location we could log a mile walking in the neighborhood; ditto for the trip home. Since our goal is a minimum of four miles each morning before my husband begins work, the drive makes no sense Monday through Friday. So we “schedule” our weekend walks to visit beautiful trails, birdwatch, “forest bathe,” etc.
A hidden gem
Last week, we visited the Lincoln Park Conservatory for the first time since December 2018. It remains one of my favorite spots in the greatest city in the world.
Endangered
Saving the world, one monarch butterfly at a time.
Still walking
Seen last weekend while walking and birdwatching.
Four miles in the morning before it gets too hot has been working out for us most days. Recently, we traded our weekday neighborhood route for the prairie trail. Why we didn’t do this sooner remains a mystery, but we’re glad for the prettier and joint-friendlier walk. On the weekends, we head to the state park or one of the county conservation areas.
The rest of my summer has centered on reading and study, yard work and gardening (our “pollinator pockets” have proven quite successful), and preparation for the upcoming recital (yes, live and in-person — I’ll be playing the Allegro molto from Schubert’s Sonatina in D Major).
Walking
Chicory is under-appreciated.
From Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Sign of Four:
Chapter 7:
How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of Nature!
It’s been a while.
Recent acquisitions.
In the two weeks since my last post…
The band my husband and I joined earlier this year performed its spring concert. What a lot of fun! The flute section recently decided to form a small performance group, so in addition to the weekly rehearsals for band, I’m now practicing with the flute choir.
Our “pollinator pockets,” which we finished planting over Mother’s Day weekend, suffered a bit in last week’s heat wave, but we were able to protect them with a canopy and extra watering.
The bird feeders remain down until May 31 — or longer, if that’s what advised.
Spring
Seen on our walk yesterday.
All of the plants for the “pollinator pockets” I’m planning for the two raised beds we prepared last month are crowded into three-season room. It’s a beautiful mess — and hell on my allergies. “They” say that the last frost is behind us, and the warming trend begins this weekend, so I hope to plant early Sunday morning. In the meantime, I’ve mulched the other beds, repaired the borders, tidied the patio, readied the containers for perennials, repaired a few bare-ish lawn patches, removed all the feeders, and, yes, already mowed. Twice. (Hey, when you keep the grass a little longer, it’s critical to keep it tidy.)
And now that I’ve typed this, I realize I’ve procrastinated long enough. It’s time to practice my music. Our concert date approaches, as do this semester’s final three private lessons.
Yesterday
On our walk beside the Huron River.
Nerdishly 