Walking through the Forest

Mid 20s outside with bright sunshine. Crisp November morning. Wyatt sniffed everything as if it were the first scent ever. When I pointed out that it was the same deer he's been smelling all year he just laughed at me. Everything is brand new for him every day. He's a good dog.

On our walk out back yesterday I was reminded that the colors don't go away with the falling leaves, they become more subtle. One needs to look with a broader view to appreciate the browns in the grasses or the vibrant red in a stand of osiers. This arc of the wheel invites calm and reflection.

I went to my first Tai-Chi class last night at the Rochester Tai-Chi center. It's quite a workout for such a slow moving discipline. I signed up for the ten week course. GOOD Boy!

All summer I've been hearing a Pileated woodpecker in our woods. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pileated_Woodpecker/lifehistory They are reclusive and difficult to see. As Wyatt and I approached the woods the other day we could hear him knocking away; imagine someone hitting a barrel with a baseball bat. I saw him flitter away through the treetops so I decided to sit and wait for his curiosity to get the better of his reticence. After about five minutes he flew back by where I was sitting and went back to work on his excavation. Cool to see him up close.

This morning is 26 degrees with a ground fog so everything is covered with a sparkling coating of frost. Quite beautiful. If this were a photo blog I'd show you. It isn't so you had best get up and get out there.

One of my jobs is driving a shuttle van for a local car dealer one day a week. People leaving their cars for repair are generally not happy folks. Worry over the cost or even the eventual need to replace the vehicle drag them down a bit.
As a student of human nature I enjoy observing how they cope. Men seem to get angry. They want the damned thing fixed and someone to pay for it. Women seem to worry about it but generally have it sorted out by the time I pick them up. They have made plans and are ready move on.
I am not going anywhere in particular with this; just find the gender difference interesting.
Another job is performing therapeutic massage. People come to the spa sore or weary or just in need of a kind touch. I find it very gratifying to spend an hour with them and see how refreshed they are as they leave. The tips are nice too.
This weekend was lovely. Temperatures in the sixties under hazy skies. The wood cutting is finally done with the basement full and a couple of cords to spare on the wagon. The tractor and splitter are in the barn. I miss it already even though it's tedious, heavy work. The woods is my sanctuary where I lose myself in simple work that demands my concentration. Soon the autumn rains and winter snows will make it too messy to spend much time going down there. Still. I have my walks with Wyatt. He knows nothing of muddy or sunny. He just accepts it all and bounds through life.

Oh crappy day! Oh crappy day-ayyy. Last week walking in the woods was amazing as everything was suffused with a golden glow from the Maples splendor. Over the weekend the leaves all fell. Maybe two or three left. So now it's a different time of year. Time to start a fire in the morning along with making the coffee. Time to get the snow blower ready and winterize all the vehicles and farm and lawn machines. Maybe time to take a Tai-Chi class and get back to the gym. A nap is always nice.

It was an eventful summer. Not necessarily in a good way. My car got wrecked four hours into my vacation to the Outer Banks. We continued on in a little Kia rental, leaving my Mustang in a junkyard in Pennsylvania. I loved that car. When I got home I found the Jeep that I had been searching for so that's okay. I do miss a zoomy coupe but I suppose I have to grow up some day.

The fungus raised Hell with the gardens, leaving us with few tomatoes. That was a major disappointment as I so look forward to them. Rather wet, cool, crappy season.

Wyatt will be two at Halloween. I will have to start calling him BIG boy now. He learned to come when called and to stay nearby when off leash this summer. I can't tell you what a relief that is. He's a wonderful little, (BIG), dog.

As the autumn deepens toward winter my mood slips downward. I called about a Tai Chi class in a neighboring town and will have to get back to the gym three days a week soon. I just really don't feel like making the effort. I do know it helps to maintain a better frame of mind. Now that most of the firewood is in I have few excuses.

My daughter seems content. My wife has a good class this year. My dog is cool. Life is okay.

There are times in ones life when it is so dark and painful that one wonders what the HELL the purpose of such cruelty might be. If one is aware. If one stops feeling sorry for oneself, there are moments of peace. There are times when one is awed by creation itself. I know about the soul crying for rescue. I know the profound love of the Creator.
Secret little moments can creep in. The soul whispers to the mind, "drama. It's all drama." That can make one feel sort of silly for a bit.
Anyway, this song, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGfnw4YscBA set all that off.
James. "Sometimes"

Some nice things about summer!
*My fingers and toes are no longer frozen little fish sticks hanging from my limbs.
*With the return of the sun my skin no longer resembles the color of a beached dead carp.
*My electricity bill is down to nothing as there is actual daylight - all day.
*The neighborhood, which resembles "Life After People" for six months is alive with folks roaring around on their lawnmowers and ATVs.
*I can actually see the person I am speaking to as they are not swaddled in layers of fleece and wool.

If the dog is in the bathroom when you are drying off from a shower and you bend over to dry your foot, don't be surprised by where his nose goes. I'm just sayin.

This morning the bunnies are gone. Momma must have gotten concerned about me around the nest. Why would the dumb ass build a nest in the yard anyway? I wonder how she moved them. Maybe one at a time in her mouth like Momma cat? Whatever. She sneaked them away in the middle of the night.

Last week Wyatt spent a delightful afternoon watching a pair of rabbits that spent all afternoon hanging around the yard just 30 feet from his run. I thought it odd at the time that they were so unconcerned by the proximity. Yesterday I was walking the boy around the yard and I took him to the base of the tree where they had been to get a sniff of the wad of fur they left. As he poked his nose in something jumped! I quickly pulled him away and put him back on his run. Going back to check I found at least four or five brand new bunnies. They hopped and made a weird noise when I pulled the fur away to get a look. I scooted them back into the nest and re-covered them, then held my hand gently over them until they calmed. At dusk Momma came back to feed them and then wandered away again. Wyatt is very interested in that tree this morning. Also one of the does has been bringing her brand new fawn out from the woods to play and nurse in the field right behind the house.
Again also the Robin that nested on the log end under the porch roof has fledged one brood and started another.
And also more. The Bluebirds are busily feeding babies in their nesting box.
Spring is amazing!