deterioration and rejuvenation

I'm one of the few people on the planet that budget pedicures in her "medical" category. I can cut my nails myself, but they are never short enough or straight enough and I end up doing them every other week. Historically the bottom of my feet are as dry as sandpaper, cracked, bleeding and a pain. Literally. If my feet hurt I don't walk or do much of anything. If you've seen them, you know.  When I was working I had regular pedi's....at least four a year. And I discovered that my feet no longer hurt. They rarely cracked or bled.  When my finances changed I was back to square one and I didn't like it. So now that category is labeled "wellness" and it is the last thing cut from the budget.

Anyway, on vacation my toenails were long. My regular tech was out sick and canceled twice. Thankfully she is back on the mend. I went on vacay and wore my Birks a lot. I knew the sneakers would kill my feet and they did. I returned to my sisters house bleeding. My one toenail dug into the other. I had to do something.

Today was the day. I had an appointment with my hair salons tech. (I don't trust those Asian places that are in every shopping center.) I had such happy feet when she was done. I returned home and asked Lydia what time her boyfriend was off work. (Her day at work was cut.) She replied. I then asked do you want to go for a walk. We will go to Housenick Park. I knew she would not say no. We first found it in May 2014 and she fell in love with the place.

And we were off. The deal was when her boyfriend texted he was done with work we had to go. We were five minutes away from the car when she received the text.

Since we first went there, there was two parking spots and old driveways and paths. The house had seen better day. You could walk down stone steps to the creek, but the boathouse, kiln, and springhouse were gone. As was the tennis courts. It had been taken over by weeds.

The next time I was there it underwent several improvements. The first was a parking lot and signage.  And a bird blind. There was some, but few improvements otherwise. In fact, it seemed to decline more. The windows were boarded up, more peeling paint. The whole nine yards. The stairs were closed off. Fencing and railings falling. It was starting to feel like a Halloween ghost house.

Today, off the parking lot was a children's garden. Lydia played on everything.

a gazebo and new path are now on the main lawn and there appeared to be another new path, maybe one that was accessible.

The trails that we had been using since we first discovered it were pretty much in ruins. The grass and the flooding ruined them. The stairs near the house were nearly gone. You had to look hard to find them.

And the stairs up were in shambles. They are actually closed off at the top.

The house is fenced off and is being painted. It's got a new roof and windows. The shutters are gone, but the hardware is still there so I think they'll be back.

The grounds are in serious need of a little TLC if they want to make this park a destination. And I believe they do. They are working on the house and restoring it inside and out for weddings and what not. People will not stay inside. They will explore.

I am not a patient person. Everyone knows that. All things take time. The building was important. It could generate money which is an important consideration. But if you also work on the trails, more people will come and watch the phoenix rise from the ashes. They'll be excited to keep coming back.

Miles/Steps:        maybe 2. The park isn't huge.
Weather:             84, sunny, breezy

Wildlife:              male mallard, small pollinating bees working hard and a silver-spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus)

Bathrooms:         P-3.5. Actually it was very clean, but it stank. Not like waste, rather like a chemical spill sitting in the heat. It was nasty.

Photos:               Mostly Lydia. A few are mine.