brigadoon

 

It has been hazy, hot, and humid for the last five days. Triple H. It's even been hot at night. Pam and I chose to walk at the Parkway Friday morning because there was shade. 

We began at the Fish Hatchery. A section of the Parkway I rarely walk. But we anticipated it would be shady. We walked the side of the park near Fish Hatchery Road first, which meant we had to cross the wide-out-in-the-open great lawn of the Lenni Lenape Museum of Indian Culture. They were set up for camps. And, when I looked up the actual name of the museum, I discovered that they now have a partnership with the Delaware Nation from Anadarko, Oklahoma to open an extension of their Historic Preservation Office at the museum.

As we approached the creek we finally reached the shade and not a minute too soon. What we didn't expect was the cloud of haze over the creek. I heard the opening refrains of Briagdoon in my brain watching the people fishing. As we walked, the haze lifted. By the time we reached the covered bridge it was nearly gone. I wish I would have come an hour sooner.

 

We went under the roads and reached the part of the trail that continues along the creek or goes up the hill. We choose the creek. What we didn't anticipate was that only bikes must go thru there. The path was narrow. And rocky. And I had on Birkenstocks. I just couldn't bare to put on sneakers. It was just too humid.

We crossed the covered bridge and went back the other side. Now if you begin on the Fish Hatchery side there is a shorter very steep hill, and a long downhill. This is usually the way I go. Coming back, you have the long, gradual uphill with the short steep downhill. I stopped four times.

 

When we returned to the parking lot we realized we didn't take a pic so we took one. All hot and sweaty.

Miles/Steps:  5k.
Weather:       84 when we started. 90 by the time I arrived home. The humidity was climbing with the temperature.
Wildlife:        Monarch butterfly,yellow swallowtail, blue heron. (The reason all the fish are covered. An all-you-can-eat buffet!)
Bathrooms:   I forgot to ask. I know the comfort stations are basically latrines.
Photos:         Pam Lott

I came home from walking wanting a shower. But I had another hot task on my to-do list. Baking in an un-airconditioned kitchen in 100 degree weather.

My friend angel fosters kittens for FURR, and they are having a fundraiser on Sunday. I volunteered to bake. I had a ton of zucchini in the freezer. I thought I had a bag of sugar when I was at the store, and I had three jars of pastry flour plus one 5lb bag of AP flour. I thought I was set. I wasn't. I ran out of sugar and brown sugar. And my ripe bananas in the freezer were gone. My cookies came out the size of a dinner plate and dark because of the honey/syrup. I had walnuts but I ended up using trail mix that someone gave me that I didn't care for, so I threw it in the freezer. It's actually not bad in muffins. What I wasn't prepared for is the zucchini. I shredded before it was frozen. It filled two deli quarts and a gallon freezer bag. It filled the colander. When it defrosted there was four cups. Just what I needed. However, when I tasted the muffins you can really taste the zucchini! The flavor is so concentrated. That usually doesn't happen with zucchini bread. Oh well. I hope they don't go moldy before tomorrow. Angel doesn't have AC either and I dropped them off at 8:30 am. I hope they taste them. I tasted everything. I wanted to be sure they were good, and didn't make me sick. I always worry when I bake for other people that I'll make them sick.

 

Last night I went to a yoga/henna/bracelet making class.  It was all centered around Chakras—energy centers within the human body that help to regulate all its processes, from organ function to to the immune system and emotions. There are seven basic ones and about 30 in total. Each has a color, name and a symbol. And if you believe in that stuff, maybe it works. But we all know I believe in nothing ... easter, western and anything in between.n

The yoga studio was hot. I was really hoping to be cold. I wanted to cool my body down. No such luck. I used my thin yoga mat because it was in the car. The big, thick one was under my bed and had to be thrown out. I was surprised at the diverse group of people, and for a change I was not the heaviest one there.

 

Then we had the lesson on chakras and we made our bracelets. I was putting the last bead on mine and I dropped the string. The black beads are lava. the color beads match the chakra colors. Sort-of. After playing twenty bead pickup I put it back together. I needed 7.5 inches and the string was barely long enough for me. But it does roll on. If you believe in the power of essential oils (I don't, of course) you can add them to the lava beads. However it will make them decay in time.

 

 
As we left we got to pick a chakra card from a deck like tarot cards. I wanted the orange, the Sacral one. It's located on the reproductive system and is tied to creation and creativity. I pulled the Root Chakra. The root chakra is the first chakra. Its energy is based on the earth element. It’s associated with the feeling of safety and grounding. It’s at the base of the chakra system and lays the foundation for expansion in your life. It develops by the time you are seven. 

I gathered up my stuff to leave being very careful not to mess up the henna, even though it wasn't the one I wanted. I got everything into the back seat, went to close the door and smeared the whole thing. Typical me.