We’ve been here a week. There were a few days where we had to keep reminding ourselves that summer does not start until July 5. Despite having the warmest/driest May on record, June has reverted to her normal gloomy self.
However, yesterday was a glorious day. We took the bikes out to the Carnation Valley and did a short ride. It was also the day of Flying Wheels. That is a ride run by the Cascade Bicycle Club. They have three distances people can do. We used to ride the hundred mile route that was just gruesome with 4,500 feet of climbing. I think we’re done with that. There was a food stop in the school parking lot where we normally park. So we parked somewhere else. It was a really nice day to be outside and on the bikes.
The Tolt River Bridge was determined to be structurally unsound a couple of years ago. It was closed for awhile, then they re-opened it to cars and bikes. I would appear that work on the retrofit has begun.
We wonder what has happened here. The people who used to live in that travel trailer kept the enormous yard mowed and it looked really good. Now it looks abandoned.
Today we walked the three mile route. We saw urban wildlife. Are not baby ducks the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? I really want to rub their tiny heads.
In the same yard along the creek were chickens. This is the only one that was out walking around, and he would not turn and face me. So here is a picture of a chicken butt.
The peonies were just spectacular this year. They’re gone now, but they were so pretty.
People are so interesting. When we’re in the RV park in Tucson, people acknowledge you. Driving through the park, people wave, nod or lift a finger off the steering wheel if they’re driving towards you. Out in the sticks in Arkansas, everybody lifts a finger off the steering wheel in acknowledgement of your existence. In Seattle people look right through you. It’s just amazing how they will not see you. Jim and I, being somewhat cantankerous, enjoy making people see us on walks. We say good morning and make them respond. Sometimes people act like they’re not sure what the correct response is. The Seattle Freeze is a thing. It’s been a thing for decades. What we wonder about is the number of transplants in to the area. It’s hard to find a native of Seattle. How did the newcomers become so adept at not seeing other people? Perhaps they are inoculated when they get their driver’s licenses.
Maybe when people move to Metropolis, they become sensitive about being a hayseed. So they quickly learn to ignore people, as if those people are beneath them. Besides, one's self-esteem is tied up with how busy and important you are, so every time you ignore somebody, you prove that you are coming up in the rat race.
ReplyDeleteI remember cycling in Ireland a few years ago and nearly everyone I passed including children always waved or spoke. For me it's easier to acknowledge people than to ignore them. I think that city living makes people more insular and also today youngsters are taught not to acknowledge strangers, a sad state but for a good reason.
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