Chillax, mother goose

…in Hawrelak Park, with the exception of the geese. And the goslings. Many fuzzy goslings. The smaller they are, the more golden. The older ones are less fuzzilicious, and grayer, like their parents. Apparently, some geese are far more fertile than others, or perhaps Hawrelak has an extensive daycare program on site. One pair had about 20 goslings under their collective wings, all of whom were being ordered about by a fishwife of a mother goose, with the inevitable befuddled dad looking on from the sidelines. In the water! Out of the water! Down this way! No! Not that way, this way! It was very amusing, and kind of familiar.

At the north end of the park, there was a sudden invasion of angry protesters with placards and yelly voices. Hard to imagine what sort of support they hoped to acquire in an empty park on a cold day. (The geese were clearly busy.) As I got closer, I could see the signs had flowers and sparkles, and the whoops of righteous anger were actually whooping school children. The dead giveaway was the Panago Pizza truck parked by the shelter where the young rebel rousers were gathering. Real protesters don’t eat pizza; fair-trade trail mix is what soothes the civically unrested.

marching for a slice

Spent the early part of the afternoon at Hole’s Greenhouses drooling over containers of flowers that were so perfect and beautiful they seemed edible. Didn’t buy anything. Might get a frost tonight, and it would have looked pretty ridiculous hiking home with a potted begonia in my arms. Actually, I did buy a plaque with a sculpted bee on the surface.  I am very fond of bees, and the plaque fit nicely into my backpack. Tempted by the gargoyles but they didn’t seem quite as portable. Next time.

After several other visits in St Albert, got dropped off at Laurier…a very mucky Laurier, and then over to a wet Hawrelak. Still cold outside. The clouds are sodden and unsettled. But…no rain today. And no snow. On Saturday the snow came down so straight and fast it looked like it was being pulled to the ground by powerful magnets.

What a weird May.

According to Josh Klassen, coldest May since 1996. Twice as much precipitation as Jan thru April combined.

7:10 PM/12C

Good idea, Molly

Remember when it was a balmy 7 degrees? Yesterday, in fact?  Oh 7 degrees. How I miss you.

It’s now 3 degrees, and it’s been raining solidly all day. And not just raining, I’m sad to report. As I stepped out of the Farmer’s Market, the rain suddenly got….I don’t know...thick. What’s the word for that? Can’t remember. I think it starts with a s….

So. I have no choice but to sit in my chair and read all afternoon. Something in the Swedish murder mystery vein, I expect. The birds are happy that I’ve filled up the feeder again. The rain and the chirping birdies will be my musical accompaniment.

Actually, this sounds kind of perfect.

2:44PM/3C

A hot day in Butchart Gardens, a long, long time ago

You know…in January, if the temperature went up to 7C, Edmontonians would be on their knees thanking Buddha for such mercy. It is now the end of May, and it is 7C, and I am on my knees begging for mercy.

Hyperbole aside, I suppose it’s not that bad. We need the rain, and…uh…fuck.

Fuckfucketyfuckfuckfuck.

Gimme some sun. And warmth. Now. Please.

2:01 PM/7 &%$# degrees

View from Ezio

That’s the sound my skin made when it hit the cold air.

Had to go to work today for a brief presentation, delaying my walk for a couple of hours. Brought a tank top and shorts, thinking that by the time I left work, it would be warm. Wrong. Cloudy skies and chilly winds greeted me at the door, and by ‘greet’ I mean, ‘slapped.’ It’s quite fascinating to see how quickly my skin can turn bright red. Damn my ruddy-faced ancestors!

In an attempt to get warm, I ran up the stairs by the Glenora Club. Or most of them. The top few I wobbled up, my heaving chest throwing me off balance. Then, through Ezio Faraone Park, which was packed with people, most of whom appeared to be participating in a noon fitness class. What a way to ruin lunch.

Instead of the MacDonald Hotel stairs, I took a different set near the Chateau Lacombe, which were pretty but I had to jaywalk in several places to get back to a real trail. Not sure where it would have taken me had I stayed on the sidewalk leading from the stairs, but I’m guessing back toward the Leg underpass. Wrong direction.

Stole a few more Lilacs on the way home. Never really warmed up, but at least my skin resumed a normal colour. If you can call that normal.

1:30PM/12C

Creekside

No need to lay out on a rock like a reptile, my blood has warmed. As is the prerogative of the rich (not me) and the vacationing (me), I spent almost two hours in the woods ambling about with no particular path or goal in mind. Did the stairs by the French School (Ecole something or other) for a bit, then over to Rutherford, Mill Creek, McKinney and various other monkey trails, until thirst finally trumped adventure.

I suppose I could have availed myself of a water fountain, but the last one I passed (in Henrietta Edwards Park) was occupied by The Dog Walker and four of his charges. I see the Dog Walker all the time, and have for years, so I was surprised when he showed up on my TV one night a few years ago in a documentary. GREAT doc, and interesting dude. Very shy, but his dogs always seem quite jolly. I saw him a couple of times today; near the boat, and then later by the fountain. He was sitting quietly on the bench with his grinning dogs, writing in a notebook. The quantity and type of dog always changes, but the Dog Walker is as a dependable feature of the river valley as magpies, meandering creeks, and another walker, sans dog (or dogs.)

I’m always happy to see Mr D. Walker and his dogs, but not as happy as I imagine the dogs (or the dog owners) are to see him.

4:04PM/19C

a single bloom

Waited until the late afternoon before I stepped outside in my shorts. It was a slow graduation. Started out this morning in my jammies. Then capris for a lunch date in South Side Common. Finally, the shorts. It was 16C when I started my walk around 4:00 pm, and about 18C when I finished, about an hour and a half later. It just felt colder today, even though it was warmer than yesterday. I think I need to lay myself out on a rock slab like a reptile and let the sun warm my blood.

Maybe tomorrow.

About 45 minutes into my walk I stumbled across the rare

A late winter bloom

Glovewood plant in full bloom. I was tempted to pick the fragile flower but I remembered reading somewhere that Glovewoods are quite unique to these parts, and can only be found along the sides of trails in the days following the last snowfall. Almost all Glovewoods have just one bloom (which flower in a huge variety of colours, sizes, and weaves), and disappear shortly after their distinctive, glove-like flower blooms, usually within a week or two. I feel very lucky indeed!

5:45 PM/17C

The fuzzing of Mill Creek begins...

The first sunny day in…well...a few, anyway. The air in the river valley is infused with the sweet scent of new life and everywhere else the smell of freshly mown grass. And the birds have turned their songs up to maximum volume. I always say my favourite season is winter, but after six or seven months of sense deprivation, spring, this part of spring, is like all my senses stimulated at once. Senses working overtime, to quote Andy Partridge.

Mill Creek is full of poplar fuzz. I hope it’s not toxic because I ate quite a lot of it. (Note to self: stop walking with mouth open, you’re not a whale taking in krill.) Took a few shots but the fuzz doesn’t register very well, in spite of the quantity. In some areas it looks like it’s snowing, especially if a biker disturbs a pile on the edge of the trail, or someone, possibly a walker, possibly me, kicks at the settled pillows of fuzz just to watch them fly up into the air and then waft gently downward in the sunlight. Things to do on the trail…

Checked in at the frog bog but it remains amphibian-free, I think. No bubbles on the surface, no tiny splashes. No moaning, groaning, or croaking. I’ll keep watching but I’m pretty sure the frogs would have made their presence known by now. More room, I suppose, for the other slimy things that live in bogs. Still, I’ll miss the froggies.

2:58PM/15C (but it feels warmer)

M&Mmmmmmmmms

Another drizzly day. A good excuse to stay inside, drink coffee, read a fat book, and eat peanut M&M’s by the fistful.

1:57/6C (but a balmy 19C inside)

a deeper shade of green

The pools are open!

Heh…

It’s 5C and drizzly this Victoria Day long weekend. I don’t think anyone is going swimming.

I took a circuitous path into the river valley because I had to stop by work. Today is the first day of my two week vacation, and I was at work. Work! But just for a few minutes. I forgot to enable my out of office thingy on Friday. Obviously, the excitement of not being at work for 14 days overwhelmed my deep-fried brain. However, if I didn’t have that errand to run, I might not have tagged a walk to the end of it. It’s been raining off and on today. I had my hood on, then off, my umbrella up, then down. The last 20 minutes of the walk was sunny. Even though I was repeatedly teased by the capriciousness of the weather, it was lovely.

Where's your island now, seagulls?

I know I’ve said this before, but really, the smell of wet spring foliage is just ridiculously beautiful. And yes, I’ve said this before too, but the city is green, green, green. It’s like the Maritimes, or the English countryside. Even the North Saskatchewan is much higher than it was. That island where the seagulls screech at one another is almost entirely submerged. This is good.

Today is Hip Hop in the Park, which takes place at Louise McKinney Park. I walked by it, but the crowds were sparse. Too early, I suppose, but the music was thumping and the rappers were rapping. I remember wandering by the same event last year and hearing one of the performers shout motherfu#!%$ over and over again. The reverberation throughout the river valley was kind of thrilling. I mean, who hasn’t had that fantasy of standing in the middle of the river valley  and shouting motherfu#!% at the top of your lungs?  I know I have.

Today, in fact.

1:30 PM/5C

Busy-ish beavers in Whitemud Creek

Rain. OK. Wind. OK. Rain and wind? No walkies. Instead, please enjoy some beavers.

5:13 PM/4C