Day 4497 - Easter

We had a very pleasant Easter. It was so peaceful and quiet when we took Dawn on her early walk this morning. There was no traffic noise, no planes overhead, and no police or fire sirens. There were very few people in the park and it felt like I remembered it years ago. Of course that would change dramatically later in the day, but for a brief moment in time all was good.

We had a hearty weekend breakfast after we walked Dawn and afterwards since the weather was cool and traffic was light on our street, I thought I'd try to mow the lawn. It's still a loathsome job, but I did it. It actually didn't seem any harder than it did the previous year, so that was encouraging. I'm glad I mowed when I did. The grass was starting to get thick. On most days I hate mowing where our yard meets the street. The traffic has gotten much, much worse during the thirty odd years we've lived here. People don't even slow down when they pass me mowing along the edge of the yard. They barrel by at 40 to 50 miles an hour. I miss the days when our street was relatively quiet.

After I finished mowing and rested a bit, it was time for Dawn's Sunday outing. The weather was still cool and cloudy, so we had a nice walk. The parks weren't quite so empty this time. Families were starting to arrive for Easter picnics and barbecues. A few children were having an egg hunt. We encountered some people on horseback during our walk. Dawn doesn't react to horses the way some of our other dogs have. She pretty much ignores them. After walking about a mile and a half, we went looking for ice cream. I really expected the ice cream place to be closed for Easter, but we were pleasantly surprised to discover that the place was open. They raised their prices again. The cones weren't any bigger though. So it goes. Absolutely everything is getting more expensive these days.

I don't know why I still felt like taking a long walk later in the afternoon. Probably because I couldn't think of anything better to do. This time the park was a zoo. The place was completely filled with families having large picnics. Many groups brought tables and chairs with them. Some set up tents as well. I was surprised at how many families brought their own barbecue grills since there are already lots of permanent grills in the park. There were lots of games for children. One group even set up an elaborate zip line between two trees for their kids to ride. It looked like everyone was having fun. I'm not a fan of crowds in the park, but it was hard to find fault with any of this. In today's increasingly weird world, it was nice to see families acting like regular normal families.

When I finished my third walk of the day I'll have to admit that I was tired. Hey, I got 22,000 steps though and I mowed the yard. Not bad for an old guy with bad feet. I doubt that I'll walk nearly as far tomorrow. The highlight of our day was Easter dinner. A smoked ham has become a tradition on Easter Sunday. You've got to have candied yams and a green bean casserole too. We finished our meal with a delicious carrot cake. I ate too much, but that's what holiday meals are for. It looks like we'll have plenty of leftovers for the rest of the week.

Tomorrow it's time to visit the rescue Dalmatians again. I hope potential adopters are looking at these dogs. They're all great and it's time for each of them to find their forever homes.

Bella is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day