A Wild Walk

Hi All!

The weather here is beautiful . . . for the moment! It was 60 degrees when I set out for my daily walk. I started out wearing a turtleneck and sweatshirt but ended up with the sweatshirt off and wishing I was wearing short sleeves! It is January - isn't it supposed to be a little cold? I am not wanting 30 degree weather - mind you - but come on!

I always knew Texas was weird!

Speaking of walks, Hubby and I are attempting to revive our evening walks. We have managed to walk twice this week. Yesterday we didn't walk because he didn't get home from work until it was dark and I was hungry so we just made dinner (well, I made dinner) and forgot the walk.

Today may be another late night at work for Hubby so the walk for this evening is questionable.

On our last walk though we saw some of the wonderful wildlife that is around our area. We live not too far from a golf course and not too far from a reservoir which is surrounded by land controlled by the Corps of Engineers and which is basically a nature preserve.

There are many houses in our development which back up to the Corps of Engineer land and these people have said that they have seen all kinds of wildlife roaming around. There have been rumors of a panther but they have never been substantiated so . . . who knows!

Our house is not right next to the preserve or the golf course but when we walk we get really close to both and this sometimes allows us to see some of the wildlife. For instance, the last time we walked saw a wild turkey and a beaver. Really!

For those of you who have never seen a wild turkey before - they are BIG birds! This one was simply standing still in an island in the middle of the road. The road was right in front of the houses that back up to the preserve so it wasn't too far for the turkey to roam but still. It was just standing there. Hubby and I think it was thinking it was camouflaged from the barking dogs in the next yard. It was blending in pretty well but we saw it!

Then, we went walking in the golf course (after looking to make sure there were no golfers around so we didn't get beaned by a ball!) by the little pond. At first, I thought the big brown thing was a rock but then I noticed that the water around it was moving. Then, the "rock" moved! It was a BIG beaver. (hmmm BIG turkey, BIG beaver. Well, I guess everything IS bigger in Texas!)

Hubby and I have seen beavers in the golf course pond before. We think that a pair of beavers comes up from the reservoir to breed and then, when the baby is old enough, return to the reservoir. This beaver was feasting on plants at the edge of the pond and Hubby and I got within about 10 feet of him/her before he/she swam away. When it was clear that Hubby and I weren't following him/her he/she came back to the edge and began munching again. We watching the beaver for quite a while totally amazed that there is such a neat animal (with that flat tail!) so close to our house!

I keep telling Hubby that walking is fun as well as good for you!

Maybe the next time we walk I will take my camera. Of course then there will be no turkey or beaver!

Trisha

Voice Update: I did my massage yesterday! Now to keep the trend (can you call one day a trend) going! My voice is doing well. I still have some hesitations on words beginning with those beloved unvoiced consonants but as I continue my exercises, that gets less and less noticeable!