Change Is Hard

October 17, 2024
by dawnkinster 68 Comments

The official launch of the 2024 Walktober

Well, it’s that time of year again…time to dust off the ole walking shoes, grab your phone or your camera (or both!) and head out to find something interesting or boring, pretty or mundane, to share with all of us in the world.

What’s it like this October where you live?

*We didn’t have a lot of color on my walk, but I found a little bit of it!*

Interested bloggers want to know!

The most eager Walktober participant I know is our girl Penny, so I’m going to let her kick off this event. She’s so happy she’s darn near panting with joy. Or maybe she’s just drooling. Hard to tell. Anyway…here comes Penny!

Hi Hi HI HI HI HI!!!! It’s me, Penny!

This will be the second Walktober of my entire life, cause I’m not even two years old yet! But I remember last year and it was so much fun I could hardly wait for October to come around again.

*We hiked on trails like this for most of our walk, but also across grassy meadows too.*

Mom says I shouldn’t wish my life away, and time is short no matter what we do. But I’m just a puppy and I try to get as much fun stuff smashed into every day as possible. Mom says I’m exhausting.

Whatever, Mom.

So anyway, Mom took me on a walk in one of mine and Katie’s parks and I thought I’d share it with you as my Walktober 2025.

We started out in Katie’s part of the park and walked up and down the hills. Mom always tells me about Katie when we walk there. I don’t mind, Katie seems like she was a pretty awesome girl and I love hearing about her adventures.

*I was quite proud of myself for jumping up on this bank.*

After we got up and down the last big hill we arrived at a meadow and Mom had me practice my recall on the mowed path.

I’d say my recall is pretty spectacular…a long as she has treats! HA!

*I’m coming, Mom! Get that cheese ready!*

Then we wandered through the meadow and back into the woods and over to my part of the park. Mom and I walk over on that section a lot, but we usually enter it from a different parking lot that is about 1/2 a mile north (as the crow flies, lots further if you take the trail) of where we parked this time.

Mom and I wandered around and she took lots of pictures. Eventually we made it to my pond. It was really pretty.

It was after we moved on from my pond that things started getting messed up.

I wanted to go back to the other parking lot (which was still about a mile away from where we were) like I was used to when we visit the pond, and Mom wanted to head back to the parking lot we were actually parked in (which was also about a mile in the other direction).

*Mom had me stand near the one tree that had changed color. It’s another sassafras tree.*

Mom had never gone back to that parking lot from our pond before, but she had a photo of the trail map (because she’s a smart mom) so she wasn’t worried. She studied the map and we walked on a brand new trail that she was sure would take us back to that meadow and eventually back to our car.

*There were lots of trails to choose from.*

But it was winding through the woods and didn’t feel like it was going in the right direction. And Mom couldn’t figure out exactly where we were on the trail map. It was getting hotter and she didn’t have that much water for me.

So she started getting worried.

*How about we rest on this nice bench, mom?*

Me? I wasn’t worried! I just kept sniffing and tugging Mom along. Why I even surprised a mouse! Or, if I’m honest, the mouse surprised me, cause Mom says I jumped about 3 feet straight up into the air when I found it!

Anyway, after awhile Mom decided we needed to turn around and go back the way we had come. That meant we added another mile or so to our hike, because we had to go back to the pond and then back to the trail we had come on, then all the way back to the car!

*At least there was shade in the woods!*

I didn’t like turning around, but Mom said not to argue with her just this once please, so I decided to be good.

We made it back to the pond, and then back to the meadow and then back to the car eventually. Mom was hot and sweaty and crabby.

I, however, was a happy girl! Another long Walktober in the books for your gal Penny!

*Mom found some interesting leaves and light.*

So here’s what you need to do…go do your own Walktober (but you don’t need to get lost) and take a few pictures. Remember you can walk in the woods or in a town, even in your own back yard! You can ride a bike, or take a car ride, or jog or skip or even ride a unicycle!

Just do what you do and then show us your world by writing a post on your blog.

*We were lucky to see this monarch butterfly too!*

Then link it up to this post and at the end of October my Mom will gather up all your links and put them in one giant post so everybody can visit everybody else’s walk!

Mom says if you need a little extra time, or have questions, just let her know.

Sound like fun? Then…..ready, set…..GO!

Talk later,

Your Walktober Girl, Penny

October 14, 2024
by dawnkinster 50 Comments

Look to the sky

We have been so lucky, up here in Michigan, (and sometimes all the way down to Georgia!) to be able to see the Northern Lights quite frequently this past summer and into fall.

*May 2024, somewhere in Michigan farm country.*

Of course even if the lights are dancing, the weather doesn’t always cooperate. Lots of evenings the skies are obstructed with clouds and you can only dream about what might be happening up there.

And of course you have to actually go outside to a dark place to see them. And even then you mostly can’t see them with your naked eyes, you need your phone or a camera to get a better view.

In May there was a huge aurora storm above us and I was lucky enough to take my sister and head north to see them. We ended up on a random dirt road in front of a farmer’s house shooting the amazing lights as they danced across the sky.

Last weekend there was some evidence that a big light storm would be arriving, but night after night nothing happened. Then Wednesday night, with clouds rolling in, people in my general area were starting to post pictures they’d taken from their own yards of colorful northern lights.

I leapt out of bed, and headed to my own back yard. There were clouds, but enough open spaces that I saw this.

*October 6, from my yard looking over my neighbor’s house.*

It wasn’t beautiful, no special location, the lights of my neighbor’s house spread across the image. But I saw them. I saw them in my own backyard without driving across the state.

I was thrilled.

I was especially thrilled because I took that shot with my phone, and had only just learned how to use my phone at night. My regular camera had been shipped back to Nikon as a trade-in for a new version of the Z series.

Thursday of last week my new camera arrived, and coincidently notices of potential northen lights grew louder and louder as the day went on.

I tried to learn all the differences between the new camera and what I was used to using. And when it got dark I went over to Katie’s park and set up near her pond.

*I was hoping for color reflected in the pond…but a layer of invasive plants covered the surface of the water.*

I was not disappointed. There was a definite pink tinge to the northern sky.

*It wasn’t always bright, but it was pretty and surrounded the Big Dipper.*

There were obnoxious lights in the parking lot, and I lowered my tripod as low as I could to minimize the light pollution.

But mostly I just watched the sky. As my eyes adjusted I could tell the lights were there, but I couldn’t see much. Sometimes I could see a few pillars of light.

*Sometimes the colors obscured the stars.*

And once I turned the camera over to the east a bit, because I thought maybe something was there. But looking on the back of the camera, I didn’t see anything interesting, so I turned it back to the pond.

*See that green waving at me from over there on the right?*

I was wrong. There were actually green waves over there, but I didn’t see them until I processed the images days later.

I was out there from 8 until shortly after 9. I wasn’t prepared with hand warmers, or a hat or gloves. You wouldn’t have thought you’d need them, but on this clear night as the moon came up behind me, the air chilled.

*The lights began to fad. I didn’t realize the green was ramping up.*

By 9 I was cold and my husband and I ambled back to the car under the fading colors that still filled the sky. I went to bed and dreamed about starry nights and dancing lights. In the morning I found out that Mother Nature has a sense of humor, because she put up a magnificent light show with curtains of color that started about 10. While I was sleeping.

Yep.

In order to really see the northern lights you need to prepare, take warm clothes, bring extra batteries, some snacks, a chair and your good camera and on top of all that, hope for clear skies.

*When I got home I went out back and took a picture of the moon. Because it was beautiful too.*

And if all that lines up…you’re gonna see a real show!

I’m not disappointed, I was so happy to be out there at all. I’m thrilled to have had the experience and to share it with my husband.

But I’m secretly hoping to get one more chance this season.

October 6, 2024
by dawnkinster 32 Comments

Just do it

You know how sometimes you sign up to do something and when the day and time comes around you sort of wish you hadn’t because staying home and doing nothing in particular seems so much easier than getting up and out?

Yea.

Saturday morning I was signed up to go on a guided hike at one of Katie’s parks. I have been on a couple of these walks, and I always enjoy them, usually learn something, and am always glad I went.

Still.

Saturday morning it seemed to take a gargantuan effort to get myself up and fed and showered and out the door in order to meet over at the park by 10 a.m. Seriously, 10 a.m. seemed early to me. Even though for 30+ years I was at work every weekday and often weekends, by 8.

This is what retirement has done to me. It has turned me into a sloth.

Anyway.

By 10:00 a.m. Saturday morning a group of about a dozen people had gathered in the designated parking lot. We all set off up a hill to our first stop on the hike, the Davis Lake overlook. Our guide, the manager of parklands in our township, explained how the lake was formed and the importance of the hills and wetlands to the formation of the Shiawasee River which begins in our township.

At this park we have something called a ‘fen’ which is somewhat unusual. That’s a wet prairie-like landscape which is host to any number of rare insects, plants and even fish.

The park manager talked about all the partnerships our township has with researchers at universities around the world, adding that the research grants helps to pay for managing the land.

We went further into the forest where we stopped and looked at the tree canopy and the understory and the ground cover. He talked about different plants that grow in the forest when they have enough light and space to thrive.

He said a healthy forest would have a variety of trees, and within a variety, several different ages. He’s working to make sure we have young trees coming up to replace the older ones that have been around for over 100 years.

Then we moved out onto the fen, where we took a quick right, off the path, to see a wildflower, the gentian, a small, blue, fringed flower that blooms in the fall. I’ve seen other blue gentian flowers, growing on rocks along the Great Lakes, but I had no idea we had them in my very own neighborhood!

For me that little blue flower was the highlight of the walk, but we saw lots of other plants too. Our guide showed us the dying plants, the seed pods, and those hanging on with a bit of color. He described what they would look like next spring, and urged us to come along on the spring hike next year.

I, of course, have visited this park often, with Katie and now with Penny. It’s a beautiful place to wander through woods and meadows, around glacial lakes and up and over hills. The part I hiked Saturday, with the group, is unofficially named after Katie around our house. Penny has her own part of the same park, just a bit north of where we were. I took her there Saturday afternoon and we had a great time. But I’ll let her tell you about that when she’s ready.

Saturday morning our group had a beautiful day, with a bright blue sky, warm temperatures and a little breeze. It was such a wonderful walk, fun to be out with other like minded people. We all learned a little something and had fun doing it.

It was a reminder to me that when you sign up for something, during an optimistic moment, you should follow through and get yourself to the event. Even if you have grown into a sloth.

Because if you do, you’re going to be sooooo happy that you did.

I guarantee it.

(Now. You might think this would be a great Walktober. And it would be, but it’s not. I don’t think anyway. We’ll see. I hope you are all thinking about where you’d like to take us on YOUR Walktober coming to a blog near you sometime between October 17 and the end of the month!)

October 6, 2024
by dawnkinster 35 Comments

Where for art thou Marjoram?

I have one recipe that I make regularly that asks for marjoram. For years I had an old, square, metal can of it which honestly, if you were to check the expiration date, (I didn’t) would likely be way past fresh.

For months I’ve known I was low, and for the past several trips to the store I’ve been checking the spice aisle with no luck. Now I’m totally out.

Marjoram has been on my grocery list the majority of 2024.

Last time I made the recipe I threw in some Italian herbs as a replacement. Back in the day there was no such thing as Italian herbs, but I figured maybe it was close enough. To be honest I couldn’t tell the difference.

So now I wonder…what is marjoram anyway? And why can’t I find it?

Edit: I can get it on Amazon! Of COURSE! Still, this begs the question, why isn’t it in my grocery store?

October 4, 2024
by dawnkinster 33 Comments

Balance, walking, Walktober!

I’m taking a community ed class, put on by my township Parks and Rec, and sponsored and designed by a local hospital system. It’s all about balance, and it’s designed for senior citizens.

I guess that makes me an official senior.

I’m 68, and I qualify as a senior citizen by any number of measurements, even if I don’t feel like one. So when I saw this class in the winter township catalog I thought…why not? I’ve fallen and hurt myself a couple of times and I’d like to learn how to fall more gracefully to avoid more injury.

Maybe even avoid the fall altogether.

*Sometime just looking up makes me dizzy.*

Which, as it turns out, is what the class has mostly been about. Avoiding the fall. There are about 12 people attending each week. We just had week 5, so 3 more to go. Each week there’s a topic, lead by a nurse and the head of Parks and Rec. They work well together.

*There’s not a lot of color in the trees here yet, but there was still color on my walk.*

We’ve learned some gentle excises that I should be doing daily. The basis of the class is that if you keep your muscles in good condition, flexible and fit, you are less likely to fall.

*The colors are mostly subtly, but still beautiful.*

In this week’s class we put together plans for meeting class goals. My end of class goal was to have an established walking program put together. I and the group decided I was going to walk 4 times a week for at least 40 minutes somewhere.

*Saw this little guy on the path. He swayed back and forth if I got too close. So I just cropped the image.*

Lots of places with walking options were suggested. One couple goes up to the mall every single morning (except Wednesdays when they come to class) and walks around the one mile interior perimeter. I used to go there and walk too, especially in the winter. It’s a nice place and I’ll likely start that back up when the weather gets bad.

But while it’s still nice weather I prefer to walk outside.

Yesterday I went out to one of our parks, without the dog, and walked 3 miles. It was lovely. All the photos today are from that walk.

*Turned around at 1.5 miles. Going back was pretty much all uphill.*

I could use it for my Walktober, but I don’t think I will. It’s too early, there’s not enough color yet, and you’ve seen this park before.

On the other hand, if I don’t come up with something better than maybe this will be my Walktober!

*Little bits of pretty things, way down on the forest floor.*

Penny says it’s not fair that she didn’t get to go. I say, she stops and sniffs too much plus she barks at other people, bikes, cars, dogs and baby strollers. Oh. And joggers. So the walk is not relaxing when she’s along.

If she ever grows up I’ll consider taking her. Meanwhile I just have to do two walks, one for me and one for her.

So far she’s good with that plan.

Wordless Wednesday

October 2, 2024 by dawnkinster 25 Comments

September 30, 2024
by dawnkinster 19 Comments

You can’t ignore me, mom!

So, once again, you may have detected a noted lack of Penny posts here on my mom’s blog.

I guess I shouldn’t feel all that bad. She didn’t even tell you that she went to Washington DC 10 days ago, did she. Nope. Obviously you guys aren’t top tier friends either. (I’m JOKING!!!)

Mom says it’s just that she’s really busy and hasn’t had time to write about every little thing. Every little thing? I ask you. Am I a little thing??

Actually I’m a quite large thing. I’m oversized for a sheltie, bigger than Katie was, but mom says that just means there’s more of me to love!

And did I tell you that she and I snuggle just about every single morning, most of the time with me sitting on top of her? Yea. I guess Mom is OK after all.

Anyway.

I’m supposed to tell you that Mom and Debbie over at Domer Mom have decide that we will in fact have a Walktober this year, and Mom will collect all your links on her blog and do a summary post at the end.

Mom said I need to hurry up and announce it since October is knocking on our door. Wait a minute, I have to go bark hysterically cause that’s what I do when anyone knocks on our door!

….OK. I’m back…

Mom says I can pick the official Walktober dates, because I’m really smart and she likes to keep me engaged. Otherwise I’m off doing stuff she doesn’t want me to do, but that’s another post.

So I think the official dates for the 2024 Walktober will be October 17 through October 31st. That way you have two weeks to plan and two full weeks to go on your walk (or ride, or jog, or drive, or skip or hop) and blog about it!

Of course, if you need to do yours a little early that’s fair, and if you need an extra couple days at the end just let us know. Mom will put everything together in her blog in early November.

And she says to tell you she’ll do an official kickoff to Walktober near or on October 17th so that you can all link to that post when you do yours!

Mom says if you have any questions just ask. She and I will do our best to answer and explain better. My excuse for rambling is that I’m not even two yet! So I get distracted easily.

Squirrel!

Pictures in this post are from several walks Mom and I have been on lately, cause daddy has been doing scary noisy things in the basement. Heck I didn’t even know we HAD a basement until now! Daddy says when it’s finished I’ll get to explore down there! Too bad it won’t be done by the end of October or I’d take you on a tour for my Walktober!

HEY MOM! MOM! MOMOMOMOMOMOMOMOMOM!!!! Where am I going to take the nice people on my Walktober? You better figure it out soon! It’s a priority, mother!

Signing off for now,

Your Walktober Ambassador,

Penny the Hiking Dog

September 27, 2024
by dawnkinster 21 Comments

Almost Walktober?

How many of you know what a Walktober is? Not everybody? Let me take a moment and explain.

Many years ago Robin, over at her blog, Breezes at Dawn, introduced me and others to the idea of taking a walk in October, blogging about it and then linking our posts back to her blog.

*Fall colors aren’t all up in the trees.*

People walked from all over the USA, Canada, and from the rest of the world too! She’d collect all our stories and then at an appointed time, perhaps early November, would post on her blog a roundup of sorts, a collection of all our posts, where everyone could read about all the walks.

*A little chickadee ventures in for a snack.*

Robin coordinated this event for years and then last year she needed some support as she was busy with other things, so I did the collection and roundup part.

I think this year there is another person scheduled for this role, but I’m not sure. I’m going to try to find out.

But regardless, I think we can put a successful Walktober together, even if there is no one else able to coordinate the effort. I can always do it again, no problem at all.

Sooo….would you like to go on a walk and show us your part of the world?

As Robin always says, it doesn’t have to be an actual walk. You can go for a jog or a bike ride. You might travel in a car or a train or a subway. Maybe you’ll want to hop, skip or jump your way around. Any way you want to do it is good, just show us your world!

*Two cranes preening when one needed to take a biggggg stretch.*

Lots of people choose to take their walk in the woods, showing us what fall (or spring if you’re in the southern hemisphere) looks like where they live, but I’ve done a Walktober in downtown Detroit and that was fun too. I’ve also done a Walktober in my own backyard, and one at my family’s house in Alabama.

It just depended on where I was and what I could find that you might like.

Maybe you’ll be on a vacation somewhere in October, that would be interesting to share with us. I was just in Washington DC and I could have used photos from there, but I think I’ll try to find somewhere different this month to share for my Walktober.

*A little titmouse is curious about what we might be offering.*

While I’m working on the logistics, you take a few moments and think about where you’d like to take us on your Walktober!

The photos in this post are from a walk at my favorite park, taken in the middle of September with a friend. This park has been featured in many of my Walktobers, and might be again.

*It’s not all about birds at this park.*

But we’ll see.

September 23, 2024
by dawnkinster 39 Comments

Saying goodbye to Payton

Angel Katie here.

You know I keep track of my mama and daddy even though I’m across the bridge, right? So I know when they’re upset. Thursday night I noticed mama had wet eyes so I paid extra special attention and wasn’t surprised when she started talking to me.

*Don’t we look alike? That’s Payton on the right.*

I’m a very good listener.

She said that Payton, my half sister, was going to be crossing the Rainbow Bridge on Friday, the very next day, and she wanted to make sure I’d be waiting for her so that Payton would have someone there right away to show her around.

She didn’t want Payton to be alone as she arrived.

Well of course I told mama not to worry, I’d be right there, first in line to greet her as soon as she arrived, cause after all, she’s my little sister!

Payton and I met a couple years ago when our moms got us together to go for a walk, way back in July of 2021. It was pretty warm and we were both mature so there wasn’t a lot of playing between us. But we did sniff hello and go on a congenial walk around Payton’s large estate.

*She enjoyed sharing her home with me. She lived in a beautiful place.*

Most of the time while the folks were sitting around talking we were hanging around snoozing.

*A nap on the deck is always a good thing.*

Or sneaking treats from the other’s mom or dad. Sometimes mama said she couldn’t tell us apart, especially from the back.

We knew how to work it, that’s for sure!

*We were good about taking turns getting treats.*

Then in May of 2022 Payton and her folks came over to my house and I showed her and her sister Tally around my park.

*The two of us and our dads. We were already discussing how to thwart the moms taking pictures.*

We had so much fun together, we even conspired to give the moms a hard time getting pictures of us, just for fun. But you know how moms are, they’re pretty stubborn, and they got a few good images of us.

*She looked so beautiful in the afternoon sun.*

Secretly I’m glad they did. Now that we’re both gone I think the pictures will give our parents some comfort, you know?

*We were giggling because the moms couldn’t get us to sit together for a picture!*

Payton was a very smart little girl, she even earned her UDX title in Obedience and she did rally and agility too!

*Payton and I were not impressed with mom wanting a yellow flower shot.*

Payton loved her mom and her dad very much, but she was definitely a daddy’s girl, helping him do the yardwork and enjoying a daily golf cart ride with him to inspect her estate.

She lived to be 15 years old, just like me, and just like me she was tired at the end, but she had a very wonderful life, and she lived every minute of it to the fullest.

She was a feisty little girl that managed her household and she will be missed so much by her family and friends.

But don’t worry everybody, we’re together now and healthy and happy. There’s so much to do here, so many things to sniff, and we have so many friends with us, why there’s always a game of ball to play, and walks to take and soft beds to nap on.

*“Come on Katie, let’s mess with the moms again!”*

And don’t get us started about the treats! My oh my, there’s any flavor we might want, and we can have as many as we want! It’s crazy!

Anyway, I know those of you that knew Payton will miss her terribly, but I wanted to reassure you that she’s just fine and when it’s time we’ll both be right here, along with all your doggie friends and fur babies, waiting to show you around.

*“We’ll wait for you guys to get here!”*

Well, Payton and I have a nice walk scheduled next, we’re going to explore that meadow of wildflowers over there, so we have to go for now. But we’ll be watching you, and if you get sad again know that we’ll be right there.

Promise.