Wandering in 2012

There's a lot to be said for travelling. I would never have discovered how beautiful is the Anston Road had I not ridden it. But on the other hand, I would not have discovered the beauty of the Anston Road if I had travelled to different lands far away from my home. There is a lot to be said for staying at home and letting events travel to you.

Changes in time

rubble
GREGBY today.

Sometimes the change comes as a change in the times. Remember the Greater Green Bay Redevlopment Plan? Well, it came and it went. I read about the plans when I was in school. I took a picture of the crushed rubble when I retired. If what you are looking for in life is change you don't need to go find it; just wait.

Changes in attention

One of the nice things about staying in one place, more or less, is that you have the opportunity to notice things which have always been around. That was the story with the Anston Road; it's been there and I have ridden across it many times but I didn't realize what it had to offer until I turned my attention and my bicycle in a different direction.

I have a personal liking for turning in different directions and I confess that I especially enjoy turning other people in directions that they hadn't expected to go. Or wanted to go, for that matter.

Changes in personnel

in the woods
Sadie in the woods

Warm bodies also rotate in and out of life. In this case, I'm thinking of warm, furry bodies like Sadie the Beagle. Sadie stayed at our house for vacation, so she had a few miles of travel and a change of scene. And no responsibilities. Buddy, Wheatley, and I had a change in company and a change in responsibility as we all took a hand in training our guest in the house rules.

I told one neighbor that if she were my dog I'd have her trained! and he replied, Train a beagle? Really, though, Sadie proved to be quite smart. For example, the one night when Sadie's tummy was upset was the only night when she slept in Buddy's bed instead of her own.

in the window
What is that furry animal in the window?
in the water
Buddy and Sadie in the water
Wheatley and Fluffy
Wheatley and the New Fluffy Kitty

Late in the summer, just after Sadie Beagle went back home, a new fur friend traveled to our household and joined the family. I call her Fluffy Kitty to distinquish her from the other cat, who is not fluffy. This Fluffy Kitty quickly became a permanent but reclusive member of our family. She spent a lot of her time in the basement hiding, mostly from Buddy Beagle. (Buddy tries to be friendly, but as a beagle he can't help but chase anything fluffy and white if she's moving, or sniff her if she's not. To Buddy, that is being friendly.)

Green Bug
Green Bug

Fluffy Kitty came to us from Travis and Ellen, who also shared the company of this green bug. The bug, however, was only a temporary adventure; s/he returned to the shrubbery at T&E's house after Ellen took this cellphone picture of the bug on my arm.

Changes in biota

Another sort of living being came to visit me in October. That is its own story, which I call staphylococcus. (Catchy title, right? It includes its own joke section, so you don't want to skip it.) Speaking of jokes, here's a low-grade comedy routine from Dr Miller and me:

Another thing you can do is apply heat.
Yes, I've been doing that.
Oh, you're already doing that?
Yes, but there is a problem; the cat doesn't like to stay on the knee.
Ah. Well, make sure that you sterilize the cat before you use it that way.
Oh, she doesn't break the skin!
Hm. Well, some cats do.

Despite the comic dialog, both the cats are sterilized. They're just dirty, not dirty minded.


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