Hello again, Dear Reader. It’s late morning here in New Hometown, Florida, where it is almost 9: 30 AM Eastern as I start this post. Currently, the temperature outside is 69˚F (22˚C) under partly sunny skies. With humidity at 81% and a breeze blowing from the northwest at 3 MPH (13 KM/H), the feels-like temperature is 69˚F (22˚C). According to the forecast, it is going to be a nice day; mostly sunny and a high of 78˚F (26˚C).
As is my habit, I got up early. I didn’t have to, but by now my body clock has become synchronized with the rhythms of the house in which I live. I don’t think that Sandy, the miniature schnauzer who decided to become my canine companion, was too thrilled; she was sleeping contentedly at my feet when I decided to get an early start on the day, but it couldn’t be helped. (It’s okay, though, Sandy made a beeline for the living room and jumped onto her favorite chair, where she immediately proceeded to take a nap.)
After eating a bowl of Frosted Flakes cereal, I quickly got into my street clothes, put on my walking shoes, donned my Star Wars: Film Concert cap, and grabbed my wallet, keys, and smartphone, thus setting forth on my morning stroll.
I usually look at the Weather apps on my PC or smartphone to see what the conditions outside are. My mind was on other things, though, so I rushed out of the house sans windbreaker or sweater…and was surprised by how autumn-like it feels beyond the confines of our home in New Hometown.
Yesterday morning, when I went out for the first of two walks, the temperature was more like that of an early summer day rather than late October. It wasn’t uncomfortably hot yet, but the humidity increased, and the sun definitely asserted its presence then.
Today, though…it wasn’t cold enough to make me duck back inside the house to grab my windbreaker, although if I had done so, I might have stayed out a bit longer.
I didn’t alter my usual morning route, at least not on the outward leg. After I locked the front door, I followed my by-now-familiar path to the nearby park where I love to sit and just…be. Because it’s so cool out there, I did not stay as long as I normally do, but I did snap a few photographs with my smartphone before starting my homeward leg.
It was on the return trip that I decided to deviate slightly from my normal route. Not by much, all I did was to not turn left at the corner and walk the 200 feet from there to the front porch. Instead, I crossed the street and walked east on the sidewalk of the block across from ours for fifty feet or so. Then I turned around, crossed the street at the corner, then strode quickly back to the house.
As soon as I post this, my plan is to make some coffee, toast a few slices of bread, take a shower, change clothes, and take one of my reference books to the park bench and read there for a while. I’m not sure yet whether I’ll take a military history book or one of my new writer’s “how-to” books. If I can find one of my backpacks, maybe I’ll carry one from each genre.
And with that, Dear Friend, I’ll close for now. I’ll probably post here in the afternoon – that is, if I don’t let myself get distracted and forget to, as I did yesterday. So, until then, stay safe, stay healthy, and be kind to others.
