Category Archives: Pedestrain Post

Not Wrist, Walk

Posted on April 20, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I feel it would be wrong to have Wrist to Forehead Sunday on Easter. And in any case it is unnecessary. My wrists are in their accustomed place, just beyond the edge of my keyboard, as I type. I shall offer instead a Pedestrian Post, utilizing a very nice walk I took with my schnoodle Tabby this morning.

I had to take my husband Steven to work at nine, in order to pick him up at one and go to Rome to my parents’ house for dinner. I have a list of things to accomplish in the meantime (I was taking my chances in doing this as such lists often send my wrist right to my forehead — “I’ll NEVER get these things done!”). I did the worst thing first, a sensible action I rarely take. I did the dishes. Then I did what promised to be one of the most pleasant: taking my dog for a walk.

It is as fine as an Easter morning ought to be: bright and sunny. Not awfully warm yet, but it’s early. At least I didn’t feel I needed my toque and insulated sweatshirt. Regular sweatshirt and crazy old lady hat. Prescription sunglasses and a couple of poop bags. I was ready.

Tabby was very happy to go. And stop. Of course dogs like to stop and sniff a lot, that is what they do. Today she seemed to find even more interesting spots than usual. I tried to indulge her as much as possible, although I do try to keep her from sticking her face into other dogs’ poo (WHY do these dog owners not pick it up like the rest of us do?).

We went by our favorite Historic Four Corners and down Main Street. We met a lady walking a very cute little white dog. The dog was quite interested in meeting Tabby. The lady and I petted each others’ dogs and chatted a little. It’s nice to meet another dog owner.

Heading up another street, we walked by a young man on a cell phone. He was too intent on his conversation to notice us. Tabby gave him an interested look but let him by. I saw a young lady further down the street on a cell phone, alternately talking into it and hollering at her kids not to come outside. I thought it would be funny if she was talking to the young man.

It was funny. I heard her say, “NOW do you know where you’re going?” and head back into the house. Then he headed towards that house. What did we do without cell phones? Got better directions and read house numbers, I suppose.

When we were almost home I saw a lady and little girl walking towards us. Tabby definitely wanted to meet them, because she walked right by our house towards them.

“My dog loves to meet people,” I told them.

The lady said her little girl was sometimes afraid of dogs, but I assured her Tabby was a good dog. They both petted her. The little girl seemed pretty OK with it. Really, Tabby is a most unthreatening pooch.

We enjoyed our Easter walk. Now I must see about crossing a few more things off that list before it’s time to pick up Steve (I guess I can at least cross off “Make blog post.”)

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Maybe the Sun will Thaw Out my Brain

Posted on April 20, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

In my defense, it’s a a holiday weekend. How productive am I expected to be? The sad thing is, I have a whole list of potential blog topics involving recent Mohawk Valley adventures. I even know where the list is.

And yet. And yet.

I took two walks with my schnoodle Tabby today. The first was less than a thrill for me, because of the chilly breeze. I felt so ill-used that this is the latter half of April and I still had on my toque and insulated sweatshirt and only wished I had also worn a scarf.

Before the second walk, I had been to Hannaford, to pick up a few last minute supper things (I MAY manage a cooking post for Wrist to Forehead Sunday). It had been cold walking from my vehicle to the store. And I wasn’t wearing my toque (I should have been; I’m having a bad hair day).

The reason we even went on the second walk was that I couldn’t come up with a damn other useful thing to do. I had done dishes, worked on my novel, put away laundry (NEVER MIND how long ago I actually did said laundry), and still felt as if all I had been doing had been to sit around thinking of silly statuses to post on Facebook (I came up with one).

Tabby was, of course, into it, so I put on my insulated sweatshirt and toque and we set out.

To find that the sun was AT LAST having an effect! I took off the insulated sweatshirt and tied it around my waist. This was awesome! I could have even worn my crazy old lady hat, but I did not repine. I enjoyed the warmth. I felt blessed and happy.

But still not the least bit inclined to write a real blog post. Still, I like to post every day. So I hope this silliness will do.

And I will TRY not to have a Wrist to Forehead Sunday on Easter.

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I Keep Walking

Posted on April 10, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I don’t want to say this too loudly, but I think spring has come to the Mohawk Valley. Shhh! Don’t talk too much about it; we don’t want to scare it away.

OK, that was a little silly (what a surprise). It is by way of an introduction to a pedestrian post on a walk taken today. Tomorrow is supposed to be the heat wave of 60 degrees. Today was supposed to be in the 40s, with a cold front bringing rain, so I thought. I must have misheard the weather report this morning, because it was sunny. I even considered wearing my crazy old lady hat. However, the wind dissuaded me. I made do with sunglasses, only one (not insulated) sweatshirt and no toque. Tabby just about managed to stand still so I could get the harness on her, and we were off.

I had poop bags in both cargo pockets of my BDU pants (I hadn’t changed out of them after work) as well as a bag for any cans or bottles I might find. My regular glasses were also in one pocket, in case it suddenly got cloudy. After half a block of listening to them rattle, I took them out and carried them. Then decided I had been silly to bring them at all, because there was not a cloud in the sky.

The wind, however, was quite fierce. Maybe I could have used my toque. Instead I put up the hood of my sweatshirt and tied it. Wind like that always worries me, though. I think somebody might come along and drop a house on me.

We walked down German Street and through the path over what used to be a hydraulic canal. We met a nice lady with a toddler. Tabby was more interested in sniffing the empty stroller, which surprised me a little. In general, Tabby is anxious to meet the people. The lady tried to get the toddler to pet Tabby. As we walked away, he became more interested in her. I could hear him making a noise that I think was supposed to be “woof! woof!” We met a few other people as we walked. Some said hello or remarked on my cute little dog, but nobody petted Tabby (don’t worry; I petted her later).

We went down Main Street, across Albany Street and up Prospect. It was not until Prospect that I spotted a plastic bottle. Score! Then the bag blew out of my hand. I gave chase, dragging Tabby along with me. Got it! When I turned back around, the wind took the bottle and sent it rolling across the street. I was not about to drag my dog twice in one day (oh stop shaking your finger at me, I didn’t really DRAG her, I pulled the leash and she came along, you don’t have to call PETA). So I didn’t make a nickel out of our walk, but I did have a laugh at myself.

I didn’t think it was such a long walk, but my legs started to get tired several blocks from home. This is swell, I thought. I was going to start running again and train for a 5K in May. That might be a problem.

As I turned my tired legs toward home, the wind got even more fierce. It didn’t seem to bother Tabby. I guess she’s smaller and offers less wind resistance. So there’s another good reason for me to lose weight. Keep walking, Cindy!

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Come On, Spring!

Posted on March 25, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I begin my week with a Pedestrian Post (we all know the week begins Monday not Sunday, right?) rather than a Middle-aged Musings Monday. I did write something earlier, but it’s not ready yet. I want it to marinade in my brain before I edit further.

And can I just say, dammit, it’s the last week of March. Is 50 degrees too much to ask? Apparently so. Still, the sun was out, sporadically at least. I thought, hat, gloves, a scarf in case the wind picks up. I’d be fine.

Of course I forgot to put on the gloves and scarf. What can I say, it’s been a long day and I had an anxious schnoodle barking at me to hurry up. I pulled my sleeves down over my hands (my coats are all too big on me) and hoped for the best.

It wasn’t too bad on my hands. When the wind picked up, however, my face got to feeling quite uncomfortable. Oh well, these things happen. Dogs must be walked, after all, and I needed the exercise myself. At least there weren’t as many puddles or treacherous patches of ice. Enough to keep me on my toes but not enough to land me on my ass. Luckily.

We walked down Bellinger Street, sometimes on bare sidewalk, sometimes on muddy grass. We saw some workers from National NiMo working on something in a hole in the street. Tabby looked interested, but I didn’t let her go investigate. She probably thought the workers wanted to pet her.

Continuing down one street I saw three houses posted as uninhabitable. Oh dear. I suppose these things happen in every town. I looked around for something more cheerful to observe. I saw a free-standing porch swing in somebody’s yard. That made me think fondly of sitting outside, which I’m sure will be possible around here one day soon. March is too early for that even at more seasonable temperatures, I reminded myself.

I saw a beer can in the street and realized I had forgotten to bring a bag to put it in. No matter, I had two poop bags. One could just as easily be a can bag. I found two more cans as the walk continued. I laughed at myself for being pleased over fifteen cents. Then again, it didn’t cost me anything but a little effort to pick them up. I was taking the walk anyways. It will cost a little more effort and some gas to take the cans to the redemption center, but I can wait till I’ve collected a few more before I do that.

Soon I hope to be seeing crocuses when we take these walks. Then I can admire other people’s gardens, comparing them favorably or otherwise with mine. Ooh, and I can write blog posts about my gardening adventures. Come on, spring!

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Birthday Walk

Posted on March 2, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I like to start my Saturday with a run or a walk. Unfortunately my difficulties running continue. Barring a run, I like to walk with my schnoodle, Tabby, to the post office and mail postcards to a few people. Accordingly, I wrote five postcards and stamped them.

Then noticed it was eleven degrees out. Yes, I know, at least it was double digits. I can be thankful for small favors and still stay inside. We drove to the post office. By this afternoon, the temperature had risen into the upper twenties. That sounded good to me. Steven graciously agreed to accompany us on our walk.

I should perhaps mention that Steven is usually working on Saturday. This weekend we both have a glorious three days off to celebrate his birthday. Well, to celebrate yet another anniversary of his 29th birthday. So I suppose this was along the lines of a birthday walk (his actual birthday is Monday, in case anybody was wondering).

It was one of those hazy sunny days, where the light scatters and the snow doesn’t help. I was glad of my prescription sunglasses. They are brown polarized, perfect for such a day. I hope nobody thinks I am a spoiled, rich brat that I have polarized prescription sunglasses. I got them several years ago, when I worked in the optical industry. They were free.

(Reminder for next Lame Post Friday: philosophize half-bakedly on why I felt the need to point out that I do not spend infinite dollars on eyewear.)

We walked past Tabby’s beloved Historic Four Corners and down Main Street in Herkimer, NY. Steven stopped into Smoker’s Friendly to purchase lottery tickets. By this time tomorrow, we may be millionaires. That might be worth a blog post. We continued down Main Street.

We once again realize we have not gone to the new pizza place, whose name escapes me. We also noticed that Burrito Jones is now open. All kinds of meals yet to have. Oh, and we smelled something good coming from Brian’s Roast Beef Deli, where we have eaten many times and will no doubt eat again. We also saw that Exclusive Barbershop has a new awning, nicely painted. I need a haircut, but I usually go to the Hot Spot Salon and Spa, where I can also get a pedicure.

It was not too bad walking. The temperatures were not as glorious as last weekend, but at least it didn’t make our faces hurt. The sidewalks were pretty good, except for a few patches of ice which I warned Steven about. Usually my warning Steven comes right before I land on my own butt, but today I avoided such an eventuality.

We had a few other Mohawk Valley adventures today, and plan a couple more before the weekend is over. However, I like Running Commentary or a Pedestrian Post on Saturday. I enjoyed our walk, and I do like writing about them. I hope my dear readers are enjoying their Saturday as much.

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Still Strolling

Posted on February 24, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I can’t, I positively can’t do another pedestrian post. Is walking the only thing I have to do in the Mohawk Valley? Well, truth be told, when the temperature finally goes above 40 degrees, walking is about the most satisfying thing to do.

I do want to start running again. Today I went so far as to bring my mother’s mini-tram down from the extra bedroom. I had the plan to run on it while I looked at a silent movie on DVD. I felt quite clever for thinking of this plan. You see, I rarely watch silent movies, because I like to knit or crochet while I watch. For a silent movie, you miss too much if you are not glued to the screen. I figured I could run on a mini-tramp and stay pretty glued to the screen.

The movie I chose was Nosferatu (1922), possibly the scariest movie ever made. I first saw part of Nosferatu in sixth grade. My elementary school got movies from the library (real movies on a reel; this was the 1970s) and showed them on Friday nights. My mom and Mrs. Lombino were among the ladies in charge of picking the movies. One October they got “a silent version of Dracula.” They thought it would be great. Aren’t silent movies always hilarious?

Um, no. Little kids were crying. They didn’t show the whole movie, although some of us would have liked to see it. I never encountered the movie again till years later. Now I have it on not one but two DVD collections of horror movies. Sweet.

OK, that whole stroll down memory lane was just to pad out the post. I can’t write about the movie, because I only watched about two minutes of it. I was thinking of how warm it probably was outside, and my dog was looking at me sadly.

So I got off the tramp, stopped the movie and walked the dog. I could always get back on the tramp later, but I am more likely to see if Tabby wants to go for another walk. I know, it is not as good exercise, taking a strolling walk and pausing to let a cute little dog sniff the snow. I don’t care. It is better for my soul.

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Yay, Flood Boots!

Posted on February 23, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Looking back, I see I have done a number of pedestrian posts lately. Could it be that my life is so boring all I do is work, sleep and walk my dog? Well, sometimes I eat and read books. Perhaps I can write blog posts about those subjects next week.

Today I TRIED to walk my schnoodle Tabby first thing in the morning. And by “first thing,” I mean, when my husband Steven left for work. I’d been up a good four or five hours by that time but hadn’t done must noteworthy or blogworthy. Well, I did finish two letters and write five postcards. That was why I wanted to walk to the post office.

Yesterday the sidewalks had been quite wet. It was supposed to continue warm today, although it had been cold overnight. I thought my winter combat boots (army issue, of course) would be good. I was picturing more ice than puddles and the combat boots offer some traction.

Um, not enough. All that water had frozen into a lovely, glare surface. Maybe cleats would have offered enough traction. Maybe ice skates would have been a better choice (mine perished in last summer’s flood, although I confess I had not worn them in years). It was scary! I don’t think I’m old enough to worry about breaking a hip, but even my fat butt doesn’t offer enough padding to make me view with complacence a fall on hard ice.

We made it two blocks. Mostly we walked in the road, which was still pretty icy, because 9 a.m. traffic in my neighborhood is not bad. Finally the thought that every step I took TO the post office I would have to repeat BACK from the post office overcame me. We went back home and drove to the post office.

I felt humiliated, because the weather had driven me back inside on the prettiest sunny day you could ask for. I had on my sunglasses, dammit! I had on my insulated sweatshirt instead of a coat! But the story has a happy ending, because the sun stayed out. About two o’clock, we tried again. This time I wore my flood boots, anticipating puddles not ice.

Oh, you can’t believe what a wonderful walk it was! The ice we encountered was melting. There were a few patches of bare pavement. Most of the sidewalks had lovely, safe, wet puddles. Not even very muddy. And can I just say, let’s hear it for flood boots. The air was warm. The sun was bright. A little voice in my head sang, “I’m in heaven! I’m in heaven!”

The only problem blog-post-wise is that I had to keep my eyes pretty much on my feet, for when we went over the ice that hadn’t all melted yet. I did not look around and appreciate the scenery as I like to do.

However, to make this a Mohawk Valley adventure, I can tell you where we walked to: The Herkimer Police Department to purchase tickets for the Beer and Wine Tasting Event on Saturday, March 8 from 6 to 10 p.m. at Francesca’s Banquet Hall, East Main Street, Ilion, NY. In addition to beer and wine tasting, hor d’oevres will be served. A 50/50 raffle and silent auction will take place. Participants will have a chance to meet officers and team members who responded to the tragic events in Herkimer and Mohawk March 13 and 14, 2013. Proceeds will be split between the Herkimer/Mohawk Special Response Team and K-9 Ape memorial.

While I bought our tickets, I took the opportunity to ask the officer if they had a stupid question department. I may have a few questions about police work for the novel I keep working on instead of writing blog posts all week. He was very gracious and said I could stop in with my questions when I was ready. That might be another blog post.

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My Dog the Blues Singer

Posted on February 21, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Could relief be on the way? I mean from the cold weather, not from me writing silly blog posts. Today it was in the 40s. Woohoo! It felt like spring! Steven and I celebrated with a walk with our schnoodle Tabby.

I put on old sneakers, because I feared it would be wet and muddy. We did not encounter much mud, but our feet were soaked by the time we’d gone a block. No matter. As I always say, I ain’t sugar; I won’t melt (but it might be nice in the hip and stomach area if I did) (just saying).

It was, unfortunately, an uneventful and short walk. The only thing of real interest were the two cop cars we saw blocking off a portion of Church Street we probably would have walked on otherwise. Their lights were flashing. I’ll be watching Facebook to see if Herkimer Police Department posts anything about it. Maybe that’s what I can write tomorrow’s post about, although this is not exactly a news or a crime blog.

The only sad thing about the wet walk was that Tabby had just been to the groomer’s today. We take her to the Velvet Dog on South Main Street in Herkimer. Since she is part poodle, she needs to be trimmed regularly. It’s also nice to have a professional clip her toenails. Tabby did not get too dirty on our walk, though. Just some muddy paws (doesn’t that sound like a blues singer, Muddy Paws?).

I’m afraid this has been a rather boring post, even for a Non-Sequitur Thursday. In my defense… OK, I won’t say anything in my defense, because that might be construed as whining. Instead, let’s all look forward to Lame Post Friday.

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Short Stroll, Scratch n Sniff

Posted on February 19, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

It is really difficult to have Mohawk Valley adventures during the winter. Another difficult thing: making a blog post when a cute little dog expects you to keep petting her. Naturally I do my best to oblige.

Yesterday we went for a walk. I thought for sure it would be warmer today so we might go for a longer one. Well, it may be warmer, but the snow is coming down in copious amounts and has been doing so all day. Tabby may enjoy plowing through the drifts up to her chest, but she does not seem to like being out while it is actually precipitating. Perhaps we could have a rousing game of That’s My Toy later on.

In the meantime, I will attempt a short pedestrian post about yesterday’s stroll. Once again I forgot to put my scarf back on (I had it when I got home from work), so my face got cold. I had not put Tabby’s coat on her, but she seemed OK with that. She certainly enjoyed sniffing many places. I don’t think the snow is conducive to dogs’ sense of smell, because Tabby kept digging and sniffing. I kept checking to make sure she wasn’t unburying some other dog’s poo.

“You don’t need to smell that dog’s poo,” I tell her. “You know what poo smells like.”

Her head perked up as we walked down Henry Street, because she saw people. One adult and three children were in front of a house. The man and little boy seemed to be shoveling. Two little girls were in a fort. I haven’t built a snow fort in a long time! We exchanged greetings. Tabby seemed inclined to go right up to them.

“My dog is so friendly,” I said.

Tabby seemed quite happy that our walk was short. She ran right for the door instead of out into the back yard when I took her off the leash. I was happy to get back into the warm house, too.

I see that as a blogger, I should have taken up some winter sports, so I would have more to write about this time of year. Hmmmm…. perhaps I could patronize some local businesses instead. Or watch another cheesy movie. Still, I’ve come up with over 1,000 posts. I can’t quit now.

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Tabby, the Snow-Faced Dog

Posted on February 16, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I thought of this title as I was walking with Tabby around the blog yesterday. I did not use it then, because I wrote some lame thing (it was Lame Post Friday after all), but when I walked with Tabby to the post office this morning, I thought it might be a good post to write today.

We did not make it to the post office last Saturday (sorry, post card friends) and I had a new person to sent a post card to, so I wanted to make sure I wrote and sent some cards. After Steven left for work, shortly before 10 a.m., we set out.

Steven and I had been out shoveling earlier, so I knew it was not too cold (incidentally, BIG thank you to our across the street neighbor, who came over with his snowblower and helped us). I did put on my warmest coat, because it has nice deep pockets, gloves but no scarf. I wore Steven’s fancy earmuffs, so as not to mess up my hair too much, because I had plans for later in the day.

Some sidewalks had been nicely shoveled, plowed or snowblowed. Others not so much. We jaywalked twice to get on the side of the street with the best sidewalk (which in some cases was not saying much). I guess I didn’t really have to jaywalk, but plowing through the snow that was there was getting to be quite the effort. Yes, even the parts that were nicely cleared were not completely clear. And many parts were not even nicely cleared.

And here is my rant of the post: It is not nice to completely clear a path from your door to your driveway and leave completely uncleared the rest of the sidewalk in front of your house. Yes, corner houses have more to clear than others, and, yes, some people have to make great effort to clear anything at all. But I think, and I stand by it, that when you have a wide, beautifully cleared path where you need it, it would not be unreasonable to at least make an effort where pedestrians (including middle-aged ladies and cute little doggies) have to walk.

I’m not asking for miracles! Well, I suppose I am, because I am asking some people to be considerate of other people. To expound further upon this theme would require some half-baked philosophy worthy of Lame Post Friday. We have another six days to wait for that.

In spite of our uncleared sidewalk woes (to be fair, many Herkimer residents made an effort and I am quite grateful to them all), we enjoyed our walk. Tabby, as usual, wanted to stop and sniff every few feet. Also as usual, I tried to strike a balance between indulging my pooch and not taking till spring for one walk to the post office.

It seems to take Tabby longer to sniff at each stop this time of year. Perhaps the cold temperatures make the odors less obvious. Still, she must smell something. She digs at the snow, sometimes burying her face in the drift (hence today’s title). Eventually, she is happy to move on.

I am happy to move on, too. It really is great to get out and walk. Sometimes it’s a little too cold for such adventures, but one must endure these things. I also remind myself, plowing through snow takes more effort and hence probably burns more calories. Score! Yes, there are good things about winter in the Mohawk Valley.

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