Tag Archives: walking

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Lame Post

Yesterday afternoon winter returned to the Mohawk Valley.  I enjoyed bare roads and sidewalks in the morning, when I went for a run and turned in bottles and cans (that have been rattling around in my trunk for some weeks now, but never mind that).  I was beguiled into wearing a pair of the little canvas sneakers that I love.  My feet start to sweat after a while in running shoes.

Not good winter shoes.

In case you are wondering why I am not wearing full length pants or leggings, it is because I had a disagreement with gravity and the sidewalk while I ran, because I was trying to make a silly joke with a pedestrian.  These were more comfortable for my skinned knee.  When I went to leave the house to go to Herkimer Elks Lodge for Fish Fry, it was raining.  I went back into the house for a raincoat but was too lazy to change my shoes.  It started to snow before I got to the end of the block.

Of course it did not look like this right away.

At the Lodge, many were lamenting the snow, and I made myself very unpopular by singing, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” and observing that the snow on the trees was pretty.  “Pretty depressing,” one fellow said.

At least the fish fry was good, I carried my leftovers home carefully.  The roads were not slippery, so I counted my blessings.

In case anybody wants to follow in my footsteps.

Once I got home, I took the pictures I have just shared, starting with this one of Frankentree, who is more tree than Franken these days.

No porch sitting last night!

So here is my late Lame Post Friday post.  I almost lamed myself during my run but was not too lame to walk to and from fish fry.  Local readers take note:  Fish Fry continues at the Herkimer Elks Lodge Fridays through Easter.  Come on down!

 

Pre-Breakfast Post

I wussed out on Wednesday, not making my post till Thursday morning.  I’m thinking nobody is surprised, least of all me.  Now I am typing in haste (ten-finger typing, which is my usual thing these days), because I am meeting my Elks friends at Ann Street Deli in Little Falls, NY for breakfast.  I am hungry!  And I could use some coffee or tea.

Great for breakfast and lunch!

I easily found this picture in my Media Library.  I took it the last time we had breakfast there.  Note the crappy lump of snow in front.  The snow that is left looks crappy and dirty, and I for one am hoping no more falls to whiten it up.  However, Mother Nature rarely takes any of our hopes under advisement.

Yesterday was supposed to be the last warm day for a while, so I took advantage of the bare roads and sidewalks for a run.  I actually managed to stay on the sidewalks for most of the time, which is what I prefer to do.  You can’t count on cars slowing down.  Later on, when I took a walk, it was raining.  I had to walk down State Street, or Route 5 as it is more commonly known.  The sidewalks were muddy, and cars zoomed through the puddles, splashing wherever it landed.  Humph.  Just my little complaint of the day.  Don’t mind me.

My plans for today are to clean my house and perhaps do a Throwback Thursday blog post.  I need to write the conclusion for my murder mystery, which begins rehearsals Sunday (preview of coming attractions).  But I feel pleased I have done a blog post today of over 250 words.  250 entertaining words?  My dear readers are the judge of that.

 

Tune in for a Late Tired Tuesday

Yes, here I am, making my Tired Tuesday post on Wednesday.  Oh dear, at first I typed Thursday.  Am I in a time warp or likely to be really late with my posts?  The fact is, I have not had any Mohawk Valley Adventures since Sunday.  I went for a lovely walk in the warm weather yesterday but did not take any pictures, so a Pedestrian Post with Pictures is out of the question.  At least, I guess I could search my Media Library for pictures of stuff I walked by and took pictures of previously; I could maybe even find some with a similar amount of snow.  It seems unlikely, though.

The road less traveled?

This is from March 2020, when I was walking a lot.  I walked by this path yesterday but did not turn down it (my Chromebook wants me to  change that to “turn it down.”  Is it paying the least bit of attention?).  There was more snow yesterday, but most of the sidewalks I was on were pretty bare.  Score!

One thing I got done was the script for the murder mystery I am doing, tentative title A Revolutionary Murder.  I got it and the character sheets emailed out to my actors and a first read through scheduled (no, Chromebook, scheduled IS a word; I do not mean “schedule”) (Sheesh!).  I hope that will make a good blog post.

Did somebody say murder mystery?

I was looking for a rehearsal shot of a murder mystery, but the best I can do is a shot of a murder mystery in progress, at Salisbury Grange back in 2023.

I am feeling tired, I confess, and for no very good reason. But perhaps today I will do something blogworthy and blog about it.  I hope you’ll stay tuned.

 

Wandering Wednesday

I have not been having so many Mohawk Valley Adventures lately, and I fear today was not so much better.  But I did leave my house and go to a few places.  The first place I went was the Herkimer Elks Lodge, a regular stop of mine. However, I had to mail a couple of cards to a couple of aunts, so I left the lodge for a while.  When I returned, I realized I needed to make further wanderings.

It was a delightfully warm day, at least for the season, so I was happy to walk.  Unfortunately, the sidewalks were not always as nice as one could hope.  I did my best, and walked in the road where necessary, to the disappointment of the vehicular traffic.

Not such a good path.

After leaving the Elks I walked towards Cliff’s Market, where my bank has an ATM.  On the way I stopped at To Niche Their Own, one of my favorite little stores.  I purchased an artificial rose, to match one I obtained previously and is currently on my mantel.

It looks like my skeleton Bonaparte is holding it

I plan to purchase more of those flowers and have a bouquet, and maybe give some away.  I carried my flower with me to the Herkimer VFW, where I enjoyed a glass of Chardonnay and some conversation with fellow veterans.  Then I went to the ATM and took a long (or so it seemed to me) walk to Salvatore’s Pizzeria and Restaurant, where I got a turkey sub.  Yum!

I’m afraid I did not take too many pictures of my different Mohawk Valley Adventures today.  At least I have made a blog post.  I hope to have another adventure or two tomorrow.  As always, I hope you will tune in.

 

Not Such a Terrible Tuesday

So I missed posting on Monday.  I was not going to call attention to it but just make a Tuesday post (today is Tuesday to me, although I know my WordPress timestamp sometimes disagrees), but…

And then I realized there is not anything I can say that will not sound like whining or a really lame excuse.  I can’t use a lame excuse when it is not Lame Post Friday!  Have I been doing anything blogworthy lately?  You be the judge.

I went for a run yesterday, hoping to do a Monday Running Commentary.  It was not as long a run as my last one but not too bad.  It was cold, but I did not want to waste the bare pavement, of which there was some.  The highlight was petting a nice dog I have petted before.  He is a big shaggy one.  I wish I had a picture.   I also went the wrong way up a One Way street, as regular readers know I like to do.  I don’t suppose I can find the picture of the Do Not Enter sign.

Obviously not me running.

I could not find the sign but found this picture of Steve dancing to the Posers back in 2021, when he had gotten back from a stint in the nursing home.  We had a joyous time.  I will just mention that it would have been Steve’s 71st birthday today, which could explain my melancholy.  And yet I am so happy and grateful to have had him in my life.

This morning I did not go running, but I did venture outside in hopes of seeing the blood moon, blood being right up my alley.  I got to the end of the street, where I usually can see the moon early in the morning, before I realized the sky was completely overcast.  Silly me!  The sign at the church down the road said it was 3 degrees out.  Yikes!  However, as I walked back home, I saw the nice shaggy dog I had petted before.

“There’s that nice dog I petted before!” I said.  His person nicely stopped so I could pet him again.

So that is my Tuesday post.  Running, memories, no blood moon, petted a dog.  Really I have not been having a bad couple of days.

 

Wrist Before Walk

I fight through another case of I Just Can’t Even in hopes of at least making a Wrist to Forehead Sunday blog post.  I had thought I would go running this morning and write about yesterday’s and today’s run.  However, when I looked out the window I saw it had snowed overnight.  I don’t mind running in the snow; it takes more effort so is a better work-out.  This year, unfortunately, there is a lot of ice under the snow.  I’ve seen it; I’ve slipped on it.  I stayed inside.

I wasn’t wearing these leggings, but you get the idea.

I had great ambitions for the day.  I was going to go shopping and buy things that I could use to complete projects.  OK, that was the big ambition.  Cleaning the house did not enter into it, but it should have.  Then again, who cares what ambitions I may have had when I ran into a huge block of I Just Can’t Even around 9 a.m. (I got up at six).

Only I’m not that skinny, and I can’t do that with my hair.

I know there are cures for I Just Can’t Even.  They don’t all work for all people.  “You just have to make yourself,” has never worked for me.  I have experienced some success with “Well, just try.”  Today I tried, “Just put one thing away.”  Actually I put away more than one thing, but not nearly enough.

What I feel like these days.

There are worse things than sitting around feeling like The Blob. I will bestir myself to take a walk this afternoon.  Ooh, here’s a Freudian typo: I first put, “I will bestie myself.”  I will be my own best friend by taking a walk.  After, exercise is the magic elixir that makes many things better.

I love a blue sky and a bare tree!

I end with a cheerful picture of something I will probably see when I take my walk.  Who doesn’t love a blue sky?  Actually, I also enjoy a grey, gloomy sky.  Hey, the more things you like, the more chances for a happy mood. I hope you are having a lovely Sunday.

 

Thank Goodness It’s Tired Tuesday?

So I am making a Tired Tuesday blog post, even though I am making it earlier than I made my Monday blog post, yet I feel even more tired.  But I want to be a daily blogger, so here I go.

An oldie but a goodie.

I do not really care that it is Tuesday instead of Friday.  However, I was looking for a picture to pep things up and saw my favorite Tuesday meme.  In fact, for me Tuesday is a better day than Monday. Most Mondays I have to go to a town or village board meeting in the evening, then write a story about it for Sentinel Media.  Tuesday morning I finish the story and try to find something to take a picture of to go with it.  Once that is done, I have such a feeling of accomplishment.  Then I laugh at myself, because real reporters do much more than one or two stories a week (I have the Frankfort Town Board meeting on Thursday this week).

Random picture of snow.

I went running yesterday, on partially icy roads.  Today I walked, wearing boots and walking on snowy sidewalks.  There was ice under the snow, so I exercised caution.  The sole came off one of my boots, so I may be boot shopping tomorrow (preview of coming attractions?).

So that is my post, for better or worse.  It has been difficult for me to find bloggable activities in the winter weather, but I will try to do better tomorrow.  As always, I hope you will stay tuned.

 

Not a Useful Blog Post

It has long been a contention of mine that there is no point in trying to get anything done on a Sunday.  My brain and body rebel against all useful activity and most not so useful activity that still requires effort.  One thing that requires very little effort is a Wrist to Forehead Sunday blog post.  So here I am.

The crooked path I follow towards my ill-defined goals.

I throw in a picture to pep things up.  There are actually very few paths through the snow just now.  I tend to walk in the road, especially if I am not wearing boots.  What I would really like to find is a pair of fake leather high top sneakers.  I wore a pair of those through two Potsdam winters and my feet were dry and comfy!  One sole finally parted with the upper when I was pushing it off using the other foot.  These were the days before I had multiple pairs of footwear, so it was a little bit of a problem.  But I digress.

Did somebody say footwear?

Looking for another picture, I came across this one of Melfe’s Shoes at their old location in Ilion, NY.  That is my late, dearly missed husband Steve.  I insisted he get a really good pair of shoes to help his aching feet.  I myself purchased several pairs of running shoes and one pair of nurse’s shoes there.  Additionally, I got a free pair (or two) of safety-toe work shoes every January when I worked at Remington Arms.  It was a perk of employment. I still have the free t-shirts they give out in January.

What a scattered post.  Kind of stream of consciousness.  I see I am approaching 300 words.  I do like to keep these silly posts short.  I hope you are all having a delightful Sunday.

Melfe’s Shoes is now located at 101 W. Main St., Mohawk, NY, phone number 315-894-4049.

 

I Can’t Give You Anything But Lame

I am not only having a Lame Post Friday blog post, my entire Friday is lame.  However, it did not start out that way.  It started out with a not too bad run, and I had thought to make a Friday Running Commentary.

The weather people forecast all kinds of bad stuff for today, but it did not seem to have started yet, so I got on my running stuff and got going. I was a little nervous, because the roads looked wet and the temperature was not very much above freezing, according to my thermostat, which often gives a higher temperature than what is actually out there.  But I had not run since Monday.  I may still register for the Boilermaker 15K.  And I am not losing any weight!

Right away I felt some cold raindrops on my face.  Oh swell.  Was it freezing rain, the beginning of the wintry mix we had been promised?  Never mind.  I was out there, I would give it a shot.  I kept to the roads, which had been sanded.  As long as I felt something crunching under my sneakers, I felt all right.  When I turned onto German Street and moved to the side of the road due to traffic, I felt one foot slide.  Oh dear!  But my old lady shuffling pace saved me. I stuck to the side streets after that.

Picture taken during my cool-down walk.

Early on in my run, I felt a kind of time warp as I saw somebody’s Christmas tree at the curb. It didn’t look dried out or anything!  Had these people kept watering it throughout January and most of February?  Sometimes after a run I feel like collapsing on the curb and waiting for somebody to haul me away, but that was not the case today.  The run felt pretty good, and I felt pretty good.

The better day to run would have been yesterday, when the roads were bare.  However, I went over to my sister Cheryl’s, and played in the snow with her two grandkids.  She and her son-in-law were chipping ice out of the gutter.  The snow was the crunchy kind, crusted on top, soft underneath.  It is an effort to walk around in such snow but so fun to make the crunch.  The kids got the idea to make a snow fort using some of the ice-ish layer, you know, the part you crunch through.  I helped them carry chunks of ice.  It must have been good exercise, because I got quite out of breath.

It is hard to see the edifice, because of white on white.

I also helped find a couple of the sticks we decorated it with.  Anyways, running on the sanded ice, crunching though the icy snow, I had two days of exercise.  Will I manage to leave the house tomorrow?  It will depend on what Mother Nature piles on us overnight!

 

I Didn’t Can It

I did not mean to go to the tasting at Valley Wine and Liquor in Herkimer, NY on Friday (yesterday). However, I was taking a walk for my mental and physical health, remembered I was short on cash so stopped by the ATM, realized the ATM was right across the street from the liquid store (OK, that is why I chose that ATM), and decided to stop in.

He was a cool guy.

They were sampling Cutwater canned cocktails.  I am not a huge cocktail drinker myself, but I thought it was worth a taste.  I said they would be good for parties, especially outdoor parties in the summer.  I’m sure many people would like to sip out of a can poolside.  I guess that is looking a few months ahead.  Eddie, the young man pouring, said they would also be good for bars.  I agreed, noting how bartenders maybe be too busy to make fancy drinks, and two bartenders may make the same drink differently.

There were three martinis: Espresso, Chocolate Espresso, and Lemon Drop.  Oh, were they yummy!  And dangerous!  The Lemon Drop tasted just like lemonade, and I could see myself sucking down the Chocolate Espresso as if it was chocolate milk (my recovery beverage after a work-out).  Personally, I prefer my booze to taste like booze, and I sip it slowly.  Still, to have one at a party…

I also liked the Lime Margarita.  It was as good as any blender Margarita I have had.  The Spicy Bloody Mary was also good.  I actually liked it better than the ones I make myself, because it was not too thick, which is the effect the tomato juice sometimes has (you may suggest I add more vodka, but I will refrain from doing so).

Last was the Long Island Iced Tea.  Of course I told the story of how that was one of the first cocktails I ever had, at JJ’s in Rome, NY, age 18 (which was the drinking age at the time).  It tasted just like iced tea, and I got into a little bit of trouble that way.  I never had an iced tea that tasted as good since, even in Long Island.  This one tasted just like iced tea. I was not really surprised, after the Lemon Drop Martini that tasted like lemonade.

I had a nice time sampling, and made tasting notes.  I will keep Cutwater in mind if I have any parties this summer.  I will inquire of my guests what they might like.  I personally will probably stick with wine.  Well, maybe one Cutwater can.  But not of each!