Swimming

Yesterday N and I had our kayaking lesson at the metro park pool just outside Oberlin. Most of the stuff was a little too beginnerish for us but there was some helpful stuff about strokes and turns. There were 6 of us students and 2 instructors. Ages ranged from the mid-40's to lower-80's - we were in the middle of that group. The class started with everyone rolling their boats and escaping the cockpit - that means we got wet and proved that we weren't going to drown. I figure that was the last time I want to exit the kayak except onto dry land. Another amusing point was when we played "follow the leader" around the pond. I think it was to have fun practicing maneuvering. However it rapidly turned into bumper boats. All in all a good experience and I'm sure we'll feel more confident in our boats.

Strong storm passed just south of us this afternoon which means we are still hot and muggy and the ground is dry. Haven't mowed in almost a month.

White Squirrel is becoming a regular at our feeders. Seems to prefer the mornings. We watch it as we and it eat breakfast.

Addendum: Tonight N and I kayaked again at Findley State Park. Again we thought it would be just a quiet paddle for exercise and it turned out to be a wildlife event. Greate Blue Herons (of course, we chased them around the lake), Green Herons, Carp (big, big carp that were wallowing on their sides in shallow water and then exploded in escape almost running into our boats), Kingfishers, and, as we were docking in the rapidly oncoming darkness, a small watersnake that beat us to the dock.

And in the darkness as we tied the kayaks to the top of the CRV a V of geese honked their way over the lake past us. A complete evening. Time to give the kayaks a rest and to start traveling again - summer road trip number 3.

Kayaking Again

N and I went kayaking a second time to Findley State Park near Wellington Friday. Had to rush out after trying to deal with my sister's computer problem. But a late start was fine. Again found ourselves chasing Great Blue Herons. Then found ourselves hearing what sounded like the theme from "O Brother Where Art Thou" drifting over the water. Came around a bend and found a group of what appeared to be a young group of Mennonites seated on a grassy patch of the picnic grounds facing the sunset and singing religious songs in 4-part harmony. So we parked our kayaks in the calm waters and watched the sunset admidst the verses. Ended our evening loading the boats on the Honda as it darkened.

Saturday was spent sleeping late and then working on the garage. We need space for the kayaks. Seems like our lives are being defined by the kayaks.

If MJM can so can I....

If M can have his blog why can't I? While reading his blog the thought occured to me that I should try posting my thoughts and events too. The photo shows N kayaking taken from my kayak. What you don't see are the 5 great blue herons that we saw that evening. Did you know that the GBH's "lighten their loads" just before they achieve flight?