It was a two walk weekend, after a week of only one. And that one was to the shops. With a brief diversion into the cemetery. Those angels. They need watching over.
Angels and crosses
Something about having strangers working in the house makes me want to stay in – not because I don’t trust them, I do. But it’s as if I’m in a real office with people who aren’t home from work, but people who are at work. Like me.
As a result I’ve done more work than usual and even – the prof will never believe it (he’s in Ghana) – done some filing. I can see the floor. Most of it.
But back to the walks.
The sun shone both days. I felt grateful to Nature for smiling on me. And it was good to be free.
It took a while to break the invisible chains. My metaphorical apron strings? There’s certainly lots of cleaning to do 😦
I left the house as Saturday afternoon threatened to turn to evening and returned to the local sand dunes.
Despite all the foot-and pawfall, it feels remote and quiet
It was more perfunctory this time, exercise with a little observation thrown in, rather than the other way round.
As I set out, after several cheery hellos, I thought, ‘this has to be the friendliest place to walk.’
Little did I know the extremes that friendliness would reach …
It wasn’t every dog (the Labradors abstained).
Most of them were small and their enthusiasm reached no further than my knees or thighs. And as it hadn’t rained, the paw marks – being sandy – rubbed off.
But the biggest one was big. Very big. And VERY friendly. So friendly it came close to knocking me over – just before it licked my face.
I had to laugh. I’m not a dog person, but they do have a special something. Well, some of them.
A survivor
Which creatures are so tall they can play netball with this hoop?
Look at the curl in that trunk!
The wind section of the coastal orchestra – where’s the conductor?
Gorgeous!
That was Saturday’s walk, then, with added dogs.
Yesterday the dogs were at loggerheads. The humans were at Loggerheads too, but not at loggerheads with each other. Although they were with each other – the humans – at Loggerheads. Just not at loggerheads.
It was only the dogs who were really at loggerheads at Loggerheads. Snarling and barking and fighting
I was at Loggerheads, but not with anyone, I was alone. So I was at Loggerheads but not at loggerheads.
You’ve probably guessed by now, Loggerheads is a place. In Wales. People go there on sunny Sundays, even when the clocks have gone forward, to walk. Some with angry dogs.
The walk was a tad more strenuous than anticipated. I knew there’d be a climb, but wasn’t quite prepared for the steepness.
Cliffs!
But I made it to the top.
The Clwydian hills
Then spent the next mile recovering as I walked through the woods and back down along the river.
A family of lost limbs in a tree caress, as the fungi begin their work
Snowdrops gone, I suspect wild garlic will be pungent soon
A reminder we’re in Wales
There are many logs at Loggerheads.
I could have been a log lady if I’d picked one up.
I was fascinated by the Log Lady in Twin Peaks. RIP, bless her. She made such a poignant appearance in the latest series.
But I left the logs behind.
They line the paths by the river
Make interesting patterns (well I think so)
Mourn their lost body parts
We’d have been at loggerheads if I’d seen the human who left this log adornment
Drove on to Ruthin intending to eat, buy someone a birthday present. But the crafts were expensive and the café … I just thought, I’d rather go home. So I did.
And once home (delayed by horrendous traffic jams in my home town) I put my ready meal in the tiny, counter-top oven and set to thinking of more important things.
Two people in particular brought me back to reality from my self-indulgent introspection this weekend.
Blogging friend Ardysez wrote a post – do read it – about the #MarchForOurLives. The song she posted had me in tears.
Then my sister-in-law sent these, from recently terrorised Austin, Texas – where she’d been on a #MarchForOurLives march.
It says: I call B.S.
I’m so humbled by the young people who have created this great movement.
They’ve plainly said to their government, don’t tell us you can’t, you CAN do something.
We DON’T have to allow people to buy these weapons of mass destruction.
That’s what they are – aren’t they?
Watch this, if you haven’t already. Be patient, watch it right through – you can spare six minutes, can’t you? – and see what I mean.
This young woman stunned me. The bravery, at her age, to stand before a massive crowd and speak – but even more bravely, stand silent. And how powerful, that silence.
All of which reminded me that I – we – should pay attention to our world. Not because we can do things, always – which is what sometimes makes me turn from the news, feeling I can’t do anything.
But by supporting those who do take action – with praise, funds, our voices whenever we can use them – that’s better than doing nothing. If we all shout, the people who can do something will eventually hear – and recognise a voter’s anger.
Though there are those, like Old Jules, who take a more cycnical view.*
*[Edit: in my haste to add his interesting views, I did misrepresent Old Jules – see his comment below. ]
But I’m eschewing cynical. And writing in Britain, where guns – and death by gun – are rare, I’ve always been appalled by the USA’s NRA.
No citizen needs an assault weapon.
It’s time to call time on the casual acceptance of mass murdering wepaons by adults who should know better. It’s as simple as that.
OK.
I’ll get back to coherent, thought-through posts one day.
Meanwhile. Welcome to summer time.
MEMOIRS OF A HUSK 
Thanks for taking us with you on the lovely walk! Delightful. And I join you in applauding the young.
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Nice to have your company! Maybe the oldies can do their own thing next?????
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Thanks for the ping. Fact is, as I explained, even though I’ve no confidence there’s any truth in what they’re asserting, I’d join them in their cause.
“So what a lucky coincidence! The flood that’s going to sweep away assault rifles [I couldn’t care less about] will carry with it the people who want to rob senior citizens of their livelihood, health care, and keep them from having to live under bridges [which the anti-gun youngsters couldn’t care less about].
“f I had to take away every assault rifle in the US to save my SS pension and Medicare, I’d be out there carrying signs pretending to believe that confiscating every assault rifle in existence would stop those school shootings”.
It’s there in the young consciousness that those pro-gun folks have other issues they carry in the same pouch. But someone’s going to have to explain to them that those other issues might be the ones to carry it over the top in November. Someone commented on my blog entry, “Eventually, many of these bright kids will discover the amazing power of coalition building. It wouldn’t surprise me if the networking hasn’t already taken root.”
Living in a real world where people get moving over more than one thing is sometimes a confusing object of understanding. Old Jules
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Oh dear, in my haste to share (a last minute addition after I read it this morning) your post – and I did read it properly, honest – I did rather misrepresent you. I shall add a little note. Thanks very much for stopping by and patiently explaining – again! I am so glad to see them organising.
By the way, I have just walked the mile and a half to the shops to buy a plunger and drain cleaner. On my way back – before I got this comment – I was thinking of you. Thinking – why doesn’t he organise with other folks in the same situation and do what the young folks are doing? He’s a voter. Then I thought, hmm, from what I glean from your writings you are surrounded by the equivalent of turkeys voting for Christmas. But the question applies to those who aren’t – why don’t they organise? We use social media – surely some of them can harness it. Whatever, Jules, sorry for misrepresenting you and glad you’re on the train even if you don’t think you’re going to reach one if its destinations – good may be done in the long run. All the best, Mary
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Lovely walk tho very endemic. Powerful young woman , think the silence was very powerful .
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My walks are often endemic!!!! Rarely so energetic as yesterday’s. My it was steep! And one leg is not as good at pushing off as the other since the op so it was hard work for poor old leftie! (And to be honest, I’m not sure I would have bothered if I’d know what it was like)
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Meant to be energetic not endemic !
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Thanks for sending Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s beautiful song.
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You’re welcome, I loved it.
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And for the pictures ♥
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Having served two tours in Vietnam in an infantry unit I saw firsthand the horrors that an assault rifle can inflict. These weapons have no place in a civilized society.
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I don’t really maea I like the comment, it’s terrible you had to witness such things as a young man, but I like that you say it, it has to be said and louder and louder and louder till it is deafening those whose ears are closed.
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I enjoy being taken along on your walks (literal and metaphorical), enhanced by the photographs. This time I particularly enjoyed the photos of the gnarled tree and the “tree caress.” Your perspective on the March for Life is interesting. I’ve tried to imagine our gun-insanity from outside. It helps that I can remember when it wasn’t this way, when automatic weapons weren’t allowed and our society wasn’t obsessed with guns. I remember the devastating shock of the first of these modern school shootings, Columbine. Then we couldn’t conceive of the mounting horror we’re experiencing now. These motivated teenagers give us hope.
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Thank you – I loved that tree caress – sort of poignant. Reading a lot about trees lately (The Hidden Life of Trees esp) I see felled trees and stumps and think how that stump can live for many, many years, decades, hundreds of years – yet its reason for existence had gone. Sigh.
Sadly, re the guns, you have so many in circulation. Since the Dunblane massacre in Scotland huge numbers of firearms and ammunition were taken out of circulation and most gun ownership, other than shotguns etc for farmers, was restricted to storing and using guns at licensed facilities. I just looked up the government stats for death by shooting – in England and Wales there were 32 homicide victims killed by shooting in the year ending March 2017. Stark comparison, isn’t it? We simply cannot understand how any civilised nation would want to allow just anybody to own assault weapons or carry concealed handguns in public places – like at universities for goodness’s sake! Simple as that. But no simple either. Follow the money…
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Love your links! I was taken with ‘You can have my Social Security check when you pry it from my cold dead fingers’ LOL but I guess you’d call me a cynic!
You do seem to be warming towards dogs though, there’s hope for you yet. Perhaps when Africa no longer beckons and you’re both tired of wanderlust abroad you might get to know, close up, what a dog can give, on top of encouragement to go on walks for which they’re particularly talented.
As for the march, if ten years of marching from Aldermaston failed to dent nuclear weapons, I’m only cynical about their ability to fight the vested power of the arms industry, which, after all, keeps America the superpower it is, both directly with armed muscle dominating the world, and also from its profitability from exports and home sales. The young are always fearless and optimistic, someone’s gotta do it. And a school shooting using only hand guns would rather take the wind out of their sails.
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I did misrepresent Old Jules, felt bad about that. It was a good post. You might want to follow him – you two could have some ding dong arguments 😉
I have a hygiene phobia when it comes to pets I’m afraid. Could not – just could not – do the poop scooping thing. Talking of which – the first walk around the dunes – people had very carefully left their pretty bags of dog poo dotted all around the place – what is it with them???? And you must know – are the bags biodegradable at least? If not, why not?
I agree that CND has failed to rid hte world of nuclear weapons but it’s important ot keep the issue live – they are doing an anniversary march this year. Consciousness of just how horrific and possibly terminal for humanity nuclear conflict would be seems to have faded and may never have existed in a younger generation… Need to get my novel published 😉
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It was a good post from Jules, and I shall follow him. Two old men arguing, that’ll be novel!
As for your hygene phobia, you have to deprogram all that ‘ugh, dirty dirty’ conditioning you succumbed to! Muslims think dogs are dirty animals, and that only shows how ignorant they are. Dogs are incredibly clean, their saliva is highly antiseptic, which is hoiw they prevent most i9nfections from wounds. The best thing one can do if cut is let a dog lick it! As for the shit [calla spade a spade] it’s only leftover from food, nothing unnatural, and we actually learn to identify the smell as ‘nasty’, because smells have no moral position; some think elderflower smells like lychees, others that it smells like cat urine!
I can’t answer for those who pick up dogshit and then lkeave it bagged for someone else to dispose of, they give the majority of careful dog people a bad name, most of us don’t do that, but it only takes one or two. I’ve even seen them hanging in trees; strange fruit!
My bags are biodegradeable, made from plant-based plastics, and within a few weeks will be composted by nature along with contents. Some aren’t, and we need publicity to spread the word as not all people search for biodegradeable. If I don’t bring the back back with me to deposit in a council emptied bin, I hide them deep in undergrowth where people don’t walk and where they can compost undisturbed.On a cold morning holding a warm bag of poo can be nice! 😉
But apart from all that, dogs give so much that the chores pale into insignificance, one is happy to do it. Far too much is talked about hygene, the white woman/man’s obsession. That’s why our medicine has moved so far from the natural and holistic into poisons to blast the body into submission. Our immune system is capable of fighting most infections, and, aided by echinacea tuning it, will cope with pretty much anything as does a dog’s. Children who grow up with dogs are healthier and suffer less childhood diseases than those with no contact, and all who live with dogs are healthier. Those are facts. We have co-evolved for millions of years, dogs represent nothing but good for humans. But if you insist on depriving yourself, it’s a free country!
As for humanity and its viability, I’m not bothered about humans, we are doomed from climate change anyway, just have to wait a bit longer for that, but nuclear war would destroy the environment and most other species.
If, as I expect, we show ourselves unfit for survival, then we will be consigned to the fossil record. And this morning R4 had a physicist on talking about how humans need to spread ourselves into the cosmos, and his plans for Moon base and Mars stations were pure fiction since so far there is no known way of protecting the thin-skinned human from space radiation, which is why in fifty years no further development has been made, despite all other science and technology has forged into new and ‘wonderful’ developments. Physicists seem peculiarly ignorant on anything that isn’t physics. Should have been taught ecology first perhaps.
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Please don’t jump in with generalised comments about anyone,be they Jews, Catholics, Muslims…
I’m not sure about the survival of humans either I just don’t want to die a horrible lingering nauseous radiated death. And there is a reason for my hygiene phobia (it’s not one that makes me kill every last germ in sight btw) which I don’t want to share as it brings back very unpleasant memories. Plus I am not good at routines and dogs, as you know, need routines. I know they give a tremendous amount, but they are not for me.
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I was stating a fact actually, not a generalised comment on a group. The Qu’ran states dogs are unclean, Muslim areas [of the UK] have signs saying ‘No dogs allowed’ [I can find a picture if you insist], I have seen many ignorant comments by Muslims against dogs, so I’m not going to fall into any Liberal nonsense that says Islam is just another religion so we must be kind and tolerant. I’m only intolerant about intolerance, and a religion that instructs its followers that any who don’t share their fantasy can be killed without sin is intolerant and has no place in a civilised, democratic society.
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Catholics aren’t supposed to condone abortion or birth control.. The bible is pretty nasty in parts. I still suggest you don’t generalise.
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The walk was lovely, and now I know you are in Wales! I hadn’t realised. I, too, admire Emma and her well chosen words and well chosen silence. My husband has been OS as well and I have gotten a lot done but very glad he is home again tomorrow.
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Actually there were 2 walks – the first (Saturday’s) a mile from home (a seaside town north of Liverpool, not Wales!) The second is about 90 minutes’ drive from here – I wanted to go on, as the far end of north Wales – Snowdonia and the Lleyn Peninsula – is one of my favouritest 😉 places on earth. But Time hurried on.
We really are on the same plane! And I don’t mean aero. My husband is back tomorrow and although I have got a huge amount done I will be glad too 🙂
Hope you;re enjoying life with him back.
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I see now where I took a wrong turn about the walks and Wales…shouldn’t try to read when I’m tired…
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It’s all right, you don’t have to read every word carefully, no tests! And I think you’re not alone – most people seem to have skimmed it as all the comments referring to my walks say walk… As long as you enjoy, that’s the main thing 🙂
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In picking back up on the scatological thread, there are worse things in life than scooping up dog poop. On one occasion during my nursing school training I was assigned to bathe a 300 lb. lady covered in diarrhea. Someone had to do it.
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Eeuw! I guess that’s part of why you gave up!! I won’t go any further down this track in public but will just say, dysentery 😦
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