Not All Who Wander are Lost

Tolkien said it, I'm adding to it. Not all who wander are lost, some are still intrigued by the wonders. Some are intrigued enough to wander with sore feet, sore back, and no fortune to support them along the way.

This is the notion that Z and I started this week, to wander around the world. I was inspired by Jennifer of A Message for Eberle, who was inspired by Eberle herself.  Now Z and I aren't headed toward the Misty Mountains for real, we're walking around the virtual world.

I understand this is not as exciting as my actual goal of traveling the world, but it excites me still. I have wanderlust stitched into my DNA. Tigger has it too, so it's no wonder Z has twinges himself. But like Dorothy  of Oz we enjoy our homelife too. We also are experiencing our own economic tightening. We can afford the world wide web, not just the travel around the actual world.

Intrigued by Jennifer's google map, I made our own. We will start in our little part of the United States and trek a path 31,783 miles around the globe (as the crow flies). Z and I spent a good deal of time in Asian history last year, so our journey is different. We'll be headed to Hawaii and then down to New Zealand. We'll tour to Australia, India, Greece, Egypt, Russia, Denmark, Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Greenland, then back to Continent via Nova Scotia. Along the way we'll read stories of the area, watch movies of the area.(guess what we're going to watch when we hit New Zealand?), discuss tourism, maybe pull out a National Geographic or two.

I'll be honest this has given me a boost I so very much needed. Not only to exercise, but to remind my son that the world is bigger than we can possibly imagine. How are we tracking mileage? Since I want to keep a time frame on this we are counting 30 minutes of  actual walking as 75 miles off our journey. At this rate we will most likely take 18-24 months to finish our journey. We may change course, we may linger in one place, I don't know, and that is half the fun.

We're keeping a log book. I've written down all the points I want to hit, the distance between destinations, and a log of our walking. I'm pretty sure there are some academic skills being taught in there as well. The first travel book came in the mail this week. I did pick a few locations where we've actually traveled, at least Tigger and I. That way I can pull out pictures, which reminds me we need a poster board.

Z was just as excited as I was. Our dog, Daytona Grace, was excited too. She is walking with us, although she is more interested in the smells of our neighborhood than the aspect of traveling the world. We are teaching her to sit at each road crossing and look both ways. She's a smart dog and learned that in two days. She's almost seven, and still gets excited as ever just to see people walking by.

I don't know if Eberle knew what she was starting with her own journey. I don't know if Jennifer knows how inspiring she is (she's also responsible for me really thinking about what I own from her Halving it All project). I do know that today after dinner I told Z we were going for a walk, the dog had been bugging me for an hour to go. Z didn't balk. We hooked up the dog and headed out. It was nice, it was calming, it was peaceful. We've had a rough year in many ways. I wasn't sure I'd find that calm again. Maybe we simply needed a destination, even if it a virtual one.

Wakefield Walks: It's Finally Spring

 We took the road less traveled yesterday. 

 Where we spotted a frog on the rocks. 

We spotted wild animal tracks. 

We watched the babbling brook.

We spotted a couple out for a walk and brunch. 

The most elusive of all, we found a smile. And that made all the difference. 

Paula vs. The Snake

The other morning I woke up early. My husband was still asleep, my son was still asleep. Sadly, there was no coffee made. I was just going to let the dog out and go back to bed, mostly because Tigger always makes the coffee and one can not just get up and be up without coffee.

However, my morning caffeine infusion became unnecessary when I peered into the dog's room... First, since you don't live in my house I have to explain the dog's room. It's a former sunroom. There are sliding glass doors between the living room and this room. This room has a regular back door that opens onto the backyard, hence the title "back door". We often leave the back door open and the dog on her cable so she can go in and out. The room does not have ductwork and has its own window AC unit.

But.....the back door has been closed all night. As I peered into the room in my hazy state of consciousness I saw something on the floor. It was thicker than her cable, not the right color for her leash. My first thought was How did that rope get in there? My second thought was Shit, that's not a rope, that's a snake!! My third and fourth thoughts smashed together something like this...I don't see a head on the snake...OMG, my dog bit off the snake's head. OMG, my dog is still walking around, she didn't get bit! OMG, let the dog out of the room while I pick up the dead snake.

Daytona was quite excited when I let her out in the house. I had a minor heart attack when the snake moved. So much for bliss in the early morning as I screamed There's a snake in the dog's room, thereby waking everyone else in the house. Even the cat came to the sliding glass door to see what was up.

(The orange is an extension cord, the taupe thing is not)

The varmit slithered under a shelving unit and I put the dog outside as we woke up. Tigger stated "leave the door open, he'll go outside". Sadly he did not right away. I went in to shoo him out when he was on the window sill (after an hour or more to calm my nerves with, yup, you guessed it, coffee) I would have gotten him out if I had help from more than the broom and if I hadn't been trying to take a picture of said creature. I hastily named the snake Spot, as it Out Damn Spot!

(Spot, posing for his closeup)

He then slithered back under the shelving unit and I stood there sweating as the dog barked to get back inside. Meanwhile the back door stayed opened. An hour later I donned tennis shoes (like I would kick at a snake), leather gloves (or pick it up), grabbed the broom and any other long handled apparatus I could find. I proudly proclaimed to Tigger that I would take care of this.

I'm not afraid of snakes. I had googled and somewhat confirmed this was not a poisonous creature. Now if this would have been a spider I would have watched from behind the glass as I made Tigger take care of it immediately. A snake doesn't bother me, except for when they are in the house.

(me preparing to take on the snake)

So in the room I went. Tigger came in and helped me tear apart the room. We found no snake. Fortunately there isn't a lot of furniture in the room, so it didn't take long. We safely assumed the creature had left, turned the AC on, let the dog back into her room, and most importantly shut the back door.

Two days later I'm still peering through the glass before opening the door. The dog has been banned from having visitors without permission. No sign of the snake. I'm hopeful that he slithered back into the wilderness that is our back yard, telling stories of his overnight stay in the house of the big black monster dog.

Where the Wild Things Are or Guess What's Living in our Yard!

At the end of our driveway is a drainage ditch. It always has some water in it and thankfully we have a long driveway. This week Tigger found this little guy living in the ditch. He's about two feet long and is actually quite adorable, for an alligator. Words I never thought I'd speak.

Before we moved here we lived in the mid-west, where alligators don't. When we started talking about moving here I had nightmares about alligators. I am surprised that the thought of this critter living in my yard doesn't entirely freak me out. Perhaps it has to do with shock of how many other creatures along the gulf are being destroyed because of oil, perhaps it's because we've seen every other form of nature in our yard. The alligator was bound to happen sooner or later.


The advice we've been given by those who know more about alligator behavior than us is to let him be. He's at least 1-2 years old and will wander away in search of food when his supply runs out. His mouth is about five inches big right now, so he's not a big threat. Yet.

I continue to be amazed at the diversity of nature in this state. The only thing we have yet to see is the wild boar that inhabit the area. Yes, wild boar. There are even warning signs on the hiking trails.

New Sidebar Photo: Nature Study Photo of the Week

Where we live nature comes to visit on a regular basis. Nature Study is done on an informal basis and seldom do we have to step outside of our yard for the experience. This time of the year it comes at such a fast pace I don't always blog about it. I added the picture on the sidebar so you can see what comes to call.

This week it was a skink. We have skinks all over the yard, but this was the largest and most colorful we have seen so far this year.

Tales from the Backyard

Our backyard holds a sense of magic,

wildflowers bloom,

a dog runs, a boy plays.

A hammock hangs beckoning anyone to come and let the breeze blow you to slumber.

Spring and all the colors of the season are in attendance.

New Header photo and shooting nature

It has never been my life's desire to live near a swamp. However I find the animal life around one to be quite fascinating. If you open your eyes there is nature study everywhere. The other day I went to the state park for a quick "teacher conference" (see previous post) and to snap some pictures.

I walked right by this scene and stopped short. I had been looking at the ground watching for snakes and I almost missed it. In the middle of the shot there is a Great Blue Heron. Can you find it?

Look at the tail end of the "d" in Wakefield, there it is. One again nature gives us a life lesson. Do you know what it is? To see the truly beautiful things in life sometimes you have spend time looking where you didn't think there was beauty at all.

Teacher's Field Day

I was able to get out into nature by myself today. I needed a little break from Nanowrimo and I wanted to catch some fall in the park. Being in nature helps me regroup. I think I'll need that this week. The above is me having a private teacher-parent conference. Looking for thoughts, inspiration, and peace.

The lovely bird has found balance. Why is it so easy for birds to balance on the tiny branches of life? Is it because the are able to fly above it and see it in better perspective.

These dying leaves were one of the most vibrant colors in the park today. Vibrancy right before plummeting to their deaths on the ground. I'm sure there is something poetic there. I'll steal from Homer, "the Generation of Leaves".

These berries were beautiful. Berries thrive best in groups. Another point to ponder.

I love the colors in this picture. We recently had a few big storms. There were a lot of small trees down and many logs in the water. I love the composition of the broken branch framing the greenery behind it. So maybe being broken does not mean being useless. Another great point along the way.

All in all it was a great teacher's meeting. I think we'll schedule those on a regular basis.

Nature Study at the Door

This darling sparrow was in our fireplace this morning. Z freaked me out saying there was something banging from inside the glass doors. We got the flashlight to be sure it wasn't a bat (not letting that into the house) and saw that this tiny bird.

I had a little net and was going to catch him and Z had opened the front door. He darted up to the top of the vaulted ceiling and then flew smack into the sliding glass doors to the sunroom. Poor guy.

He is now sitting on the front porch in a box on a chair. He feet are fine as they are curled around a twig. His neck isn't broken as he was turning his head around. He's been out there for about 30 minutes and appears to be resting.

UPDATE: Z and I went outside to move the chair as the sun was starting to shine directly on it. The little sparrow flew away and landed in one of our tall trees. I'm so happy.

Water Bonds

My knowledge of chemistry is somewhat limited. I know that water is 2 hydrogen and 1 oxygen and I know that when H2O is allowed anywhere near Z a chemical reaction occurs. The boy loves water, in the sink, in the tub, in the ocean, he is happy.

Today was a blah day. I went to Walmart early this morning, it was pouring rain. It quit for a while and we've all be lying around today. Z scooted through the classroom a few times proclaiming, "I'm bored."

So when it started to pour again I decided it was time for a positive chemical reaction. We went and played in the rain. We splashed in puddles and watched the tiny waterfall going down the driveway. Then we moved to the muddy backyard. Z was splashing in the mud and falling down. We rinsed off with the hose and then repeated. He was laughing. I asked him to explain his current mood in interpretive dance. With glee he bent down scooped up mud and proceeded to smear it on his chest and then drew a happy face on his torso.

I so wanted to take his picture, he asked me not too. Instead I etched the memory into my brain. A moment of pure splendor, chemistry in action.

Another Road Continued

Pancakes anyone?

Just a pretty shot.

Some color in the forest.

Another Road Less Traveled

Some more views from our hike today. This time the entire family went.

A dead tree and a big hole. Z has a size 6 shoe for comparison.

Tigger stopping to get a drink. Did I mention it's sticky humid today? Shortly after this his bike blew a tire and he walked the bike back.

The Road Less Traveled

Today we found the road less traveled, it's just minutes from our house. Z and I hiked for almost an hour.

Then we stopped to view the swamp. As creepy as it looks there was an air of peace. We've been reading Percy Jackson and Z said it reminded him of Pan, without the humming dodo bird.

We did not see Pan, but my heart did momentarily stop as we spotted wild alligators. Yes there were two. We were above them on a dock. They were hanging out with lots of turtles, just sitting there with little heads above water. I've seen one other wild alligator since we've been here, but none so close to home.

The dragonflies are plentiful and we spotted this unusual one, we called it Batman. Dragonflies are so friendly, this one stopped and let us check him out up close.

We hiked and we sweated. It was nice.

Wakefield Walk, State Park Style

We opted to visit the State Park that is literally five minutes from our house. We haven't been there since last year and they have opened many more things since we were there. Including the walking bridge over the swamp. It goes to a nice walking or biking trail.

These are the deer we saw from the car on our final tour around the park. They were not afraid of us at all.

This deer stood still as a statue but never took her eyes off of us.

I love the silvery look of these trees. I just finished reading Percy Jackson and expected them to turn into some sort of monster at any moment.

There is a turtle in this photo. What do you call a group of turtles? A pod, a clutch, seriously I don't know, but there were a bunch huddled here together. They were quick to grab the bread crumbs someone was tossing them. Amazing to watch.

This is a view from the river which is on the opposite side of the road from the swamp. This was our view for our picnic. The cool breeze coming off it was nice and Z and Tigger enjoyed the boaters that came by. It's a no wake zone so they checked out every boat.

It was a nice afternoon. We walked over a mile on the trails. We plan to go back and take up some hiking and biking.

Wakefield Walks

This is the giant dirt mound Z discovered in the carport. A creature has been digging under the shed. We did a google search and decided it was an armadillo burrow. Tigger is going to deal with it this weekend as we don't want it to undermine the foundation of the shop.

This little guy was walking up the driveway. Z and I removed him to a safe place so Daytona would not find him. She was out on her cable.

He was very curious about us and didn't go into his shell until I picked him up.

A nice little pose to show off his neck and really long back claws.

In honor of the outpouring of nature that continues to flow around our yard, I composed a little poem.

Nature, nature come to me
and we shall take a walk with thee.
Abundant life outside the door
Never searching anymore.