Enjoying where I am

A 90-minute walk was on the workout agenda yesterday.  It being a gorgeous day and one in which I actually had someplace to be midday, I decided that I didn't have time to head to San Francisco or my old neighborhood in Oakland to get in some strolling, but that I couldn't waste the beautiful weather by heading to the gym.  So, I decided to take a long walk around town.  Kiefer and I have lived here in the suburbs for seven months now and despite loving the house, we haven't connected with the place on the whole.  We get out of town and back to our old haunts as often as possible.

The sun was shining, it was early enough to not be too hot, and there was a gentle breeze.  There is a trail near my house but there is little scenery and I've actually run many miles of it in the past seven months, so that didn't sound terribly exciting.  Instead, I headed out with no destination in mind to wind through the residential streets and see where it is I've been living for more than half a year.

What did I find?  Two parks that I didn't know existed.  A cat that looked just like my Bear, except all white instead of all black.  I tried to coax the cat to me with a magic kitty call and whispers of "NegaBear, come here, NegaBear." (Didn't work. Go figure.) I also found that there are roses in bloom everywhere and I played with the new Hipstamatic App on my iPhone for a few shots.

It was lovely.  A different kind of lovely for me, who is drawn more to people watching and hustle and bustle than gardens and quiet strolls, but lovely nonetheless.

P.S. On the packing front.......it's all going to fit, carry-on it is!  I feel so proud.