Lake Padden

It was a beautiful fall. The summer went late. I was swimming in the sound and in the lake through September. Now, it's raining, although yesterday a sunny day. I walked to Marine Park, followed the railroad tracks to the dog park, then back along the inner-urban trail to Fairhaven.

I'm a sorry wanderer, I guess. If it's very rainy and windy, I won't go outside. I remember having to shove the cats out and then once out, Ozzie hanging close to the glass door, looking in at me with pathetic eyes. Well, it's the same for me. I did buy a new hat, and I do own a raincoat--not rain gear, just a coat that looks fashionable and repels rain. It's a must around here.

I've decided on a trip to Spokane for Christmas, spend some time in the snow. Perhaps buying snowshoes would be a good thing. I have skis from the 70s. They're pretty funky now, but still keep me on top of powder snow. Snowshoeing last winter was a first for me. It was strenuous an the next day, I was beat. Now, I'm in better shape, so maybe, some long treks are in order.

David is in Antarctica. The weather there has been extreme. Blowing sideways snow and very cold. He has to bundle completely, face covered, doubled up mitts. And still, it's cold out on the ice, standing there as a guard to the penguins for 2 or 3 hours. Yikes. Me baby!

I admire his adventurous nature and would like to have a little more of my own. I've decided, I'm just plain scared, a lot of the time. I mean, even to go to Post Point along the tracks. Why a train could come. I'm one of those folks who does the worst case scenario thing. Always something could happen. But--you don have to be prepared, right? I mean, driving across the pass and the snow and ice, etc. You could go off the road. There could be an avalanche. These are real things and they do happen. I had a friend lose both parents in an avalanche. They were asleep in a winter cabin, snow came down the hill behind them. With that in mind, I have agreed to go sleep in a snow cave on Mt. Baker. Stupid? Maybe, but David has done it many times and says he will protect me. Which means, I guess, that he wouldn't dig the cave in an avalanche area. What about cold? What about getting up in the night to go to the bathroom? What about...?

Anyway, it's adventurous even to go shopping--especially on Black Friday. You're not getting me out there.

My next plan for travel is to go to Hawaii. There are some birds there that can't be seen anywhere else in the world. This seems like the type of adventure I get sink my teeth into. So off to somewhere warm, probably not immediately, so will have to do winter for awhile. I'll let you know how it goes.

Peace,

Traveling Nan

Chain Lakes at Mt. Baker

In the mountains there are these tiny lakes that are fed by melting snow. A set of lakes that can be easily walked around, a path leaving from the parking lot up by where the groomers park at the Mt. Baker ski area. The higher parking area, up by Artist point, is now closed. There has been 6-10 inches of snow recently, but on Saturday, there'd been enough warming for the ground to be mostly bare. My friend and I walked around the lakes, staying height on the right side, which I suppose would be east and then across a snow field at the end, and then back on scree--which had a light skiff of snow on it. There were these cute little pica prints all over the snow. Wow, a beautiful day, not a hard hike, getting over a cold, but a nice time with my honey.

I'm thinking about some changes of the heart that have occurred for me over the full moon. The biggest thing is realizing how my mother, who I believed was weak, really had no choice in how she lived. She was married to a man who was very controlling. This ended up being a life sentence for her, since her "daddy" and that's what she called him, was in charge, high up in the military, and believed children where to be seen not heard. So I'm guessing, me be a rebellious child, didn't go well with the men who she picked. I'm sure they were all men in control, and me being the rebel, had a big struggle to overcome. I've mostly overcome oppression. She never did.

What does this have to do with travels? Well, travels for me are physical, emotional, and spiritual. Recently I hiked around a reflective lake in the mountains with my new backpack on my back. I ate mountain huckleberries that had frozen and thawed, and froze again. They tasted just as delicious as when they were firm. What fun, November and eating huckleberries. In the mountains, the noise in my head drops away. I'm sensitive to the car noise, train, bus, even the wi-fi that is everywhere in Fairhaven. Anyway, the mountains give me a reprieve from noise in and around me. I can think straight, which is what my mother always said.

Freedom. This is important for an Aries. Freedom from oppression. Freedom to be who I am, authentically me all the time. It feels right when I can do it. It feels wrong when I let myself cave, to shape with what someone else wants.

So other hikes? Recently I made a trip up to Fragrance Lake and back. It was a pretty easy climb for me, although four years ago, before Pilates, I had trouble with it. My knees hurt like crazy on the way back down. We can get better. We can get stronger, even as we get close to 60. Just get moving, that's my hit on it all.

Okay then, what are you doing to change and heal your life?

Peace,

Traveling Nan