Squares 2

 
More squares and near squares. I just like the patterns.

I realized I could "get" square openings in the railroad bridge if I stood in the right place. The tie ends are square too, and the shadows between. This picture actually intrigues me a lot. If you squint so you don't see what it is, but just look at the patterns...



This one is just a cage for an irrigation tank, but I like the contrast.



Walking home I found a pattern of squares decorating the side of a headstone.



And last, but not least, here's the combination card reader and USB splitter that I like pretty well so far. A nice square... long enough cord that it doesn't just hang off the computer. Many options. Free dust already, of course.



In other news: I installed the X6 version of Corel Office that is mine to keep. Works perfectly. Sent the Books Leaving Footprints newsletter. Getting my bearings with Dead Mule Swamp Mistletoe. Worked at Shagway (and some of my books sold).

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A Sad Little Story in the Cemetery

 
I was walking through the cemetery trying to look at some of the stones I don't easily see from the path. I saw this small stone. Another sad story of a stillborn baby or one that only lived a few hours. The date is June 8, 1932.



I looked a few feet beyond this one. Oddly, not in the same row, but one farther over, and thought my eyes had played a trick on me by duplicating the stone just seen. Then I read the inscription. Same date, same last name. Little girl twins. Don't you wish you knew the story behind the bare details carved here?



I'm off to work in a couple hours. Then a good sleep and I head for the woods!

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Serene or Spooky?

 
I often walk through the cemetery next to us. I particularly liked the late afternoon light. How does this make you feel?



I have all my food ready for the short backpacking trip, and am checking in my gear.

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Day Two- 14.6 Miles

 
Day two. Which always feels worse than the first day. I was weary and footsore, but nothing that a little rest didn't cure.

This morning I walked right past our campground and Ester and Jade came out and walked with me a little ways.

First, I have to tell you a story from yesterday that I forgot to put in the blog last night. It was near the end of the day's miles. In fact I had less than a mile to go, but the corner where Ester was meeting me was down in a dip so I couldn't see her. What I could see was red and blue flashing lights. I was thinking things like, "What if Ester is in trouble; what if somebody came out of the cross street and hit her?" But the police car was speeding past her. In my direction. She was thinking things like "What if Joan got hit by a car?" So she drove on to see that I was all right. The police car continued on, followed shortly by an ambulance, so someone else had a rough day, but not us.

Today's first picture is the Vermillion River.



I'm liking that the mornings are chilly. The day turned out to be my favorite kind where the air is cool, but the sun is warm. Stayed in the high 60s, hit 70 once in the sunshine.

A lot of what I walked looked like this. Some was dead flat, but there were enough gentle ups and downs that it wasn't quite so hard on the legs. (Pounding them on the flat hour after hour feels awful.)



How about a natural Ohio Bonsai?



I passed by another really old cemetery and found this marker from 1838. L.A. Dunks. Can't quite read his age, but it is two digits and begins with 1, so he was only a teenager.



The featured house of the day is in great shape. Built in 1869.



Tomorrow I have almost 15 miles to do again, so hopefully day three will be better. Sometimes it is, sometimes not. But we'll try to get out a little earlier. I really goofed off this morning. Still finished in good time, but I'll probably move faster in the cold air!

Today's real challenge was finding places to pee that weren't covered in poison ivy.

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Random Images- 15 Miles

 
This hike feels easier than the last one I did in August. I think that's because the temperatures are better for me. High 60s and into the low 70s in the afternoon. Ester dropped me off in the morning. We didn't even worry about getting out early because we didn't need to beat the heat. In fact, it was chilly enough that it was nice to wake up slowly and cozy. We are in a small private campground. I like giving my money to some person who probably needs it. Our site is near the entrance, but quite private. Near the highway, so a little noisy, but I slept like a log anyway.

This trip is all roadwalk, so I look for the interesting things in different ways.

First, I have the proof that I was there- my shadow in Slate Creek.



The first couple of miles were on an old military route built for the War of 1812. It wiggles on an angle between the roads all laid out in neat squares by the surveyors.



I sure liked this old house. It needs some love, but it would still be salvageable if it doesn't sit too much longer.



This llama thought I was pretty interesting.



I took my last rest stop of the day in this cemetery, established 1836. The oldest stone I could find had a death date of 1843. This one, for a baby, is from 1851.



Ester picked me up at my end location for the day, and we came back to camp. She brought pulled pork from home which we heated up for dinner, augmented with a salad. A cup of tea was a good ending on a cool day.

So far so good!

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Cemetery Says...

I'm flat-out stealing an idea from Ivy, over at Spinning Lovely Days. In a post called Epitaphs, she showed some interesting sentiments from gravestones. I liked her idea, so here, half a world away, I went hunting. Here's a traditional one.



I think I knew this already, but modern (say 20th century) American tombstones usually aren't very personalized. But here's another that's no surprise.



Then we always find the sad ones. Lots of those. I'd actually thought of showing you some of the babies' graves before. I may do that yet. You have to wonder at the stories...



Since I was actively looking for interesting inscriptions today, I found two that I'd never seen before. I had to enhance this photo so that you might be able to read it, but it's still difficult. It says, "Friendship is a Sheltering Tree." I like that!



And here's another, in an interesting font: "Hope's Eternal Day is Born."



But I saved this one for last. I walk right by it almost every day, and chuckle almost every time. I have NO idea what it's all about. Some of the families in this graveyard are familiar to me, even some of the individuals, but I know nothing about this one. But his choice of epitaph certainly guarantees that he'll be remembered by those who see his stone. I've asked him why, but somehow couldn't hear the answer.

See Color in My Kingdom for an autumn view of the cemetery See It's the Details for decorations on headstones