Day #38 of year two of pandemic - TGIF

In honor of Earth Day (which was technically yesterday) and it being Friday, I took a two hour walk around Greenwood Cemetery after work. It may have been longer. I left at 4:10 and got back at 6:45 pm. It was about 11,912 steps or 4.5 miles all told, and 7 floors. Not bad. I was sore afterwards - lower back was bothering me - so have ice on it.

This is why I am not running or riding a bike - lower back issues. Walking is best, yoga, wall squats, stretches, and hand weights.

Meditative walks around Greenwood help. That and taking photos. But, alas, I keep forgetting my binoculars. I don't know why I keep forgetting them - I just do. Arrived at the cemetery, heard the birds all a twitter, and realized, damn, forgot the binoculars again.



As you can see, it was a beautiful day for an walk - blue skies, nice breeze, lovely weather - yet I still sweat through my clothes. I remember the good old days - when this did not happen.

I wore my mask up until I entered the cemetery, then only when I encountered people - which was rarely. I spent most of the time walking by myself. Greenwood Cemetery is the only place that I've found in NYC that I can walk for long periods of time, without seeing anyone, without a mask, and without hearing anything but birds and the wind whispering through the trees. It's blessedly quiet. A true sanctuary. Peaceful.



It cheered me up walking around it - I was kind of depressed today. Missing my Dad - or rather the ability to call him, ask advice, be reassured. He's still here, healthy, but his mind is not really there any longer - receding slowly into dementia. Mother took over the taxes to him today, to go over, and he got confused - so she had to explain them to him. She took them over for his signature, and because he kept asking her too.

My brother thinks I should just fly down and visit. (I don't want to travel anywhere right now. I've just gotten up the courage to get a haircut. Flying would require changing plane in Charlotte - because I'd have to get into Hilton Head, not Savannah. Mother can't pick me up. I'd have to take a cab to the airport, take a plane, switch planes, and a cab to my mother. Then I'm stuck in her house, until I go back again. The idea of it alone makes me edgy. I want to wait until June or July. He can go down there.)

Me: I love how my brother likes to make suggestions on what he thinks I should do. I don't do that to him. And trust me, I can make suggestions.
Mother: Welll, it's partly my fault, I complain about it..

I want to go visit my mother in July. But mother thinks it will be more crowded then and harder to get tickets. Sigh. It's so frustrating. My mother's hip isn't healing. She's getting a CT scan on Tuesday to see what's up with it.



I've discovered, as you may have realized by now, that I love taking photos of flowers. It cheers me up. Also flowers have interesting personalities, and remind me of how beautiful, miraculous and even changing the earth and nature truly are. Flowers give me hope.