Happy Trails (no, no; this is not the last post...)

Basically, one the times when I am happiest is when I am hiking or just walking on a trail somewhere. It is one of my favorite things to do. There is something about not knowing what's around the next bend.

Well, the trail we were on this afternoon does not lend itself to bends, since it is one of those "rails to trails" deals where trains once rode along the trail. So, not so many hairpin turns or abrupt changes in elevation.

Another thing I like about trails is it tends to bring out the best in people. We passed maybe twelve people today - not a lot, but the point is, they all said hello. A couple teenagers started chatting with us in detail about the railroad bridge we were looking at. When I am downtown, or in a mall, or anywhere in "civilization", I do not get 100 percent "hello". Not even close. People on trails just seem to have this loosely affiliated comraderie. Maybe because everybody out there is pretty much there by choice - they want to be there, they are getting some good old exercise, and it's great to be out in an attractive place.

So, anyhow, a handful of pictures from our hour or so on the trail...

The Change

The TV's a-squawking about the changes either being made or that are promised to be made, depending upon whom you vote into office in three weeks. The changes that were promised two years ago may or may not sit well with the electorate, and big changes are being proffered by those on the outside looking in. It's a pretty volatile time in the hallowed halls of the nation's city halls, county courthouses, state houses, and the white building on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Meanwhile, out at the Conservation Club, change is coming, too. You wouldn't know it from the temperature, still peaking out in the mild and highly comfortable 70's. There is barely a breeze stirring the water, but the leaves tell the tale of a changing season.
Those leaves seem to be clinging to the trees like we are clinging to the notion of summer. The deluge and the pressing need for a rake just hasn't happened yet. At church yesterday, the youth director announced the cancellation of the day's planned leaf raking project - and its postponement until nature ran her course, and the leaves let go.

Yeah, I hate to let it go, too. The place just looks better with leaves on the trees. But, Mother Nature knows what she's doing, and I am sure the trees can weather the wet snow and chilling Alberta Clippers much better when stripped down to streamlined branches.

So, change is occurring and there is nothing you can do about it short of moving to one of those regions where they don't know what the four seasons are all about. Like most great things, the beauty of autumn is far too fleeting; I recommend getting out and gawking while you can.

Not much time left for the luxury of floating around,
catching the warm sun on the water

"YOU DON'T KNOW BLACK" - OR DO YOU???

Sadly, it is the last of the color blogs in Jen's eight week meme. This is it. Time to strike the set and turn out the lights and all that's left is...black.

So, here is my last of these color quizzes: fun for most, pain in the brain to others. See how well you can do - I think this one is fairly easy (except for perhaps one or two obscure ones...)

It's the last one, so we went into overtime with 23 clues for you to identify.


AND NOW IT IS TUESDAY, SO THE ANSWERS FOLLOW AT THE END OF THIS POST


1. Name the actress
2. Avoid this spider. 3. Remember this old thriller?
4. What's her married name? (They don't get easier than this...)
5. Doesn't everyone have one of these in the family?
6. Ozzy's old band
7. A figure of speech
8. Nice kitty
9. This was a bad day at the stock market
10. Name the movie
11. These are symbols of this practice..
12. A band that you probably don't know if you're not 20-something, but you never know.
13. A good thing if you're in Vegas
14. Reverse the words from #13 and you get..
15. This guy's "supreme"
16. I hate it when I get sucked into one of these things...
17. Name the confection..
18. Another popular musical group has led to some individual careers too.
19. I understand the woman on the left was quite the rage in Britain back in the '60's. Who is she?
20. OK, there have been some tough ones after all, so here's your "gimme" - don't let this guy cross your path...
21. Name the bird22. Communication device
23. Name the movie...or the book...or the horse...

1: KAREN BLACK 2: BLACK WIDOW SPIDER. 3: BLACK SUNDAY 4: SHIRLEY TEMPLE BLACK 5: BLACK SHEEP (YOU KNOW, LIKE THAT UNCLE WE DON'T SPEAK OF...)
6: BLACK SABBATH 7: THE POT CALLING THE KETTLE BLACK 8: BLACK PANTHER
9: BLACK MONDAY 10: MEET JOE BLACK 11: BLACK MAGIC 12: THE BLACK KEYES (DID ANYONE KNOW THIS? I WOULD NOT HAVE) 13: BLACKJACK (21)! 14: JACK BLACK
15: SUPREME COURT JUSTICE HUGO BLACK 16: BLACK HOLE 17: BLACK FOREST CAKE (YUM!) 18: BLACK-EYED PEAS 19: CILLA BLACK 20: BLACK CAT 21: RED WINGED BLACKBIRD 22: BLACKBERRY 23: BLACK BEAUTY

AND JUST FOR THE HECK OF IT, I MAY RUN A QUIZ IN THE NEXT WEEK OR TWO BASED ON "WHITE" SINCE A COUPLE COME TO MIND IMMEDIATELY ("SNOW", ANYONE?) UNTIL THEN, IT'S BEEN A FUN RIDE ON THE RAINBOW...

IS NOTHING SACRED????

We could go on and on about what a dysfunctional mess American politics has become, or how popular culture is reduced to finding out how many hours Lindsay Lohan will have to spend in the slammer THIS TIME. Or how airline flight attendants get berated by irate passengers, then expletive delete the whole airplane, grab a frosty adult beverage, and hit the shoot for the tarmac. But no, it's worse than that.

I refer to this past weekend's Ohio State rout of Ohio University. The game, rout that it was, was played with a decent modicum of decorum. But on the sidelines, Oh My!

This dude, Brandon Hanning, served OU as its mascot, Rufus the Bobcat. Mind you, Mr. Hanning does not even attend Ohio University. But that' s beside the point. Mr. Hanning has plotted, evidently for a good long time, to take out the sacred OSU mascot, Brutus Buckeye. He waits for his moment, then tackles the hapless Buckeye not once, but twice.

Talk about forethought; Hanning said of the twin tackles, "It was the whole reason I tried out last year, and I wanted to tackle Brutus."

As the Columbus Dispatch reports:

As several players watched, Hanning took down Brutus from the side at midfield, then chased him into the north end zone, climbed on his back and rode him to the ground. The two then tussled, with Rufus punching the Buckeye in his oversized head.

After each tackle, Brutus got back to his feet with arms spread wide as if to say, "What's up with that?" Then he put his hands on his hips.

Hanning eventually trotted toward the stands with his arms raised in celebration. Fans - presumably OSU fans - booed him.

Well, justice has been served after a fashion, and Mr. Hanning is pretty well banned from donning the Rufus Head and besmirching another mascot forever.

But I have to ask: What kind of sick society produces a mind that thinks this way? How can this poor excuse of a representative of an esteemed (party) school sleep at night? I am pretty sure that Rufus the Bobcat was probably steeped in wonderful traditions. And now, all that wonderful lore is dashed to the ground, along with poor Brutus.

Where do we go from here? Will we be mowing down cheerleader pyramids? Taking out the tuba that dots the "i"? I fear for our children. And their children.

How well do you know your BROWNS?

OK - IT'S ANSWER TIME! IN CASE THERE ARE ANY LATE COMERS, WE WILL PUT THE ANSWERS WAY DOWN AT THE BOTTOM SO AS TO NOT RUIN YOUR FUN.......

It's Brown's turn in the parade of color that is this meme started by Jen, who holds the list of participants you can check out at your leisure.

Meanwhile, no time for leisure here! Put on your thinking caps and see how many of these links to BROWN you can identify...

1. This:or this:or this: (starting out REALLY easy!):
2. A kind of house, most often associated with NYC:
3. What's she doing?
4. Avoid these!!!!!
5. Name the bird
6.
7. name their song with the word in it...
8. From the world of science...what's this depicting?
9. He was in old comedy movies. As I recall, he yelled a lot when in trouble.
10. Gov. Moonbeam
11. Ladies and gentlemen, the hardest working man in showbusiness! 12. P.M.
13. He had a big song with the word in it, back in the day (his first name rhymes with "Dan") .
14. Author of a best selling novel; movie starred Tom Hanks (his name rhymes with "Van")
15. The local football "team" in my neck of the woods..
16. Who's the guy on the left?
17. Yet one more guy who had a big hit song with the word "Brown" in it: Name the singer and the song...

18. And finally, everybody gets a point for this one, am I right?

ANSWERS
1. BROWNIE (I STILL HAVE AN OLD KODAK BROWNIE AROUND SOMEWHERE)
2. BROWNSTONE
3. BROWN-BAGGING IT!
4. BROWN RECLUSE SPIDER
5. BROWN PELICAN
6. MURPHY BROWN
7. "MRS. BROWN, YOU'VE GOT A LOVELY DAUGHTER" (PRONOUNCED "DAW-TA")
8. BROWNIAN MOTION - I BELIEVE IT IS THE MOTION A PARTICLE MAKES AS IT IS HEATED UP. IT IS FAIRLY RANDOM LOOKING.
9. JOE E. BROWN (OR IS IT JOEY BROWN?)
10. JERRY BROWN
11. JAMES BROWN, THE GODFATHA OF SOUL
12. BRITISH PRIME MINISTER GORDON BROWN
13. VAN MORRISON'S "BROWN EYED GIRL"
14. DAN BROWN (THE DA VINCI CODE, ETC.)
15. THE CLEVELAND BROWNS
16. BUSTER BROWN (THE LOVELY DOG WAS NAMED TIGHE OR TIGE)
17. JIM CROCE'S "BAD, BAD LEROY BROWN"
18. ...AND GOOD OL' CHARLIE BROWN