Long Walks On Leafy Streets

2/18/2014 Glover Road, Rock Creek Park, Washington, DC
I just came back from a run and it was a bit strange to be running in just shorts and a T-shirt while there was still snow piled up everywhere. Today it got very warm in the afternoon, almost up to 60 degrees. It only started to get above freezing yesterday. The snow I talked about arrived last Wednesday night. It snowed all night and then all morning on Thursday until there was close to a foot of snow in our area. Instead of going running last Thursday I spent close to two hours shoveling. I shoveled our walkway, the sidewalks, the neighbor’s walkway, the car and our front and back steps. At the end of it my back was a bit cramped but with a bit of stretching it got better soon. I shoveled our neighbor’s walkway because they are very old and living by themselves. The old lady thanked me and I told her to let us know if she needed anything.
Because of the snow Howard University was closed on Thursday and Friday.
Yesterday was President’s day and Tuesdays I don’t have classes so I have been home for the past six days. It is difficult when you lose classes because then you have to find ways to cover the syllabus in the remaining time period. On the other hand it is nice to get some time to relax and also work on research.
Friday was Valentine’s Day and we had a low-key affair in our home. I got my love a card and some chocolates. I also walked half a mile in the snow to the florist to get her some roses. One has to put in some effort for the sake of love, right? I used the opportunity to appreciate what a great gift Nicole has given me and to remember our first few dates. I am truly blessed to have met someone to share my life with.
We went hiking in the snow on Saturday. We drove to the Nature Center where we listened to a talk on “African Skies” at the planetarium. Incidentally the Rock Creek Park is the only one in the entire national park system to have a planetarium.
The ranger gave a great talk about various African folklore and mythological stories about the stars. He also talked about how slaves used the night sky for directions on their flight to freedom. As the song “follow the drinking gourd” instructed, they would go north from Alabama up the Tombigbee River, then along the Tennessee River to where the Tennessee and Ohio rivers meet in Paducah, Kentucky and then along the Ohio to freedom. Not only was it exciting to see the night sky in different parts of the world in different times but also to see how the woods and the rivers helped to protect and liberate slaves from the terrible life in the plantations. I have led a couple of hikes in the Montgomery County Parks demonstration trail near the Woodlawn Manor in Sandy Spring, MD. They show various aspects of the woods that helped the slaves survive. Sandy Spring, a Quaker town, was a big part of the “underground railroad” for slaves fleeing from the south.
From the Nature Center we walked on Glover Road and then Ross Drive. Both roads were closed for traffic and were nothing more than ski and hiking paths, as you can see in the picture above. Trudging through snow takes a long time and it took us more than an hour to reach Beach drive. We then took the E2 bus back to the Nature Center. Along the way we heard a woodpecker, saw a white tailed deer emaciated because of the long winter without much food, a few horses at the stables and a lady go skiing with her handsome dog Wainslee. Nicole loves dogs and so meeting him lifted her spirits. The sound of the woodpecker was so strong it made our body vibrate. It was like a jackhammer. There were not many people about and it was great to be in the woods with the snow all around. You can see more pictures on Flickr. Just click on the little photo at the top and then “Pictures.”

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