Suburban Malaise

Out in the elements

It was a ferociously windy day today in Northeast. Dangerously windy. There was a huge rainstorm, which cleared up in a dramatic way around noon. But then came the winds. I went out to take my customary walk and regretted it. But at the same time, I was too determined to stick to my routine to turn back. I came back exhausted and it was fortunate that I wasn't hit by some stray flying object (the local news is full of stories of trees falling on cars, etc.)

Obsessive-compulsive. I think that's what it's called.

Walking and Listening

As more trees have grown around my development, the sounds have been growing richer. Everyday I take my iPod for a walk for a couple of miles. I can hear the sounds of cardinals and turtledoves, two of my favorite birds. I keep my earphones on though, even if I don't have the iPod turned on. It keeps me sufficiently anti-social. The trees give more shade, so I don't have to cower from the sun as I walk. The perennials my neighbors have planted over the years have grown up and now this bland neighborhood is starting, in a small way, to look more interesting. This is not the kind of development I would have really chosen to live in. In fact, I'd move tomorrow if I had the chance. But my husband and daughter love it, so here I stay.