Was out for a walk yesterday while the weather is still bearable. I don't enjoy the cold much but ironically do enjoy the change in seasons. I expect that is a product of my youth, the area in which I was raised. My sister, after having moved to Florida, often told me she missed the fall colors. My grandkids picked some fall leaves and mailed them to her a couple times. She kept them and would put them in a basket on her dining room table every year. The wife and I talk about driving the Skyline drive every year but that's as far as we have gone with that plan. You know you always figure there is next year. It'll happen one year, I have no doubt.
As I was out walking I noticed the mixture of Halloween and Fall/Thanksgiving decorations about town. Seems like people are far more anxious to put those decorations out than they are to put them away. Fact is, a few homes still have Christmas lights from last year hanging from their eaves. Yeah, just might be rednecks living there. Although that isn't a fair statement, lazy people would be more accurate. It is something I have noticed over the years however, the proliferation of yard ornaments for every holiday. In particular the blow up ones. This year I am seeing several gigantic Turkeys. I like them, they are cute and very cheerful. Not sure how the Peta people feel about that. I have to say I am not seeing as many Pilgrims as I used to in the past. I'm thinking Pilgrims are falling out of favor.
This year, for the first time, I heard about a new holiday, Diwali. A Hindu tradition of celebration. According to Google it is a festival of lights and lasts for five days. It was on the news that the governor of Maryland had attended some ceremony involving that. I wasn't aware we had any Hindu's in the neighborhood. Prior to this holiday I do remember the emergence of Kwanza. I discovered it was a holiday invented by a African-American man in California. It lasts seven days and ends with a feast. In the beginning the founder of that celebration said Christmas was a white mans thing and very bad. The founder even said he thought Jesus was Psychotic! Those "teachings" were modified in an effort to not alienate Christian brothers and sisters. Well someone, somewhere has to start these things I suppose. Culture and tradition, all of that is subjective to history. More properly created in response to history is my thinking. I didn't see any yard decoration about that, at least none that I recognized as being for Diwali. I'm thinking Walmart and Home Depot will be all over that in a few years.
Well it was a pleasant walk around town anyway. I got a few waves and a lot of suspicious glances. A sign of the times I suppose. People do not speak to strangers very readily anymore, unless it is a yard sale. I've noticed that folks aren't shy or cautious about any of that, anxious to haggle about the prices, they sure aren't timid. But take a walk down their street and they will keep a close watch on you, rarely gesturing or acknowledging your presence. Interesting to see how folks tend to their yards. Some folks are very particular, very neat, and others, well, not so much. When I was growing up our yard would have been in the, not so much group. We had grass in the front yard but the back yard was mostly dirt and debris. Dad didn't think it was debris, useful pieces of lumber, and a variety of other building materials and such. Mom called it junk. You know I suspect there is correlation between occupation and the way yards are kept. Maybe not so much occupation as the "hobbies" of the person, but I think they too are related in a fashion.
The weather is supposed to stay nice most of this week so I plan walking some more. I purchased a walking stick to fend off dogs, haven't encountered any so far, and a new hat. I plan on walking as long the weather permits. I don't walk in the rain, the snow or if it is just too darn cold. I've decided to walk for the health benefits but I'm not going to become a nut about it! My motto being, all things in moderation! Excess is for the young, prudence is for the wise. Yeah, I'm going with that last statement.
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