I feel that I am very fortunate to be able to work in my home and live by a small lake.  As many of you know I work on a computer many hours each day.  So I need to get some exercise.  I do a little yard work during my breaks from the computer but my real joy is the daily walks around the lake each day. 

I try to walk two miles a day when the weather permits.  I try to walk at a brisk pace to get my heart beating fast but at the same time I try to enjoy what I am walking past.  There's a lot to look at that most people don't get a chance to see.  In fact if most people went with me on my walks they probably wouldn't see the same things I do.  I suppose that I might miss some of the things they see but I doubt it. 

Nature has trained me very well over the years.  However, I still learn things every day.  Today I finally found out the name of that strange tree in my neighbors yard.  Today my neighbor was setting on his porch as I walked past and I asked him.  It turned out to be a Locust tree. 

The lake is beautiful and it was a great place for my two son's to grow up.  They have moved out on their own and so now I get to really enjoy the lake.  Depending on the time of the year there are a few to several hundred ducks and geese at the lake.  The ducks are very wary of people and geese are very arrogant.  They think they own the place and walk in front of the people walking and driving cars.  The geese also crap a lot on the street that goes around half of the lake.  If you get too close to their young, they squawk at you a lot.  The ducks on the other hand get away from people quick.  I have seen maybe four dead geese over the years around the lake but I have never come across a dead duck in my walks.  I guess there's some kind of lesson to be learned here about behavior.  

Today it was very hot and humid and so I slowed down the pace of the walk.  It was nice in the morning listening to the birds, frogs and the occasional fish splashing the water.  I came across three guy fishing and they were doing well they caught two bass in the couple of minutes I walked past them.  One thing I have noticed about people while they are fishing is they don't talk.  They hardly even say hi.  I have also noticed that a lot of fishermen smoke cigarettes while they are outdoors fishing in the fresh air.  I guess that's one of the few places they can smoke anymore.  Someday the liberals will probably pass a law against smoking outdoors and then complain about not getting enough tax money form the tobacco industry.   I used to smoke years ago and it was a nasty habit.  I have plans to start smoking again when I am 70 because I enjoyed it. 

This time of year the moss starts growing in the shallow areas of the lake.  In the next month it will get real bad and the lake will not look so nice.  Years ago, the home-owners association, stocked the lake with some kind of fish that eats a lot of moss.   That didn't work very well.  I wonder what happened to those fish.

There's one thing about the lake that I really don't like about this time of the year.  It's a damn bird.  I don't know what kind of bird it is and I hate that damn bird so much I won't spend any time trying to identify it.  It's small and black.  The bird had bright red patches at the top of each wing.

This bird isn't around during the winter but in the spring it comes back.  Every spring I hope this damn bird died during the winter but there it is every spring. It lives in a tree next to the street and behaves it's self until the middle of June.  Then it dives and squawks like crazy every time someone walks near his tree.  Well I guess he does it to everyone.  I would hate to think the bird does it to just me.  Around the first of July it gets real cranky and squawks and dives at me as I walk past the tree.  On the way back home he does it again.   I guess he thinks he or she is protecting a nest or something. 

Sometimes this damn bird comes real close to my head.  Last year it really pissed me off one day and I pulled off my belt and did battle with the bird.  As it came close to me I would swing the belt with the big belt buckle at it.  This went on for a seconds and then I realized how stupid I must look fighting with this damn bird.  So I stopped and went on my way.  Besides I am sure there are laws protecting birds from crazy people defending themselves from attack birds.

Then one time I though I would throw a rock at it.  I remember hearing stories about the great baseball player Dizzy Dean when he was young hunting squirrels with a pocket full of rocks.  I soon discovered I'm no Dizzy Dean maybe just dizzy for throwing rocks at a bird. 

Then I thought about shooting the bird with a BB gun but then I remembered the damn liberals had made shooting a BB gun in this city a felony.  

Don't get me wrong I love the out doors and I believe in protecting the environment.  I really enjoy looking out the window of my office and seeing the chipmunks, rabbits, birds and squirrels that live in my yard.  It just that birds that attack people shouldn't have more laws protecting them than there are laws protecting me from the birds.

Ray Basso

Copyright 2001
Ray Basso

Past Comments from Ray:
My BYC
Review on the Grand Barbecue book and companion video
My Grandfather and his watch 
Top Secret Rib Rub Review

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