Walking with Mary

black walnut

If walking for a couple of weeks can make a habit, then Mary and I have that habit.

I am skeptical, having spent many years trying to get walking to be as natural as brushing my teeth.

But no ... there is always a little resistance in me to getting on the road – except for the days when I have a partner.

So it was easy to walk this summer for Bonnie joined me.

And now Mary is by my side – and the dog comes with us – which doubles Mary reason to walk, since Griffen has to go out anyway.

Along the main street she stopped to look at what seemed to be small tennis balls on the street. A toothless old man with  leathered  skin appeared from nowhere once we stopped to tell Mary what she was looking at.

black walnut, second shell

“Walnuts,” he said. “Black walnuts. We used to gather them and put them in the attic. Then when the shell gets dry, break it off and leave the walnuts which are still in shells, out to dry some more. They will be ready to crack and eat at Christmas.”

 “Thank you,” said Mary, and I picked one up – since I like any new experiment.

Mary holding the specialty tomato

Then on the way through the neighbour’s yard, a short cut to our yard, we stopped to pick the sweetest of little tomatoes housed in a paper thin skin.

This is the second time Mary has picked those for our breakfast.

Nadie caught her the first time. I asked what is the French word for stealing and she said voler, the same as to fly – just to let you know I am trying to improve my French while I am here.

We stopped to look at the patio in the back of Mary’s yard.

“Have you ever seen little red beetles like this?”, she asked.

red patio bugs

So we got down on our hands and knees to examine the little clusters of them on the patio slate and on the plastic bucket.

And that is the same patio that we ate lunch on, the person talking to us waving her Ensign around to keep the wasps away.

Well, lots of bugs here – a sign that fall and winter aren’t really upon us yet.

Arta