Warm enough to snow

Here are the new yaktrax, on the left, before I put them on the boots where the old ones were being held on with string.

Finally got out the door, with boots and yaktrax, at two-ish, while it was still snowing. Walked for sixty-one minutes, including the five to seven minutes spent in the coffee shop yakking with the barista. Hardly any wind today.

From the coffeeshop I followed a man running a snowblower (not so quiet) across the street and down the block on Beld St, and then across another street and down another block, before I asked him if he often does his whole block this way. When he feels like it. A lot of people walk from the bus stop down there though, so it seemed like a praiseworthy bit of volunteerism. Our walk had already been shoveled by both Gary AND Mark. I can imagine a whole maintenance program based on retired guys getting their exercise.

Anyhows. It's so lovely and quiet walking in the snow, with so many beautiful things to look at -- picture postcardy stuff, like the white snow lining every branch on the warmer white black-striped birches, against the flat white sky. I followed the bike path all the way behind Franky Field to the Olin Ave underpass, then north on Colby St (the hockey boards are finally up at the ice rink) and the O'Sheridan loop, east on Lakeside to South Shore at Bernie's Beach, then all the way along the bay to Lowell before I turned north. Beginning to feel tired, particularly in my hip joints. Up the Emerson St hill, south on Hickory to Spruce. Basically the three-to-four-mile route.

It was really unusual how many people were not only out shoveling, but more than willing to take a break to exchange some words. I was so warm by the time I got back I had unwrapped my scarf and taken off gloves, and went over to talk to Jenny (who was shoveling) and her friend across the street, and we stood in the street and talked for half an hour, including with the hippie down the block who was driving by in his 250K mile truck and stopped to exchange jokes. Finally after quite a bit of running off at the mouth I got quite cooled down and came inside. Took a couple minutes to sweep snow off the back stairs. It may have seemed like thirty degrees, but the thermometer on the back porch said 24. Heat wave!

Then I lay on the floor for fifteen minutes, with a little stretching. Hamstring stretches, like the ones I did yesterday in class only without the belt, the Dead Bug pose (arms and legs at ninety degrees, straighten opposite limbs alternately), Downward Dog as long as I could hold it, and a bunch of Knee-down twists. With feet off the floor, that one gives me a strong stretch in the opposite underarm area. I don't seem to be particularly sore from class yesterday. Can't recall if I had a half a pain med this morning though.