So today I finally got out to Walden Pond again. It has been one month, and the last time I was there I was feeling pretty devastated because of, what else? Some person with that extra appendage who had let me down big time.
Maybe I will write a whole blog about that very soon. (Don't worry, Darius Leavenworth, of Main St, Arlington, TX, 888-555-1212, I will NOT provide any details about you!) But right now, let's talk about walking around Walden Pond at about 4 p.m. in November.
It was so beautiful and calm, peaceful cloudy and overcast. Seemed a bit lonely, as in, not a lot of people around so I thought, "Well, I'll just walk to the cove and back." I took a bunch of photos--branches and water, leaves and sky. I'll post one I took awhile ago with this blog.
Normally I feel pretty safe at Walden Pond, but it can get a bit eerie when there is no one else walking the path. I was weighing possibilities when suddenly Sophie Freud, the granddaughter of Sigmund, who is in her 80's, hoofed it past me, wearing headphones and a brace on her right arm. She smiled at me. We've talked before.
"Hi, Sophie!" I called out. "Are you going to walk all the way around the pond?"
She nodded. I asked about her arm. She said it was OK. Obviously not in the mood for a conversation. The parking lot gates close at 5, and it takes about 45 minutes to walk around the pond. So I waved her on, while I took a few more photos.
But now I figured, if Sophie can do it, so can I. So I took a deep breath and started my trek around the pond. I took a few photos, got nervous a few times, heard mysterious crackling in the bushes from time to time, made my detailed plan for escape from any ravaging beast, human or animal (it involves throwing my backpack at the ravager and jumping into the freezing lake), loved the sounds of snapping twigs and shuffling leaves, avoided a few madly dashing joggers, wondered where I could buy some pepper spray (just in case), thought about how anyone in the throes of new love should definitely buy a new generic wardrobe and NEVER EVER wear that special Che T-shirt, because if the person you love ditches you, then you will want to burn anything that reminds you of the pain, and it would be much easier to burn new generic clothing than a special Che Shirt from Chinatown, NYC, and then I thought about how great it would be to have a special ISLAND for people in the throes of new love, so that, once again, if one person ditches the other, for absolutely no reason at all, then the injured party would not be inclined to leave town to avoid painful memories surfacing all over the damn place.
Anyway, at about 4:45 I rounded the last cove heading to the Kids' Beach and then the parking lot. For some reason, I decided to have a look at the public bulletin board. Well, actually, the REASON was that I wanted to see if the Ranger had finally posted a warning about deer ticks, since I got bitten by one a few years ago and when I called to let park supervisors know, they breezily told me they were having an INFESTATION!!! But NO warning sign anywhere!
OK, I found a small tick warning, but THEN...right next to the tick sign on the bulletin board...a larger warning: "Please be advised that an individual has been spotted at Walden Pond exposing himself to park patrons. If you see this person, do not approach him." (of course, it's a HIM--how often do you ever hear of a female exposing herself at a park?) "Call the police."
Well, damn. I was REALLY glad I hadn't seen that notice before my walk. And who knows, maybe those snapping twig sounds in the woods...?
I immediately wondered if an acquaintance, let's call him "Bill" had finally gone off the deep end. Bill has a tendency to grab women's butts and other parts, right out of the blue. I confronted him about this in September. He denied having a problem. I suggested he get help before he gets in trouble. Maybe silly old Bill, like so many silly old men, didn't listen to me.
Time to buy that pepper spray. Or maybe hoof it after Sophie next time.
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