Canada Geese Take Flight / No Fishing From Dock

Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting -
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
~Mary Oliver

Well, my husband and I had QUITE the adventure in the woods on Monday and Tuesday, and we came home exhausted and sore. I was in quite a state after my big tramp out, seemingly all by my lonesome: bushwhacking through the rhododendrons 3+ miles, carrying 60+ pounds of gear! 

I knew I had a dentist appointment the following morning, so I took a hot shower before bed. There wouldn't be a lot of extra time in the morning, and I thought the hot water might help with any sore or aching muscles (of which there were plenty!). 

We'd each also gotten one tick on our two-day backpack adventure - him on his pants on the way in, me discovering one on my pants in the car as we headed for home. Both were easily removed. But it's the tick you DON'T see that worries you! A shower after such a hike is a good idea.

About the dental visit: I had broken a lower front tooth a couple of months ago and it was time to start the process of replacing the crown on it. So into the dentist's chair I went, and I sat there for about an hour and 40 minutes, while they did their thing. (This one went much quicker and easier than last year's crown replacement.) I was warned that I should not eat hard things or things that require a lot of front-teeth work. Like crusty bread. Or pizza.

The temporary crown they put on it was not an exact match to the color of my other teeth. As I left, the dental assistant lady admonished me: "No smiling, and NO PIZZA!" Well, I informed her that there was about a ZERO chance of any of that happening! LOL!

I was numb for a couple of hours after that, so I knew I couldn't really eat anything. Most definitely NOT the local $8.99 all-you-can-eat Pizza Hut buffet, which the dentist had described to me in loving detail. (Though we made note of it for later.) 

So we did what we needed to do in Philipsburg, where my dentist is located, and then we came the back way home so we could take a short hike on the half-mile Bog Trail at Black Moshannon State Park.

The Bog Trail is an easy hike on a beautiful wooden boardwalk, through some amazing views of the still-mostly-frozen lake. There were waterfowl at the edges, making the best use of the thawed spots. Quite a lot of socializing was going on. Here's a shot of some Canada geese taking flight right in front of us. In the distance, you can see evergreens.

In the extras, you may see a photo of one of the docks that I photograph often. You can see written on the dock itself the words: "No Fishing From Dock." Here is a link to the exact same view taken last May. Quite a difference!!!

My soundtrack song for the geese above is Willie Nelson and Patty Griffin, with Angel Flying Too Close To the Ground. And my song for the view in the extras is this one: Ice, Ice, Baby, by Vanilla Ice.