SoCS: Birthday Hike and Pizza

 Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “start your post or one paragraph with the word ‘anyway.’” Bonus points if you start your post with “anyway” and regular points if you use it in a paragraph somewhere else in your post. Enjoy!

Anyway, is a useful word for getting back on track after tangents, so it could be useful in SoCS since tangents are common. Now, that I’ve mentioned tangents, none are coming to me. Stream on. “Anyway you want it” reminds me of a song. Not a song I love, but it’s nice to have options. Any way you want to go is okay, as long as no one gets hurt. There is more than one way to salvation, nirvana, happiness. Different pathways. Which reminds me that I have a lot of photos to share from my birthday hike at Carolina Beach State Park.

It was great to be back on those trails that used to be a traditional birthday adventure for me in years past. Not sure why I haven’t gone in a couple years. Maybe it was weather or maybe my feet hurt. Monday, which was my birthday # 67, we hiked for about an hour. We didn’t go to the giant sand dune overlook, but we did enough. The air was crisp and invigorating. It was Marley’s first time there. He was not interested in the water at all, but oh the smells! I think most dogs need to be introduced to water at a young age to be interested in it.

Anyway, my feet didn’t hurt and neither did my knee thanks to Nanosocks and my compression knee sleeve. It was a good day. After the hike, which was in late afternoon, we went out to dinner. My favorite birthday Thai restaurant is closed on Monday which was disappointing. BUT if it had not been closed, we would not have gone to Blaze Pizza for the first time which I liked a lot. It’s set up like subway, but the pizza is good, and they have lots of interesting toppings including vegan cheese, roasted garlic, and toppings like arugula after the pizza comes out of the wood stove. I love seeing a fire that gives the impression of a fireplace. Blaze Pizza is one of my new favorite places to eat.

Anyway, back to the hike which started along the intracoastal waterway and went into the maritime forest.

My guys

Overturned tree roots

Dave watches planes, Marley sneezes

Birthday Pizza

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For more on the Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our persevering host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

The Trail’s Calling Me

As I sit writing this, comfortable in my bed, I would like to drift off to sleep, to dream…

But some day, I’m going to BLAZE a trail again. I’m going to put one foot in front of the other and find my hiking rhythm with the trees going by, fresh and green, pine needles under foot, senses all open to everything at once. My breath comes strong and steady with my legs working like they were made to work. The air feels crisp and pungent with life. I am part of that life, part of the forest, part of creation. The path ahead beckons to me. Will there be deer? Will it rain? Will the sun set before I get back home? I don’t care! I am here now, ready, alive. I approach Sugarloaf, the giant sand dune of oaks and pines, and climb up. My breathing becomes harder. My legs start to ache, but I am strong. I am alive! I reach the top. My heart beats faster, blood flowing where it needs to go, opening my arteries, clearing out the gunk.

I survey the slope descending to the river and remember how my children used to run down the hill to the water. Sometimes they’d roll down and get all sandy. Sand everywhere. But it didn’t matter because they laughed. I ran down that hill myself a few times. Now they have it fenced off to protect the hill, prevent erosion. To be careful. I could run down the hill anyway. But, now, I’m 62. I could break something.

I take the path down to the river. Not exactly running, but with a light step and a quick pace, aware of the turns and the places to put my feet so I don’t fall. I reach the water and run in. Clothes and all. It’s cold! And I am alive again.

Someday, I’ll go on that hike again. Someday, maybe I’ll hike on the Appalachian Trail. I best better start practicing by walking around the block to the park in my neighborhood.

Here are more pictures of my beloved maritime forest. It’s been too long since I set foot there.

 

Me and Doodle on top of Sugarloaf

A mushroom has found shelter on the dune.

There are not many hills around here, so this is special.

Today’s Stream of Consciousness prompt from Linda Hill was, “movement.” But we were not to use the word, “movement,” just choose some sort of movement and write about it.

For more information on the Saturday Stream of Consciousness, visit:

https://lindaghill.com/2018/01/26/the-friday-reminder-for-socs-jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-27th-2018/

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!