Sunday, June 7, 2020

Rainy Heath Walk


Before taking Olga on her weekend walk to the Heath yesterday, I carefully checked the weather forecast, and ascertained that the best time to go would be just before lunchtime. The forecast called for a slight chance of rain at 11 a.m., but nothing more until mid-afternoon.

Of course, it rained for our entire walk.

But I'm not complaining, really I'm not. It's rain, which we have so badly needed. And it wasn't so heavy that it made the walk miserable. It just barely made us damp. The forest was lush with bracken and summer leaves, and the squirrels were scampering about, driving Olga to distraction.


The temperature was 54º F (or 12º C), and I was "dressed like the breath of spring," as my mother would disparagingly say. I was in shorts and a t-shirt and sweatshirt. I wasn't the only one who was chilly -- the bees were all hiding inside flowers or on the undersides of leaves, and barely moving. Such a shock to their systems after our recent weeks of warm, dry days.

Olga, for once, didn't seem to mind the rain at all. Once we got going, she was all in.


Here's my pottery chip find for the day. I actually left these in place, adorning the path. I do not need more pottery chips.

While Olga waded in the pond on Sandy Heath, I happened to notice a folded-up piece of paper stuck into a fork in a tree. It was a very weird handout about coronavirus, and how it's all a fraud and a sham perpetrated by the Trilateral Commission and the Bilderberg Group and various other governmental and non-governmental organizations. The objective, of course, is to DEPRIVE US OF OUR RIGHTS!

Good grief. Conspiracy theories, even on Hampstead Heath! I mean, I'm willing to admit that the world's economic policies don't benefit all of us equally and, in fact, mostly help those already at the top of the heap. But it's a leap to say the rich and powerful cooked up lockdowns and social distancing just to oppress the rest of us. Last time I checked, shutting down the economy wasn't doing them any favors, either.


On the way back home through Golders Hill Park, Olga paused next to the sculpture of the reclining sunbather. (Well, OK, I put her there.)

When we got home, Dave bathed the dog and we read a while before watching "Julie and Julia," one of our favorite movies. And then, in the middle of the film, the rain really came on strong. We even had thunder! I couldn't help but make a video, both so you could experience it and I can look back some day and remember it myself:


The rain slacks off a bit at the 18-second mark, picks up again at 33 seconds, and we switch the view to the patio at 1:48. Just so you know.

18 comments:

  1. You made the bronze sunbather in Golders Green Park? Wow! Do your talents know no bounds?

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  2. Your video of the rain in the garden is very refreshing. We had rain and winds yesterday too, along with thunder and lightning. However, it did not last very long. Most important, it did water all the plants. Your garden really is quite pretty. Enjoy your day, hugs, Edna B.

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  3. Had a brief, but intense, downpour late yesterday afternoon--with the sun still shining. A rainbow formed, but not in the sky--just low across my (fairly large) backyard--about 6 meters high and 20 meters wide with our lengthy stand of Leland Cypress as the background. Never seen that before in 26 years of living here. Took multiple photos and short video. Alas, no pot of gold.

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  4. Oh those rainy walks! We often venture out after reading the weather report from our very own weather system that reports to the weatherunderground, only to find ourselves caught in a drizzle by surprise. Love that photo of Olga and the sunbather.

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  5. Raining here since yesterday afternoon. All night, still going. I imagine it will be for quite awhile. I am very happy about it but I am not out walking in it. You and Olga are troopers!

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  6. Hey , I liked Julie and Julia.

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  7. I LOVED your video. I love hearing thunder. We had a tiny spot of rain two nights ago but nothing like this. Just enough to make the air smell fresh and to bring down the overly high temperatures. In fact, it was so pleasant yesterday that I spent lots of time outside enjoying it.

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  8. That rain, on that secret garden, enjoyed from inside, is just the coziest thing I can imagine.

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  9. A rainy walk is so different, all the smells!

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  10. That is one seriously ugly statue. Public art is always so dismal.

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  11. Agree with Vivian! Unfortunate "art" in the park...Your rain is delicious!

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  12. What a lovely video. Here in arid Arizona the sight of rain and the sound of thunder is a treat. Thank you for posting it so I could remember what a gentle rainfall is like. Your marvelous garden must have loved it as much as me.

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  13. Hi, Steve!
    There must be a pattern to conspiracy theories: they're illogical in their own special way! For instance, they often disregard that the results of the conspiracy would hardly serve the conspirators very well...

    OK, yes, I just googled it, and of course there are cognitive patterns to conspiracy theories. I don't have the emotional energy to read about them right now though.

    Speaking of which--sorry I haven't commented here in a while.
    With the police violence and its aftermath a mile away, I've barely had the energy to blog myself---which is a partial answer (talent aside) to my question, "Why aren't I a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist?"
    ENERGY.
    "I can't cover the revolution, I have to take a nap to recover my emotional equilibrium."

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  14. P.S. Well, I did just have a little peak a the Conspiracy Theory Handbook.
    This social-science description made me laugh:
    "Conspiracy theories are based on a variety of thinking patterns that are known to be unreliable tools for tracking reality."

    You mean, they're totally bonkers?

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  15. "Dressed like the breath of spring" is a new one for me and I love it and intend to use it until it becomes a family heirloom :)

    It's been raining here for two days, pounding at times, light at times. We need it too.

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  16. PPS Just one more from the Conspiracy Theory Handbook:
    "Incoherence is one attribute of conspiratorial thinking."

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  17. Conspiracy theories..
    I heard one recently that linked the American High Jump Antarctic expedition with hunting for Nazis, Hitler and Aliens who had found a way to the centre of the earth via Antarctica and were hiding out there! No small wonder your grandfather never spoke about his work if that was what he was doing...
    I blame Jules Verne for this - people read his book Journey to the Centre of the Earth and they couldn't distinguish between fiction and nonfiction.
    Alpine

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  18. I enjoyed the audio! I’d love a walk in the rain right now. On the beach. But not with lightning. That I enjoy from indoors! These idiotic conspiracy theories. And you can’t argue with stupid. They are so exhausting... and so prevalent.

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