After being woken up by yet another kitty love fest, I did some around-the-house stuff: a bi-weekly conversation with my siblings, a Spanish lesson, putting away my laptop after Sweet Hubby finished with some sort of tech-y voodoo; refilling a prescription; writing a condolence card to the husband of a friend who died recently; that sort of thing.
Then came the fun of the day. I took my car to Costco for fueling, then caught the E Line bus at the nearby transit center. This bus runs down one of Seattle's few long, straight streets, which is home to cannabis shops and hookers and fast food joints and car repair garages. I got off near my favorite park, which has a 3 mile walking path around a lake. I've walked this path many times before, but seldom alone. It was very relaxing to go my own pace, not have to make conversation (not that I mind conversation, as anyone who knows me will concur), just breathe and walk and see what I saw.
I noticed a blue heron crouched on a branch overhanging the lake and stopped to observe it for a while. At one point, it stretched out its neck, which had been coiled up against its body, spread its wings, and I swear it looked as though it yawned. Its great beak opened wide for a moment, and I thought I saw a skinny tongue curling up at the tip, as cats' do when they yawn. It had never before occurred to me to wonder if birds yawn.
I've just asked the Internet that question, and, if the information I found is true, all vertebrate animals yawn except for giraffes. I never would have guessed.
Anyway, more walking, then back on the bus and the ride back to the transit center. And now I know one more bus line than I had before, plus did a lot of walking, plus did some reading (C.S. Lewis' "The Four Loves"). And that has been my day so far.
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