A Great Day for a Walk

Today was a good day, though last night was rough. Now I'm getting a sore throat, making me think that maybe allergens are super high again:( Although I didn't notice them when a friend from church was taking me out to lunch (we split the check) and we were walking around/getting ice cream in East Grand Rapids! Of course to their enormous credit, that part of town may be a cramped urban jungle with smooth curb ramps so the blind can't tell where the street begins--BUT! They have copious water features that cool down the whole area. One of which was a fountain we both made wishes at. There's a little sign on the gate around said fountain advertising that the coins thrown in "help to make wishes come true" for the children at a local hospital. That was kinda fun:) And my friend also took a picture of me amid the water spouts without my walker (thank goodness I kept my balance this time!), so I should have photographic evidence for everybody soon. The other fun thing was how close that particular part of town is to a little lake--actually two--that somehow get divided in the middle. I got right up to a railing around a little deck right over the water and watched a ton of little ducks begging for food:) I didn't have any, and I TOLD them that, but ducks never listen:) They swam off in the other direction eventually. The trip to East Grand Rapids is a little bit of a pain on the bus; I've made it one time, years ago, and I have no interest in going again. So unfortunately that means I haven't gotten to enjoy the lake or the fountains much! Thank goodness today I thought to ask my friend (who's kind of adopted me and takes me anywhere I want to go about once a month) to take me there, or despite my pledge to the contrary in May, I'd NEVER have gotten to visit! It's also been just so darn sweltering, I wouldn't have lasted long walking up and down the streets. Cute as they are! Speaking of walking in the heat, there's an outdoor jazz concert tonight that I was really thinking about going to--about 8 hours ago. But now, after the day I've had and seeing a million other excuses to stay in and relax, my resolve is wavering. Plus a "long lost" friend on FB who I RARELY see posted a video of a Dutch jazz artist (Oscar Benson), which when I looked it up on YouTube, lead me to an even more impressive Dutch jazz vocalist (Caro Emerald)! So I feel like I've already gotten my jazz fix for the day. There will be more live shows at that venue; I've signed up for updates on Facebook, so I won't miss the ads. Meanwhile its time to "do me" for a little while, after a lovely afternoon in the sun, watching ducks and MANY sweet dogs around a lake...and think of future wishes:)