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Moist Hallways

What a stupid day already!

My knee was still hurting a little when I got up, so I thought I should try splitting my walk into 2 shorter walks.  So, I waited a while & just sort of watched TV and dozed off for a bit.  At 9:45, I started to get ready for a 2 mile walk when I noticed an issue with the floor in the hallway.  It sounded like it was coming up, but as I investigated it started to sound like sloshing.  I could see a little moisture on the baseboard on the wall adjacent to the water tank.  I went it an checked there.  The pan is full of water and it is overflowing slowly.  Because I had things stacked down there, I don’t know for how long.  There doesn’t seem to be a ton of water soaked into anything, but it could also be draining more under the house.  Hopefully the plumber can figure out what is going on.  I put a service request in with my insurance, but they cannot come until Thursday, so I called someone else who is on the way right now.  If it is a big issue, I’ll keep it through my home warranty.  I am not happy with the contracted plumber though; they had terrible customer service, so I’m actually hoping this is an issue that isn’t too much different cost-wise.  I’d happily pay a couple hundred this week just to keep from dealing with those people again.  But if the quote is a lot higher, then I’ll have to just wait for them to come out.  This is the third time I’ve had a person out to deal with this water tank.  

I was just about half a mile into my walk when the plumber called to say he was on the way, so I only got in a single mile so far.  It was a nice day for that; the neighborhood was surprisingly busy for a Tuesday morning.  I didn’t even do my usual walk in the park, I meandered through the neighborhood.  My goal was 5th Street, which goes under the highway into downtown, but I’ll get to doing that walk next time maybe.  Now, I get to just wait around and hope there aren’t big things wrong.  And I wish I knew how to shut that water off!  

[Walk #340, 1.19 miles]

    • Location of Walk: neighborhood around my house, Guthrie, OK
    • Magpie: USB cable (broken)

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Quiet & Sometimes Sketchy

I’m going to be tired this afternoon!  I fell asleep early yesterday, so I woke up very early today.  Since I was up, I went ahead and got my walk in, leaving just before 5am.  It’s actually a great time to walk, and most of the path is well lit and easy to walk.  Downtown is a great place to get in steps that early; it’s so quiet, but not completely empty.

I crossed the highway going, thinking I would cross over and come back on the other side of the street.  That did end up being true, but I crossed under the bridge.  That actually ended up being a mistake; there a big area of mud just under the bridge, but it’s in the dark, so I couldn’t see it and it wasn’t clear how easy it would be to cross it.  Just got my shoes gross, but wasn’t too bad.  I wouldn’t want to do that again!  I think there’s a gravel drive next to that part of the road that is dry, but I need to see it in the sunlight to work out where to go.  It might not be a great idea to walk under the dark bridge and then alongside the abandoned jail with the busted out window.  I’m sure people sometimes hang out in there and if anywhere is unsafe in Guthrie, I’d guess that was it.  Stay in the light!

I enjoyed window shopping, and think it’ll be really nice to see Guthrie during Christmas.  This isn’t the ideal year for that sort of thing, but hopefully it’ll be nice.  The entire downtown was decorated for fall, so I think they do keep in the spirit.

I intended to only to two miles, but once I had done the one I felt like I could do a little more, but aimlessly getting a mile downtown is a challenge.  I need to have a path, a goal, something mapped out the achieve what I want without stopping too much to figure out what to do next.  

[Walk #339, 3.27 miles]

  • Location of Walk: home to downtown, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: pecans & magnolia seedpod

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Children in the Park, Confetti in the Grass

Working my way back up.  My knee is a little sore still, but not unmanageably.  I got in a little over 2 miles.  If I had waited until it was a little cooler, I might have gotten in more.  The park was pretty full of kids from one of the churches across the street.  Relatively full, I should say.  It would take a lot more to qualify as full!

I worked on a template for a daily post in Day One, but when I played around with it, I hated having The Wandering Hermit & BookNotes in it.  I do like moving my daily checklist into a post with space for any blogging I want to do, or any notes I want to make for the day.  I think doing this will encourage more journaling, while almost eliminating the “Notebook” journal in Day One.  I’ll still use it for playing around with things, but my lists and plans can all live in the regular journal.  I think it’ll be better that way.  Until I decide it isn’t!

[Walk #338, 2.20 miles]

  • Location of Walk: Banner Park, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: redbud seedpods

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Justin’s Eye

Today is on Justin’s walking schedule, so I waited for him to get up and go to the park.  When he got up, his eye was swollen nearly shut.  He went to urgent care and they prescribed antibiotics, but also told him to take allergy medication and use ointment until it all clears up.  I assumed he was off the hook for exercise; there’s no need to push it if you have an infection, but after he got back I announced I was going for a walk and he came with me.  He got in a little over a quarter of a mile, but considering one of his eyes is puffed up and he can’t see out of it, I would say that’s actually impressive.  It tells me he is willing to put in some work.  Things change!

The day was a little too warm.  I said I was shooting for 2 miles, but after about 1.5, I started heading back.  It was too hot, the park was filling with kids, and I was starting to need to use the restroom.  I felt great, and I still do, but I decided to just go home and be done with it!  If I feel up to it this evening, I might go out for more.   We’ll see.  I really want to be doing 3 miles a day starting on the 1st, so I really should keep it up.  Twice a day feels very manageable.  There and back, four times around the park, plus just a little extra is 1.5 miles.  That sounds easy.  11 times around plus a little extra sounds daunting.

On the 24th, I picked up a magnolia seed pod and carried it home.  It sort of triggered me to start picking up things and bringing them home on my walks.  I don’t know if that is permanent, but it is fun.  Today I found confetti.  I might actually try to pick more of that up; we don’t need that much plastic in the soil, but it is hard to get a hold of.  Even if it is larger pieces.  I had decided to grab the strap in my walking photo during my walk yesterday, but forgot it.  It still counts!

I’ve been thinking about the way I organize my journaling.  The Wandering Hermit was on a separate site, so it has always been a separate entity, as are my book notes.  I think I’d like to create a new journaling template for 2026, something that has spaces for all the different things as well as my sort of daily to do list.  I can clip from it, but it would consolidate my days into a single post in DayOne, which I think I might quite like.  It also might make my website cleaner if I’m posting once a day (except for reviews and whatnot).  I’ll work on that.

[Walk #337, 1.63 miles]

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The George Oppen Memorial BBQ
A Poem
Eric Tyler Benick
2019, Poetry

⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎

26 September 2025, 7:39 am

My least favorite of my traits is how often I second guess myself.  I don’t allow my instincts to be correct.  It’s always a mistake and one that I suppose I will never allow myself to internalize.  I want to do better; I want to create in the ways that I create naturally, freely, thoughtlessly.

This poem is a reminder to freely open and let the words flow on their own.

I fell in love with the Eric Tyler Benick in the interview that follows the poem.  He writes the way I write.  He is inspired in the ways I am inspired.  He makes me want to be.  I wasn’t familiar with all of his references, but the joy I found in the work has encouraged me to look up George Oppen and add him to my reading list.  I’m very excited about it.

There is always space / in a poem for love / when it is exact.

I really appreciate when a book makes me want to be a better writer. This poem is gold, but even better part of this book is his answers to the interview questions at the back. The author makes me want to try harder, to be more confident in my own words, to continue to peel back and expose the content of my mind.

⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎🟡⭐︎

Started Reading: 26 SEP 2025
Finished Reading: 26 SEP 2025Continue Reading

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I couldn’t get him to respond, so I don’t even know if he had a nice day.  I hope so.  He needs more nice days in his life.  He was going to Cattleman’s for dinner.  That was his plan.  After going back and forth for a long time, I actually decided to go with him.  I am also trying to get out of my own way, but since I never could reach him I still don’t know what’s going on.  

Brent came to hang out between photo shoots during the day.  It’s a stark contrast.  Brent is easy to be around.  There isn’t some deeper meaning to it; he brought some dinner with him, ate it, and then took a nap in the library for an hour before leaving.  It’s how I expect family to be.  Both him and Brad are welcome in my house in that exact way, as if they are supposed to be there.  And it is how I expect to be in there houses.  But sometimes Brad makes it awkward with guilt trips and weird tours of things he is doing.  And it all just reminds me of how Dad used his children as substitutes for friends.  Have friends as friends.  Family should be able to relax around you.

I’m just frustrated because Brad is genuinely fun to be around, but it’s hard to get to that point when everything is so dramatic.  I wish he could just calm down, then maybe it would make sense to stop by and hang out for an afternoon.  Regardless, I hope he had a pleasant day.  Happy 44th to him!

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A Chase

I’m a little sore.  My knee was slightly swollen when I woke up, so I need to make sure to not overdo things for a few days and see if that resolves itself.  I didn’t do that much of a walk yesterday, but I was active and on my feet most of the day and the two days before that I did a full three mile walk, so I’m probably just dealing with the consequences of the long break I took from my walks.  

It feels warmer today than the thermometer indicates.  That could just be me; I did wake up in the middle of the night feeling little too hot, but it was only 71º in the house.  

When I got to the park, the only other person there was a woman walking the same path as I walk.  Her pace is much better than mine, especially today, so I kept finding ways to stay out of her way so she never had to cross paths with me.  I think it’s better for others, but it also prevents people from sneaking up on me from behind.  I did get in 20 step ups as a result.  Those feel so good and get my heart really going.  I know I need to add dumbbells; I’m dreading carrying them to the park with me for my walks!  But I will.  There are a lot of things I need to get over.

It’s Brad’s birthday.  He is going for his usual birthday dinner at Cattleman’s.  He’s invited me, and I’m on the fence about it.  On the one hand, I actually do like hanging out with him and that is a good opportunity.  On the other hand, Friday evening at Cattleman’s can mean long wait times for the opportunity to sit and not have anything to eat.  Not that I mind not eating (they don’t serve anything I can have), but it can be annoying for that to be after waiting two hours to be seated.  I’m thinking about it.

Brent’s going to be over this afternoon, and after he leaves for his evening photoshoot, I think I’ll go for a second walk to try to get in my three miles.  Maybe doing it all at once is part of my problem.  Maybe it’s the total.  Maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with my walking.

[Walk #336, 2.18 miles]

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