Cows, Deer and Signs of the Time

We faced the cold weather on Friday and took the bikes out for a spin. Oh joy! The rain had stopped and that was all we needed. Long-johns and woollies were layered on the old bodies and off we went. It was a bit nippy on the fingers and nose, but under all the layers I was toasty warm and enjoyed the ride immensely.

AC's back is getting better with each passing day, so we decided to go a bit further and explore some new territory while we added extra kilometres to our ride. Full of energy we set off down a new, never been tried before, road. Big mistake! It was a gravel washboard and the bumping and jarring sent my neck into spasms. Ouch! We kept hoping that we would ride out of the ruts onto smoother road, but it just wasn't happening, so we decided to take pity on my poor neck and turn around. Ah sweet relief when we hit the smooth paved road again.

The unknown road was a big mistake, but we did encounter this amusing herd of cows on our excursion, and they made the bumpy and rather painful side-trip worthwhile.



We puffed and panted to the top of the first washboardy-gravel hill and all the noise we were making apparently startled the cows and sent them into a stampede. It was quite funny to see them running wildly along side of us as we pedalled along. We were no threat to them whatsoever but they didn't know that. They just knew that we were new and noisy and possibly dangerous, so off they galloped. Like humans, they thought it was best to run just in case, rather than stand around and wish they hadn't. Who said cows were dumb? Pretty smart if you ask me.

I stopped to get my camera out of my backpack to try to get a picture, but by the time I got it out and focused, the stampede was way out in front of us. What a hoot. Their antics added a bright touch to a painful patch in the road, and sure made us laugh.

Shortly after we turned around we were on familiar paths again, zipping happily along the smooth roads back to the bike trail that would follow the river home and wind through wooded areas as it did. We turned a corner along this wooded section and there right in front of us was a deer. Wow! So amazing and Beautiful! We stopped our bikes and I tried to quietly dig my camera out of my back pack. The deer raised her head and looked at us then slowly started to saunter away from us noisy creatures. Drat! By the time I got my camera out and focused she had moved into the brush, but turned to look back at me, and I got this picture. Isn't she pretty?



As we came to the end of the trail on the outskirts of town, we passed this business and I just had to take a picture. It speaks for itself.



If your world seems a bit upside down today I hope you find something to make you smile and put it right again.

If you happen to be on a rather bumpy painful patch of road right now, keep your eyes open for those bright touches along the way that help you hang on til you reach smooth familiar ground again. Just hang on, things will improve.

If you are running wildly away from something you fear, take time to turn back and get a clearer look at it. Maybe it isn't as bad as you think and there is nothing to fear after all.