On the way to the creek, I intentionally stepped in every puddle on the left side of the road. My rule for this game was to make the pace look as normal as possible, so that people passing by would not notice. Only the left foot had to go in the water. Strange game? Yes, indeed! When I came in from walking two days before, Kacey greeted me at the front door. I didn’t smell anything and walked directly into the kitchen where David was eating breakfast. It wasn’t until he walked toward his bedroom that he saw the dog had pooped in the front hall. After cleaning it up, I found I had stepped in it with my left foot as I came in. The rest of the day, as the sunlight changed where it hit the floor, I cleaned the poop patches as I could see them.

Today was “clean the left shoe day”. I wiped the shoe in the grass with every step between the firehouse parking lot and the creek. Puddle water must have done its job. The deep treads were clean by the time I got home.

I saw an odd-looking stick on the road that seemed to have a small head. When I touched it with a stick, it moved on its own. I’m guessing it was a newt, a salamander-like creature that spends time on land. Brief newt-prodding was more fun than cleaning one shoe.