walkies

B. and I are getting our exercise by taking walks through the neighborhood. We usually go past a couple of local landmarks: a house with a low brick wall around its front lawn where lizards (little fence lizards are common here) like to sun themselves, and a house whose owner keeps chickens she sometimes brings out into the front yard.

These are useful as markers when I'm describing distances we may have to walk when away from home. I can say "as far as the lizard house" or "as far as the chicken house" and we know how much energy will need to go into it. We're talking up to about 0.3 mile here; except for turning around we don't walk further than that.

Usually we've been taking these walks in late afternoon, but a currently oppressive heat wave has discouraged that. This morning we were both up at 6 AM, just at sunrise, so B. suggested we walk then. It was very quiet. No lizards, no chickens, just a couple dog-walkers and joggers. But we did see a rabbit. White with black ears, it was nibbling leaves in the street gutter and didn't seem particularly afraid of passing humans. It must have been a pet that got out. Last time we saw a rabbit was a brown jackrabbit in Albuquerque.