We responded to the continuing unseasonable warmth by heading over to Piedmont Park, this time via a “back” route, with only a few steps of (sorta) trespassing. Fortunately, the water was down in a wee creek and we could hop it with only a teensy splash, and continue along a path by where there used to be community gardens. We even braved Sunday crowds at the Bot Garden, and found some early blooms—like this crocus.

Checked out the new Old Fourth Ward Park for the first time. It’s got amazing hydraulics that trap waters that used to flow south under what’s now City Hall East (has the name changed? developers have it now…) across Ponce and into…John says Clear Creek. I do so wish Google Maps did a better job with creek names….

Anyway, en route, we found a blooming cherry tree. When the temps drop, whenever that is, we’re going to see damaged plants, probably with obvious effects lasting through the summer.

Our continuing unseasonably warm weather mean the weeds are flourishing. And the dandies are blooming!

I stepped out this morning early, before full light, when the storm was on the cusp of transitioning to brighter colors on the radar, and pointed the camera up at the naked branches. I love it when the trees stay upright.

Distracted by Lion upgrade* to laptop (only) and bulbs preparing to bloom, I “made” this picture at 6pm and forgot to post it until later. Hrrrumph.

Early report on scrolling reversal: give it a few minutes and stop thinking about it and your hand-eye coordination will kick in and make the change.

Big excitement—I decided today I can tell that the day-length is again increasing. Hey, I found it exciting!

As we sat on a bench in the sun gazing across Lake Clara Meer (the northeast lobe with fewer Canada geese), we agreed that we were basking in a sparkly day.

Winter cold can make for dramatic dawns and dusks, but from this spot, in my experience, those events are relatively rare. Today, we had lovely pinks and golden-orange bands, honoring the last minutes of daylight.

Rain overnight is moving up levels of Lake Lanier—Atlanta’s drinking water source.

I stripped the turkey carcass and have broth on the way. I managed to avoid letting it boil—just simmer—so it’s still clear. Yippee!

Mid-day, after post-turkey processing cleanup, the rain stopped and a pallid sun attempted to emerge. Taking advantage of what I figured was the best weather of the day, I made it over to Piedmont Park for a loop under once-again overcast skies.

The brilliant sun this morning made short work of the overnight heavy frost.

We took a bit of a wander climbing away from the Ohio River, and stopped for lunch at a friendly looking restaurant in Brookville (that’s Indiana—we skipped Ohio on this run). And, indeed, everyone we met in town was friendly, and The Gallery Cafe’s food was tasty. I had spicy chicken chili—no beans. JCB had a breakfast platter with this interesting German-style “sausage” called goetta (the meat is mixed with steel-cut oats and fried in a very thin patty; goetta is a Cincinnati area specialty). We dined happily under walls covered with art by local artists, mostly paintings and photographs, all for sale.