A SoFoBoMo Surprise

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Last Saturday, I started my SoFoBoMo project, but it was until later that I realized I had begun. It had never occurred to me to start my book on that day. Nothing was further from my mind. The Husband wasn’t around that evening and I headed down to Cub Lake for a walk. However, I had forgotten that earlier in the week I had seen signs down there of an upcoming lakeside wedding. Drat. Sure enough Saturday was the night of the festivities. Not in the mood for the crowd around the lake, I almost gave up on the walk, but ultimately decided to drive over to Oak Canyon Trail.

At its southern end, off San Juan Drive, the trail is a generous easement between properties and doesn’t begin to resemble a canyon. That section is wide enough to accommodate a vehicle and runs along about a quarter of a mile between the back yards of the houses and barns lying on either side. I knew it would be most unlikely that I could run into anything wilder than a rabbit in that highly populated area, so I felt safe setting off by myself.

Of course I had my camera with me and before I knew it, I was shooting. It would have to be a very short walk, because at the end of that quarter mile I would leave behind the horse corrals, barking dogs, braying burros, and cozy back yards to turn down into the canyon and past the sign warning of mountain lion sightings. The cool evening was perfect for a longer walk and I was feeling more like a hike than when I had left the house. Early on, I got a good look at a couple of deer in a clearing up ahead of me and they were tempting me pass that sign by and take my chances in the canyon. I wasn’t quite ready to turn back when I came to the turn in the trail and reached the warning sign; but, common sense won out. I left the remainder of Oak Canyon Trail for another evening.

When I reviewed my shots, I discovered that I had actually gotten a few that I liked. That’s especially pleasant when you are not expecting anything. Two days later, it dawned on me that June1 had arrived and I had better get cracking on SoFoBoMo. It came as a pleasant surprise to realize that I had already begun. I just had not planned my start date.