A Week Of Spring Begins...Again

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I was up just before sunrise, at 6:40 and was outside on our bank to watch the sun come up, muddled some by a few clouds.  At the moment, it's nowhere to be seen, as clouds blanket the eastern sky.  It will be a spring day for a couple of days, today's high in the 70's although the temperatures this week will be a pogo stick, up and down.

Ducks Greet The Morning Sky

Migrating Harlequin Ducks, we think

We knew yesterday was going to be a fine day, no rain, lots of sunshine and temperate.  We knew a couple of hiking groups were having a walk around Cassadaga Lake at 1:30, so I decided to go to new Kundalini Yoga class at 10:00.  It incorporates movement, dynamic breathing techniques, meditation and the chanting of mantras like Sat Nam which means 'truth is my identity.'  I was not sure what to expect but was pleasantly surprised.  Our teacher was dressed in what I assume was a yogi costume, with a headdress.  My favorite part was a 15 minute relaxation period while she drummed on a large gong, the echoes of the sound washing over our minds.  Class went quickly, with a few difficult postures, new to me and ended with five minutes of chanting HUT with each breath. Basically, chanting HUT (forgot what it means) forces us to draw in our stomach.

Hikers

I did not get home till after 12:00 but Evie had our usual breakfast ready, eggs, bacon and a bagel. We left for Cassadaga Lake at 12:50, meeting our Rails To Trails and Chautauqua Hiking Club group at 1:30.  There were 12 of us, most our age, some we knew from other hikes.

On The Road, Again

It was not one of my favorite hikes because we were on the road that circled the lake, not a trail.  But it was good to be outside on a nice day, with an interesting group of people from all over Chautauqua County.  We knew Eileen, the leader and got to know Judy, who leads the Rails To Trails group.  She lives on the shores of Lake Erie, six miles from Westfield, in what sound like a neat six acre homestead, overlooking the lake and a private beach.  We also talked with a couple from Fredonia, none seem to be from our area, at least that we knew of.

The Nicely Restored Red House

The walk was just about 3 miles, and took us an hour and a half.  Afterwards since we were near the entrance to Lily Dale, the spiritualist center, we drove around their grounds, checking out a couple of trails through their woods and found a store open where Evie was able to buy mood rings for our granddaughters.

Easter Mailbox

On the way home, we stopped at Jo Jo's Asian Cafe in 'downtown Cassadaga', picked up some Chinese food for dinner, then stopped for a beer at the Stockton Hotel and Restaurant. The bar was packed although we found two seats and we ordered a couple of drafts.  We had not been to this place in years because it has gone through multiple owners and has been closed as much as its been opened.  It seems to be doing better, however, as the bar was crowded on a Sunday afternoon.  We liked the feel, the bartender was fun to talk with, so we will definitely be back for either the bar food like wings or dinners that also look quite good.

We were home in time to watch the last nine holes of the Masters and though we wanted Justin Rose to win, we reconciled ourselves to Sergio's win as he no longer seems like the young punk he once was.  He's now an adult, more mature and likable, with a good looking fiancee.  We watched it, eating our Chinese which was pretty good given that it had to be reheated.  We then switched to CBS Sunday Morning since we had no time to view it earlier in the day.  We ended the night with a Homeland and I almost left mid show as it's getting to be a bore as the good guy (the president) may now be bad and the bad guy (Dar) good with Carrie caught in the middle, still trying to get her daughter back.  I think it's time to end this series.