aaah, spring

Spring is here, my allergies tell me so. But I still am happy to see the sun. Yesterday, after a quick nap, I went with a few friends to a place nearby called Bridgeport. Its on the Yuba river, and is really nothing more than a covered bridge that spans the river, and some trails to walk along. The trails, though. Amazing. Especially at this time of year. The wildflowers are blooming, and they are everywhere. Poppies, Lupine, and other things that I don't know the name of. Hundreds of them. They put little signs up saying what the flowers are, its nice. What makes me laugh, though, is that amidst all these beautiful wildflowers is a lot of poison oak. Did they put up a sign for that? No. So, people were everywhere, and leaning into this poison oak to take pictures of the pretty flowers. They are going to bring home a fun souvenier from their day in the country. We talked to people from Hawaii (aloha, she says as she passes us on the trail) and from the East Coast. (oh, I forgot about Poison oak, I was looking for Poison Ivy.) We met 4 teenage boys who weren't there for the flowers, but, instead to climb to the top of a steep path, so that they could be above everyone else. We saw them after the fact, flushed with victory, and very pleased with themselves. They were friendly, and open, quite the opposite of what I usually see in boys their age. They were sure to point out the rugged path they had taken to the top, so that we could ooh and aah over their skills. After they left, Deb went halfway up herself, to take a picture only her eye could see. I took plenty of pictures there, myself, and if any of you are on facebook, you can see them there, later on this evening after I have cleaned them up, and posted them. Well. Some of them, anyhow. Just go to facebook, and look for me. (Traci Mancini).
I never made my corned beef, (but its slow cooking, now) because we decided to go out for an early dinner after our hike. I did have my guiness, though. I am going to go back to the trail, maybe one day this week, because I want to explore it by myself. I love my friends, but sometimes being alone, on a sunny day, surrounded by poison oak and wildflowers can be a beautiful thing.