Today will be our last day walking until 2010! I have a household of poker buddies coming into town so I am taking a few days off.

Laurie and I went toward Bemidji State University today, along our usual route, but instead decided to traverse the neighborhoods. It was a pleasant walk, although we debated quite a while about who would be more comfortable. I didn’t wear a coat and she did, along with her mittens, scarf and face-protector thing. I didn’t miss the coat, but I will freely admit that my nose was a bit cold without my face coverings.

But I’m tough! (My husband is laughing right now … well, he would be if he read this blog.)

Anyhow, we (obviously) walked by Library Park, where we saw a handful of sledders and snowboarders. Made me think I should try, again, this weekend to find a sled for my daughter. I went out this past Sunday, but Walmart was all sold out and I was too lazy to try another store. I heard that Target had good ones… I would like to find something that we could use to pull the 17-month-old behind us while we snowshoe.

We saw this house that is, apparently, preparing to install its own hockey or ice-skating rink. I had one in my backyard as a kid in the suburbs, although none of us kids was a hockey player. We just skated around and goofed off. But it was fun. And, I have to believe it got us out of the house, which was good for my mom.

Laurie had some wintertime fun today! While we can’t seem to hear one another during our conversations, I was able to hear that she had stopped walking., So I turned around and she was preparing to throw that huge thing at me. Luckily (for me), she didn’t throw it hard enough and it landed about a foot short.

And, I have to admit, I just love this flag. Too cute. (Although it did have me wondering for a few blocks what kind of snot a snowman would develop…)

You heard Laurie yesterday as she pleaded for everyone to shovel their sidewalks. Well, here is a friendly reminder that residents should also clear snow from around fire hydrant, which can easily get buried under snow and ice. In the event of a house fire, you don’t want firefighters wasting precious moments trying to get to a hydrant.

While walking downtown, Laurie spotted this flag, about 4-5 feet above our heads.

Laurie: "You’re taller than me, you want to fix that?"

Yeah, I’m not that tall, even with my highest heels (which are pretty tall). And I know my vertical ain’t what it used to be!

***

Today’s Puzzler is…

And the answer from yesterday, as Jeff correctly guessed is that it was a picture of the sign outside of the Elks Club. BPOE stands for Benevolent Protection Order of Elks.

Happy New Year’s!!!

- Bethany
   

Ho-ho-ho and all that jazz!

This will (probably) be our last entry until Monday. Unless Laurie gets super motivated to walk and/or post without me. I’m leaving tomorrow to go "home" to the Cities for Christmas.

Which meant today was the last day for me to do last-minute shopping.

So today was not so much an afternoon hike as a time dedicated to running, er, walking errands.

All in all, it was an odd walk for us. So let’s get to it.

We first had to stop at the Law Enforcement Center so I could do the police report. That was relatively uneventful. But as we continued north (I think?) on Minnesota Avenue, we were greeted by this friendly face, who was very happy to see us.

Yeah, we don’t know whose dog that is. But he was happy, albeit a bit intimidating. Eventually, though, we must have gotten comfortable with one another. We initially met him at about Seventh Street and he stayed alongside us the entire time we were on that side of downtown. Even as we turned as 12th Street to head back south (?) along America, Friendly Dog stayed pretty nearby.

Everyone must have assumed he was ours. At one point, he started chasing a minivan, whose occupants sent us somewhat dirty looks as it slowed to avoid the animal.

Me: "Not our dog."

Which brings up an interesting point. Laurie and I often talk to vehicles. Well, not so much the vehicle itself as the drivers controlling them.

Toward the end of today’s walk, Laurie and I approached a four-way stop that already had a car waiting to go. The driver sat and watched us to see if we were going. I waved them on, telling them, "You’re fine."

Laurie: "Have you noticed that we talk a lot to cars? It’s not like they can hear us."

Which is true. I mean, in the dead of winter, when we have our full headgear on, we can barely hear each other.

But I digress.

I tried to grab some more photos of some holiday decorations, since their time outside is limited. We never did get around to taking that nighttime hike, so we didn’t get any shots of the homes all lit up during nighttime. If anyone wants to share some, though, we’ll pass them along!

(The above star is so much prettier than this picture makes it out to be. It swings and captures the light of the sun. It was super pretty. In fact, Laurie wanted to know where the homeowners got it so she could go get one of her own. Alas, no one was home.)

(OK, this photo didn’t turn out. But I wanted to at least try to get a photo of the window displays outside of the Bemidji Design Center. They’re gorgeous. I just love them. Too bad I couldn’t get a photo without a reflection from the vehicles parked along Second Street. But, really, the window displays are quite elaborate and very holiday-ish.)

So, anyhow, we went from the LEC to 12th Street and back downtown to Laurie’s place, where we picked up a package slip before walking to the Post Office. Then, we went back to Laurie’s to drop off said package. Then, we got about a block toward Pamida before we realized we didn’t have any money and went back to Laurie’s.  We finally made it to Pamida, but I couldn’t find what I wanted.

So we went to Ben Franklin, which DID! Yay! (Seriously, I’ve been looking for this one item for a week. I’ve gone to eight different stores.)

Like I said, today’s was an unusual walk. Not bad, just … strange.

***

Today’s Puzzler is…

(OK, yes, I know that is the national flag of the United Kingdom. Do you know where it can be found in Bemidji?)

The answer from yesterday is that the notes are from the backside of the Overbeek’s store along Paul Bunyan Drive.

Have a great Christmas! And enjoy your weekend!

- Bethany

Wow, it was gorgeous outside today! OK, maybe not perfect weather, but the 20-above-zero temperature was WELCOME! In fact, Laurie and I spent a few minutes outside her house before we left wondering whether we wanted coats (in addition to our 2-3 layers). We opted for coats, but I wasn’t convinced.

Me: "I think I’ll be warm … but I’d rather be hot than cold."

So off we went! We decided to sort of do our regular summer route and walk along the Lake Bemidji shore, but instead of "our" trail, we stuck to the sidewalks along Lake Avenue.

We continue to note the progress of the Bemidji Regional Event Center. (And, apparently the ice fishing is quite good near the BREC: Perhaps the fish, too, are interested in the new building?)

We also saw some new Christmas decorations.

(The last one is my favorite: I love the light post.)

Laurie and I often wonder how many pictures of "real" snowmen we’re going to end up posting by the end of February/March/April. (And I mean "real" as in the kind made of snow versus plastic – not the kind that come to life like Frosty.) So if you’re getting tired of the Christmas decorations, enjoy them while you can! We have a feeling that the next few months are going to get a redundant!

From Lake Avenue, we went down the new bike trail to Bemidji State University.

And, I saw that I wasn’t the only person that finds snow be a great place for messages:

(I know – it’s hard to read, but I had to get up higher to get a better picture and I didn’t trust myself to not lose my balance on the wooden fence.) The message reads: LISA (loves) TONY).

But who writes out love anymore?!

Anyhow, we went through campus and then made our way to Diamond Point. And, of course, the inevitable happened.

Me: "I’m warm."

Laurie: "Yeah, me too."

A few minutes pass.

Me: "I’m thinking about taking off my coat."

Laurie, deciding that she would keep hers on: "I’d rather be warm than cold. Hey, I remember someone else saying that not too long ago."

We cross Paul Bunyan Drive and FINALLY were able to figure out what the talking streetlight guy says: "Paul Bunyan. The walk sign is on to cross Paul Bunyan."

One mystery solved anyway.

And here is yours!

Today’s Puzzler is…

Tuesday’s answer,as Jeff correctly guessed, is that the woman pictured is on the Glazed and Amused sign along Third Street:

Happy Thursday!

- Bethany

NOTE: Hey, this is our 100th blog entry!!!

Are you ready?! I am. I finally finished Christmas shopping on Sunday. Yay!

OK, so that had nothing to do with our walk today…

Today, we braved the cold and put on about three layers to hit the streets. I forgot my hat today, but my hooded sweatshirt did OK. I did finally remember to bring some face protection, so that helped.

Still, it was cold. But not overly cold.

We walked along Lake Irving today, where we were able to see some fish houses and fishermen (and women maybe? It was hard to tell from the street).

I’m not a big fan of ice, or rather walking/skiing/riding/driving on it. I just never feel all that comfortable knowing the water is right below me. And, this year, with winter arriving a bit late, I just think it’s a bit too early for me to get too far from shore.

Laurie and I did go out a few feet onto Lake Irving. Mainly to see if I could get a better fish house photo (which I didn’t), but she had some fun:

Laurie, just a few moments after this, once we reached the shore: "I was trying to make a smiley face, but I couldn’t see!"

We were so committed to staying warm today that we cover our faces as much as possible. We wear sunglasses to keep our eye areas warm – but with our noses and mouths covered, our glasses get a little steamy. And it’s hard to see.

After Laurie’s comments, we had to go back on the ice to see how her "smiley" turned out.

Not too bad!

Other than that, our walk was pretty basic today.

We remarked at this house that ornaments were a cute, interesting change from more typical garlands:

And, when we got more downtown, we found an abandoned flyer beside the roadway. (We have a tendency to pick up pieces of paper to see what people have written or left behind.)

That’s really about it. Sorry we weren’t more interesting today!

Today’s Puzzler is…

The answer from Friday is that the emblem is from an ERA Bemidji sign in front of a home for sale:

Have a great week!

Bethany

(At least this guy had to be outside! I still can’t believe some days that Laurie and I actually choose to do this on a daily basis!)

So today, as I drove toward Laurie’s house, the flashing sign along Lake Bemidji proudly declared: zero degrees.

Last year, when we started walking, we barely flinched at zero degrees. We chickened out only once, when the temperature dipped to about 30 below, if I remember correctly. But even that day we walked two blocks before giving in and going home.

I don’t know if it’s that we are just spoiled this year, having thoroughly enjoyed summertime and fall. But we’re wimps. We complained for the first 20 minutes about how cold our noses were. (I plan to buy one of those face protector things that Sarah mentioned a few days ago; I just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Laurie has one, but hasn’t quite found it yet this year.)

Today I was wearing three pairs of socks, two pairs of pants, two heavy sweatshirts, and my oh-so-cool hat. Laurie was dressed just as warmly, but since she isn’t doing the blog today, she also got the benefit of mittens. (Hard to take pictures with gloves or mittens.)

Don’t we look warm?! (We rarely ever get our picture taken together, so I tried getting a shot off of a window downtown. It worked OK, although I don’t know why I felt I needed to look up at the camera, which was actually below my chin.)

***

Today, we walked down America Avenue and came back along Irvine Avenue. While we often take off along America, we try to find different routes back or through town. But we haven’t been down America since last week (I believe), so we did see some new decorations.

This one, in particular, I really like. I love crossword puzzles, although I am admittedly terrible at them. And I just think it’s a nice concept for Christmas (I’m at least fairly religious, so I’m a big fan of crosses).

Then, there was this tree, which, I thought, offered a nice alternative to traditional Christmas lights.

This house made us chuckle a little bit. I don’t know how clear the photo is, but, basically, there was a pile of Christmas decorations ahead of the front door. We know it’s fairly common along Irvine to have signs and suggestions for visitors to reach the side door, but we thought this house, especially, got its point across!

And, this was just too cute. Talk about a "snow" globe!

We found today that we might actually be able to be useful with this blog as well. We took a picture of a sign for a lost dog and are alerting our faithful readers to keep an eye open for this poor girl. The female "wiener dog" named Spaetzle was last seen in mid-November in northwest Bemidji. There is a reward.

Oh, and this was just too odd. We’re guessing these are not real – but we certainly loved imagining that it was springtime!

Thanks for reading!

Today’s Puzzler is…

Yesterday’s Puzzler was kind of tough, but the answer is that the ants are characters on a trailer for Stapleton Construction:

Have a good Wednesday – and Thursday. I probably won’t walk tomorrow since I have the day off. And I really doubt Laurie will want to walk outside without me…

- Bethany