Hapi in her happy place

I took Hapi for a long walk on the dyke this morning and then did a little shopping. I had a list, it would be too dangerous to just browse. Two stores were relatively safe, no other people around but the third was the grocery store and that can be a little hairy. But I stuck to my list and got out of there as fast as I could and went home, put everything away and washed my hands.

I thought I'd have a bath in the afternoon, the weather was supposed to get unpleasant anyway, so why not. I hardly got out of the bath when I got a text message from my former neighbour, E. She just moved out yesterday to another smaller place in town but we still text back and forth. Anyway, she sent me a pic of the announcement that our premier was opening all the municipal parks and trails, effective immediately. I was so excited. The Reservoir!

I didn't even wait for my hair to dry, I grabbed my raincoat and packed Hapi in the car and drove to the Reservoir. The parking lot was almost full, I guess everyone had the same thought as soon as they got the news. There was a family fishing, and lots of dogs. Hapi went into the pond, of course. The park maintenance people have been busy, there are a few changes, but otherwise it is our old park.

Tiny birdhouse

I met one older fellow, I didn't recognize him but I did recognize his dog; usually his wife walks the dog. But I know that he is responsible for all the Fairy Doors in the park and I thought he was also responsible for all the new miniature bird houses (too small for even a tiny bird). But he said No, they weren't his. His creations were more sturdy he told me. That's true, one of the tiny birdhouses had already fallen apart, but his Fairy Doors are still there.

Purple Fairy Door

It's good to have our park back, he said.

I went on a news website later where the premier made his announcement. He said that we had seen too much tragedy, we needed to get out in the fresh air for our mental health. But he said he'd be watching and if we misbehaved, well, there would be consequences. The number of positive diagnoses is still rising, and so is the death toll.