Today so far and stuff

[mindstalk]

Eight minute mile! No, not really. I did do 4, not 3, laps around my block, but I took short breaks to walk and lie on the grass between each one. End of lap times: 2:42, 5:33, 8:05 (with final sprint), 11:05. No pains except after that sprint.

While I was lying down, a white woman in a black backless eveningish gown walked by, and crossed Kimball. Not on the way to or from any CTA stops. Or any obvious gownish destinations, at 11:30am.

After my runs I went to the river park, and saw an old Chinese woman picking what looked blackberries from a tree. My presence seemed to scare her off. I tasted a berry, seemed okay, though I was too paranoid about strange berries to swallow. I'm such a city kid.

A few evenings ago I passed a whole family of raccoons in someone's front yard, on one of the side streets. A couple climed a tree, a couple more tried to just freeze on the grass, more might have tried to retreat.

I've uploaded more galleries, with less selection and as yet no shrinkage of the main images, so anything you click on would be huge.
http://mindstalk.net/AlbPark
http://mindstalk.net/2007June21Home

Comments

[tooth-and-claw.livejournal.com]

The berries on the tree are probably mulberries-- they should look like slightly elongated blackberries, and they are *delicious*.

[mindstalk.livejournal.com]

*plans to go back out*

[fanw.livejournal.com]

If they're coming off a tree rather than bushes, they are probably mulberries. There's a tip I learned in Alaska. Pretty much all compound berries (blackberries, raspberries, mulberries, cloud berries, thimble berries) are safe to eat. By "virtually all", I mean I've never heard tell of a single species that wasn't safe to eat, but I don't know all berries on all continents. It's just the singleton (spherical) berries you really have to worry about, since I think most of them are poisonous.

[mindstalk.livejournal.com]

Neat!

[mindstalk.livejournal.com]

Ate some; sweet. Not a strong flavor, I think; maybe white mulberries. Can't really tell.

[(Anonymous)]

Perhaps pictures of said berries are in order?? :)

~Petite Américaine