Before the hurricane

Very busy in the park this morning - everyone taking advantage before the hurricane hits this weekend. Lots of dogs, runners, cyclists, etc. One man was carrying his large (c. 80 pounds) dog out of the park. The animal is 14 years old, and still occasionally pulls his way to the park to recreate the 6-mile runs he did as a puppy. Then his bad legs kick in, and the owner has to carry him home. Owner was very pleased to talk to me and have a little break from the heavy lifting. We probably won't be back till Monday, since JJ refuses to go in the rain. Who's the Boss? Certainly not me or B.

Last year's cygnets were not at the beach, but further south, at the very Southwest corner. We got a great view from the little path there that goes right to the shore. There are two benches there, frequently occupied by napping men, but not today. So we took a seat and watched, and all of a sudden papa Swan comes swimming along to them at top speed, then flies at them very forcefully to get them out of the way of the new cygnets. Quite impressive, the strength of his turf protection instincts. Later, they all seemed to be sharing the middle of the lake. Seems only the parts near the shore call for that kind of protection.

The lake level is well below it's normal height in preparation for the hurricane. I was kind of impressed with the small amount of flooding that resulted from the record breaking rain day, but I guess it was too much for some. The Mayor and his staff seem to be desperately making up for the blizzard disaster. They're (probably) closing down the subways for 12 hours or so, and evacuating everyone 24 hours in advance of the actual storm. Of course, the blizzard disaster happened mainly because they had fired 100's of sanitation works in the weeks prior, and didn't start any cleanup until the blizzard was well under way. Not really the same thing as a big rain with wind. So we're getting a big show that probably won't help much. Typical. We are putting the yard furniture in the garage and hoping that the renovation going on next store is tied down well.

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Not exactly park news, but there's a great fake car accident at Westminster and Albemarle. They're shooting a commercial that makes fun of insurance spokespeople. You can see Mayhem, Neanderthal, and the Progressive Lady hanging out. They put a fog maker under the cat hood to keep the engine "steaming" all day. I only wish I knew how to place photos near the captions in the blog. Oh well, it's not that long an entry.

Oh, Martin: the line is gone. Thank you. And we think you're a Martin, not a Marty.