Walking in the sun

I went walking after lunch today. With a different schedule this morning, Aparna finished her swim right after breakfast and we returned home for a quick homemade Mexican quesadilla lunch. The dazzling sun invited me outside. I stepped out with sunglasses and a cap. The slight chill outside the door made me take my jacket, an unnecessary appendage, as I realized after a few strides. I tied the offending garment around my waist like Ganesha and plodded uphill.

There was hardly a soul in sight as I reached the top of the steep incline. A few painters were hard at work, hoisted atop a hydraulic ladder of some kind, spray painting the outside surface of what seemed to be a perfect house already. Perhaps it was going up for sale, like the many others in the neighborhood. Several realtors and real estate agents had their boards outside the houses on sale, stocked with brochures containing with information about the interiors of the house, upgrades, warranties and the asking price. The maintenance guys were looking at the bushes along the road, picking up dried twigs, spraying insecticide in hard to reach areas. A few porches had a white box labeled “Smith Brothers” the milk delivery guys from the organic farm who deliver milk weekly to household looking for alternatives. Plastic boxes in fluorescent green and yellow marked with “a” were stacked neatly outside other houses, evidence of produce freshly delivered by “Amazon Fresh”, the new initiative of Amazon.com. And I thought they sold only books! Cars swooshed by silently; the tops of sporty red Audis and yellow VW Beetle convertibles pulled down in acknowledgement of the glorious weather.

A moving truck with Chinese lettering and a sign in English offering “professional moving services” was parked outside one of the townhouses. A man with a dangerous looking dog walked by, wishing me “Good Afternoon” as if apologizing for my stricken look at the panting canine. The sun was pleasant to begin with but now felt a little hot on my neck. I moved towards the other side of the road where the sloping rooftops of the houses cast triangular shadows on the sidewalk. I wished I had brought a bottle of water, like the group of women who walked by purposefully, a fitness routine while the kids were at school, I guessed.

The pizzeria at the top of the hill was empty. A sign said “Elvis, Sat May 15th at 8.30 p.m.”, hoping to drum up interest. The dog spa seemed busy as the guy delivering supplies pulled up in his large truck and unloaded a large pallet with shrink-wrapped boxes neatly arranged. The dentist’s office looked deserted, as was the ballet class. I heard a few shouts in the distance as a mother tried to control a runaway toddle while trying to keep a hold on the baby stroller at the intersection. The air was clear, the spaces wide and the view beautiful, as always. Green, green, green - as far as the eye can see.

I walked past Grand Ridge Elementary, the neighborhood school. Groups of children were playing outdoors. The children soaked up the sunshine under the watchful eye of the teacher. As the walkway sloped downwards, I passed another group of kids and heard something. I saw two boys resting against the fence, looking down towards me saying “Hello lady.” I waved back but continued walking. The speed limit sign displayed the speed of each passing car while reminding them of the limit of 30 mph.

I turned back towards home at the last intersection. The bees buzzed about happily outside the “purple beehive”, a bush entirely made up of purple flowers. I stepped away from a lazy slug making its way to towards the other end of the walkway. I picked up snail mail from the mailbox and entered the house. Glad to indoors after my 45 minutes of sun.