I went outside today in the wind and chill (at least it had stopped raining!) to eat my afternoon snack on the back deck.  Being out there, brought back nice memories about going to the country house in the summertime, as a kid (in Venise-en-Quebec).  My grandfather would have a garden of all these fresh vegetables (like tomatoes, peppers, chives and kohlrabi).  It really was a place where we could appreciate nature and hear tons of frogs at night.  After I finished my snack, I took the time to really observe and appreciate the two trees we have on our property.  We have a Silver Maple in the back and a Linden in the front.  Just looking at the Maple's trunk, I could tell it has been around a long time and I wondered how old it really was (I can't get my arms around it).  My husband estimates that it is about 25-30 years old but I was more romantic, thinking that maybe it could be more than 50 years :)  I think I will definitely take more time to observe and "smell the roses" when I am out in nature.  

Today is the last day of the challenge.  I only joined halfway through but I was determined to learn and do as much as I could within that time.  It felt good to push myself to acknowledge the environment---after all---every day IS Earth Day :)  I will continue to do the dishwasher challenge and flush the toilet less.  I will attend a shoreline clean-up and physically plant some trees, when it is possible.  Spending time outside is not hard at all, except for when the weather is like it is today (pouring rain!) ... This challenge was fun and I honestly can say that I learned so much but there is still so much more to learn.  Thank you for this experience!  I look forward to it next year.

I walked down a path that I never took before.  It is basically a trail across the street from our regular route, that is alongside recent housing.  I saw two little woodpeckers and came across an open space that looked like it may have once been farm land.  I shared the pictures in my previous feed. I thought it would be sunny but it quickly became overcast, as soon as I got outside :(

Just a lovely day for a walk.  I went to get cat food and then did my regular route but I think tomorrow, I will discover a new path that is in some fields, which I never explored before.

I just finished watching Moore's 2019 documentary, Planet of the Humans.  My mind is blown and I am speechless.  All I can say is: what can we do now?  It is clear that human's hunger for consumption will destroy us.

Pretty grey outside but not too bad, in terms of temperature.  Apparently pollen is really high today, though!  Felt good to get out of the house, since yesterday I was indoors all day.

It's more motivating to get walking outside these days, as it get warmer and birds are chirping away!

Just a beautiful day outside, today!  I spent about an hour FaceTiming with a friend, who lives in Iceland.  While speaking to her, I took in the sun and all the outdoor noises.  She said she could hear the birds singing on my front lawn!  The rest of the time, I walked around the yard and then put the Mason Bee house up.  I will have to get the soil ready for them!

I donated money to treecanada.ca and onetreeplanted.org, so that 26 trees in Quebec could be planted and one of them will be planted in an urban setting.  Makes me feel real good to do this on Arbour Day.  I can breathe the fresh air already :)