Still Life with Camera

Pictures are wonderful, but what I would really like is a device that focuses on all the senses as Weezie and I walk.  As it played back I would hear again the crickets chirping, the cicadas humming, and the song of the birds - ideally it would identify the bird for me from the song.  Iwould feel the warmth of the sun on my face and the wind cooling my sweat.  I would smell the clover in blossom and the newly mown grass.  I would feel the strength of muscles as they rhythmically tread the path.  I guess it sounds kind of like the Holo-deck from Star Trek TNG.  I wonder how long it will be until someone comes up with something like that. So look at this picture and imagine (for now) what all your other senses would be experiencing.

What would this old oak have to say?; I feel its old, wise presence when Weezie and I walk in Grant Woods.

This summer has been extraordinarily hot and humid, with both temperatures and the relative humidity in the high 80's and 90's.  Any breaks are welcome, to say the least.  On Sunday, a front blew through and sucked the humidity and most of the mosquitoes (also in record high numbers) right out of the air.  Monday and Tuesday were glorious - the smell and feel of autumn were in the air.  Wednesday and today the dial's back to "sauna."  But, like I said, any break is welcome.  Weezie and I went out to Grant Woods through the Grand Avenue exit in the early mornings when the temps were still in the low 70's.  I could almost believe we were hiking in southwestern Colorado. One of many goldenrod varieties in blossom now. Bird Paradise

We live in Lake County, Illinois.  Aptly named because within a few miles of us we have, Deep Lake, Cedar Lake, Sand Lake, Grass Lake, Crooked Lake, Painted Lake, Third Lake, Fourth Lake, Fox Lake, Chain of Lakes,  - you get the idea.  And we have the Lake County Forest Preserves organization.  I am so impressed by them - they have preserved thousands of acres in this area for recreational use.  Weezie and I walk in one of the preserve areas every day. Grant Woods is about 1000 acres (!) - there are 3 entrances within a couple of miles of our house. It's impossible to get the real feel of a place without actually being there, but here are a few pictures I took for my mom. That's because mom stayed in the car while Weezie and I did the 2-mile loop. Mom's lower body mobility needs some work and she improved greatly while she was at our house, but not nearly enough to make a 2-mile stroll. Here she is at the entrance. Note the rough-leafed sunflowers ...