"Nature's first green is gold"

Yesterday, or I guess two days ago (it's 12:48AM) I decided to take the old camera out for a spin and go on a little adventure. So I tossed the cellphone aside, put on my puma boots, (which I discovered are more fashionable than they are endurable), and set off for the woods behind my house.

I felt refreshed immediately, and excited in a reckless way. My mission was to pass the pond through the woods, which is as far as I've ever gone. As kids we only went as far as the pond with the mysterious shack beside it. Come to think of it, that shack is fucking scary! Blair Witch scary. Well that's it in the photo. Actually I guess it isn't that scary, because there's a barn up past the field in sight, and those people must have built it, not a child murdering hermit.

During the winter, the forest is a completely different place. It's silent in a way that is eerie yet extremely surreal and peaceful. As I passed the pond, deserting the trail, the crowded trees made it darker. I noticed that there were deer prints everywhere and became excited/determined to see some sort of wildlife. I chose one trail of prints and followed it. Pretty soon there was this marsh, with cattails and everything. I took a picture. The prints went around the marsh, but being an American middle-class 18 year old with a $600 camera, I thought I'd just walk through it. "It's covered with snow, so it must be frozen," I thought. One step over that fallen tree, forming a boundary, and my foot sunk about 6 inches further than ground level. Straight up mud. So for 5 seconds I was completely defenseless trying to get it out, and I was successful. This was all part of the adventure. Afterwards, I followed the deers advice and went around the marsh.

Beyond the marsh, there was another pond! This one more beautiful and serene than the last. I took a picture. The pond actually looked holy, being brightly sunlit amongst the dark trees. This is when I noticed something creepy. Looking down for the hoof prints of the deer, I noticed different prints. I still don't know what they were, but they were paws, big paws. Bear? I don't know, but I think they'd be in hibernation, right? The prints led to a tree, and stopped at the trunk. When I realized this, it was quite cinematic, because I also realized that I was right below this tree, and slowly looked up. It was an extremely tall pine, which could have housed anything beneath it's branches and millions of needles. I took a picture of the prints.

Beyond this holy pond, was a hill. I took a picture. The deer prints led to the hill, all of them! Was this some sort of deer central?! But the deer had gone around the frozen pond, so this time, so did I. Unfortunately, the hill was surrounded by some sort of moat of creeks. The deer had all leaped over the creek, but I had a $600 camera and had already slipped on the flat snow alone twice. The only way was to cross the edge of the pond. This was an adventure, which meant there must be some sort of risk. Slowly, with the camera hung around my neck, one hand clutching the nearest branch, and the other awkwardly stuck out straight for balance, I tested the ice. I tapped it once. I stomped on it with one foot. Every step I took followed a hard stomp test on the ice in front of me. I was about two steps away when there was a noise. It was probably nothing but it scared the crap out of me, so I let out a small yelp and leaped onto the snowy hillside, with excellent precision (I must admit.)

There was no life on that hill. It was silent, and dark. Then I saw these HUGE ASS HOOF PRINTS, like, MOOSE hoof prints! And got my ass outta there. Moose are dangerous, I did a project on them in the fifth grade. Dog sled mushers fear moose above all things, because they'll charge and hoof anything that crosses their path. Too bad I didn't take a picture.

I danced across the ice like it was lava, and started my journey home. It was getting dark, and I had no cell phone. Even though there wasn't really any danger, it still felt a little dangerous in an exhilarating way. Here and there I stopped to take a pictures, and in no time was trudging up my backyard.

Also, my condolences for your loss. RIP S.G.

Nature's first green is gold

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

-Robert Frost