Fifteen miles and counting...

I live in a pretty big neighborhood, and one of its claims to fame is that there are fifteen miles of sidewalk within its boundaries. So, since I have free access now to leave and return to my house via my automatic door, I am taking full advantage of these sidewalks. My goals this summer were to find and use all the sidewalks, log fifteen miles on my chair, and figure out how to navigate to my favorite spots in the neighborhood.  

One of my personal favorite past-times is to find a path I've never taken, and see where it leads. It makes for a fun and low-risk adventure in my 1mile-squared neighborhood block. Every time I go out, I try to take a different route, get myself completely lost, and keep going without turning back or retracing my steps until I get home again. I might decide that in one outing, I will only "puddle jump" - take paths around the multiple ponds, or opt for only sunny trails or only shady trails, or take all left turns or alternate left and right turns, or follow my heart completely spontaneously. Not only have I put more than 25 miles on my wheelchair, but I've also earned an impressive tan as I've enjoyed hours of delightful Fort Wayne summer weather!  

I did look on Google Maps one day, just to see if it identified any playgrounds or points of interest in my neighborhood, and would you believe it claimed there was a restaurant - and a chocolate fountain restaurant, at that! So that time, I followed the GPS to find this chocolate Mecca, and it led me to... someone's house. I can only assume they have a catering or online service that they run from home, though I did sit in their driveway for a minute, seriously considering knocking on their door and asking for a bon-bon.

Usually, I spend my walk thinking through the next section of my novel-writing project, or listening to an audiobook on my phone. Neighbors I meet on the paths are friendly and say hi, but they are typically on their own mission and don't stop to chat or join me in my aimless meandering.

As for my favorite spots... There is one longer, smooth, open path that follows a marshy creek full of tall grasses, cottony-fluffy plants, and lovely wildflowers behind some houses, and I often see what I think are cranes standing in the shallow water. 

On hotter days, I like to roam along the more woodsy trails, and hear chipmunks and squirrels scamper through the leaves as I pass. There are also lampposts all over the neighborhood along the sidewalks, so naturally my Queen-Lucy heart delights in the hope of one day being invited to tea by a faun or a beaver...