Wake up city!

The sun is on it's way.

A morning walk is an event I strive for every day. Sometimes I feel like I do that just to get it out of the way, but the truth is, I love to see how everything changes with the encroaching sunlight. I live in the city, but across the street from a park, and even though a good section of woods and a creek are just at the end of my road, I rarely walk the creek path in the dark on account of the number of transients who call it home. Instead, I stick to the roads when it's dark out. Care to come along on a view of some of the grittier sites?

I love Sycamore trees. I find them fascinating with their distinct mottled, camouflage bark and how they stand so prominently where ever they may be. I first learned what these were when hiking Aman Park a few years ago and I was delighted to find several of them growing in my neighborhood. They catch my attention when I'm walking and cause me to rubber-neck as I walk by. I mean, really! How cool is a camouflage tree??

I found a notable harbinger of Spring, the seed balls of the Sycamore. These pods hang on the tree all winter long and only begin to drop in abundance with the arrival of the spring weather. ~grins~ This might be a bit more reliable than any groundhog.

Not sure why I focused on the 'gritty city' shots today, but I'm sort of glad I did because it is what I see every day. Most of the time I'm focused on the beauty of my walks and ignore the lights and wires and cars, but sometimes, I guess you just have to look at what else is there.