Temps in the 30's with a sharp, cold wind. Sunny.
Last week I went in search of a newly constructed renegade mountain bike trail in Hubbard Park. I found it, painted over the trail markers, and this week I would begin to cover over the trail hopefully rendering it unusable.
But that wind! I was a tad under-dressed, and the cold wind off Merimere Reservoir bit at my ears.
Once I got around the reservoir and into the woods, I was sheltered from the cold and warmed up nicely.
While heading toward Merimere Reservoir and picking up litter, I picked up a rain-soaked, frozen diaper. Man, those things can hold some water! It was heavy, and I wasn't going to carry it all day if I didn't have to. So I left my first trash bag at the water treatment plant.
Just before I ducked into the woods beyond Merimere Reservoir, I found more of the "cat's behind" graffiti, which I found last week as well.
Those are actually the sixth and seventh times I've found this particular signature, which first appeared in November 2016. No problem; I got this.
Soon afterwards, I picked up the trail and proceeded to begin covering it up.
Here's one of the trail markers I covered over last week. You can see the trail in the background.
Reaching the end of the trail, I discovered that somewhere along the way, I'd lost my hedge clippers. Now I would have to retrace my steps to find it. Fortunately, I found it about 100 feet back down the trail. I now plan to paint them a bright color to make them easier to spot.
Making my way back toward Merimere Reservoir, I stopped at the south end to watch a man filling one gallon milk jugs with water from the reservoir. When I asked him what he was doing he said he was "stealing" water. Okay; I could tell I had a character on my hands so I might as well engage the guy in conversation and see what stink I could stir up.
I won't reveal the man's name, but I later learned his local nickname is "Scrapper". Scrapper believes the City of Meriden's Water Department ADDS SALT to our drinking water. Now I knew I had a "live one". The fact is, the only sodium occurring in our water is from stormwater run-off containing road salt. And, it measures within acceptable limits.
I'll bet he believes in The Illuminati, too.
Scrapper told me he fills up the 5 gallons worth of jugs maybe once a week, and boils the water first, using it for coffee and tea. When I asked why he didn't just filter his drinking water, he told me his son had bought him a faucet filter but he never installed it.
So, in an attempt to convince Scrapper he was wasting his time and energy, I gave him my virtually brand new waterbottle. I filter my drinking water and find it does improve the taste, and much more cheaply than bottled water, or filling up jugs once a week at Merimere Reservoir. I told Scrapper to try the water in my bottle next time he makes coffee or tea, and see what he thinks. I get the funny feeling there's no convincing him otherwise and I wasted my waterbottle on him.
Scrapper also told me he is a gadfly at Meriden City Council meetings... I'm seeing a pattern here.
Anyway, after talking to him in the open of Merimere Reservoir, my ears were really cold so I skeedaddled out of there and returned to the park, hoping winter would soon go away.
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