Relative Something

Happy February, 2012! Why don’t we celebrate a new month with at least a fraction of the energy we put into celebrations of the new year?

Yesterday being Tuesday, my friend Mike and I got together for our (mostly) weekly night out and embarked on a mini-adventure in the great outdoors. We took a hike in the Richard T. Anderson Conservation Area park in Eden Prairie. It was my hope that we might catch a glimpse of a colorful sunset, because the hour of our hike put us at prime time. Unfortunately, clouds settled in and draped our world in the classic monochrome of a winter dusk.

On the last day of January, a trek in the woods usually requires snow shoes in this part of the world, but that would have been overkill yesterday. It was clearly evident which slopes of the bluff area were exposed to the afternoon sun, and which were in shadow. There was no snow on most of the south-facing areas, just a blanket of leaves. Daytime temperatures have been well above freezing for a couple of days, which has spelled doom for the bulk of the inch or two of snow we had left from the last episode of precipitation. It’s not lookin’ like there’ll be any igloo building being done by me this year.

I took a few pictures, regardless the overcast conditions, just in case something interesting might turn up. I selected three.

After our little walk, we stopped off at Lion’s Tap for a burger and fries. Figured I would mention that just to make those of you who know about that landmark institution, a little bit jealous.

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