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Walk With Me…

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I walk a lot more than usual. If you love walking, join me on a trip through my neighborhood. I only walk about two miles but it’s a lovely walk. The stars of the walk–horses. There are quite a few in my neighborhood so enjoy their pictures!

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Blackbirds spend the day flying through the neighborhood. They gather in certain spots at different times of the day and then move on. I think there are close to 500 of them in this group!

Feeding boxes for the birds. Every once in a while, I’m lucky enough to find one here:

A trail too steep. It’s worse than it looks though I’ve never taken it:

If I turn 180 degrees, I see the main highways that cut my neighborhood–Moulton and Oso (for those familiar with this area). They’re big streets with sometimes lots of traffic:

Casey the Dog joins me but he’s a bit older so ends up home, exhausted, ready for a nap:

If you live around Laguna Hills and want to walk with me from about 8:05-8:45 am (after my 8 am pills for RA and eye drops for whatever), come join!

Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy, the Man vs. Nature saga, and the Rowe-Delamagente thrillers. She is also the author/editor of over a hundred books on integrating tech into education, adjunct professor of technology in education, blog webmaster, an Amazon Vine Voice,  a columnist for NEA Today, and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. Look for her next prehistoric fiction, Laws of Nature, Summer 2021.

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108 thoughts on “Walk With Me…”

  1. Pingback: Tips for Characters Who Must Walk Quietly – Today's Author

  2. Hi Jacqui – bit late .. but catching up. I can’t walk too fair either … and I’ll adjust to how I feel – often just to the shops and back, jumping a bus back if I’ve lots of shopping … but lovely part of the world you live in … stay safe – Hilary

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  5. I would love to walk with you, Jacqui, but I’m sitting here in cold, snowy Aurora, Colorado. Your photos made me “homesick” for California. I lived in Garden Grove during the 70s and spent time in Fullerton in the late 90s. There was a lovely trail near my husband’s place in Fullerton, complete with trees, dirt path, and horses. I loved to walk there. It was Terry’s place because he was working for three years in California, while I was working and pursuing my Masters in Colorado. I’m feeling like Casey right now. LOL! Enjoy those walks ~ You are very fortunate!

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  14. I enjoyed this virtual walk. Thanks for sharing it with us. I walked two miles this morning too. I took the dog on the long leash and let him roam in the tall, brown (winter) grass. He ate two unidentifiable THINGS along the way (ugh, dogs!).

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  18. If you were closer, I’d definitely join you. We live way up in northern California, closer to the Oregon border. I usually walk six days a week (3-4 miles per walk). A couple of days a week, I walk with friends, but I also enjoy walking by myself. It is my best “thinking about writing time.”

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  19. Great neighborhood and nice trail. I’d love to join you for the walk, Jacqui. It’s more interesting than walk alone. We have many hiking, walking, and horse trails running throughout the city. When my husband goes running, he could wave to our friends in their backyard.

    At this time, I walk alone because my husband runs at a different time.

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  24. Looks like a peaceful and amazing walk. I’ve always enjoyed horses on my walks, but the ones I used to visit arent there anymore. Sweet pictures of Casey:)

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  27. What a different sort of post for you, Jacqui. It was nice to see a bit of the neighborhood and learn a little about you aside from writing. I would love that walk, especially the horses and birds…. well, and the pretty scenery. Enjoy.

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  28. Really enjoyed your walk through paradise. My father bought me my own horse when I was around 10 or 11.
    He was a huge bay gelding, 15 1/2 hands high, part quarter horse and part Morgan. He had a sense of humor because he loved gently bucking me off, knowing I then had to find a fence or an adult to help me remount.
    We lived in a small town, right on the ocean, in Gold Beach, Oregon. Mickey and I loved riding along the beach, cleaning his huge hoofs in the sand.
    My father was frequently gone, sometimes for several months at a time. My mother would then become hostile to me, because she truly resented my father’s “perceived favoritism” over my brothers because they had a different father. In reality my father was a red haired Irishman (his father came from Ireland) who loved all his children; including those born to his first wife, to whom he was still married . And was the real reason for his “business” trips.
    One time, when my father was away for a lengthy time, my mom’s temper got out of hand. I fled on Mickey’s back with only a bridle, a horse blanket, my father’s hunting knife, and fish hooks with a small roll of dental floss wrapped in plastic that I always kept in my jeans pocket.
    Mickey easily climbed up the mountain behind our town to a place called Big Prairie, which held a perfect hidden shelter among the trees and near a freshwater stream with occasional trout.
    Mickey and I lived comfortably for almost two weeks while the local sheriff and volunteers combed the area looking for us. The sheriff finally gave up and told my mother I would be found when I wanted to be found. Which coincided with when my father returned.
    Though my parents and Mickey are long gone, I still have my father’s hunting knife. But I long ago stopped eating animals because of my love for all living creatures.
    Thank you for sharing your horse friends with us. I look forward to your posts.
    Jill Mulligan

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  30. It looks like you have a great area for walking, Jacqui. I especially love all the horses. There are a few nearby me as well,plus a farmette directly diagonal from my house. They have two dwarf goats, domestic turkeys, chickens, ducks, and some other fowl I can’t identify, but I love seeing them out in their fenced area. Happy walking!

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    • You guys in the north are getting deluged. My sister lives in Indiana and my daughter in Maryland–both are buried. You generally write about walking through the towns or cities in your area. Do you ever walk through rural or undeveloped areas?

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  37. Jacqui, a delight to tag along on your walk and see your lovely neighbourhood! Blimey, that is an amazing number of blackbirds and wonderfully raucous I imagine. The road is wide but what strikes me most is how quiet it is, even our local village street during lockdown is a lot busier. I’ve always loved to be out walking but they’ve taken on an extra dimension this past year … now, the sun is out, frost is glistening hello so off for my daily one hour walk! Happy Trails!😀

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  38. That looks like a lovely walk, Jacqui. I just converted 2 mile = 3km. I imagine it would take me a lot longer to walk than 3km would normally take, because I would want to stop and say hello to all the horses, watch the birds etc too. So it’s probably the perfect distance 🙂

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