Fall

Autumn is in full force in Iowa, as much as I hate to admit it. A lot of people say that fall is their favorite time of year, and I can't blame them for that. Trees turn colors and show a very beautiful part of God's creation. Where I like to go out for rolls (walks), it seems like everything is new again with different color that changes on every visit. For me though, fall means colder temperatures, and a foretaste of what is to come, winter.

It also means an end to my barefoot summer. Last week I went out train watching with my parents and whore shoes all day. It was a grim reminder of the season change and I could tell my body didn't like it. After getting home, my feet were swollen and had several red marks from their experience. The outing itself was enjoyable though, especially exploring roads around the rails we hadn't been to before.

One of these roads had an old wooden bridge on a dead end rock road that went over the tracks. It was a great place to sit because nobody would care that you were there and it offered a bird's eye view of the rails. The only slight problem is that the approaches on both ends were rather steep. This meant that on our return trip over the bridge, the van bottomed out and got stuck. It was a minor problem that didn't take much to get out of, but it made for an entertaining excursion.

The bridge was just outside of Boone, Iowa, the home of the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad. They were using their steam engine last weekend while we were in the area so we could hear when we were in the country. Hearing the lonesome sound of the steam whistle in the distance made it seem like we were back in the days of steam when the Union Pacific Challengers and Mountains would have ruled the tracks. If I can get dad's memory card the videos, with background steam whistles, will be on my YouTube channel.

Speaking of fall, I'm starting to think my health might be doing the same again. For the past few weeks, I haven't been able to keep my lungs completely clear for anything. My nurses have been having allergy trouble, which I may be as well, but it's very odd to be so congested for so long. This week, I've had a few times that I could hardly keep my eyes open. Today is Friday and I have been wanting to get this entry in since Monday. The leaking bladder problems have also returned, thankfully not as bad as last time though.

In my next update, I need to talk about what's going on with my wheelchair. That topic could likely take a few posts, but I'll try to keep it down to one. The next few days look to be warmer again, so I'm hoping to get out and get some sun, barefoot of course, while I still can. Until next time!