Early Morning On The Trail, and This Addiction We Call Smartphones

A cottontail bunny rabbit munching on grasses early this morning off the Cedar River Trail. The grass is mostly brown because of our mostly dry summers here in the Pacific Northwest. Western Washington and Oregon are technically Mediterranean climate areas.

I ride my bike on the Cedar River Trail every morning. It's one of the best times of the day, actually. The world is quiet -- all you can hear is the merry rumble of the small creeks that run down the ravines into the River, and the songs of all the birds. Chickadees, Robins, Blue Jays, Song Sparrows, and the piccolo like notes of a Swainson's Thrush -- you can hear them every morning on the Trail.

A quiet morning at Riverside park. The area echoed with the sounds of all kinds of birds.

I usually take my camera with me when I ride. Sometimes I get pics of a sunrise, sometimes a bird or duck -- but usually the birds are a bit wary and they flit away when they see me stop my bike to photograph them.

A rock dove was sitting by the side of a nearby street yesterday afternoon. Unlike most birds, this dove (or pigeon) barely moved when I pulled out my camera.

The Cedar River yesterday, on a balmy summer afternoon. It was 80 degrees out (27C), and the sun felt warm on my back while I was out riding.

I also ride my bike during afternoons sometimes. The Trail is a safe, scenic place. The most dangerous thing is the spandex-wearing, speeding bikers who more often than not zip past pedestrians, kids, people with dogs, and slower bikers like myself. There is a 10 mile-per-hour speed limit on the Trail -- you wouldn't know it with some of these guys.

A few Canada Geese enjoying the Cedar River water yesterday afternoon. It was hard to get a decent picture because the trees kept getting in the way as the geese kept moving down the river.

One unusual thing I've noticed -- well, perhaps it isn't so unusual, in today's connected world -- is the complete addiction people have to their smart phones, often reaching insane proportions.

The ubiquitous cell phone. Although this one is a toy one I found near the Trail. You press a button, it rings and a female voice says "Operator! Can I help you?"

Countless times I've seen joggers, checking their all-important social media notifications while jogging. I always see moms pushing babies in strollers, completely ignoring the beauty around them. Where is their attention? On their cell phone, using their thumb to scroll through their all important notifications. I see couples -- not talking to each other or enjoying each other's company, and they are definitely not looking at the nature all around them -- they're both looking at their stupid smart phones.

A family floating down the Cedar River in inflatable rafts and inner-tubes, taken yesterday afternoon.

One day nearly all the people I saw on the Trail -- bikers excepted -- were staring at their smart phones. Why do they bother to use a nature trail when they aren't even looking around and appreciating the natural surroundings all around them? If they're not going to listen to the wind rustling the leaves of the cottonwoods, or listen to the birds calling from the woods all around them, or even enjoy the company of the person next to them, why don't they just stay home?

Now, I don't yet have a smart phone. I am not a phone person, and my flip phone may be ancient but it's cheap and saves me a lot of money. My computers and tablet are enough internet for me. But I will soon get a smart phone, because the local systems are going 3G / 4G etc. only. At the same time, I'll probably load up Instagram, Snapchat and all that fun stuff that everybody uses to stay connected.

But you can bet I won't be staring at my smart phone when I'm on the Trail, whether walking or riding. Smart phones can add a lot to life, both good (staying connected, good for an emergency) and bad (they're great cheating devices, as one of my friends recently discovered -- to his chagrin). But smart phones should never be your life.

As I type this, I'm drinking some cut Ginger and Pomegranate juice. Tastes terrific, and it's good for the circulatory system as well -- Pomegranate has a lot of antioxidants, and Ginger is good for a lot of things. Yes, it's a Christmas cup. It's Christmas year 'round at my house. :-)

Me earlier this year, probably in the Spring.

Here's hoping you all have a great third week of July.

CC 7-16-2016