Walkin' with Joaquin

This morning I woke up eager to start my year in the Park, energized with the idea of starting a new routine, especially this year after the Great Hiding. Backpack. Water bottle. Tea in a go cup. Laptop.  I get more work done when I have a uniform.   Flannel shirt. Hiking shoes. Pigtails—a far cry from the lady up routine at my last residency—but still fancier than the black sweat pants of 2020. I was so excited I forgot my phone.  (For a year there, I never left the house, so it takes practice.) I considered the possibility that I was trying to leave connectivity behind on purpose...I haven't let it leave my side for over a year. Today is one of those days where the light falls orange. We’ve had such blessed blue skies lately, even as bad air quality chokes the nation. In the north, fires are again once again consuming whole forests. A whole town disappeared. Again. When I get up to the park, it’s closed. Extreme fire danger. This would not bode well for an official first day, b