We woke up to a gorgeous day; clear, clear blue sky, not a whisper of wind and loads of sunshine. It couldn’t be more perfect. This morning once I showered, I went for a bike ride in and around the park in an attempt to do a little cardio workout. Meanwhile I should have been like Rick who had immersed himself in some more cleaning and raking in the park; sprucing things up after a windy summer. We both managed to get some exercise though Rick was far more productive.

Recently we’ve changed our eating schedule so that our biggest meal is eaten at lunchtime giving our bodies more time to use the energy so I spent some time in the late morning preparing our meal. After we ate I did some reading while Rick tinkered with our golf cart. Oh, yes, I suppose I neglected to mention that we have a golf cart… something I seriously protested about purchasing. Rick bought it last spring because he spends so much time carrying equipment (lawn mowers, leaf blowers, shovels etc.) back and forth between the maintenance yard and the putting green. On the rare occasion that I am in it, it is as a reluctant passenger because I am terrified of becoming reliant on one. I see far too many folks using a golf cart to get around and soon they can’t go anywhere without one. I’ll stick to my feet or my bicycle for as long as I possibly can!

Later this afternoon we went into Palm Springs to meet up with our friend Anita (we met last year and became fast friends). We’d planned to get together so she could take us for a short hike up into the surrounding mountains. Anita, having lived here her whole life, knows a lot about the area and we’re always learning something new when we see her. Today was no different; our bodies and our minds had a great workout so much so that we are hoping to start hiking together on a regular basis. From our vantage point on the trail we had a good view of Palm Springs and some of the neighbouring cities. The area on the picture that I have circled in pink is where we stay over in Desert Hot Springs.