Friday, March 27 Who: Miranda Reeves, OPEN TO ANYONE What: A bit of outdoors time. Where:Rizal Park, Off-leash Area When: Friday after work, March 27 Rating: G Status: Incomplete
One of the nice things about owning your own home, Miranda thought, was that if you had a dog, he had room to be all doggy. Luckily, she did and Edward was generally happy, but he had no other dogs to play with. So at least once a week she liked to bring him to the off-leash areas of the various city parks and let him run, let him play with other dogs. It made for a happy Edward and it got her out of the office and labs and into the sun.
Well. In only the vaguest and most general sense. She glanced up at the grey and overcast sky. Theoretically, there was a sun up there. Occasionally, she even saw it.
But it didn't matter. It was still good to be outside, to breathe fresh cool air, to feel it against her face and in her hair. Stephen nagged her to get out more, away from the office and lab, and in response she fired him several times a day. He always rolled his eyes at her and later brought her a coffee, and she graciously rehired him. It was a routine they'd gone through for years, as comfortable as a pair of broken-in sneakers.
Miranda tucked her hands into her jacket pockets and her sneakers crunched on the cedar chip-covered paths. The wind sighed in the trees, and traffic sounds were distant and far away. Ahead of her, Edward bounced and barked, a flash of white against the greens and browns of the park. Well. Semi-white, maybe. Earlier, he'd gotten into a wonderfully-fun tussle with a big goofy-looking Lab that had left him smudged with mud and grass. A bath lay in his future, but he was blissfully unconcerned about that.
At the top of the hill sat a few benches, one of Miranda's favorite spots. She could sit, and look over south Seattle; it was always worth the climb. Edward ran along the fence, barking, most likely just to hear his head rattle, a most uncomplicated pleasure.
With a sigh, Miranda sank down on the bench and slipped the strap of her messenger bag over her head. Within was a thermos of coffee from her favorite shop, and happily, she poured some into the cap and took a sip, watching as Edward wrestled a branch into submission.