Griswold Christmas Bike By Sikes Lake Goose Stops With Aunt Alice's Gertrude

What with the outer world temperature heading towards the 70 degrees, or more, zone, and with my allergic self feeling the best I've felt. allergy-wise, in a couple weeks, I decided this first Saturday of December would be a mighty fine day to go on a mighty long bike ride.

My route took me to Sikes Lakes, then through the MSU campus, continuing north til heading east on Ellingham, where I came upon the Griswold's Christmas extravaganza, you see above, at the intersection of Taft Boulevard and Ellingham. This is the same location where Halloween sprouted, slightly less extravagantly, in October.

I tried to get the entire extravaganza in wide angle mode, from across the street on the west side of Taft. The result, while showing all, does not do it justice.

I shall return, maybe, on another day and take a close up video of this bit of Christmas excess, which seems to be video documenting worthy. I must also return to the MSU (Midwestern State University) Merry Christmas theme park to shoot another video, but this time with the theme park in animation mode, with the sound blaring. Today this was all turned off. No sound, no animation.

Like I already said, before I visited the Griswold's I pedaled around Sikes Lake where I found what you see below currently residing by the pavilion at the north end of the lake.

There are multiple instances, in various forms, of the type thing you see above, facilitating the taking of Holiday Season type photos with Sikes Lake and one of the Sikes Lake signature bridges as background, likely along with a goose or two or, maybe a couple hundred.

The Sikes Lake geese have become a bit militant of late. Like they have just about had enough of people walking, blading, jogging and biking on their paved trail. And so multiple squads of geese have set up roadblocking Goose Stops such as you see above, forcing one to come to a full stop after which one negotiates passage.

I think maybe the Sikes Lake geese have become radicalized due to someone telling them that some people have a roast goose for their Christmas dinner. A lot of Christmas dinners could be supplied by the HUGE flock of geese who call Sikes Lake home.

But, I have never consumed goose, nor will I ever. They are too cute to think of eating. Unlike chicken and turkeys.

It was via Aunt Alice and Gertrude I became appalled at the idea of cooking a goose.

Above you see Aunt Alice with Gertrude the Goose. Gertrude has been Aunt Alice's house goose for years. Gertrude is litter box trained and well mannered. And a good watch goose, honking loudly anytime someone rings the doorbell...