From Mailboxes to Murders of Crows: A Rainy Day Quest

These past weeks I’ve been stuck in everyday life, and I noticed it left me feeling somewhat dissatisfied. Today is a drizzly Monday morning, and I have a considerable to-do list. When I opened the windows wide to let in some fresh air, the smell of rain filled my nose. Did you know it has a name? It’s called petrichor.

Actually, I should go for a walk now; that would do me good, I thought. Although there’s a saying that “there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing,” the thought of ruining my shoes on the muddy forest path wasn’t appealing.

Well, sometimes you have to push past your inner slacker, and you come out the other end feeling proud. Before I left, I asked ChatGPT for a little scavenger hunt to keep me motivated and to give my walk a purpose. Here’s what it suggested, with my comments in italics.

🌿 Village → Forest Scavenger Hunt

1. A house or mailbox with a quirky detail
   (A funny sign, unusual door color, decorative wreath, little gnome, etc.)
   
   

   I already knew exactly which mailbox to go for. This ranch-style house is probably my favorite in our neighborhood, and these U.S.-style mailboxes are rare in Switzerland. Ours are more boring, box-like.

   
   
   

   
   

2. A window that tells a story
   Something displayed on a windowsill that makes you imagine the person inside.

   These are our neighbors across the street. They do landscaping as a living, and their front porch reflects this perfectly.

   
   
   

   
   

3. An animal doing something very unbothered
   Bonus points if it’s perched somewhere improbable.

   These sheep were grazing. I appreciated that they didn’t turn away when they saw me approaching. One even made eye contact — right before peeing. I guess this qualifies as “doing something very unbothered” ;-).

   
   
   

   
   

4. A naturally occurring heart shape
   In a leaf, stone, crack in the pavement, tree knot — wherever.

   The heart shape turned out to be the greatest challenge. Best I could do are these wonderfully bright Japanese maple leaves. I mean, they’re red, and with a little goodwill you can isolate two lobes that sort of form a heart. Right?

   
   
   

   
   

5. A tree with ‘character’
   One that looks like a creature, has a twisty trunk, or a face in the bark.

   I chose this pretty tree for its red berries. According to Google Lens, it’s called Ilex aquifolium.

   
   
   
   
   

6. Something red in nature
   A berry, mushroom, leaf, or even someone’s jacket that pops through the trees.

   The last apple on the tree, apparently shared with the birds.

   
   
   

   
   

7. A sound you didn’t expect
   Woodpecker? Running water? A squirrel scolding you? Note it.

   No, it wasn’t a woodpecker — it was the meowing of a charismatic cat either, but unexpectedly,  murder of crows. Yes, that’s the collective noun for a group of these birds. I recently learned this from a meme about Sheryl Crow: “murder of crows.” Now we all know the croaking sound crows usually make, right? The larger the number of birds, the scarier the sound. One crow even imitated a dog barking: woof-woof-woof. Quite special.

   
   
   

   
   

8. A patch of light
   A beam of sun hitting the forest floor, making something glow.

   A beam of sun is hard to find on a rainy day. However, this dahlia does a wonderful job pretending it’s sunny and nice.

   
   
   

   
   

9. A sign of the season
   Buds, frost, mud patterns, leftover leaves — anything that whispers “today.”

   What says “Halloween is over, but it’s not quite Christmas yet” better than this slightly rotting Jack-O-Lantern? It made me smile.

   
   
   

   
   

10. One small thing that sparks joy
    Could be a dog saying hi, a pretty stone, or the smell of wood smoke.

    Honestly, this walk on a drizzly Monday morning sparked more joy than I expected. The sheep were adorable, I had a nice chat with the meowing cat, and I even encountered a group of daycare/kindergarten kids on a nature walk. Did they have their own scavenger hunt going on? Anyway — speaking of “Halloween is over, but it’s not quite Christmas yet” — I spotted a fir tree decorated with ornaments in someone’s yard.

    
    
    

    
    

So this little project — the walk, picking pictures from roughly 160 I took, and writing this post — cost me 2.5 hours I should have spent on “more important things.” But hey, sometimes you have to carve out time to feed your soul, and if not you, then who will?

Wishing you all a wonderful start to the new week.