A Wednesday walk in the park.

Wow! Spring has finally sprung at Liberty Park.  Which means an average Wednesday walk turns into something extraordinary.

First, Chevron's attempt to repent for its oil-spill sins is finally paying off.  The pond is full again and the new concrete borders with river stones are a significant improvement.  (I'm not yet willing to forgive Chevron.  You still have to look through a chain link fence to enjoy the pond).

At least the water birds are back including the first of the babies.  Yes it's silly. But baby geese still make me feel like a little kid.

The eagle fountain outside the original entrance to Tracy Aviary is flowing.

All this would be enough to make a spring walk at Liberty Park spectacular.  But the best part about spring at the park is the return of the eccentrics.

The Medieval battle group is back.

And look, it's the return of the Gay Flag Brigade.  OK, I made that name up. But it still makes be happy to see them back.

Last but not least, something new: A guy dangling from a tree!

It's just another Wednesday evening walk. I love Liberty Park. 

How many hippies does it take to erect a May pole?

It's May 1 at Liberty Park.  And that means that this weekend is Earth Jam!  Which translates into a lot of hippies at the park.  You can buy tie-died anything, get your hemp on, and hoola-hoop to your heart's content.  This year's Earth Jam was extra fun.  Contestants for Food TV's Great Food Truck Race were in town shooting for the TV shows and a couple were at the park.  I think both "Seabirds" and "Hodge Podge" must have been contestants based on the TV crews and the warnings that I might be on TV just by walking past the trucks.

My favorite part of Earth Jam 2011? The gaggle of hippies trying to erect a May pole.  Here they are early on.

Here they are an hour later.  

At this point the hole they're digging to secure the pole is so deep that the Liberty Park grounds crew will be working all week to remedy the damage.

I'm a big fan of the Liberty Park hippies.  And I hope they succeed in their May Day endeavors.  But I'm not waiting around to find out.

Nothing says spring like gays with flags.

I don’t care what the calendar says, you know spring is really here when the gays return to Liberty Park resplendent with flags. So you can imagine my delight when I rounded the corner while walking the dog recently and witnessed the return of flag-waving gays. (There are a few riflemen and baton twirlers thrown in for good measure.)

I call this group the Gay Flag Brigade, and along with the Mountain Bike Polo Players and the Medieval Reenactment Crew, they are one of the reasons I love Liberty Park. Now I don’t know for sure that they’re gay—oh alright they’re obviously gay. But I’m intimidated by the Gay Flag Brigade and I’ve never talked to them to confirm their sexuality. So I feel a little like I’m just furthering stereotypes and clichés.

This photograph does not do the Gay Flag Brigade justice. But I didn’t want to get too close to take a picture for fear the Brigade would attack, firing on me with fake rifles and beating me with rainbow-colored flags.

My goal this summer is to muster the courage to confront the Brigade and interview them. Wish me luck.