spring — Page 4

Potpourri on Wednesday

March 11, 2020 at 10:30 am by Claudia

Weathered pine floors courtesy of Scout and Riley.

• Last night we were watching the primary results and I saw this on the screen:

65+

For the first time, I really got that I am in now in this demographic. You know how something suddenly hits you in the gut and the mind at the same time? That’s what happened to me. That demographic used to mean somebody else, some other group of people…old people. And now I’m there. I still don’t feel like I’m that old. I think of myself as someone at least a decade younger. How can I be 67?

Gulp. A big dose of reality last night.

• Also: Spring is officially here. I heard Peepers last night from our neighbor’s yard! When the Peepers start and the groundhogs come out of hibernation, it is most definitely SPRING. Huzzah!

• We, like most people I suspect, have been stocking up on supplies given the nature of the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19.) Currently, New York has 173 cases statewide, with many more people under voluntary quarantine. We bought a bunch of canned goods and other supplies last week and we’re going to take an inventory today to determine what additional supplies we need. I know you know the drill, wash your hands, try to avoid crowds or big events, use hand sanitizer, etc. With the news that the White House nixed a CDC request to alert those over 60 not to fly, we are more than uneasy about anything coming (or not coming in this case) from anywhere but the CDC and NIH. And in our case, our state government, which seems to be on top of things.

Anyway, I’m not actively worried, but I sure as heck am going to keep a low profile. I shared a little thought yesterday on IG Stories:

“Not to make light of the Coronavirus, but “Social Distancing” sounds like heaven to an introvert like me.”

• I want to share a podcast I discovered yesterday. It’s called Diving In. Two friends from Australia share their thoughts on what they’re reading, favorite books, and whatever else is striking their fancy. They’re wonderful. The latest episode is the one I listened to – all about the Mitford sisters and Nancy Mitford’s novels. Since I’m currently reading Mitford’s The Pursuit of Love, I found this podcast very timely. I’m charmed by the hosts, who love reading, giggle a lot, and know their stuff.

I saw it mentioned on Instagram by a book lover that I follow, so I immediately subscribed. I have several podcasts that I follow, though I don’t stop and listen to them often enough. I’ll try to put together a list for you for a future post.

• Off to take an inventory of our supplies and head to the store with Don.

Take care of yourselves, my friends.

Happy Wednesday.

Signs of Spring

March 10, 2020 at 9:57 am by Claudia

Yesterday was gorgeous: warm, sunny, breezy. Interestingly, both Don and I remarked at the end of the day that it was too warm…too sunny. I think that means we weren’t quite ready for such a big change. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the day.

I walked around the property. Another old and dead tree had fallen up in the back forty. The shingles on the back side of the shed roof are being destroyed by high winds. Time for a tarp, because we won’t do anything to repair them until we have to replace the roof on the house – then we’ll do it at the same time.

Day lilies emerging.

Daffodils on the edge of the woods. They were completely hidden by leaves. I had to uncover them for this picture.

Buds on the lilac! No question; this is an early Spring.

There’s a heck of a lot of cleanup that needs to be done, but I’m not uncovering the garden beds yet. I’ll give it a couple of weeks.

I will say that by the end of the day yesterday, Spring Fever had taken over. I’m almost happy that it’s going to rain today as it’s too early to do anything out there and I need to tamp down on that fever. Heck, we still have the snow blower and shovels on the porch because we don’t want to jinx things.

Today? Cleaning the tub. As we have hard water, cleaning anything involving water is a pain in the tush. But I’m in the mood, which is rare, so I’m going for it.

Happy Tuesday.

Spring is Crazy This Year

May 20, 2019 at 8:10 am by Claudia

That lovely bridal veil spirea bush that came with our property is in bloom. It’s so gorgeous. Every year, I am amazed by its beauty. I could take endless photos of it.

We had lots of thunderstorms last night – severe thunderstorm watches were up for a great deal of the northeast. We were trying to watch To Kill a Mockingbird on TCM, but it kept getting interrupted by that godawful warning noise that scares the crap out of you and a robot-voice issuing yet another long warning. I know it’s necessary, but since the flow of the movie and several key scenes were muted by the recurring warnings, we gave up.

Thankfully, we were spared any damage and I don’t think we got any hail. It hit the eighties here on Sunday and it was quite humid. Today will bring a high of 86. Then it’s back down to the 70s tomorrow. Our crazy spring continues.

After spending several hours over at Rick and Doug’s, we headed home. Our first task was to get the A/C unit for our bedroom out of the shed. We immediately installed it. We wanted to be able to sleep and not sweat! Mission accomplished.

The lovely little bell-like flowers on the Solomon’s Seal.

During our visit to Rick and Doug’s, we got to throw a ball to Sam, who loves nothing more than catching it in the air. It brings back memories of our dogs. Winston and Scout were great runners – Scout was as fast as any dog I’ve ever seen. Like Sam, they would chase balls for hours. It’s fun to get the chance to play with a dog again. And we adore Sam.

Baby morning glories. They’re coming up, as well as baby zinnias. This year, I also planted some sunflowers and they’re also breaking through the ground. It will be interesting to see how they do.

Happy Monday.

Potpourri on Wednesday

Signs of Spring

Spring is Crazy This Year

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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