Gearing Up

I’ve had a three day weekend which I have spent working in my yard until this morning when I was confronted by an advanced hour, grey skies and a phone call from my sister!  I’ve also had a lot on my mind but have been unable to article the thoughts swirling around in my little grey cells.

       That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.

       Actually, it is not easy to come up with a daily article and I thought it would be good to recharge my batteries.  Meanwhile I had some interesting experiences including watching my two cats vie for my attention.  It is not surprise to learn that cats are very jealous creatures but it is surprising to see how much like children they can be when they are basically saying “look at me Mommy, I can to this” as they do a triple somersault in the air and come down to whack the brother over the head.  Then the real fighting starts, jumping over sofas and exercise machines, skidding along the corner and stop just before the tumble down 12 stairs into the basement.  Then they each go into their own corner to lick their wounds and finally crawl under the bed to sleep it off.  Yesterday they each took turns napping at my feet while I read.

       Besides my nature watch indoors I had the experience of weeding outdoors.  Isn’t it amazing that all natural beautiful things go grey, brown and dormant while weeds seem to stay green through the winter?  If they aren’t green through the winter they are certainly green as soon as there is the least bit of sun and heat.  Yes I found weeds sprouting in the garden, under mounds of leaves.  I also discovered that grass that had been trimmed short last fall can grow up to a foot over the winter (really).  All around the trees and bushes the grass was really long and I know I had trimmed it all down last October.

       I also discovered that as much as you pick up dead branches throughout the winter there is always more falling down from somewhere.  It amazes me that there are any branches left on my trees, I have picked so many up off the ground!  I have enough kindling to last me a lifetime or two.  When I pick up the dead branches I am reminded of Laura Ingalls when they were in DeSmet and there was hardly a twig to be found anywhere.  When my niece and nephew were younger I told them to pretend they were Laura and Albert looking for firewood but they had no idea what I was talking about.  They were raised on The Simpsons not Little House on the Prairie. I think they were deprived.

       So besides my nature watch, what have I been cooking up for your entertainment?  To be continued . . .