This past winter was a fairly harsh one, with a two-foot snowfall setting the stage for a cold end to a season which eventually dumped a yard of snow on the yard. Thankfully, I live in a functional state (despite our Governor turning out to be a shithead), so the harsh winter was a minor inconvenience. Sure, there were weeks when I simply left my car at work, but I have a workplace, and the public transportation infrastructure is fantastic.
Still, I'm glad winter is over. I can put the flannel-lined jeans in storage. Even more importantly, old friends are returning: i heard the trill of a red-winged blackbird resounding from the marsh on the property, on the drive home I see skunks gamboling throughout my neighborhood, my beloved stinging nettles are poking through the leaf litter. Soon, the spring peepers will be chiming their love songs by the pools of meltwater throughout the night. The robins and mourning doves have returned.
More importantly, it's more comfortable being outside, in conditions more salubrious than cramped indoor spaces. Soon, it will be feasible to take the old laptop outside and work al fresco. The social isolation of a pandemic winter will be mitigated. With the prospect of vaccines being broadly available, it looks as if a genuine spring awakening is on its way.
Excellent! I've been (cautiously) feeling the same, myself!
ReplyDeleteConka-*reee*!//redwing blackbird
ReplyDeleteI don't live near preferred redwing or peeper terrain, but the red-bellied woodpeckers look like they're back to their accustomed spot in our tiny patch of woods, where there's a tall, slim snag ornamented with the most artisticaly excavated round holes. They have bright cheerful things to say,too.
I love your nature posts, btw. You might think of compiling them, along with your photos, into a downloadable book
Excellent! I've been (cautiously) feeling the same, myself!
ReplyDeleteCaution is the key, Ali, we may have another blizzard yet.
I don't live near preferred redwing or peeper terrain, but the red-bellied woodpeckers look like they're back to their accustomed spot in our tiny patch of woods, where there's a tall, slim snag ornamented with the most artisticaly excavated round holes.
Red-bellied woodpecker, you say? This was my one game of Angry Birds. The cats were a lot angrier.