So when does spring arrive at your neck of the world?
Back when I worked at the Department of Health and Welfare,
Region IV, our manager, Tresa, planned an annual half day off at a local
bar. Years before, they’d take a weekend
and camp in the Idaho mountains, but over the years, they moved the party from
the campgrounds down the road to this remote watering hole.
The bar’s claim to fame, besides being on the way to the
national forest above Boise, was their bucket of clams.
Which were pretty
amazing.
When we’d ask about the outing, Tresa would shake her head.
“Not time yet. We’ll go when the air is soft.”
I knew what she meant.
Sitting outside on a picnic table on a warm, but not too warm, day, the
air tends to welcome you back from the harsh winter indoors.
My mother always said you couldn't plant your potatoes until
after the snow left Shaffer Butte. Even
if we’d had weeks of warm weather in the valley, she’d hold off transplanting
her garden plants from her sunny kitchen table to the warm soil of the garden.
It seemed to work for her, she never had to cover the garden because of a late
frost. Or buy the wall of water forms for the tomato plants to safeguard them
from the freeze.
That's my mom and big brother celebrating her birthday.
Some people mark the start of spring with a calendar or the
Easter holiday. For me, it’s all about the feel of the air. We don’t have a mountain like Shaffer Butte
where I live by the mighty Mississippi, so I leave the garden schedule up to my
husband. You’ll find me on the deck with a long neck and a book.
What are your signs of spring?
Lynn
Oh, and just because, let's do a cover reveal - Here's Mission to Murder - available now for Pre-order -Releasing July 31st.
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6 comments:
Signs of spring her in Central CA are all the trees are blooming. And it's nice enough to sit outside--though I haven't. My family has been enjoying the lovely weather though but I've been busy at the computer. I can look out the window though and see the green hills, and the top of one snow covered peak.
Here in Michigan, this year, we have no spring. Just one long slog from snowstorm to snowstorm, lurching from pothole to pothole, etc.
Marilyn - We had that kind of day yesterday. After walking the dogs, we grilled on the deck while I read galley. Love those evenings.
Barry, you're too funny. Here in STL the freeway signs are warning about the pothole fixer crews.
We live in the Pacific Northwest where the hours of sunlight are greatly diminished during the winter months—not a good thing for a Texas-born gal. After we switch to Daylight Saving Time, I feel that spring has arrived because I can go for my after-dinner walk with stumbling in the dark. More daylight also means more writing time for me.
Spring? We haven't had much of a winter in Central California.
Kathleen, I'm from Idaho, so I understand. I remember wearing a coat to school and dragging it home after me. Yay on the increased writing time.
Mar - you are one of the lucky ones... Winter has been insistant in the St Louis area. But I'm seeing glimmers....
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