Where did Spring go?

I have been practically bragging about how spring like it has been here but look what I found on my poor lilac yesterday! Yes, that is some soggy wet snow! Poor little lilac buds. I think they will be okay though. Today it rained all the live long day. That's okay. That's normal for here.

I love standing in this bundle of maple trees and looking up through the trunks. Almost dizzying.

When Rocky and I went for a walk, the neighbor dog, Sudz, decided to come along. Isn't he handsome?

I love the way some trees grow straight up out of the earth. Like a hair out of my scalp. Look at this big ol' tree, just sticking up out of the ground so straight and tall. Sudz is impressed. He thinks there might be a squirrel up there.

I want to welcome a follower, a fellow Oregonian, Tam Hess at http://artinflight.blogspot.com/.  Thanks for coming by Tam, hope to get to know you better.  She is a mother of 3 and yet she finds time to make some very creative and whimsical art.  Check her out.

Today I have been listening to a new album by Anais Mitchell titled Hadestown, she calls it a folk opera. I am infatuated with it. She has a lot of guest singers helping her out such as Greg Brown (the reason I bought this album) Ani D'Franco, BonIver and others. I need to find out more about the basic story so I can understand this opera better. Greg Brown as Hades is magnificent, and Ani D'Franco is Persephone. Excellent music.

Be well.

Spring flowers

Spring really is just around the corner. Actually, it is here already in my yard. I took these photos today. Not a lot of the daffodil varieties are blooming yet but these certainly are. Can't you just smell them?

These sweet little yellow wood violets are popping up all over in the forest, along with lots of foliage of more flowering plants, like miners lettuce and wild bleeding hearts.  If you click on the wood violet picture you will see the detail of the moss and the rain drops.

This is vinca minor, grows like crazy here. I used to have a white variety but haven't seen that one bloom yet.  Do you see that pod hanging on the left side of the flower?  That is from the Golden Chain tree.  It puts out lots of these pods and the mice collect the seeds.  I sometimes find big stashes of them.  Also they are sprouting up all over the yard.  Anyone want some?  The golden chain seeds I'm talking about.  Not the mice, although come to think of it, if you want some mice you can come and get them.

So all of you still in the snow zone, try to be patient a little longer. It's a big circle and it's coming around again.

Five For Fighting was what I last listened to today. Wonder where he came up with that name?

Be well.

Baba Marta

Today is the first day of March, and there are a number of holidays celebrated around the world today, many of which have to do with the coming of spring.
In Bulgaria, today is Baba Marta, or "Grandmother March Day." Baba Marta is a mythical figure, a temperamental old lady with big mood swings that correlate with the Bulgarian climate. When she's happy, she brings warm weather. When she's angry, the winter frost persists. So today, people in Bulgaria go around greeting each other "Chestita Baba Marta" — which means "Happy Grandmother March" — hoping that the old lady will be cheerful and bring warm weather and sunshine. And today in Bulgaria, people wear martenitsi. The martenitsa is a red and white brooch-like adornment made of yarn. It is supposed to make Baba Marta have mercy on the wearers and allow them be happy, so that they may all welcome the coming spring as soon as possible.

I copied these pictures off the web, and the story from today's Writer's Almanac. Since I have posted information about my Bulgarian heritage in past posts I thought this would be a suitable subject for today.

Be well.