Squirells are playing. More Humming Birds than I can count. Three agressive Woodpeckers providing precussion for the symphony of Sparrows, Jays, Finches and others whose names I do not know. With the Hawk as the occasional cymbol. Last night we had our first visit from the local Racoon family, come to steal the dogs food. Believe it or not even the dogs, hunters all, just sat and watched as the Racoons ate their fill. They even sat and watched the Opossum with her new litter scamper across the porch. We also heard the first chirps from the new brood of our resident Owl.The dogs did however chase off a family of skunks. We spend a fortune in tomatoe juice, Ivory Soap, and peroxide. (the only thing I have found to get rid of Skunk stench). You would really laugh if you saw my Basenji , German Shepard, and Airdale Terrior turned Blond after sitting in the sun after being bathed in peroxide.
The sun is shining, the Does are out with their fawns. The Egrets are nesting in the meadow, and the local herd (?) of wild turkeys is starting to cause traffic problems.
Sorry to wax into bad poetic prose, but this is one of those days that reminds me that it is good to be alive, and that Northern California is a good place to live.
There’s snow on the ground on the east coast. . .I know 'cause my boss was bitching about it. I’m sure some of them will be in here soon to smack you about. And me for what I’m about to type.
Where in the blazes are you? I’m in the south bay and it was 87 frickin degrees out when I went out for lunch. I love an early spring (last week was magnificent), but I don’t like it when my seatbelt burns me on St. Patricks day. (I know. It’s sunny and warm in March and I’m compaining. I should be shot)
But, but, but…this IS reality, Futile Gesture. It really is warm and toasty, and the birds are singing, and the apple trees are blooming, and it’s a fantastic day. In about an hour, I’m going to go home, and we’re barbecuing dinner. In shorts. And tank tops. Northern California is a beautiful place to be right now…
It is glorious down here in Southern California, too. 85 degrees, not a cloud in the sky, the girlies breaking out their skimpiest outfits to celebrate. Spring is busting out all over!
California: Where reality is something you can order from a Williams-Sonoma catalog.
A little town in the Sierras on the way from the Bay to the Lake (Tahoe)
PS Are you familiar with the game Obsidian?
FutileGesture:
Yours not mine!
Maureen:
Northern California is always a beautiful place to be! Not that other places are not great, they are, I was just overcome with the beautiful day with which I have been confronted. (that last sentence was a nod to my friends over in the preposition thread)
Yep. Makes you think “gee, the next time I fill up my wine glass and come out on the patio to sit in the shade and listen to the birds, I should really say a toast to alll the poor unfortunates who live in places that have shuddersnow right now…”
It was 40 and beautiful here today. To me, askeptic, what you’re describing is summer, not spring. Spring here is when it gets up to 50 degrees a couple of times and everybody breaks out the shorts. Then it snows 15 inches during the last week of March, so we have to put on a sweater with our shorts. It’ll all melt by Easter, but don’t count snow out again during April. Oh yeah, and you wanna see mud? Try walking down my driveway. I refuse to wash the floor in my entryway until it all dries up.
Oh yeah, and this 40 degree weather is ideal for hot tubbing (outdoor, of course)!
I swear, some people just don’t know what spring is!
I had a feeling you were in the mountains. One of my bosses lives in the Santa Cruz mountains (I was at his house today). It’s amazing the difference a little elevation makes.
I used to live back east. . .I remember my now-roommate calling me and complaining she’d gotten a sun burn one day in March. I believe my response was in line with ‘Up yours, dude, it’s snowing here.’ How quickly we become aclimated.
I hope record breaking heat is not going to be a pattern, though. I don’t have air conditioning.
Parts of Texas are absolutely gorgeous in the spring; I particularly like North Texas and the Hill Country around Austin. You enjoy the weather while you can until the 100+ degree summer hits.
Lulu: You Flatlander
Pravnik: Austin is truely a pretty city.
Obsidian: Don’t get me wrong I am not a Gamer, the only games I have played since Asteroids and Space Invaders and Defender are Myst and Obsidian. I just installed a brand new 4 ton AC unit and a Swamp Cooler, I say bring on the heat. Sorry, I am a new first time home owner and have a tendancy to want to bragg.
Well, I live near Sacramento too and Spring has already left the building. We went from pissy winter rain, had one springlike day, then went straight into Summer. It was 85 and sunny today. Sun was nice but anything over 75 is a little too hot IMO. I am dreading the rest of the Summer. The sun pounding into your skull, 90-100 averages and the lovely “Valley Soup” (pesticides, pollen and dust) swirling in the air. Blech. I’ll be inside.
rained all of yesterday here in florida, but today was sunny, PERFECTLY clear, and around 80 degrees.
and at night it’s even better. the scent of orange blossoms is so thick it sticks in your clothes.
this is my first spring here in florida. i love it. a nice segue from the goddammititssofuckingcold winter to the goddammititssofuckinghot summer/fall.
Here in North Mississippi it is in the seventies right now, but sometimes we have rain that seems to last the whole month. A couple of years ago we had straight-line winds of 100 m.p.h that blew the roof off of a local school.
In Albuquerque the prairie dogs are out (at least the ones who haven’t been poisoned by some @#%@*) and we’ve already had our hailstorm (it isn’t spring here until after the hailstorm.) The temperatures are in the 70’s and it’s sunny with some wind in the afternoon. All in all, too good to be believed and we’ll probably wind up having a blizzard on April 30.
Northern California is a beautiful place to be right now…
