Tulip

Since it's been so long between posts, I thought I'd put up something pretty to hopefully break back into more regular posting. This is a tulip from my mother's flower bed. I'm not sure exactly what kind of tulip it is, but it's one of the prettiest flowers in the flower bed. Several years ago, I gave my mother a very early Christmas present consisting of a variety of flower bulbs. I had to give them to her early so she'd have time to plant them before the ground froze that winter. Every year since then, these beautiful tulips bloom in the spring and make me happy to see their lovely colors. This is a rather good photo, too, if I do say so myself.

Prettyful

I love spring. It's my third favorite season, after winter and fall. I despise summer, but that's neither here nor there because this is not about summer. It's about my favorite part of spring...flowering trees. I love, Love, LOVE flowering trees. They're just so pretty with their tiny petals covering the branches, all white and pale pink. My second favorite part of spring is when the the petals start falling off in a rain of loverly confetti, floating delicately to the earth. I only wish this part of spring could last just a little bit longer than it does because it really is the prettiest part of the season.

Four Horses

So many of my stories involve my drive home, and for that I apologize. Not really. Anyway, I was a mere half mile from home when I saw them; four beautiful chestnut-colored horses, statuesquely standing side by side in their pasture, looking in the direction I was driving. (It was yet another moment where having my camera handy would've been nice, but it's never in my purse when I need it.) As I drove past them, I realized why they were looking in that direction. The pasture is right next to the farmer's lawn, which still has some green grass in various patches. I think they were looking at the tender, tasty niblets that were just out of their reach. It was such a pretty sight that made this gray and drizzly day more lovely.

Rain+Cold

Sure this is a couple of days after the fact, but here is a picture of the hill across from my house the day after all the rain I previously mentioned. It was tricky getting a decent picture, but those trees are covered with ice from the freezing rain we got on Saturday. The sun was shining on them in such a way that everything looked tinsel-covered and sparkly. I haven't seen such beautiful ice in many, many years. I wish the picture came out better...sadly it came out a bit overexposed, even with my hand shadowing the camera a bit. This was the best of all the pictures I took.

Here's another of the same view, only to the left and zoomed out a tad bit (and not quite so shiny). This one has a bit more color and better detail. Still, not quite as magnificent as seeing the sight with my own eyes, but pretty nonetheless. I'm one of those not-so-common people who really, REALLY love winter and all that comes with it. Sights like this only serve to make my love of winter grow.

Curses, I Say, Curses!!!

On the way home this evening, I witnessed a fantastic orange and pink and purple sunset. The one fucking day I don't have my camera in my purse to take pretty pictures and I have a perfect sunset. Curses!

Snow Day

Tufts of lovely white snow cover the porch, the lawn, the hill across the road. The bare trees now are half-covered in a layer of frozen goodness. This is why I love winter--the utter beauty in leafless trees and dead lawns being concealed by wonderful snow. It's as if nature is telling us to look at something new and brilliant while the plants rest for the season.

I love snow and cold weather. Most people think me insane when I say that I love those two things. Snow they usually understand, because it's pretty. It's the cold that makes people wonder about me. So I tell them that I suppose I'd almost be required to at least like cold weather as there can't be snow without cold. Otherwise it'd just be rain and while I like most forms of precipitation, there's something special about snow. It's fluffy, fun and fantastic. But, alliteration aside, snow is a link to a happy time in my life: Christmas vacation and snow days.

Winter days off from school were always a favorite of mine. My sister and I (and my brother when he was old enough) would suit up in our snow gear and play for hours outside. Lop-sided snowmen, snowball fights and even a doomed-to-failure igloo were among our many chilly exploits. The coldness never bothered me. Truth be told, I enjoyed the crisp feeling of below-freezing air in my nose and lungs. I could've stayed outside forever back then, but Mom wouldn't let us. She seemed to think that food was a good thing for growing children, so she made us come inside for lunch or dinner. (That was my other favorite part of snow days, going into the warm house after playing in the cold snow. Both activities were equally exhilarating to me.) So we'd go inside, hanging up our snow pants and coats, laying our snow-crusted mittens and hats next to the wood stove to dry in the warmth. Mom would have sandwiches or soup waiting for us. These are the things I think of when it's cold and snowy. Winter has always made me happy.

Finally Spring!!

It's spring and I'm so glad it's finally here to stay!! No more winter...YAY!!!!!! Happy May 1st, everyone. Just a few more days, Jo, and you'll be 18!!!!!!!! I'm so happy for you!! I love spring!!

Such Lovely Weather We're Having

Oh how sweet the weather's been the last three days. The temperature got up into the seventies today. JOY!!!! The sunshine has been helping my anxiety, too, as I haven't had particularly bad episodes of panic and my general anxiety level has been pretty low. Well, lower than it has been. I'm so excited about spring. I can't wait 'til the leaves unfurl and the flowers bloom. If you could see me right now, you'd be seeing a very content little minx.

Yikes! Just a preview of my insanity

Dear, sweet Jesus, what have I gotten myself into with this? Who knows? Maybe it'll be good. Random? Certainly. Insane? It's a given. Sometimes I'm told that I have a lot to say (often, I'm told this with the words "shut" and "up"), so I guess I might as well do something creative with my energies. Here's to hoping anyway. [insert silly little giggle here]

At this exact moment, I'm looking through the window to an amazingly clear northern PA sky. It's perfect, and the moon is a bright and beautiful half-saucer hanging somewhat low in the midnight sky. Some people see the moon as rather inconsequential...just a shining ornament in the night. Others see it in a purely scientific manner; it's a research destination and a force that affects our own forces here on earth. Still others see more. I love the moon. It makes me think of faeries and mystics and energies and possibilities. Oddly, nothing makes me feel like I have possibilities in myself and my life quite like the moon. Not even babies (they signify hope more than anything else, for me anyway). And I'm stopping now before I get entirely too sappy.

Well, I'm certain this isn't exactly the best blog post in the world, but it's my first one on a strictly-blogs site, so yay me. It's just a stepping stone; one little bit at a time. Clicking the publish button will be the hard part. But as my favorite person in the world would say, "Baby steps, Minxy, baby steps."