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| A wax-coated bulb and its red amaryllis blossom |
Don't worry. The post title isn't some poetic description of my mental state; it's just a comment on the weather. This week it has seemed that I was in Washington or Oregon, only with snow. It has been mostly cloudy all week, with a perpetual drizzle of snow. Yesterday the sun did shine for a brief moment, but the light snowfall has returned again. While the near-constant snowfall is getting a little old. . .
1. I am thankful for the snow. It's going to take a lot of water to get Utah out of drought conditions, and the more snow we get now, the better. If the ground is already saturated by the time the snow runoff starts, that just means more water in the reservoirs. I've already told John we'll need to plant more trees/shrubs this spring, since the ground (mostly rocks) should be (relatively) easy to dig. 😊
2. I'm thankful to live where there are four seasons. Though Mele Kalikimaka is a fine song, I do prefer snowy winters and sunny summers, with rainy and warming springs and crisp, cooler falls.
3. I'm also thankful to live on a mountainside, with nature as my neighbor. This past week John suddenly asked me, "What is that?" while he was looking out our back door. We couldn't get a photo before the critter disappeared over the ridge, but we are certain it was a BADGER! That's something I've never seen walking around in the wild before, and quite frankly, though it was cool to see, I'll be happy if Mr. Badger was just wandering through.
4. I'm thankful for blooming flowers indoors. Last November, I bought some wax-coated amaryllis bulbs at Costco on a whim. They require no water; just set them down and watch them bloom. Well, after their initial flowers, I noticed they were sending up second stems. I cut the stalks with the spent blossoms, and now am being rewarded with a second set of flowers. Months worth of beauty and I didn't even have to water them!
5. I'm thankful for mysteries solved. I often listen to an oldies station on the radio when I'm driving, and every so often a song in French comes on. It's a catchy tune that gets stuck in my head, but it takes a long time for me to clear it out because I don't speak French. (When I get songs stuck in my head it is often because my brain is trying to work through the lyrics. Once I can learn all the lyrics, I can clear my brain from that song. If I can't get the lyrics down, the song gets stuck like a broken record in my head, until my stubborn brain finally gives up and lets it go.) Anyway, John and I had a conversation that started with a memory of a relative who would sing The Lord's Prayer at family reunions. John then remembered the 1974 rendition of The Lord's Prayer by Sister Janet Mead that made the Billboard chart. In researching that, he learned that the only other time a nun made the top 40 was in 1963 when The Singing Nun hit the charts with "Dominique." John started playing "Dominique" on his phone, and I said, "That's it! That's the song!" So now of course it is stuck in my head again. It will probably be quicker for me to just wait for my brain to give up, but my other option is to find and print up the lyrics and learn French. 😉
6. I'm thankful for an AWD vehicle. While we definitely survived some Utah winters in the past without one, with as snowy as it's been this year, it's sure been nice to not have to worry about whether we could make it in or out of our neighborhood.
7. Speaking of neighborhoods, I'm thankful for our neighbors. I attended a baby shower yesterday and it was so nice to get together with the women in the neighborhood. We laughed and celebrated with the mom-to-be.
8. I'm thankful for Drexel and all the people in his life. He had a bath this week as well as a vet's visit for his yearly check-up. Dogs come with personalities, just like people do, and Drexel just has one of those personalities that spreads joy. He loves everyone, and everyone loves him.
9. I'm thankful for technology that lets us stay in touch, whether that is a Facebook group to plan a family reunion, or video calls with the kids and grandkids. If only we could reach through the screen for a real hug!
10. I'm thankful for John. With him being retired, he will often choose to accompany me on errands. This week, we found the best thing at Dollar Tree! We were looking for small things to send to the grandchildren for Valentine's Day, and found these balloons that inflate when you hit them, causing them to burst out of their packaging with a loud pop! Of course we bought some to try out, and they were such a hit that I had to go back and get more, because John had so much fun with them. If you hear loud noises from my house, don't worry, it's just John inflating Valentine's Day balloons!
What are you thankful for today? The Ten Things of Thankful blog hop is like the US postal service: "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." The blog hop is open, regardless of the weather, so come join us!
Lucky you, no sun here in Denver, Colorado. Cold, cloudy outside but nice and toasty in the house cuddling with my dog. Have a good week.
ReplyDeleteOh, the sun was just a brief moment. It's snowing currently. Stay warm!
DeleteThis is a beautiful list! I do hope Mr. Badger stays out in the wild wherever-he-belongs as they are amazing creatures but not friendly.
ReplyDeleteMay i suggest you not only look up the lyrics in French and learn to sing along, look them up translated into English. Then you'll know what's being sung and might be able to banish this song permanently.
That's a great idea!
Delete!-2. After living in LA, I found that I also like four seasons. How much of the winter do you have snow on the ground (in a typical winter - I know this one is unusual for the west coast)? I can't imagine living somewhere that has snow on the ground all winter long. Our snows last a couple of days at most and are gone, and that's okay with me!
ReplyDelete3. Are you profiling that poor, sweet badger? :D
4. Going to be looking for these this fall at Costco!
5. I KNEW that was the song you were thinking of as soon as you mentioned it was in French and you were listening to an oldies station! And weirdly enough, it goes through my head sometimes, and I haven't heard it in YEARS. ps If you don't have the Shazam app on your phone to identify song titles, you need to get it! I use it all the time, because my brain is full of other useless information and I can't always remember an artist or title when I hear a song on the radio and it bugs me!
8. I lurrrrrrve Drexel!
9. yes yes yes!
10. I didn't realize John had retired. Congrats to him! I can just see him popping those balloons open! :)
The snow does melt between storms, but this year the storms are just so frequent that we haven't had as many snow-free days as we normally do. I'd say off the top of my head that we see snow (off and on) November-February pretty reliably, but October and March-May aren't unheard of, either.
DeleteHa ha! It does sound like I'm profiling that badger. I guess I am guilty of having a "not in my backyard" opinion of badgers, rattlesnakes, and mice/rats.
I'll have to look into that Shazam app.
John retired during the time the grandkids were here. Can't say his days were any easier/restful then, but it sure was helpful to have all hands on deck. :-)
Grat #8: perfect lifeforms that they are*
ReplyDeleteWith you on technology. The availability of such an array of information... never bored
Songs stuck in the head. Interesting your thing with knowing lyrics as being an extinguishing point for the cycling of songs.
"Don't worry. The post title isn't some poetic description of my mental state.".
I smiled in appreciation (and admiration) of your sense of courtesy.
(I don't call and spend phone time with relatives that much but when I do have cause to, more often than not I'll say, "Hello, its clark. There's nothing wrong!"
lol
*no, I don't think anyone will express surprise at my sequencing of Grats lol
Dogs are great; I agree.
DeleteI don't know why my brain works that way; it just does. I do wish, however, that it would distinguish between English lyrics and foreign lyrics. If I can't remember words in English, at least I have the possibility of coming up with them (or something that rhymes!) but with foreign lyrics I would need to be blessed with the gift of tongues to accomplish the task! lol
Nice of you to lead with reassurance when making phone calls!