Waiting for Spring

In the two weeks since my last post, there have been three snowstorms (or seventeen…I can’t remember, I’ve lost count) and I was blessed with a serious case of bronchitis (which pretty much brought me to my knees). Towards the end of my five-day hiatus from civilization (no one wanted to be around a coughing, wheezing, breathless woman), I cleaned the house from top to bottom.

Another Snow Day AFTER I posted about Spring coming 

Albeit slowly, I put a few clean cups away, then sat and rested. Then a few dirty soup bowls would go in the washer, then I sat and sipped tea. Move a load of laundry from the washer to the dryer. Then, naptime.  You get the picture.

If I sat, he laid on me. Rusty was my constant nurse.

Thankfully towards the end of my five-day hiatus, there was one bright and sunny day, about 50-degrees. I placed my chair just inside the storm door. I did not want to sit in the breeze necessarily, albeit slight, but I did want to feel the warmth of the sun. Fearful I would have a coughing fit, I breathed slowly. The cool, fresh air was a nice reprieve from my recent closed-up, uncirculated, stale indoor air.

I needed a foot rest too. 

The temperature could have been 80-degrees outside, the sun felt strong. I actually perspired a little. I welcomed it, though, it was lovely to breathe “clean” air. In this moment of gratification, I open my eyes to see if Rusty was enjoying this moment too. Lo and behold, he was and then some!

He had climbed his way over my resting containers, chomping on the dried flowers and grasses that I failed to throw away at the end of last summer. The shame. Here, I am cleaning my house from floor to ceiling, trying to scrub the germs that caused my miserable state, and I have a pile of containers—12 to be exact—just sitting there. Rotting. Or, are they?  

After looking at them for a few minutes and thinking of all the work it is going to be (and, inevitably how tired I will be after cleaning it up), I realized a few things. First, I do not have to clean the planet in one day, let alone my house. I can take my time and do what I can. Second, this sight should not be shameful, but exciting. I realize that Spring is around the corner and soon I will have containers cleaned and filled with new soil and seed. Oh! The possibilities!

My patio faces west, so it gets sun. Lots of sun. And, if this summer is anything like last summer, whatever I plant will need be tolerant of dry, hot, sunny conditions and likely need water every day. I do not care, though, I am going to fill every last one with herbs, tomatoes, peppers, a flower or two, and if I can find one, a tall ornamental grass. If you have any recommendations, I’m all ears!

I will fill every container until my heart’s content. My lungs, on the other hand, will just have to catch-up.

TWELVE CONTAINERS! I'm so excited. Apparently, Rusty is too. Though he does like eating the foliage as is.

Signs of Spring I Refuse to Ignore

The other day while leaving my work parking ramp, I noticed a gaggle of birds half on the street, half on the sidewalk pecking at remnants of some carcass. As I drove away, I looked a little closer and noticed a robin among the herd. I remember thinking, well, if that is a robin, that means Spring!

Granted there is still quite a bit of snow on the ground from last week’s storm and more snow on the way. Yet, you will not hear me complain for two reasons…last summer’s drought created extreme conditions, making it difficult to grow vegetables or feed livestock. We need the moisture. All the moisture we can get.

State of Iowa Capitol and grounds

Yet, I refuse to ignore the signs of Spring (and, in fact, I hope with the upcoming snow storms and Spring rains, the upcoming weeks will be wet, muddy, and green!)

A sign of Spring…the dying wind.  You know that particular type of wind that is painful to breathe when it blows. The kind that makes your nose so numb, raw, and red that it splinters with a touch. A few weeks ago that wind was in the city with sound and fury. Fast forward to today, that sound and fury has signified nothing. Do not get me wrong, I do not mind the wind and it serves a vital role to the health of our planet. Acting like a fan, it helps circulate oxygen through the atmosphere, blows away air pollutants, dusts off tree branches, allows sunlight to shine in dark places, and carries pollen from one plant to the next. Even still, today that cold, biting wind is calming down a bit, hopefully moving east. This sign of Spring allows me to feel my nose again. 

A sign of Spring…rising temperatures. Several weeks ago, I would balk at mid-30s temperature; however, today I am downright giddy at the suggestion. The birds recognize it too. They have resumed their morning chatter. Walking or running errands over lunch is now within the realm of possibility. Scarves are wrapped looser around necks and, every now and then, my hair can be free rather than matted down and trapped inside a winter's cap. 

A sign of Spring…the days are longer. According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac the first official day of Spring begins on the “…the vernal equinox at 7:02 A.M. (EDT) on March 20, 2013 in the Northern Hemisphere.” (EXACTLY TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY!). The OFA defines “equinox” to mean “equal night…” where “…days and nights are approximately equal everywhere and the Sun rises and sets due east and west.” I believe it. I am no longer driving home after work in the dark. A small, subtle, yet nice welcome transition to Spring.

Dave Deegan, an Environmental Protection Agency blogger, wrote that (beginning) Spring might not be the prettiest time of year, “…it is at least a sign that winter is losing its grip and spring will come.” I agree; the transition from Winter to Spring is not pretty. The snow has lost its initial pearly-white shimmer as it trickles down storm drains. My car is perpetually dirty. Salt, sand, and brine are tracked into my house daily. Tree branches are leafless. The grass is either brown or invisible. The cornfields are quiet. My windows are still shut. My skin pale. Things are, for now, colorless. Or, maybe stuck in this opaque, greyish, brown middle. Yet, soon, very soon, this period will end and Spring will be here. I just know it. I refuse to ignore the signs.