Spring!!

Kinda.

LOL.... Spring in Ohio looks very different than spring in Texas.

It has been warm for probably 2 months in Texas; flower beds are filling quickly with summer annuals. The push is on to get them in the ground before the heat of summer hits. Spring in Texas means bluebonnets and indian paintbrush, fressia and amaryllis.

Here, in northeast Ohio, spring comes and goes for a while, staying for a day or two before winter reappears briefly. After a couple days of winter cold, the temperature tiptoes back up toward 60 for a day or 2, maybe 3. Then overnight, it's 30 again! So far, spring is crocuses and daffodils. Tulips are sending up their green blades, but no flowers just yet. Trees hint at the green leaves to come. Grass turns green patch by patch, like a quilt, growing daily.

I haven't gotten the daffodils uploaded yet, so, until then, here's a Texas spring photo for you.... enjoy!

So THIS is winter

I've been wondering when winter would really show herself.

I'd say this is it, huh? Yesterday morning, I woke to 3 or so inches of snow. And it snowed all day, in my neck of the woods. And this morning, it's still snowing!!

It's beautiful, really. This is what I expected winter to be like. I guess I wouldn't be too happy if it were like this from November until May, but for a brief moment, it's winter in all her brilliant white pure snowiness.

Welcome to Ohio, me. Welcome to Ohio, indeed.

2 Good Reads

No, not Pulizer Prize winners....

No, not classics....

Just good books to curl up and read on a cold winter day....

"T is for Trespass" by Sue Grafton. If you haven't read all the other books leading up to this one, it's OK, this one can stand alone. In my humble opinion, though, you should read them. To me, Ms. Grafton's books are like old friends. You know their history, their personality, their temperament... no surprises. This follows form as surely as the sun rises in the East. The difference in this one is evil. This bad guy, who's a woman by the way, is just mean. She's really a bad one. But the story is good. A quick read, no surprises, like visiting an old friend. Two thumbs up!

"Playing for Pizza" by John Grisham. Not at all like Mr. Grisham's usual books, this one is like eating a candy bar. It's relatively short, and easy to pick up and put down. And the story is amusing. An NFL pariah ends up in Parma, Italy playing "football americano" for the Parma Panthers. I was hooked when, in the first chapter, we find Rick in a hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, recuperating from a nasty concussion and other boo-boos suffered in the previous day's football game, where Rick was the Cleveland Brown's third string quarterback. Since the Browns are my new home team, I was "in." Then, Rick travels to Italy to play. Well. Nowhere I'd rather be than Italy! Turns out to be a cute, feel good book. If I had written it, however, it would probably stand NO chance of publication, but because Grisham has a following (like me), here it is. Something different, a diversion, a candy bar. One thumb up.

Winter in Ohio

Mid-January + Ohio = brrrrr.....

Winter has settled in, I think. I don't mind the snow. And, right now, I don't mind the cold so much. However, I'd like to register my complaint about the gray. It's just so gray.

The sky is gray. The trees are gray. The dirty snow is gray.

Now, don't get me wrong. Gray is a perfectly nice color and all. For silk blouses. And wool slacks. And a lovely topcoat in cashmere, maybe.

But I miss the sunshine.

I must say, though, that the brilliant red of a male cardinal surely is a bright spot in the otherwise gray day....

My Dream House is Gone

It's a bittersweet day for me.

My house in Texas isn't "my" house anymore. I'm very happy that the bills aren't mine anymore, considering we don't live there. But it was my dream house. And it's gone. And I'm a little sad.

Yikes! I lost 2 months!

Holy Moly.

I can't believe my last blog was 2 months ago.

I have been so busy with.... life, that I have been just too preoccupied to put it into words. And that's not good.

I'm now residing full time and permanently in Ohio. It's been quite a change. Funny, I remember thinking the same thing when I moved to Texas 13 years ago. I remember telling people, "Texas really is a whole 'nuther country." And I was really amazed at how different it felt to me.

Well, after 13 years in Texas, Ohio feels like Smalltown America. And that's both good and not so good. I tearfully told hubby today, "I hate living here!" And quickly took it back. I don't hate living here; but I'm not crazy about some of it. I feel quite alone at times. A lot of the time, in fact. I know it takes time to settle in. I know it takes time to find your "place." I'm trying, honestly, I am.

Today's Kodak Moment

It's snowing today, in northeast Ohio. That, in itself, wasn't it.

The "kodak moment" came as I hurried home from running errands this morning. I pulled up into my driveway and saw my visitors.

Two doves were sitting in the blowing snow. One sat perched in a tree near my walkway. The other sat on the rail of the walkway. They seemed undisturbed by the falling snow, blowing wind and freezing temperature. They seemed... at peace with the moment.

I scurried in and grabbed my camera and tripod. Then, as I slipped out the door to snap away, I hoped I wouldn't disturb them. More than I wanted the photos, I wanted them to feel at home. I wanted them to feel like they could sit there, in peace, all day if they wanted.

I got my photos. And they were all that I was hoping they'd be. And more. I found in them, a moment of peace.