HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING?? Hmmmmm!

[Nasoosie]

GOOD MORNING TO EVERYONE!

Mud is frozen out there today, so I'll have no trouble getting out. Cedar told me there is an RV show at our Civic Center in Plattsburgh, so I am heading there to drool over the new innovations! She said her dealer is also having an Open House, whatever that might mean, so I might go there, too. I can't imagine a dealer have a closed shop EVER, but OH WELL! Maybe it means some models will be highlighted, or something. The English language never ceases to amaze me! Why can't people say what they mean, like, "Stop by on Saturday and we will show you our latest spring models of the RVs we sell and answer any questions you might have!" This dealership has always had an open house, as far as I'm concerned, and has alway been very polite and willing to answer any questions. Perhaps all their models for sale will be open to wander through, rather than having to ask someone to open them up so I can see the inside? In that case, it should be termed "Open RV" Day at such and such a dealership! What would be really neat would be a SALE!!! At any rate, I may run into Cedar somewhere today!

I took some pics of my place when I got back here early yesterday afternoon, after spending time hoeing in the ditches in my driveway. Other than the green things coming up next to the house, I must say it doesn't look much like the first day of spring, which it will become today at around !:00 pm something.


The picnic table is almost usable! Party barn is still waiting for the first bonfire of the year.


It will be a while before I can get this trailer out into the spring world!


There's my chair and the roof of the tarp shelter for the cooking area for the Ruckus!


It'll be a while before we can drive down this road to the pond!


My woodpiles are becoming visible and accessible once again!


This area is always the first spot of bare ground to show each spring....I think the branches of the white pine keep a lot of snow from accumulating there, plus the ground is sloped toward the afternoon sun. YIPPEE!!!


Looky here! The first green things are coming up next to the house in my rock garden-gone-wild!


Crocuses(Croci) -to-be poking up their brave little heads!


I have no clue what this could be! Whatever it is, it's hardy to have survived our winter!


My beautiful driveway! In the mornings, when the stuff is frozen, I can drive on it. By the time I get home from school, however, when you step anywhere, the whole thing acts like a bowlfull of chocolate pudding and sucks you into its depths! You can actually SEE the whole thing wiggle in anticipation when I put a boot down! My tire tracks were made in the morning, and those boot tracks down the center are the ones I just tried to cover over as I walked in.

Happy Saturday to all, and I hope to see some posts from you when I get home from the big city this afternoon! Coffee is hot!

[bikerchic777]

Happy Spring to everyone! I sure hope it's spring when I get back to IA and flooding over with. I love your place, Soos...minus the mud drive! Liz was describing it to me yesterday and said you have GTG's there and everyone fits! I love it! She said you have to hold up the telephone or power line for the taller rigs...that is a hoot! I hope I get to one of your GTG's! Back to the photos...Still too much snow for me, but I love your pics! I hope you had a wood pile that was accessible and I think I would have that tt out somewhere where I could escape when you get that road graveled!!! Just my opinion. Hope you're having fun at the RV show! Those things are dangerous...lol! Let us know what you bought! Maybe you're safe since you can't get your tt out to trade...lol!

[avalen]

Good morning ladies
slow to get going this morning but I'll get there. Did not sleep well at
all last night. So, normal routine chores today then I'm gonna get the
yarn all sorted and put away. Nice spring weather today and getting
that swamp cooler set up is crossing my mind as the afternoons are
starting to get hot and I do not want to start with the a/c as that will
eat up my electricity budget. Finally have last summers "arrears" down
below the 100 dollar mark.
Got lots of weeds growin out in the yard and I really need to get to that
today as well, cause I sure don't want to get a "notice" to do the weeds.
That always makes me mad, I like it to be my idea instead of someone
telling me I have to do it. (thats that redhead stubborness)
Time for a refill of coffee and maybe a little toast to start my tummy
out on a good note today. Have a great day and I'll check in later

[Getupngo]

It's a beautiful sunshiny day ... and life is good. Bandit's been bouncing around and having some good days.

I don't know if any of you have watched the recent PBS special on the brain ... but the presenter -- a psychiatrist -- talked about herbal remedies for depression. He said St. John's Wort was good for the kind of depression in which one is anxious and worries (not me). He said another, called SAM-e, was effective for those who have sadness & a marked decrease in energy. I thought, "AHA! That's me!"

So I went out a few days ago, picked up some SAM-e and started taking it. On the third day (yesterday) I spent half the day in bed, and in the afternoon my brain started telling me how the world would be better off without me (not a conversation I generally have with myself). Knowing that isolating with those thoughts was not a good idea, I forced myself to tell my roomie and my kindasorta BF -- and emphasized it was a thought and not a plan. It was also giving me some really bummer dreams.

So, in short, I stopped taking it today. Too bad. I had hoped for something better.

[retiredhappy]

First day of Spring? Hah! Cold, windy, rainy, YUCK!! Gonna stay inside and read. Even the dogs did their business in a hurry and wanted back inside. Poor Sophie was shivering - guess I need to get her a coat. Spoiled? Nah!

[dpf]

It's 25 here this morning and we're suppose to have a high of 38...sure doesn't feel like the first day of Spring..but hey the sun is shining for a change! It's suppose to be 63 on Monday and I gave myself a long weekend because I was maxed out on my annual leave and had to burn some hours before the pay period ends on Tuesday or lose them...and that certainly isn't going to happen! So I'll get to enjoy the day! (after I take Radar to the vet!) The snow is finally melting and we can see most of our yard except where there were large drifts or piles from clearing sidewalks, the driveway and along the curb. I did notice that my sedum on the south side of the house are poking their heads through, but the area where I have tulips is still under piles of snow which has pretty much turned into glacier consistency...could be awhile before they see daylight. We were finally able get the Nativity scene and the straw bales that we used for stable out of the front yard this week....rather nice thing to get accomplished before Easter! The spring thaw is revealing lots of Christmas decorations that were buried during the Christmas blizzard. Yesterday when I came home from work the neighbors had their inflatables blown up so they could dry them out before they store them.

Load of laundry is finished so I'd better run...still have to do the rest of the Saturday chores. Think I'd better do a little extra cleaning because it's DH 60th BD tomorrow and I have a sneaky feeling that we're going to have some surprise guests. Have a great weekend.

[Forestgal]

Well, it's not Florida's sunshine, but it's been drop-dead gorgeous here this week with temps in the high 70s to mid-80s. Got so warm that I broke out the capri pants and school shorts! Have the house opened up and am enjoying fresh air. My bulbs have exploded and are almost past their peak -- only last a couple of weeks in this heat, but they sure are pretty while they last. I may pull out the camera later and see if I can get some close-ups of some of the better blooms. It's supposed to be 81 here today so I'm going to run errands and enjoy being outside. Only down side to this glorious weather is that Jed has begun to blow his coat and my grass looks like a mini-blizzard has hit with all the hair I got out of him yesterday. Gotta love that furminator, though! Better on the grass than in the house, and the birds love it for their nests.

Okay, onward to another glorious day in Sunny Southern California!

Laura -- and Jed

[AlmostThere]

Morning,
Today will be the last of our warm days for a while. We will be back to the mid 50s and rainy. What a tease we've had!

Yesterday I couldn't sit still so I took 2 walks. I also scooped poop in the backyard and dug up a camilla (?) tree that was taking over the side of my house and I didn't want the roots to mess with my foundation at some point. It was a chore, but I got it out. Then I came inside and vaccumed all the carpets, swept the spare bathroom and kitchen, washed throw rugs, cleaned all the counters in the house, scrubbed the toilets, dusted the entire house then finally sat down and ate a scrumptious salad and a bowl of yogurt with fresh sliced strawberries and blueberries. I slept well last night!

Janice, I have went all the herbal route and because the herb companies aren't regulated by the FDA it's scary as to some of the amounts people take not knowing any long term, and even short term, effects they can cause. Allot of herbs I've tried have made me feel worse. Not to mention they are very expensive to buy just to try and find you can't take them. Also you have to be on some of them for a long time to get the effects they tout. So in short, I've given up on that route.
I try eating as much organic foods as I can. I think our bodies are full of pestisides and chemicals from all the processed foods we've devoured over the years and not even thought about until we start having medical issues. Only then do we start changing our eating habits. JMHO

[jemek]

It is a wonderful spring day here. Then the rain will return. I think I will wash the dogs later and then get some yard work done. OR should I say cleaning up from the winter. Getting the downed tree branches and cleaning up the mess the squirrels make..shred the pine cones to get the seeds and leave a mess behind.

Had a great breakfast with Ali and Ron today...I am going to miss them, but I am sure they will have a great time traveling with the carnival.

[mtngal]

Oh yeah it's spring here!!! My birthday bouquet is sitting in my favorite place for flowers....on my fire place hearth!
That, of course, means there has NOT been and is not chance of being a fire in my house. As much as I love my fireplace, I'm always glad to get a break from hauling in the wood and taking out the ashes!

Thanks for the pics Soos. That driveway looks like a daily challenge. Hope it dries out soon.

My dryer died yesterday. Another reason I'm glad it's spring, I'm not going to get it repaired until I return to CA in mid-June. Maybe not even then. Will wait and see how the estimate turns out before deciding!

An interesting thing in my small town.....there a several, maybe 4 or 5 full timers around this year. I haven't seen this before. But there's no doubt they are full timers, see in large store lots, at the coffee shops, the library and even at local community dinners and breakfasts. I wonder if it's a result of the economy. We are at 15% unemployment here.

Time to head home for more yard work. The grass is growing 2-3 inches a day. I'm just keeping up with all the
annual mowing!

Have a fun day, byeee!!!!

[Ladyhawk]

Woke to blowing snow and temps in the 20s. I lucked out, water pipes didn't freeze. After viewing the pictures of some of the roads up north and hearing about road closures, I decided to stay in Albuquerque another night. I'm ready to be back in Denver, though. Also wish I had a tow car. There are only so many times I can tour the campground.

[BarbaraRose]

It is a nice day here, sunny but a little chilly (upper 30's). Woke up to no heat and cold water. I think it is fixed now tho, hopefully! I got the day off from the salon to go to the funeral. It was nice, short and I got to chat with people I haven't seen for a very long time. The two daughters I grew up with and I are planning to get together in the near future to reminisce and get caught up on each others lives. That should be fun!

From there I drove out west to the town of Delano where that bridge was closed due to the flooding Crow river. I parked close to the bridge and discovered lots of people there next to the bridge, watching the river and taking pictures. The water is just inches from the bottom of the bridge and still rising. I might go back tomorrow with my camera and take some photos. It is suppose to crest tomorrow morning.

Then stopped to visit a girlfriend I haven't seen for awhile and chatted with her and her husband for an hour or so. Now I am home and relaxing and watching golf. No plans for the rest of the day. Maybe a nap...

Have a great first day of spring! Amy, good idea to not drive in the snow today! No need to take chances if you can help it.

[retiredhappy]

You do have to be careful with herbal medicines. Just because its natural doesn't mean its "safe". Remember, arsnic (sp) is "natural". A lot of the herbals have really bad side effects.

[bikerchic777]

Janice...Tune into the "New Healthy Thread". We have been talking about natural remedies, etc. I can't say what will work for you, but I can tell you what worked for me when I realized I was suffering from depression years ago. I was reading or sleeping all the time to "escape". I think the first step is realizing it, which you have, so that is good! I woke up one day and I suddenly realized it I jumped on my bicycle and rode to a gym and enrolled. Also signed up for water aerobics. Did that 3X/wk for a yr and was never in better shape, not to mention what all the exercise did for my mental state!!! I rode my bike a lot, even to work on Saturdays, which was 12 mi away. Sunshine helps a lot, too. I walk the boys twice a day, sometimes for 4-6 miles in the morning. I try to eat pretty healthy, too. Diet has a lot to do with your overall health and well being. You may need to check hormone levels. I had a lot of menopausal symptoms come on suddenly, so started taking Estroven Plus Energy and it started working right away. Been taking it for a couple of years now. Also take a close look at what is going on at home and in your life. I divorced my major cause of depression back during that time Getting ready to do that again, so working hard to not get caught up in that depression thing. I hope you snap out of it quickly! Take it a day at a time and know we support you!