Spring Scenes in Florida - Photos

North-central Florida home

Live oaks, dogwoods, and azaleas

Everglades

Extremely endangered Florida panther

Hugely magnified: the local no-seem-ums and mosquitoes

around Gainesville are quite unique

Everglades

The Devil's Millhopper, Gainesville

Sebastian Inlet, Vero Beach

Boardwalk through the floodplain of Lake Bradford with

lots of cypress, Tallahassee Museum

Assateague Photos by Beached Paws Photography

Warmth and Football

Boulder has just seen two days with the high temperatures 20 degrees warmer than normal - we've been in the low 80s instead of the low 60s.  We had a temperature of 70 degrees at 9 this morning - but our high temp tomorrow is expected to be 52, the Monday night's low around freezing.  Yuck.  Our plants don't know what to do - there are daffodils and iris getting ready to bloom.  Brother-in-law Jim is still gathering 5 pints of ripe raspberries every afternoon (and that's after I eat them off the canes for breakfast each weekday).  Lovey and Nedi have been enjoying the sunshine and warmth - and the squirrels are getting quite plump.  Lovey is sprawled across the foot of my bed at the moment, while Nedi is stretched out on the patio, absorbing the sun's rays.
   Yesterday was Homecoming for the CU Buffs here in Boulder - and they had to play UCLA.  I have to admit that I expected a blow-out by UCLA - but the game went to two over times, and CU lost by a field goal.  I had much higher hopes for the South Carolina Gamecocks playing at Auburn - even though SC hadn't won at Jordan-Hare Stadium, ever.  And the Gamecocks scored first!  The only problem was that two of Dylan Thompson's passes were intercepted - the last one in the end zone that would have tied the scores at 42.  There was less than a minute left, and Auburn kept running the ball, making sure that the Gamecocks couldn't get the pigskin in their hands....  *Sigh*  It would have been wonderful if Steve Spurrier could have won that game!  Thankfully, the Gators had a bye, and so I didn't have to watch their inept efforts.  I don't think Will Muschamp will be the head coach next year...
  I'm starting to get excited about the Breeders Cup races at the end of this week.  As soon as the entries and fields are known, I'll be commenting on them.

Mid-Week

It's another beautiful morning - and the weather folks say it'll stay that way through Tuesday.  I feel for my friends on the east coast, however.  It sounds like tropical storm Arthur might make the days leading up to July 4 wet and windy - which means cleaning up and, hopefully, clearing skies on Friday itself (except in New England).  I have been invited to the Snow family gathering in Niwot at Dave and Tracey's house - but I'm also still house sitting for Tess, Lyra and Lily, plus caring for and medicating Sasquatch and Tugger.  I'll have to see how I feel on Friday….
  Apparently, what I've been doing for the drooping, fried-looking plants has been successful - the petunias and pansies at the Hawkins' looked almost normal last night; and the Chinese wisteria (tree) on Lynn's porch is beginning to stretch it's leaves out again - instead of everything falling off….  I've never been able to keep green things, other than catnip, alive.  I either over water or under water; I have a black thumb.  Luckily, the garden is still going great guns - if no one else grabs the cauliflower, I guess I'll harvest it for Lynn and put it in the refrigerator for her return.
   I was able to grow things, for a while, when I was in my apartment in Gainesville - I was quite successful with several types of pepperomia, and a couple of huge asparagus ferns.  I had them on the balcony railing of my walk-up front door - and one night, after working a normal night-shift at Shands Teaching Hospital, I returned home to an empty rail - all of the plants had been stolen.  Since then, I've killed everything - so I'm always apprehensive when I agree to care for green and growing things…
   I've fed and watered the cats and dog here, and walked Tessa; have watered all of the outside plants; have taken care of Sasquatch and Tugger; and have taken my meds and had blueberry waffles for breakfast.  Now I'll be getting ready to go walk Rosie, and then go  home and visit my kits.  And I'm having tea with Alexy at her new home at 3 this afternoon.  That means I'll be able to visit and love on Cloudy and Shady, her cats, as well.
   I guess I'm lazy - I just want to sit and do nothing…  But I need to get my rear in  gear and get moving.  Time waits for no one and nothing.

Have You Set Your Time-Pieces Back?

After all the wailings and warnings, Boulder police arrested one person last night. The folks who participated in the Naked Pumpkin Race wore bikinis or thongs; a crowd turned out, as usual, on the Pearl Street Mall, but there was no outrageous partying; and after the big loss by CU, I think most Buffs fans "celebrated" quietly and indoors. So, after we've all been pumped up by police prophesying, nothing happened. Mizzou won, Gators won, and the Gamecocks lost (rats!). All is peaceful and quiet here in mid-down-town Boulder - except for a few raucous ravens and the squirrels that are fighting over the nuts on my patio. Lovey and Banichi are watching the squirrels with interest, but are still disgusted that the ground is so wet. There are still streaks of snow in the backyard, but the snow/grass ratio is about 50/50 - it's already 54 degrees here, so I expect the rest of the snow will melt by sundown. - I must say that the western skyline is an impressive snow-piled bulwark... but with a week of temperatures in the 60s ahead of us, I have a feeling the snow will gradually disappear before our next storm.

I think with the rise in temperatures, I'll put Fred out on the patio during the day - he can use a little extra warmth and sunlight before being buttoned back up on his shelf by the window. (But I can't forget and leave him outside - I don't think he's been any cooler than 55 since he was just a young sprig.) And I need to re-weave some of his vines; they are poking out every which way. I hope to get Mom's family tree on-line by tomorrow morning; then I'll make everyone crazy by listing all three family websites (just in case any one is interested). I still love discovering ancestors, distant cousins, etc. My favorite part is finding new and/or unusual names that tickle my fancy. And having relatives with the following names, I can hardly make fun of anyone else: Eight-one Lancaster; Hatevil Hall; Hepzibah Starbuck Hussey; and, if ancient genealogies can be trusted, there's also Marmaduke de Thwang and Thorkill Skullcrusher... I am still in search of my Swedish great-grandparents and their other son - I have Anglicized names for them, but no place of birth other than Sweden - and I'm not sure of Uncle Ben's surname.... Oh, well. I am very lucky that these are the things that perplex me the most at this time!! Have a wonderful All Saints' Day!