Spring in New England is like riding a seesaw.
26 degrees (79F) one minute, hail the next.
If anyone is having an Easter parade, they are likely to have their bonnet blown away.
To be precise, New York is not in New England, having been colonized by the Dutch.
But we are on the Vermont border and our climate is that of the New England states.
Spring comes in fits and starts.
One day you look out and the world has gone green.
All sorts of new life to photograph. I should celebrate, but I always resist warmer weather the way most people resist Winter.
It’s a mental adjustment, I suppose. But in warm weather I get overwhelmed easily by small problems.
It’s as if my brain percolates and stews everything into a nonsensical hodgepodge.
Then there’s the Yucca filamentosa, see left.
It’s another of those very hardy and fertile plants that needs to be kept in check.
Wrestling with this thing requires determination and stamina. Good hands and a good spine.
A first encounter with one of these, two days ago, was a bad idea.
But I cannot allow myself to be overwhelmed by a plant!
Being told I can’t do something has always been my strongest motivator, but it’s time to engage common sense: Let the thing grow!
In late Summer it produces attractive flowers.
In the meantime, I have acquired anemones, albeit very small ones.
Every year something new arrives, mysteriously.
While I did plant hyacinths last year, I am sure I didn’t put them in this bed.
What is more surprising though, is that some hungry little beastie didn’t dig the bulbs up for a meal.
What I must do, I think, is adopt a laissez-faire sort of attitude to the whole thing.
(Sound familiar? Maybe this year I’ll succeed.)
It’s a guarantee, I think, that there will be milkweed for the Monarch butterflies:
Last Fall I had fun photographing the seed pods.
Hedgehog? Possum?
As our trees fill out, the red maples are very noticeable, making lovely colourful patches on the hills.
At least I think that’s what they are.
Another avian friend returned this week.
The thrasher. Somehow I always say “flasher”!
He’s very beautiful.
And very busy.
Tomorrow I’m off to see my latest medic.
The opthalmic neurologist.
Perversely, yesterday, my vision “came right”, which was great but at the same time frustrating.
What was I going to say to the doctor?
But this morning…everything was two again.
So who knows what tomorrow will bring!
I like the Thrasher. It seems your weather cannot make up its mind.
Best wishes, Pete.
I have to say it again, Carolyn, you do live in a beautiful spot. If you see double but take such wonderful pictures, what would you achieve if you see treble?
Joanna
Great pics as always. Good luck with the eye doctor. x
Love the Thrasher! I always feel better as I walk in to see any doctor. Sod’s Law!
I always love your sky pictures, but Oh! the thrasher is gorgeous!
Oh, I love your pictures of the seed pods … and the colourful trees! But the thrasher steals the show in this post ☺️.