Let It Snow (NOT!)

I haven't been very good about keeping up this blog. But then, it has been winter. A long miserable winter. And it ain't over yet.

Between snows, I managed to get my lawn mower from the shed to the garage. Now all I need to do is get it into the car and to the service guy. Someday (and I truly believe this) the snow will melt and the grass will grow. It's just hard to think that mower maintenance is a priority with four inches of fresh snow on the ground.

Ordering seeds and/or plants does not seem to be much of a priority, either. I just can't get my mind wrapped around the idea that someday - sooner than I think - it will be time to dig in the dirt once again. Of course, I don't have to order seeds and plants - I can just wait for the local nurseries to open and buy them there. The selection is somewhat limited, but hey, any fresh tomato beats any store-bought tomato any day.

Besides, my yard and garden are a process. Every year is an experiment. Something I am thinking of experimenting with this year is removing some or all of the silver maples in my back yard. I did not plant them - they came with the house. The shade they provide is lovely. But their shallow roots are causing drainage problems around my Florida room, the almost annual release of the whirlybirds stain my deck and block my gutters, and that lovely shade is limiting what I can grow where. A tree service is scheduled to come take a look. I don't like removing trees and am open to alternatives, but I am also willing to just whack 'em.

Another idea I have been obsessing over playing with lately is replacing the Florida room with a real room, one that does not have a cement patio slab for a floor and does not have a flat roof and does not have rusty outlets and does not have particle board for walls. Since repainting and refurnishing the livingroom and family room, I have leftover furniture that would look great in a light-filled, wood-floored, knotty pine-walled room overlooking what-will-someday-be-a-lovely backyard. I would not even mind it when that backyard became snow-filled because, unlike the Florida room, this room would also be snug and cozy and warm. At least, in my fantasy world.

Think spring!