Springtime by Patty Ramsey

04-17-03 

I put out my hummingbird feeders last week-end and as of this morning, they were still hanging there, not a drop missing. I haven't heard that familiar squeaky chatter for such a long time but this evening, oh joy! I saw two males feeding from one of the feeders! They are back! I bought a 10 pound bag of sugar yesterday in anticipation of their return. They will go through that in a month when the young leave the nest. It is like a swarm of insects when all those birds try to hog the three or four feeders I have on the front porch. Sometimes you walk out the front door and they are squeaking and buzzing around your head that you think you should be wearing safety glasses to protect your eyes!

Another springtime activity around here is hunting morels. I looked at the creek near here on my way home from work last Tuesday and I didn't see any. It was a bit soggy from the torrents of rain we had last week. But it won't be long now. We haven't had a good morel season in two years. Last year we had a late cold spell followed by a summer-long drought and the year before was too hot and dry. This spring has been perfect - cool and wet. Almost too wet. But who's complaining? My well isn't.

The turkey were gobbling yesterday morning when I stepped out onto the deck with my morning coffee. I haven't seen the gangs of them, just solitary hens now, looking for that perfect nesting site. One tom turkey crossed the road in front of me on Tuesday. But he was a loner, also.

Now if only this pollen would clear out of the air so my nose will stop runnning......
The pollen was soooo thick, you could see it in the air like smog. We are supposed to get a light rain tonight and I hope so. This air needs it.

Hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful season. Take a few minutes and savor it. Every day like this is a true blessing.