Sunshine on my Shoulders, Maggie Shayne

The sun has returned! I can’t tell you what a relief it is to see it, shining so brightly, two days in a row now, and it’s supposed to keep on shining for at least three more. It’s melting the snow at a rapid pace, revealing the mess that winter left behind. (I have a great Dane, you know. I might as well have a Shetland pony. Suffice to say I bought a new shovel and a rake yesterday.)

Oh, but it’s good. It’s all good. Spring has been a long time coming and the final few weeks of winter seemed to be the darkest ones ever, and boy did I feel it—inside and out! But it’s okay now. This is my first spring in the new house, and I’m already discovering all kinds of little plants and flowers peeking up from the mud as the snow melts out of the way. I have a ton of plans for the place during the warm months, and I can’t wait to get them underway.

Mostly, I’m just glad to be getting outside again every day. I’ve been walking and running, and exploring some of the side roads in my neighborhood. I’m getting my bike out this weekend, oiling it up and doing some real adventuring. Map in one hand, odometer clicking, I’m going to plot out some new running routes. I found a great one yesterday that I think will be my new favorite. Great road, kind of a steady, but mild upgrade. It runs alongside a river, and the shoulders are wide and soft, and the views absolutely amazing. I walked a lot of it yesterday, but I didn’t clock the mileage, so that’s my next task.

The dogs love this weather. It’s not too warm yet, though, so they are a little confused. They look outside, see the sunshine, and whine to go out, but come back in a few minutes later, complaining that it’s not as warm as it looks. (Despite the sun, we’re not climbing much beyond the forties, which is as disappointing to me as to the dogs. But it will only get better from here.)

Okay, so, outdoor projects to improve my home and my mood—I have a list!
First, raking up the dog—er—remnants from the winter. Yuck. But I’ll be glad to have it done. Second, I need to pick a nice level spot for a fire-pit, and buy one of those circular fire rings for it. Nothing like a great campfire on a summer night to lift the spirits! I need to get some lawn furniture, including a great big cedar lawn swing. And maybe a hammock. And a picnic table. I need to plant some herbs and flowers, find some way to tame the hedges in front, and tune up the lawn mower. And I want to hire someone with some heavy equipment to dig out the little pond near the house, and get rid of the weeds around it. Oh, and there is a length of PVC pipe sticking out of the ground in front, because my house is on a hillside, and it channels the runoff into the ditch. But it looks ugly. I’m going to dig a bit around it, and saw off the visible portion of the pipe, then stack some flat stones up to create a waterfall. I might buy an ATV with a little wagon to pull behind it to help me with some of these projects.

I need to knock down all the beehives—I was inundated with them last fall, and there are hives all over my house and outbuildings. I want to get rid of them before it gets warm enough for the bees to wake up and start making pests of themselves. I need to get on that, because it’s going to get warm fast. Maybe I’ll do that today.

So those are my spring plans! Share some of yours. There’s nothing like working outside to celebrate the spring.
Maggie