Resting From Doing Nothing...

Sorry, folks...but I'm worn out from spending Sunday doing nothing.

Well, actually I did do something! I watched the nephew, Cygnus, working on his garden. Of course, I did my part as the typical older, pot bellied, white bearded guy and offered a LOT of unsolicited advise.

The nephew, being a fairly easy going young man...did his part by courteously listening and feigning interest, occasionally nodding his head and grunting to carry out the illusion that he really heard me, and allowed me to falsely believe, if only for a moment, that I had a hand in the labor. This was done , of course, to make the old man go away happy in his fantasy, and to let the actual work in the garden continue without the unwanted or unnecessary guidance. A true win-win situation!

We work well together that way! I pretend that I am giving some useful, well received information...and the nephew pretending that the information I'm giving is useful and needed.

But you see, we're family and that's what family does! We allow the folks that want to, offer their version of what should be done and how it should be done. We do this while acting interested, even if we aren't just so we don't hurt any one's feelings. The people offering all this free advice, do so with the understanding that they will be listened to as long as they only offer once, then leave well enough alone and not nag! All is done without raising our voices and while wearing a smile!

Maybe that's just how things are supposed to be on a holiday like Easter...Peaceful! It would be nice if each and every day were that way, but I suppose that is asking too much.

Anyway, why don't we just get another cup of coffee, sit at the patio table, and peacefully enjoy the beautiful Spring morning and the company of understanding friends, OK?

More Wisdom From The "Farmer's Almanac"...

I know I should come up with something other than another bit of wisdom from the Almanac, but it is just so timely I couldn't help it.

This is some very good information and I hope you can use it.

April — Promise of Spring

April comes from the Latin word aperio, meaning “to open or bud,” because plants begin to grow this month.

Spring festivals around the world, from Easter and Passover to Arbor Day, celebrate the season’s renewal of life.

Weather in the Northern Hemisphere can be capricious—an optimist’s dream and a poet’s inspiration.

Mark this month by baking a rhubarb pie, planting peas and potatoes, and tossing the first green leaves of dandelions into a salad.

Naturalist Hal Borland wrote, “April is a promise that May is bound to keep.” With that in mind, plant shade trees now to please posterity and dwarf fruit trees, lilac bushes, and roses to please yourself.

Teach a child to fish; adopt a kitten; volunteer at your community soup kitchen; fly a kite; learn to throw a curveball. It’s April, after all!

Now, what do you say to a fresh cup of coffee, my friend ?

Well, Boys And Girls...Spring Has Sprung !!

Once again...wonderful news from the pages of the Farmers Almanac...

Spring has sprung!

Spring begins with the vernal equinox on March 20 at exactly 7:44 A.M. EDT.

The word equinox is derived from the Latin for “equal night” and is used now because the days and nights are of nearly equal length.

The vernal, or spring, equinox is the point at which the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator from south to north, signaling the beginning of nature's renewal in the Northern Hemisphere.

After the equinox, the Sun will appear higher and higher in the sky, and the days will grow longer. The tilt of Earth’s axis as it travels around the Sun causes the change of seasons.

See our Seasons page.Find the sunrise and -set times and day length where you live.

In your area, you may find that March 20 does not have exactly the same number of hours for day and night. Why not?

Wind northeast or north at noon of the vernal equinox, no fine weather before midsummer.

If westerly or southwesterly, fine weather till midsummer.

I just know that all of you have been looking forward to this day for a LONG time, and as the bringer of both good and sometimes useless information...I am proud to tell you about it.

So now you can run barefoot through the grass (or snow), sit on the porch at dawn to drink your coffee, and play in the mud in your garden to your hearts content! After all, it IS Spring!

Now, let's have another cup of coffee, my friend!

Candlemas Is Coming...!

Once again, a treasure of information from the Farmer's Almanac.

You have to love this book...you can find out anything that you need to know about gardening, weather, history, old sayings, just all kinds of things. So...in keeping with my reputation of being a warehouse of trivial information, I give you this little treasure.

Candlemas was originally a Celtic festival celebrating the fact that the days were getting longer and spring was not far off. The Christian church expanded this festival of light to commemorate the purification of the Virgin Mary and her presentation of the infant Jesus in the Temple.

Since the traditional Candlemas celebration anticipated the planting of crops, a central focus of the festivities was the forecasting of either an early spring or a lingering winter. Sunshine on Candlemas was said to indicate the return of winter. Similarly, "When the wind’s in the east on Candlemas Day / There it will stick till the second of May."

A bear brought the forecast to the people of France and England, while those in Germany looked to a badger for a sign. In the 1800s, German immigrants to Pennsylvania brought their Candlemas legends with them. Finding no badgers but lots of groundhogs, or woodchucks, there, they adapted the New World species to fit the lore.

Today that lore has grown into a full-blown festival, with Punxsutawney Phil presiding. For all things groundhog, visit the folks at Punxsutawney and see what Phil is predicting this year.

Now wasn't that more information than you ever needed to know about February 2nd...? I thought so!

Now let's have some coffee. What say you, my friend?