Last night, we ate outside in an igloo. We met our neighbors at the Corner Brewery, to find they’d snagged us a table in one of the transparent plastic domes. Their only question was whether we’d be too hot. This is March. It’s still winter, and the outdoor temperature was seventy degrees. With the zippered, triangular windows open, we were all able to make ourselves comfortable, so that’s where we stayed.
Ours was one of a neighborhood of igloos, and we quite enjoyed our dinner there. The plastic structure damps outside noises, so we could chat easily. Had we dined indoors, that would not have been the case. Also, it was fun to watch the little children dashing into and out of and around the domes. There were domeless diners eating outdoors, as well. All in all, the accommodation, dinner, and company were excellent.
The outcome of last week’s Battle of the Big Birds is now clear: the geese won. A pair of swans and a pair of Canada geese had a vigorous squabble in a little pond on Green Road, over which twosome would get the nesting site that both couples wanted. Despite the fact that swans are bigger and meaner than geese, the geese prevailed.
When the dog and I walked past the pond this week, Mama Goose was ensconced, as upon a throne, on the nest on top of the muskrat lodge. Papa Goose swam nearby, keeping her safe. Perhaps securing the nesting site was of greater urgency for the geese than the swans, given how quickly the geese put a nest together and that they are already incubating at least one egg. There’s no further trace of the swans on that pond. Killdeer were in good voice at a pond on Nixon Road, but I couldn’t see them.
There are signs of spring in the human neighborhood, as well. Elaine was working in her garden, yesterday. She was tidying the beds, particularly near the pulmonaria, which are getting ready to bloom and which gladden her heart. On Georgetown, someone has ordered a veritable mountain of wood chips and has already spread some around the tulips coming up in front of the house. The gardener at another house has brought several plants outside to harden off. Kathy, who has been traveling, is back now and has updated her outdoor decorations from Christmas to St. Patrick’s Day. She is not normally one to lag behind in her displays. I quite enjoy them.
Daffodils with a southern exposure came out this week. The exposure is particularly noticeable on Rumsey, each year. Janice lives on the side of the street with a northern exposure and reports that the flowers on her side of the street come out about two weeks later than the same kind of flowers across the street. That means that flowers on her street last twice as long as everywhere else.
Forsythia has colored up, and the flowers are starting to open. They should be fully “out” in a few days. The buds of red maples have gotten really, really red. Magnolia buds are fat, fuzzy, and starting to split. Violets are blooming, here and there, huddled under hedges and in other sheltered spots, only purple ones so far, and none in the woods yet. Thurston Woods does, however, feature a large hen-of-the-wood mushroom colony. It’s growing so thickly on an old tree stump, that you can only tell the stump is there by the shape of the colony.
Changeover has happened at the Thrift Shop. It happens twice a year, in the fall and in the spring. Just before changeover, we empty the shop by running increasingly wonderful sales. Then we close for a day to fill the shop with merchandise for the new season. Walking into the shop after changeover is like entering a new space. Darker winter colors and heavier fabrics are a thing of the past. They’ve been replaced with spring and summer colors, lighter fabrics. Out with the mittens and wooly hats. In with the gardening gloves and broad-brimmed toppers that keep the sun off people’s faces.
Spring decorations in form of rabbits, lambs, geese, and ducklings are selling quickly. One, in particular, entertained a lot of customers: a downy little chick that hops along when wound up and released. Alas, at the end of the day, the chick had not found a new home, and will be there to hop some more when the store opens tomorrow.
It’s too early for spring but, whether this is the real deal or only a glimpse of what lies ahead, it is very pleasant indeed.
15 March 2024
There is a Canada goose couple nesting in the outside space between two hallways at school. The nest (and contents) can be seen from my friends classroom. Due to the territorial nature of the birds (they attacked a teacher) we have decided to not use that door outside of an emergency. Fun…but not friendly.