The Changing Seasons, April 2020
I don’t know how long we’ve been isolated. It was just a few days after my birthday in March, so six weeks, give or take a few days or maybe half a week. Who can tell? When you are inside all the time and never go anywhere at all, not even the grocery store, all the days are alike and it gets hard to remember what happened … or when. Or sometimes, even IF it happened.
China, east Asia, Australia, and New Zealand
I’ve been grateful to the birds, the squirrels, the flying squirrels. Even the raccoons. They are all eating an awful lot of food. Normally, there’d be plenty to eat outside, but we haven’t had two sunny days in a row. It has been very cold, windy, and endlessly rainy and gray. So, nothing is growing. No hint of leaves. no flowers. Just mud.
My orchids have grown well or had been but the lack of sun has been rough and I finally broke down and bought a grow light. The poor things have been living in a dark closet.
And finally, I’d like to say a final goodbye to Gibbs. May you live on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge in peace. We’ll meet again … maybe, I hope.
About The Changing Seasons
The Changing Seasons is a monthly challenge where bloggers around the world share what’s been happening in their month.
If you would like to join in, here are the guidelines:
The Changing Seasons Version One (photographic):
Each month, post 5-20 photos in a gallery that you feel represent your month
Don’t use photos from your archive. Only new shots.
Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them.
The Changing Seasons Version Two (you choose the format):
Each month, post a photo, recipe, painting, drawing, video, whatever that you feel says something about your month
Don’t use archive stuff. Only new material!
Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so others can find them.
If you do a ping-back to this post, I can update it with links to all of yours.
Update
Please visit Pauline’s beautiful garden at Living in Paradise. She and Jack have been hard at work and as always it’s a visual delight.
Lani at Life, the Universe and Lani shares some thoughts and interesting images from her month in Rayong, Thailand.
A Wonderful Sheep brings us a lovely hopeful post with beautiful images of her “side of the mountain” in glorious springtime.
Tish at Writer on the Edge has been busy in her garden and allotment. Please pop over and see the fruits of her green fingers.
Sarah at Art Expedition has not only taken some beautiful photos but also baked the most delicious-looking …. No. I’m not going to tell you — you have to visit her post to see for yourself.
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Categories: #animals, #gallery, #Photography, Flying squirrels, Marilyn Armstrong, New England
SERENDIPITY - SEEKING INTELLIGENT LIFE ON EARTH 
I’m so sorry for your loss, Marilyn – Gibbs looked like the perfect four-legged friend. I hope spring time will soon start for you – mud is no fun at all. But your orchids look lovely, so the grow light was definitely worth it! Love your bird shots and your editing of them – very arty!! And finally thank you for your lovely shout-out! Wishing you a wonderful weekend! Stay safe!
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It’s actually warm today! Like 70. We’re out of birdseed, though more is theoretically on the way. It’s not supposed to rain until tomorrow or even Monday. So you see? Things can get better. Gibbs was a hilarious dog, once he overcame his fears from long years of neglect and caging. I miss him.
I’d get another one, but we really don’t have the money and I don’t want a puppy. I don’t have the ability to get up and down the stairs every day for housebreaking … and puppies need more lively owners than we are. But I see them and they are so adorable.
You can’t even adopt a dog (or cat) these days without coming up with hundreds of dollars. I know they have the best in mind for their rescues, but they have made them too expensive for retirees.
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My aunt had the same problem when her dog Sadie died – she didn’t feel up to caring for a lively puppy again. And I think it’s the same with adopting one from a rescue home, it has become very expensive indeed.
Maybe you could volunteer for dog walks instead? That way you’d have a little company on your walks and also help the rescue centers. 🙂
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I am beginning to understand lock-down in rubbish weather. I’m not sure we Kiwis would have got through our Level 4 quite as successfully if we’d all be trapped inside instead of walking the streets in glorious sunshine, politely crossing the road to avoid each other. Now that the rain and grey skies have arrived my mood has definitely taken a turn for the worse too.
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It’s the endless gray skies, the cold rain, and the MUD. EVEN if I could go out, I’d need knee-high rubber wellies to navigate the yard. It’s demoralizing. It’s supposed to get warm tomorrow — or maybe Sunday, but soon … and it would be nice to be able to just sit outside and breathe real air!
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I couldn’t take endless mud either 😦
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Sorry about your loss. I hope you are making the best of these trying times. Nature certainly helps a great deal. Take good care.
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At least he went quietly and in peace. He didn’t have a terrible year. He was fine until he just died. He was up begging for treats an hour earlier.
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So sudden. Sorry, well there’s a blessing when there is no suffering. Take care, hugs.
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You have had a strange spring. I remember that your flowers were late last year. This year it looks like they will be again.
Today is a wet, miserable day here. It’s only going to reach 9 degrees which is chilly for May. I don’t see us going for a walk today.
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The whole northeast has been horrible. Last year it was just cold. THIS year it’s cold, with freezing rain and high winds. Yuk.
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Pretty much what parts of south eastern Australia are getting too. There is snow forecast for mountain areas in some states.
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I think this is climate change and it’s going to get worse. Some places, worse than others. Our part of North America is very bad, but the southern states are right behind us. I know you’ve got big (huge) issues as does our southwest and California. And Alaska is in serious trouble. There are probably more problems in the Far East — China and Mongolia et al, but they don’t tell us about them, though i think they see them from space. I sure hope we fix this before we have no east coast here and all the whales are dead from overly warm water.
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We had one nice day in the last couple of weeks. One. Other than that, if it’s not snowing, it’s raining. My backyard is a swamp. Good thing I have high rubber boots.
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Us too and where we had the beginning of daylilies and other plants, we have mud. It has been in the 20s at night and pouring rain almost every day. Being isolated I can live with. Never seeing the sun is a lot harder.
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Someday we’ll see the sun again. I hope.
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I think this is climate change.
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It’s been a busy month Marilyn.
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It has also been a miserable month, but I’m hoping against hope it is going to end soon. VERY soon!
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it will…
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