Anticipation

     The official first day of spring was roughly three weeks ago, although I think in most people minds, spring officially starts around Easter.   The last of the cold fronts have hopefully moved through and we are all waiting, anticipating, the growing season to start.

    It's almost a palpable energy sweeping through this small community.  All around our small town; I see fields getting plowed, garden beds are getting readied, even our own.  Talk of what fertilizer to use and potting soils fill each and every store around us.  Weed killers, organic and otherwise, are quickly flying off the shelves.  The hum of lawnmowers and other equipment fills the air.

    

    With each day that passes, another tree blooms.  Another flower sprouts.  Our yard is filled with daffodils and here and there, even a dandelion pops up. 

    Officially the first frost free day is around May 17th, but I don't think many people will wait that long to plant.  We are officially planting over this weekend, although we are starting out herbs and a few others indoors first.  

    I've had garden before but that was a different time, a different place.  One of my fondest memories was having friends over for dinner.  We, meaning my ex wife Teri and myself, had a wonderful homemade pasta with zucchini and with a fresh basil and tomato sauce that came directly from our garden.  Of course, my friends home brewed wine probably helps to enhance that memory of good times.  In the long run though that garden was given up after two or three years as life, and our relationship, started to fall apart.  Still though, there are more good memories than bad.

    This time just feels different.   I'm actually interested in having a small workable garden this time around.  Part of it is a desire to save some money of course; have you looked at the price of green peppers recently(?), but part of it is to move towards a healthier lifestyle.  Part of it is it seems right to use part of the land around us for a garden.  

    In the end, Sue and I decided to compromise and will be using a combination of containers and a 2 ft by 2ft by 2 ft raised beds.  This weekend we started planting the seeds in egg cartons and then will transfer them to as they grow into slightly bigger containers...then finally the into beds and containers themselves.  

    We also decided that we would by the beds from a local gardener instead of making them which frankly suites me fine.   I would rather have them be steady and secure than be of *ahem* questionable quality.

    We are also keeping our first garden simple with traditional plants and herbs like sage, onions, peppers and tomato's.  I guess my walking onions and lovage can wait.   We would still like to grow some berries as well, but this may be a project in it's own right.  

    We have discussed getting some deer fencing or bird netting as well.  Although I am enjoying the calls of robins, finch's and 1001 other birds at my feeder in the morning.  I have been awaken by the mechanical tap-tap tapping of a red headed woodpecker several times now; we don't want all are hard work to be eaten up.

    The previous day three gobbler turkeys and their harem of eight females wandered though our yard, sadly by the time I got the camera, they were gone.  All the birds around me actually do seem to be camera shy as I have tried to get good photo's despite several tries.

    Bear have been seen in the area as well and the possibility of seeing one excites me and I am actually hoping that one wonders into our yard.  Although I do hope to be inside the house at the time. 

    When I was a younger man, I loved the action of city life

Thanks to my buddy Doug Brick

. The endless possibility of what the city had to offer.  Music!  Food!  That lovely smile of a mysterious girl with the legs that went on forever!   However nature was always my escape route.   If things got to rough a quick walk in a park, a extended hike, or a drive out into the country could cheer me up.  Never in a million years however would I have thought I would be living here in the wilds of Western Pennsylvania.  Much less enjoying it.   

    Looking up into the night sky I can see stars again, whole constellations again.  Orion the hunter is an old friend that I've not seen in years it seems.

    I rarely hear the traffic and planes rarely fly overhead...leaving nothing but the sound of nature.  I've already talked about the birds but we hear spring peepers  in the early evening hours.   It's nice to fall asleep with the windows open and let the cool breezes wash over your bare skin.

Could I be happy?   Yes, I think I am despite the fact that my riding mower wouldn't start earlier AND had a flat tire...but I got 95% of the lawn cut before the rain settled in, so I'll take a victory where I can.

Do you find my tractor sexy?