A recent evening.

Tonight daylight savings time starts. I was always one of those weird people who kind of dreaded the time change. I just didn't see the point in making it darker when I got up in the morning. But I am really looking forward to it this year. The change to summer time means that this garden is about to become a reality.

This afternoon I noticed that I've got cabbage sprouts coming up in the seed trays I started last week. It looks like the seeds from the Seed Savers Exchange are the first ones to climb above the surface of the soil. Hopefully in a few short weeks, they'll be going into the ground.

Dick's Birdfeeder loaded with peanutbutter lard.

Rich just brought me a cocktail. Sheer decadence; it is a de-luxe wine spritzer. I'm not sure what makes it de-luxe, but it sure is delicious. We spent the afternoon outside for the most part. First we walked around the property, finding all the spots bulbs are coming up out of the ground. They're all over the place. This doesn't happen very often: to be completely surprised by spring. Since we don't know what's been planted or where, it's all new to us. Then we walked the length of the garden, checking out all of the useful items scattered around the acreage: piles of lumber, stacks of metal and wood fence posts, piles of old nylon line (for fencing? for trellising?), piles of very professional-looking irrigation tubing. Out behind the barn we discovered the crumbling concrete foundation of a small building. Inside of it, the burned metal frames of four pieces of lawn furniture among charred wood. Rich said it was like an archaeological excavation. In the barn we discovered a room we hadn't seen before, as well as piles of pots and seed trays, good wood for building cold frames and raised beds, and who knows what else. Behind the barn, near the now-gone building, we found piles of plastic berry crates, piled up next to what we determined to be one of the many blackberry brambles. In between the garden and the woods we finally located the raspberry bushes, planted in neat rows just now visible among all the overgrowth. We walked down through the secret gates to the creek. The woods are amazing to me, used to pine forests as I am, these are unlike anything I've seen. Such thick growth, with trees young and old, fallen, upside down in the creek, resting on others, covered in vines whose roots are as thick as my arms. We realize we won't be able to walk through the woods so easily in a few months' time. But right now, it's quite pleasant. We walked down to the pond. The frogs are so loud right now. We could hear them the entire time we worked outside. But as we neared the pond, we could really hear them: dozens of the little guys who, as we approached closer, grew silent. Only the wet plop as they jumped into the water. Once we were there for a few minutes, they started in again, a little more tentatively. I am looking forward to making an area to hang out and enjoy the coolness of the woods and the pond. Our neighbor says the folks who lived here back in the 80's, the Bakers, grew hay behind the barn, and they used to have cocktails every Friday by the pond.

After walking around today, Rich & I went to Rural King. A couple of bags of fresh popcorn as we walked around the store, looking at stone pavers to build a patio off the kitchen, watching the baby chicks and baby rabbits for sale. I really love this store. I bought some twine and two fluorescent light set-ups to grow my tomatoes and peppers and other plants next month. We bought a new kitchen rug that Rich says kind of looks like a large dish towel (probably why I like it).

Well, folks, the sun just set. It was another glorious sunset: a large cloud recently formed to the west, and as the sun set, suddenly its seam was lit up in an almost neon pink. The rest of the cloud turned purple and the sky around it, a baby blue. We stood in the kitchen, watching it slowly fade, and realizing we are very lucky indeed.