Life in the Bristolwood

Well, most of it has in about a period of three days!

The camper is free of snow on its roof, and there is little left near it, either!

The only snow that remains near the house is from shoveling, or where Mark piled it pretty high with the plow on the ATV.

I just happened to show this little guy’s eye and nose peeking out through the snow yesterday. I was simply ecstatic to see his whole being this morning. And, look at the daffodils coming up right behind him! I think some of my tulips are also coming up in this little garden on the side of the house.

And….these are the daffodils I showed in my last entry. They were peeking up through the snow. In looking at them, I think they actually grew about an inch since yesterday! And, near them are my Columbines, shooting out new leaves of green!

Michelle had to be at the Bible study at about 4 this afternoon. She was rehearsing with the worship group. So…I had a lot of time to spend just hanging out. So, I went to Aldi…then wandered over to WalMart, then, lastly went to Wegman’s where I had some Chinese for dinner. Since Wegman’s has WIFI, I took my laptop along. The only problem was that shortly after booting the computer up, I got the “change to electric power” message. I was bummed, so I asked an employee if they had electic available…..but, of COURSE! They are Wegman’s, after all!

So, I ordered a Chai Latte and sat and relaxed with my laptop for some time. I then shopped for a while before picking Michelle up.

On our way home, we came down the route that goes through the valley. At one point, we saw flashing yellow lights along the sides of the road….then encountered a sign that said “Road Flooded Ahead”. The water wasn’t real deep, but you could see it moving swiftly across the road. Michelle was a tad nervous, but I knew it was going to be fine. We were both very happy to just get home!

Tonight’s forecast is for rain changing to snow with 1-3″ by morning. As much as I love the winter, I think we have seen enough for now! We were also advised we have a “winter storm” that will pass through Friday night. As I looked ahead at the forecast, we are supposed to be back into the 40′s next week. Ah, the wonderful weather coaster!

It is all OK….after all, spring is in the air!

Last night was a little sad here, as the Buffalo Sabres lost their FOURTH game in a row. The blow was softened just a bit by the fact that it was the Pittsburgh Penguins who beat them. I used to be a big fan of the Penguins in the late 80′s and early 90′s, during the time when Mario Lemieux played. He was such a fantastic player, with finesse, and great skill. So, it was quite cool that before the game last night, Mario announced that the city of Pittsburgh has now signed and sealed a contract that will keep the Pens in Pittsburgh with a new stadium for the next 30 years! Hurrah Mario, who worked hard to get this to happen!!!

Carly called me on Monday, asking if I might be interested in going with her to the vet on Tuesday. Well, on Monday, I was feeling less than stellar, so it looked unlikely…Yesterday, when I was feeling pretty chipper, I called and told her I would meet her and Jeff at the vets’.

Carly said that Joe had been licking a certain spot on his rear left leg. He had licked it to the point that it was going to become raw, so she wanted the vet to see him. And, my, oh my, was little Joe a wonderful patient!

Joe immediately stole the heart of the girl behind the desk.

Upon entering the exam room, little Joe sniffed his way around the room…..

Then he patiently sat atop (the REALLY nice) Corian table, awaiting the vet.

As the vet explained that she suspected Joe had licked himself into a skin infection, he listened with great interest! The vet decided that they would have a tech shave the area and then clean it. Carly would have to clean the area each day, and also give Joe an antibiotic. Carly, Jeff, and I sat in the exam room as the vet walked Joe down to another location for his treatment. He came back a short time later, still quite chipper in spite of the fact that the shaven area revealed bright red skin that was inflamed. Thankfully, Joe’s skin is as black as his hair, so it really doesn’t look too bad.

And, what was Joe’s repayment for being such a GOOD boy?

Yes, he must now wear an Elizabethan collar until the wound is thoroughly healed. Poor little Joe! I sure hope he got some cookies when he got back home! His patience really impressed me.

After the vet, I went right home, feeling a little tired.

Everyone was enjoying the warm weather here. Even the Scotties were outside for a while! Ben was having some silly fun sliding around on the snow in the front yard!

He was having a good time, until suddenly, he slid a bit too far, landing right in our little (albeit *turbulent* right now because of massive snow melting!) stream! ALthough the quality of this picture is lacking a bit, you can see Ben’s reaction to the….well……….*COLD* water!

Needless to say, he pulled himself outta there….fast!

I even made it out to the garage (first time in a few days) to see the new base Mark made for his bandsaw. I remember when Mark came up with the idea a couple of weeks ago, but now the base is completed. It is really cool, because it has a mobile base so it can move all around.

The little garden toad that we inherited from my father-in-law was beginning to poke his head through the snow in the side yard! He sits in front of the daffodils that I posted the picture of when the weather was soooo frigidly COLD!

And, speaking of daffodils, I looked down from the porch and spotted these in the melting snow!

I snapped this picture as I walked across the front porch. It was so hard for us to go back into the house. It was just one of those days that you want to go on and on and on….

As the sun headed over the mountains to the west, our only regret was that the day was over….

I went upstairs to lie down on the bed for a little while and when I turned to look out the window, I *had* to grab the camera once again. This was so spectacular…..

Red sky at night, sailor’s delight….