Today, the temperature reached 57°F. Last week, the high was in the mid 30s. We had ice in the bird bath every day for a week. It got down to 19° on several mornings. Now, it is raining. Tomorrow, we were told to expect 2 inches or more of rain. For two weeks our "tropicals" were covered in hopes to ward off certain death. We put all of the potted plants in the store room. Yesterday, took the plants out of the storeroom and we uncovered the tropicals. Well, the storeroom worked, but the coverings didn't. We have a devastating looking yard. Almost everything is brown, as in dead. This morning, Gordon and I went outside, we had "tea at ten", put a fire in the chimnea, and gazed at the desolate landscape. I placed some plants from the storeroom nearby and we enjoyed that. Just goes to show that you can find "cheerfulness" when everything seems sad.
This was also a good time to watch the birds. We saw 8 American Goldfinches, amongs the usual yard birds.
Did you notice the brown banana trees in the picture. They add to the "texture" of the setting, huh? When it really warms up, like maybe next week, we will have to go out and trim the brown. Until Spring, we've got the "set up" of living plants and the birds to brighten our day.
