Spring Celebration

The mountain snow pack is melting . . .


. . . and the canyon river is running with nature's FULL FORCE.

This morning, Chica surveyed the scene after a romp through the water.


I can only imagine what was passing through that canine brain!

Also this morning, I captured a lovely close-up of a log across the stream bed.


Can you see the leaves from last autumn, just behind the log?

These sunup strolls keep my blood moving and fill my heart with pure JOY.


Can you BELIEVE it was actually SNOWING here last week?

(Sheesh.)

* * *

This week, the kids and grandkids will touch down in Utah.

It's REUNION TIME and I'm ready to play.

(Look HERE and HERE to see last year's family gathering in Ohio.)

Today's Freaky Weather

This morning started out like this . . .

(Shot taken at 9:00 a.m. from my bedroom window.)

. . . turning my world WHITE,

and causing my lilacs to literally KEEL OVER, in a very dramatic fashion:

But this out-of-season heavenly temper tantrum didn't last long.

Thankfully, the sun returned.

Within FOUR HOURS my lilacs looked THIS:


Yep. All those clouds marched right out of the valley,

and here's the view from my porch at 3:00 in the afternoon:

So I hiked the canyon. Naturally.

Wow. The fragrance of the wild sagebrush was simply AMAZING along the side of the trail!
I whiffed and whiffed.

I am hypothesizing that an inauspicious May snowstorm
- like we experienced today -
followed by dazzling blue skies (and some warmth)
has some miraculous ability to cause
the RELEASE
of wild sagebrush's pungent essential oil.

Hmmmmm. I absolutely love it.

From 4 - 6 p.m. our neighborhood ran a campaign to SLOW DOWN traffic.
It's an annual event.

Dozens of families gathered along my street.
We chatted about the storm.
Apparently, many tree branches came down.

One neighbor had an apricot tree chock full of fruit which toppled right over
The roots were completely unearthed,
or should I say, "uprooted"?

Even the kids supported today's Slow Down campaign.
In fact,
the teenager in the chair and his seven younger siblings FOUNDED it!

My worn green chair is empty because I took the photo.
A matter of personal pride: it's my beloved childhood camp chair.

* FINAL SHOT *
the back yard looks lusciously GREEN
after this storm.
(I'm including this for my kids in Nevada.)

The Iberian Peninsula

With dear friends from 'way back'
I walked the steps of history in Spain and Portugal.

And BOY what a view!

I lived in Spain during 1973
and again
from 1975 - 1976.


And I happened upon THE BEST collection of Spanish friends.

A BIG THANKS to
Enrique, Alicia, Carlos, Jorge, Isabel, Jesus & Katerina
for being willing to cart me around through the Iberian Peninsula.
and make me FALL IN LOVE with Spain all over again.

Every town (and I went to MANY of them)
boosts a knock-out cathedral.

Inside and out, they are simply ASTOUNDING.

Mis amigos took me to the following historical villages and cities in Spain:

Avila, Miraflores de la Sierra, Madrid (of course!),
Oropesa, Trujillo, Caceres,
Cadiz, Ayamonte, Barajoz and Placencia,
and maybe a couple of other places I don't recall at the moment.


Then there was Portugal:

Faro, Lisbon and Evora.

My favorite town of all was Ayamonte,
right on the border of Spain and Portugal.

It's downright quaint. Next to the sea.
Several lovely benches in the plazas, decorated with Spanish tiles.


Don't tell me I'm a really LUCKY gal.

I know it. I absolutely know it.


Now, I'm back HOME to enjoy the tail end of
Springtime in the Rockies.

The Ancient Ports

My travels have taken me to some ancient ports in the Mediterrean Sea . . .


. . . where ancient trees have weathered centuries of history . . .

and ancient people made their mark . . .


and their decendents are currently reeking havoc.

(Yes. I experienced a demonstration personally.
No. It wasn't on the Acropolis, as happened 12 hours ago.)


My dear niece Jennifer hosted me in her amazing FOUR -STORY home in Athens.
(She does have an elevator so the four stories are manageable.)
This is a lousy photo of us together, taken by her ancient Greek piano teacher,
with shaky hands.

This dear gal served as an able tour guide, as well as a gourmet cook.

I'm getting fat, believe it or not.
In Greece, the locals eat feta cheese in 'gallon size' containers.

and buckets full of olive oil.
In fact, they eat more of THAT golden liquid per capita
than in any other country in the world!

More later about island hopping in this delightful country.

However, I'm on the road again and my friends in Spain are shoving me out the door
for a car trip to Portugal.

Thanks again, Jennifer!