What a Difference a Few Days Make

Monday this week i didn't go to work. When i got up before 5 a.m., it was snowing very heavily. We hadn't had anywhere near the 4 to 10 inches they had predicted, but it seemed possible that it could easily end up being that much snow, or more. (I can hear the kitties in Maine and Canada and Connecticut snickering about this insignificant amount of snow.) I really could have made it to the bus...but i didn't relish getting stuck in the city if the bus couldn't make it back to pick me up...so i called in for a day of unscheduled leave.

Instead of going back to bed, i stayed up and had a really really productive day. I did some seriously overdue straightening in my sewing room. One of the things i found was the stash of patterns i acquired on my trip to Alaska in 2002. I hadn't really wanted to buy fabric since it takes up so much room, and besides, most places had the same fabric i could get back home. However, i was able to get some great patterns by local designers or with Alaska themes. One shop in Skagway even had very clever little kits that included everything a quilter on a cruise ship might need to make a little quilted something, if she were silly enough to be traveling without her own handwork. (Front row, right hand side, next to the little felt pieces with Native American beading designs on them).

And then i made our March exchange block. Here's Sylvie helpfully pointing out the center of the block:.

Late in the afternoon, the snow stopped and i went out to shovel, even though the wind was whipping and it was barely 20 degrees out there, not counting the wind chill factor. I guess we had about 4 inches total. On the far side of the patio i saw something purple in the snow...a little clump of crocuses bravely poking up through the snow! The wind had blown a lot of the snow away from them, plus it looks like they were generating enough heat (like skunk cabbages do) to melt the snow around themselves a little.

Tuesday it was back to work. It was still just barely in the 20s. It got progressively warmer all week, yesterday it stayed above freezing, and today it got up to 65 and look what the same clump of crocuses was doing! And tonight when i went in to town, i heard choruses of spring peepers! What a difference a few days make!