Oh Spring!

I opened my eyes this morning to hear the sound of birds --oh, sweet birds!-- wafting through my window. The day's young sun was glowing red, shining off the dew-wetted grass and glistening on the panes of my neighbors' windows. I could feel the freshness in the air, still flushed with the night's cool chill, as it blew softly into my bedroom.

It was a lovely wake-up call; a soothing "Good Morning!" for my senses. My ears could hear it. My eyes, as they took in the lovely scene, could see its beauty. My nose could smell it in the aroma of the warm, damp earth permeating up from the ground. My skin, shivering a little and covered with goosebumps, could sense it. I knew what day this was.

"Today is the day when life begins!" my heart nearly sang for joy, "Spring is finally here! The world is awake and alive. And finally, FINALLY, the long LONG winter is over......"

I jumped out of the covers and began fixing my bed. What a lovely thought. And what a lovely day, a lovely season, a lovely new chapter this spring has already turned out to be.

Note: So yes, spring has begun. I've started my vegetable garden (swiss chard, broccoli, peas, mesclun and arugula have already taken their places in our raised beds) and have been living mostly outside in the afternoons enjoying the amazing warm weather. I've taken up shooting hoops on my back basketball court again, and riding my bike has been fun as well. But the biggest news of all, as you can see from above, is that I've started to write a little bit again. Slowly but surely, the old knack is coming back, and with it, soon The Missy Times will too. So Stay tuned! Meanwhile, check out this video: one of my favorite songs by Coldplay that I think sounds quite springy and lighthearted. 

Springtime in a Small Town

 Spring is finally here. And for the residents of Beaver Pennsylvania, that's a relief to know. After months of cold winter weather and weeks of damp March/April/May showers, it seemed as if spring had forgotten our little town.

But spring is making a comeback.

• If in the fall it looks like all the life is slowly being drained out of the world, the spring seems the exact opposite, as if life is being squeezed into it. Everything appears fresh and renewed, bursting in spring newness. Every color is to the most extreme and vibrant degree. The greens of the trees and grass are GREEN, the pinks of the flowers are PINK, and the blue of the sky is BLUE. As you can see, this fact rings true on our street (see picture above).

•  As I mentioned before, people in Beaver are very prone to catch spring fever.  As I ride my bike up and down River Road and around town, I notice all the people out and about, taking advantage of the beautiful weather. Some are playing in the parks, working in their gardens, taking brisk walks, sitting on park benches, or like me, riding their bikes. That's one of the great things about living in a small town. You can get practically anywhere in town by walking, or riding your bike. This past week since the regular soccer fields were closed, my team got to practice by the fire station which is only a few blocks away. It was nice not to have a ten minute drive to get to practice and be able to walk home in the warm evening twilight. I think the place where people mingle the most in the spring/summer around here is River Road since the scenery looks so pretty this time of year.  Yesterday I saw a woman reading a book on a park bench while a man sat leaning against a nearby tree and strumming on his guitar.

• Besides the spontaneous spring activities, there are some organized events planned as well. The Beaver Town Yardsale took place this Saturday. People flowed from one street to another to mull over the many yardsales and see who's junk would become their treasure.  Museums all over the county were open to visitors this weekend for the Beaver County History Days. I wasn't able to participate in this event, but from what I saw from last year's celebration, I'm sure it was a big hit. Fort McIntosh was rededicated with great fanfare on Saturday in front of it's beautiful new memorial which was built as a thank-you present from the president of the dredger company, whoose ugly dredger has graced our river for the past few years. The Borough is gearing up for all the other upcoming summer festivies as well, such as the Memorial Day Parade, Garrision Day, the summer carnival, and more.

Ah, spring.....its such a great season, isn't it? What's spring like in your town?

 

Put Away the Shorts and Bring Out the Shovels!

Just one week ago, as the red mercury in the thermometers shot up past the 50 and 60 degree marks, spring fever was spreading throughout the town. The brown, dry grass looked as if it were taking a long, deep breath, rejoicing in it's freedom from the suffocating layer of heavy snow, which, except for a few piles of slushy mush, was completely gone. The birds sounded as if they were bursting with joy as they sang up in the trees. People all around Beaver were outside enjoying the weather but most were seen on River Road riding bikes, walking their dogs, jogging, or just taking a brisk stroll. Everyone had been infected, and there was no cure for this disease.

For those couple of days, I was wearing shorts. Less than a week later, I was wearing hat, gloves, and snow pants.

 Just when we had all truly believed that spring was coming like the groundhog had said, winter came flying back like a slap in the face. It was Monday, and the weather forcasters were only predicting some freezing rain and sleet for that evening. That was a mistake. By mid-afternoon fluffy white snow was falling...... and sticking. The shovels were brought back out from the garage and my dad sent my brother and I out to clear the front walk at about 6:30pm, when at least 3 inches already covered the ground . The faster I shoveled, the faster the snow fell and by the time I was done, a fresh dusting of snow had already accumulated on the sidewalk.

The next morning, the world was completely white. Overnight, a total of seven inches had been dumped on the same town which had been basking in the warmth of spring only days earlier.

At first, I was disappointed. Winter will never end! I thought. But soon I was enjoying the snow as I always do. I went outside with the other neighborhood kids and we worked for hours building an igloo and later, a snow man.

The temperature is creeping back up into the 40's and it looks like we're headed for another loooong, slow, thaw. For now, we're stuck with winter again. But while its here I'll try to enjoy it, for the real spring will be back before long.



Have you always wanted to build an igloo? You should! It sounds like it would be hard, but actually, if you have enough people to help, it isn't. Here's how:


1. Take some shovels and mound up a huge pile of snow


2. As you're piling, use a squirt bottle to spray water onto the loose bits of snow make it frozen so that it stays packed into place


3. After your pile is big (it has to be BIG if you want people to fit inside) trace out a doorway and start chipping and digging out a hole that will be the room. Remember to spray the roof and walls as you're digging so that the whole thing does not cave in on top of you!


4. Contiue to thicken the outside igloo walls as needed so that when carving your room, your shovel does not break through and puncture the whole thing


5. Carve the room to your desired size while scraping out all excess snow


6. Put on finishing touches and have fun!