See here, in the picture! There is no snow! There is green! There are leaves budding on the trees! Spring is here! This means that in about three weeks, it will be summer--muggy and hot.
I've been learning about dogs. N's dog is the first I have ever had prolonged contact with. Here is what I have learned so far, although I am positive there are more lessons to come:
- They do not purr. Do not be alarmed; it doesn't mean the dog is never happy.
- They desperately want whatever it is that you're eating, even if it's a salad, something spicy, or something poisonous (like onions or chocolate). If they find it not to their liking later, they'll generously throw it back up for you, no questions asked. They believe this is an excellent arrangement and cannot understand why it is not adopted in more households.
- That ghostly sound with intermittent thumping coming from the living room is NOT a poltergeist. It is the dog harmonizing with a passing firetruck and whapping his tail against the sofa.
- Dogs will alert you to any nearby wildlife. I have now seen deer in the area, as well as a gray fox with at least two kits. Also included under "wildlife" are the lady who walks her mini collie down the street every day, and anyone using an outdoor grill in a 1/2 mile radius.
In other news, there have been a lot of family visits. For Easter, N and I got together at my cousins' farm place near Spring Green. I'd never been out there before, so we got a walking tour of the property.
"Oh look," said my cousin Ian, "A dead deer!"
"Oh. Huh. Yep!" said his grandfather.
"I'm sorry, but I have to take a picture of this," said I.
They were amused. Then we went and had a lovely Easter meal. Here is the picture (of the deer, not of the meal).
Most recently, my parents came to Madison to visit. It was a great time for it; the flowering trees had just begun to bloom and the weather was nice. Dad got to see the farmers' market at the capitol (which is back for the season, yayyyyyyyyyyyy!!!), Mom finally got to meet N, and we toured around for the bulk of the weekend. We even paid a visit to New Glarus. It's nice that they've been here now, because now when I talk about Madison they'll have an idea of what I'm gabbling about. They departed on Tuesday.
I'm in the process of buying a house, but I don't want to jinx it by writing about it here until the deal is done and final. I'm very excited, though. Tired of renting! I was spoiled by owning my own home in MN for a decade.
