People say there are signs of spring all around us. People say lots of things.
I say spinach.
This is pretty much what it looks like from my deck just now. I didn’t take this picture today. It’s too cold to go out there and take a picture today, and I’m too whiny. But it isn’t the first time my deck has ever looked like this, so I have a pretty fair example to show you, taken on a day when I didn’t feel quite so whiny.
In these circumstances, it is good to have friends. Wendi Wooten cheered me considerably with, of all things, an email forward. I know, I know, and so does she. But here it is anyway:
Wintertime in Michigan
It’s winter here in Michigan
And the gentle breezes blow,
Seventy miles an hour,
At twenty five below.
Oh, how I love ole Michigan
When the snow’s up to your butt.
You take a breath of winter and your nose freezes shut.
Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I’ll hang around.
I could never leave my Michigan
Cause I’m frozen to the ground!
Torch Lake Views 
Louan Lechler
March 1, 2008
I’m with you, Gerry. By March, we forget why we ever wanted to live in northern Michigan. Jim Crockett says,”it’s the time of year when people go insane,” so hold on to that last little piece of sanity. Spring can’t be far off.
I’ve seen the drunken cedar waxwings eating the fermented berries, from the crab apple trees. That’s a sign. When the berries are gone, the snow melts. Would I lie?
Gerry Sell
March 1, 2008
Louan, you would never lie. However, I am aware that you possess a poetic license . . .