"May" Be Almost Summer

It's almost May, which usually feels like the beginning of Summer. This year, who knows? The weather, everywhere, is just ... wonky. Here in my neck of the woods lately, it can be 90 degrees one day and 50 or 60 the next. It can be sunny and pleasant in the morning and heavy rain and high winds by dusk. It's crazy to have the AC on one day and heat the next. At least we've been spared tornados, wildfires, superstorms, and blizzards. We had no snow at all this past Winter. Also unusual. But I did almost miss Christmas. The day before Christmas Eve, the temperature dropped to 1 degree and the wind was howling at 60 mph. The power went out around 9:00 AM and stayed out for 27 hours. The temperature in my apartment steadily dropped throughout the day and into the night. I think that may have been the most miserable night I've ever spent in my life. I had plenty of battery powered lights and candles, but it was so COLD. Christmas Eve morning, I was preparing to head out to a hotel, assuming I could find one with both power and a vacancy, when the power came back around noon. I never want to do that again!

Flowers are up now, the trees are green, and birds are singing and chit-chatting and gossiping all day long. I love to hear the songbirds, but the crows... They sound like they're mad at the world and revving up to do something about it. Squirrels are chattering and all kinds of little creatures are out running around, but I don't think they're plotting anything. Big creatures are out, too, like bears and coyotes. I myself haven't seen a coyote but I hear about sightings all the time. The bears are always making guerilla raids on peoples' trash but, likewise, I haven't seen one. I'd probably need some dry pants if I did.

May is my birth month, and that of a number of my friends, relatives, and neighbors. Lots of Geminis running around. If you know us, you either embrace us and our many moods or you run the other way. Memorial Day at the end of May used to signal the first beach trip of the Summer, though I don't do that much any more. It's the beginning of barbecue and outdoor activities season. This year, it could snow in July. Nothing would surprise me, not any more. Any time I think I've seen it all, I'm just kidding myself. I'm pretty sure there's much more weirdness to come.