In the morning they come. Before the sun climbs over the roof of the house. While the cool 82 degrees of morning remain. Before the heat begins to bake the dust. They come for a drink. First come the Lesser Goldfinches. They perch on the Coneflowers and pick at the dry seed heads and flit […]
Tag Archives: weather
The Hottest Day
Sun, 28 Aug 2011, 09:58 PM (-06:00)
“You decided to work on the hottest day?” John asked. I didn’t know it was the hottest day, but there was no doubt it was toasty. I set down the wheelbarrow. “How hot did it get?” I asked. “110.” That was yesterday. Today it got up to 112. As the sun set behind the trees […]
Red Star
Fri, 19 Aug 2011, 09:42 PM (-06:00)
As the hot air wraps around me and the dog sniffs at a bush, I stand on the sidewalk looking up at the evening sky and see a red star. It’s the first one I see. Darkness has fallen all around me, but the sky retains just enough of the passed day that there’s only […]
Waiting for Some Rain
Mon, 15 Aug 2011, 07:54 PM (-06:00)
Yesterday evening, two Mourning Doves sat on the power lines in the shade of a Chinese Tallow tree. They gazed to the east, beaks into the wind, watching a black sky advance. Waiting for some rain. “I don’t know,” Trudy said to me from the dining room table. “It could still get here.” The radar […]
Morning and Evening
Mon, 27 Jun 2011, 12:45 AM (-06:00)
1. Morning In the cool of the morning, we went for a hike. Through a Juniper/Persimmon woods. Up and down, in and out of ravines. Following a well-marked trail. Trudy went first. Guinness followed with his tail wagging most of the time. I brought up the rear. By the end of three miles, the sun […]
Long Time No Rain
Wed, 15 Jun 2011, 09:21 PM (-06:00)
And rain? We’re filling the rain barrels with tap water. Oh, our tomatoes and cucumbers and squash. There’s one cucumber on the two remaining plants. The squash are blooming, but there’s not much sign of any fruit. You don’t believe me. I know you don’t believe me when I say that we’ve had no rain forever. […]
Full Moon and Someday Rain
Sat, 19 Mar 2011, 11:26 PM (-06:00)
The full moon rides across a cloudless sky, closer and bigger and brighter than it has been for 20 years, casting shadows of budding branches on the ground. The wind blows thru the branches, shaking the shadows, making the wind chimes chime. Maybe someday it will rain.
Cold and Warm
Fri, 25 Feb 2011, 08:55 AM (-06:00)
She told a tale of winter, of snow dragons rearing their heads and gnashing their teeth. She said how warm the one-degree-below-freezing temperatures seemed and of the no-big-deal report of the weathermen during their snow forecast. She told of 100 inches accumulated so far this winter. And my mind turned to the shade I ran […]
Fog of Morning
Thu, 30 Dec 2010, 12:24 PM (-06:00)
The sky was cloudy gray. A breeze was blowing out of the south. Fog clung to the ground. He was running around in 400 meter circles. Red jacket and blue shorts. His dog trotting faithfully beside. He was alone. Surrounded by silence. The bell at the elementary school rang as he began. The school was […]
Give Them Time
Fri, 24 Dec 2010, 11:18 AM (-06:00)
1. Two More Laps. “Which lanes do you need?” I gasped to the club track coach as I passed him. He smiled and shook his head. “We’re not starting, yet.” I held out two fingers and panted, “Two more laps.” He nodded. His kids were just arriving and putting on their shoes and stretching on […]