When was the first day of spring?

Wasn't the first day of spring March 20th? Wasn't that like 6 days ago. Is it just me or is spring suppose to look a little different?

Jez seems to agree with me. She wouldn't pose next to the snow for me.

She has the right idea. Get inside and stay inside.

This is what I faced today. A winter wonderland.

This was just the beginning. There was a small drift in front of the garage door that was up to my knees. I know you WI people that read this have no sympathy for me.

How about now with a little sympathy? Is that not the longest driveway to have to shovel by hand or what?

This photo doesn't do the length of the driveway justice. However there is one plus. As you can see by the road below...wait you can't see the road. That is because they don't plow our street. I say this is a plus because I don't have to shovel the mountain left by the plow. However, my little Element could get stuck in the road.

Gee, I wonder if the snow was deep?

Now here is where the real sympathy from the WI people comes in. Do you remember these old shovels. Sure it is light because it is aluminum, but it's lack of curve allows the snow to pile right over the top back onto what you just shoveled. Not only that, but the snow sticks to it so when you go to throw wet heavy snow only half leaves the shovel. This results in banging the corner on the concrete to dislodge the snow, which in turn results in bending the corner of the shovel.

So why do I use a shovel like this you ask. Well, I was going to buy one of those nice ergonomic ones. But do you remember that little deal I made with the neighbor. Yes, I have been faithfully taking care of his dogs while he is gone to work, in return for getting plowed out. Well, he is at work this week and will not return home until Wednesday. Yeah me!

Everyone has been warning us that March and April are the snowiest months. After the mild winter we have had, can I really complain? Well, you just read it didn't ya?

Yeah WY!

Forget the lily pad...

Mike has very little time or energy for this blog. He is "I gotta be in the mood to write" kind of guy. Since that mood comes few and far between, I have become the main blogger in the family. Let's face it, I have much more time than he does. So I am retiring "From the lily pad". You are all smart enough to determine who is writing, so I will leave it up to you.


How many miles?

That is what we were asking ourselves on Friday March 13. Mike had a comp. day and we planned a trip to Casper. There comes a time when you need more than Wal-mart and Kmart to satisfy your shopping needs.
Since I am usually overly cautious and frequently get razed for it, I thought I would throw a decision out to Mike. I mentioned I had a little under a half of a tank of gas in the Element. Should we get a few gallons before we leave? See, gas is much cheaper in Casper, so you might as well take advantage of it and fill up as much as you can. Mike figures we have plenty to make it there.
Off we go. When he sees my gas gauge I am razed anyway for over exaggerating that it was under a half. I tell him "it seems to really go down fast after it reaches a half." Eyes roll, but he says "let's see where it is at when we reach Shoshoni". Shoshoni is pretty much the last place for gas on our trip until we get closer to Casper. Keep in mind this is a 2 hour trip over wide open plains of nothing.
We enjoy some good conversation. Actually I don't remember if it was good or not. I don't remember anything before I look down and see I am only at a quarter of a tank and we blew by Shoshoni about 30 minutes ago.
I feel panic creeping in. Mike just laughs and says "the light hasn't come on yet, we should be able to make it to Powder River. I think they have a gas station". He knows my tendency toward panic and I am sure he is trying to play it down. I try to tell myself,"he drives this more than I do, Powder River must be pretty close."
My eyes are spending equal time between looking at the road and watching for the light to come on. We pass what looks like an old abandoned gas station. We debate turning around and seeing if it is actually open, but decide it looked pretty debunked. Mike is pretty sure Powder River isn't too much farther.
The light pops on and I make a note of my mileage. I figure we can't make it more than 15 or 20 miles at this point. Mike is still trying to lighten up the situation, but full panic has set in and I can't even talk. I just keep counting the miles since the light came on and looking ahead to endless miles of sage brush.
Finally, we come to Powder River. The speed reduces to 40mph. A good sign that it might be a little bigger town. WRONG! No gas stations in Powder River. We have gone 20 miles since the light came on. Rather than trying to continue out into zero civilization we opt for knocking on doors. Someone must have a tank of gas for their lawnmower they would be willing to share.
Two attempts later we have success. A very nice, possibly hung over, woman shared some gas with us. It took a few gallons before the light would pop off again. We gave her five bucks and many thank yous.
We made it to Casper before the light popped on again and filled up at a pretty good price. So we got that full tank of gas we were looking for. Considering I aged about five years from the experience I don't think it was worth it.
A couple things we learned:
-I know my car better than Mike
-That old gas station we passed was the only available gas between Shoshoni and Casper
-We can go at least 20 miles after the light pops on
-Just fill up before you go on any trip in WY (technically we already knew that, but ignored it)

From the lily pad...

Did you ever...

Wake up to find a deer in your backyard? It isn't unheard of I know. But it is cool none the less.


This morning, shortly after making Mike's lunch I hear a frantic, yet hushed "ERIKA". I think to myself as I turn around, "What did I do now, I haven't even talked to him yet?" Mike isn't a morning person. Anyway, he is excitedly looking out the kitchen window and pointing. I walk over to see this 3X3 buck (as they call mule deer here. I still prefer 6 pointer.) He is young and completely unafraid.


I reached for the camera and snapped a few pictures. This is the best I could do in the dim light of morning. I couldn't use a flash because it would reflect off the window. It was much more impressive in person.


I thought Mike was going to be late for work because he wouldn't stop watching the deer. Finally, he had to finish up so he could leave. I continued watching until the buck walked right up to the neighbors fence, stood there a second, and with out an effort leaped over it.

We knew the deer frequented our backyard. We have the evidence of their digestive tract in multiple piles on the lawn. We have even seen glowing eyes coming from near the crab apple tree when we have put a flashlight on them. This was the first time to see one in some light. Ok, ok, I admit it has been a little slow for excitement around here. These are the things that add a spark to our lives right now. Sad I know.