April Comes the Day

April flurries

Snowflakes on Rhododendrons

A slight dusting of snow, panes of water iced over in our yard and drive way, the sounds of different birds if I listen carefully, the sun rising just about due East(an hour earlier than a month ago, two with DST), I think, a few shoots of daffodils and day lilies, a purple crocus or two on a walk, all herald the coming of spring here at the lake, a bit later then our families to the east and west I assume.  Partly because of our elevation, 1300 feet above sea level, and we are farther north than any of our kids.  As I mentioned earlier, spring moves up a mountain about 100 feet a day, which means spring might come 13 days later to us then to those at sea level at a similar latitude.

We watched STRANGER THAN FICTION last night (me for the third time), Will Ferrell's best movie in my estimation.  He's the perfect poor soul, living the life of an automaton, an IRS agent who lives by the clock, almost each tick at a time.  The only problem is that he does not know it until a woman's voice begins to narrate his life in his head.  At first, he does not understand what is happening but gradually he begins to understand this is his life.  As he begins to change, he seeks more understanding and, if you suspend disbelief, he finds he is a character in a famous novelist's book, and she intends to kill him off at the end.  As a result of this consciousness of his life, he begins to change, finding love in a bakery, leaving his job, living more spontaneously, and seeking out the writer to save his life.  It's about how we live or don't live our lives and he's charming as his Maggie Gyllenhad, his girl friend.  This movie spoke to me, about how many live lives of 'quiet desperation,' as Thoreau put it and wake up too late to this fact.  The originality of the script, perhaps silly until you see the movie, the great sound track, the performance of Ferrell as Harold Crick, make this a movie worth seeing again.

Dinner was one of my favorites, chicken picata, with lemon juice, slices of lemon, white wine, and capers, with lightly dusted chicken breasts and a salad with avocados topped the meal.

We worked out at Turner for an hour; I shot hoops, stretched, and went on the treadmill, while Evie stayed on the elliptical for the entire time.  We then both took showers, just like in high school and college, after our workouts to see how we liked a communal shower.  It actually felt good, great showers, free towels, and few if anyone around.  It may become a habit!