Another Quick 5...does that equal Quick 10?

by Joanie

Taking the cue from our own Anna S. I'm bringing another Quick 5 to the Lair. So, what are your top 5 signs that spring is here?

Mine:

1. The forsythia are blooming. These bright yellow flowering shrubs spring to life from the midst of the drabest, brown pile of branches. What better analogy to new life from a cold winter? Ok, so maybe rodents popping their heads out of the ground, but still.

2. The birds chirping in the morning. I don't mean once the sun pops out, but around 5 am when it is still dark. Chrip, chirp, chirp....STOP THE NOISE! I'M SLEEPING HERE! Oh, um...sorry. Twitter, twitter little friends and yes, please do mate outside my bedroom window!

3. The air takes on a freshness. Now, don't get me wrong, nothing like the freshness of Ireland's air. Seriously, it is pure ambrosia to breathe on the isle of Eire. But it is nicer, filled with promise of beauty and serenity.

4. The clock springs forward. Are you really certain that you are reading this at 8 am? Or is it REALLY 7 am. Are you late for church? Are you wondering why Sunday Morning on CBS is going off instead of just coming on? Is your body protesting, demanding to find that extra hour of sleep it lost?

5. And here in Kentucky land you know Spring is here when college basketball tournaments are on. Yes, last night actually stayed up to watch University of Louisville and Notre Dame go into OT with the Cardinals winning! I don't usually have a specific allegiance to any one team within the state, but I've fallen in love with one of their players. Here's a picture of my new hero, Kyle Kuric :D

What about you? Come on, fess up. Does the sight of Peeps in the store make you want to frolic in the tulips? What are your sure signs that spring is here?

Winter Fatigue

By Trish Milburn

Anyone who knows me knows that winter is, by far, my least favorite season. I get cold easily, I hate gray days, and I've had some bad experiences traveling in wintry weather (like doing unintentional 360s down the highway until I ended up in a ditch). Even a normal winter here in the South has me layering up in fleece and watching for the earliest sign of spring -- my daffodils popping out of the ground. Of course, lately my daffodils, which popped up a few weeks ago, have been shivering. It's been a cold, gray winter with more snowfalls than we typically have. In fact, we have another covering the ground this morning, one that came overnight. There's a bit of iciness to it because it crunches on our street when people drive by. It's been so cold (down to single digits at some points) that I nearly had a stroke when I saw my last natural gas bill.

But this year, I don't think I'm the only one experiencing winter fatigue. People on the East Coast of the U.S. have been buried by one giant snowstorm after another. Residents of Texas and the Deep South even got a taste of winter -- a foot of snow in Dallas and snowfalls in atypical states such as Louisiana and Mississippi. I was supposed to go to Ohio today for a romance program at a library, but I just found out that it's been moved to March because of bad weather.

At times like this, I try to look for consolations and things to look forward to in order to get through the winter blues. For instance, I tell myself that it can snow and be cold now because I have to be inside doing revisions and reading RITA entries anyway. Maybe by the time I turn them in, the weather will have improved enough that I can start walking outside again instead of on the treadmill.

I think about where I'll be a month from today -- Disney World! I LOVE Disney World, and it'll be a nice treat in between two deadlines and a board meeting. And at the end of next month, I'll get to enjoy a visit with my sister and nieces when they fly in for a week. Yes, my entire March is full to the brim, but there's a lot to enjoy in there. And hopefully, it won't be cold and there won't be a snowflake in sight and the daffodils will be in full bloom.

So, how has winter been where you are? Are you looking forward to spring? What do you do to get yourself through winter? Or are you a winter lover? And for our friends in the southern hemisphere, what is the weather like where you are now? It's odd for me to think that Christmas and Valentine's Day fall during your summer.

Spring is right around the corner

by Christie Kelley

Or so my husband keeps telling me. I'm not sure I believe him, and I'm usually the optimistic one. Personally, I'm tired of winter already. After almost two feet of snow before Christmas and temperatures barely reaching 20 degrees, I want spring. NOW! I'm sick of being cold.

Although, if today is any indication, maybe spring will be here soon. With temperatures in the mid-40s, I went for a nice long walk to the river and watched the seagulls trying to walk across the ice. They do a little better than me, but not by much. The geese were out honking as they flew around looking for a break in the ice.

So maybe spring is right around the corner. In the spirit of that thought, maybe if we all think about spring and what we love about it, we'll make it through the rest of the winter.

For me, the first signs of spring used to be the robins returning. But since I've moved to Maryland I discovered that the many of the robins stay all year long. Two days ago, there were about ten in my front yard.

Now, it's the sound of geese returning to Canada. Living near the Chesapeake Bay, we hear them by the hundreds as they making their way north. I love the sound of their honking as they fly through the spring sky.

Then there is the signs of flowers popping up in my yard. It's far too soon here, although, we have had warmer winters that caused the daffodils to pop up in February. I would be surprised if that happens this year but I won't give up hope!

So what about you? Are you sick of winter yet? What do you love about spring? Tell me all about it.

Garden Party

I'm going to say right up front that I do not have a green thumb. I admire people who do. I applaud their devotion and knowledge to all things flora and fauna but can't usually do a lick of good with more than your standard, hardy variety of 6 pack annuals.



Until this year.

Last year I had a row of boxwood shrubs taken up from the front of my house. They were 18 years old, woody and UGLY. Plus one had already gone to shrub heaven and ...well, it just didn't look good.

Once they were gone, I enlisted the aide of my BFF who, like a columbine seeking shade, knows her way around a landscape. She is to gardens what Julia Child was to French cookery. She thought and she suggested and together we went out to purchase just the right beginner plants/shrubs.

Most everything survived their first year under my care: The lilacs, the azaeleas, the barberry and the Japanese Heller holly. The lirope and the spira variety called "Lil Henry". The Japanese holly struggled the most and when I asked my BFF her advice she asked "Have you been deep watering"? "Is that anything like deep POV?" I asked.

She gave me A Look.

Um. "Doesn't the water I pour at the bottom take care of watering?"

"No. You use your hose to get to the collateral root system."

"What hose?" I asked.

It took me 10 minutes to revive her.

Fortunately, (or maybe my friend did a survival dance to the garden gods) my shrubs and things survived to this spring. And OMG....they are beautiful! Flowering lilacs, pink and purple azaelas, knockout rosebushes in varying shades of pink. I've accented with purple petunias and white begonias and filled my porch pots with three colors of geraniums and pink hibiscus.

It's beautiful if I do say so myself. It's ignited a desire to do more and learn more. Oh, I'll never get the artistry of borders and formal gardens though I long to have the natural groupings of flowers like they have in Ireland (I think in Ireland the land just calls to the different varieties and they plant themselves :-). It's taken a lot of restraint on my part not to plant my whole YARD in flowers.

All this horticultural revelation got me to thinking about The Lair, the Banditas and the BB's. We all bring our own special and unique beauty to the garden of this community. Every flower has a meaning or correlation to some attribute. Here are some of the ones I've thought about:

Hydrangea

This flowering shrub is a symbol of perseverance. Now this attribute can be attributed to ALL of us but I thought of Suz when I was looking it up. Beautiful and strong and determined, she took a step outside the box with Lacy Morgan and has gotten the attention of contests, agents and editors.

Larkspur.

Reminds me of Kristen. It means beautiful spirit and hers certainly shines through in all she says and does. (Even her very first headstand with her yoga)

Geranium, the comfort flower.

Jo or JoMama as we call her. She's always there with an encouraging word, a hug and a pat on the back. And the occasional "don't mess with my Bandita" fervor that helps kick the doldrums right out of ya.

Sweetpea.

The shy flower. I matched this one up with Susan. Despite her cool rapper name (Smoov) she professes to be the shy one among us. (Psst...I'm not totally sold on that. We'll see in the bar in DC in July)

Stargazer Lily.

The ambition flower. This one is our own Kate. Quiet, demure, yet exotic and beautiful this Bandita is on her way. Featured in her NYT debut book, HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER Kate is soaring to the top in more ways than one.

And then there is me. Now, my favorite overall flower is the tulip but I have been called spirited before so the flower that symbolizes that characteristic is the Freesia.

The Pink Rose. Friendship. Our BB's and our lurkers, our guests and our new visitors. Here's a pink rose for each and everyone of you!

Demetrius has just spread a blanket on the soft, green grass. Have a seat, enjoy the picnic basket Marcus brought and sip a cabana boy....er, I mean some wine and contemplate the garden of The Lair. What other flowers do you see? Which Bandita do they represent? Why? What type of flower would you be and where would you be planted? What is attracted to you? Bees? Butterflies? Sven?