We've probably seen our last freeze of the year here in Texas. The sky is clear, blue and sunny. The temperature is a crisp, not-too-humid 70 degrees. If it weren't for all the rednecks in their pickup trucks, and the basically flat prairie that stretches toward the horizon, one could almost pretend to be dwelling in San Francisco during the pretty season.
For the uninitiated, here's a few things about springtime in Texas you probably don't know:
1. Spring (and also fall) here signals the beginning of probably the worst allergy season in the country. Atchoooooooooooo!
2. Spring here lasts four days, followed by five months of oven-like heat.
3. Birds are confused by the constant temperature swings (I remember an ice storm nearly 10 years ago during Spring Break in April). Their confusion amounts to an enormous amount of poo on your car until the temperature regulates. Stinky nervous birds!
4. Spring is a reminder that you don't have to be old to be a dirty old man: the receding skirt hemlines provide eye candy for the male population. I wish they all could be Texas girls! For the ladies, I'm afraid a lot of men who shouldn't wear shorts or go topless do both, usually while cleaning out their gutters or mowing the lawn. It's not pretty.
5. Everything is bigger in Texas, including the bugs. I saw a 50-pound mosquito wrestling with my neighbor's dog the other day. The skeeter won. There are also spiders, scorpions and fire ants – oh my! And don't forget the wasps, hornets and roaches the size of Buicks. The use of toxic chemicals around the yard can cure this problem, as well as curbing pesky door-to-door salespeople.
6. It doesn't rain much, but when it rains, it pours. We had three trees in our yard taken down last week, and I'm using the wood to build an ark, just in case.
7. The extended growing season means you can grow tomatoes as big as basketballs, and flowers tend to get out of hand (hence the killer allergy season). Pollen is so thick it attaches itself to everything in a yellow haze. Besides the crazy poo-birds, the dust makes it impossible to keep your car or slow-moving relatives clean for long.
8. The Garbage Gypsies will make their normal rounds because the weather is warmer. These are people who make a living scavenging for usable trash. They're close cousins to the Metal Gypsies, who made off with our old furnance, an old grocery cart full of motorcycle parts, and our old built-in grill I ripped out of the ground. They provide a service, really. The Firewood Gypsies have helped me get rid of much of the lumber created by our tree-felling activities.
9. Garage Sale City! While there are a few sporadic attempts at jettisoning junk during the winter, garage- and yard-sale season kicks into high gear with the nicer climate. We hate hate hate having them, but we hate the clutter our house collects even more. It won't be long before we have enough for a small sale again. Ick! Especially because we hope to upgrade some of our appliances this year (they still sort of work, they're just ugly).
10. The dog's hair-shedding has commenced. We're planning a trip soon to the dog groomer, who will clip off her undercoat and make her feel a little better. In the meantime, we end up tripping over clumps of unattached dog fuzz and have actually lost the Cutlet and our tax return among the hair. Our vacuum cleaner is doing triple duty trying to keep up, but resistance is futile. I think we're going to use some of that hair to make a blanket big enough for 100 people to snuggle under. But of course, it will be a long time in Texas before we'll be able to use it.
What's spring like in your neck of the woods?
Don't forget to touch on the fact that Texas is NOT one large, flat plane, we do have electricity and running water, and we drive cars to work (as opposed to riding horses). :)
I meant "plain".
Spring in Vancouver....
the best season by far
the city is full of blossoming cherry trees...you drive down the street and the wind picks up the stray blossom leaves and it looks like you're in a pink snowstorm
and the smell...heavenly
perfect weather for just about everything..warm, but not too warm
you can go to the beach and sit and stare out at the water
ride your bike around the Seawall
go window shopping at trendy stores with only a light sweater on
I love it
http://www.dochemp.com/images/bc.jpg
Spring can't seem to make up it's mind here. Currently it's depressing. Rainy and cold.
I miss Texas Springtime. I miss the bluebonnets.
I'm seriously bummed.
Ya forgot to mention cars pulled over on the side of all major highways, parents yanking their small children out and plopping them in the bluebonnets to take pictures, ignoring the fact that they now have tied up traffic for miles. Hmmmmmmmm but everything else seems to be right on track for sprintime here near Austin.
Spring here in SE Pennsylvania is a little less exciting.
I lived in Temple Texas for a school semester (January - June)a while back, and your list brought back memories. I really liked the fields of bluebells.
It also gets SOOO windy here!
We were talking at lunch today how great this weather is... and how it only lasts for about a week before it gets sooo hot! :)
Don't know which I remember more fondly--the wild flowers or the only-made-in-the-spring-strawberries-and-cream ice cream. Yummm! Houston is even worse than Dallas tho since it has only two seasons: summer and the rest of the year. Of course by Missouri standards the "rest of the year" = spring.
beautiful. very much like it is everywhere else i'm sure...but the flowers in bloom...and the changing of the brown to green is marvelous. i simply love it. the temperature continues to be a little on the inconsistent side. they say if you don't like the weather in missouri...just stick around for about half an hour. that rings true in spring for sure!
Spring here, for the most part, is beautiful but it rains far too much. The thunderstorms are great unless it's the middle of rush hour traffic or you'd like to be outside in the middle of the day instead of stuck indoors. Once the rain lessens the cold ass winter almost worth it. :-)