Vermont Stories

A dark, smoke choaked, Tolkienesque day. The air quality is “Very Harmful” and getting worse so, given my asthma and post-polio, I am in the house with the air conditioning going. As happens a few times each summer, smoke from Canadian wildfires has traveled great distances to reach, and settle over us. As Canada warms and dries, these events are becoming more frequent. Earlier I had a few…

A lovely mid-summer day, warm and not too muggy. This is a relief following last weeks raging heat. Still, the rabbits are grateful for the evening shade and the birds, mostly sparrows and robins, relish the bird bath. We finally had significant rain and the world has responded with deepening colors and happy plants. This is a very brief update after a long silence necessitated by the vagaries…

A morning of sun and cloud, showers and blue sky. It’s June and purple is strewn across the landscape. Irises and a host of flowering bushes flood the world with hues of red, blue, and combinations thereof. It is a feast, brief and lush. Here on the coast most days remain chilly and damp. Yesterday went from a rich warmth to a cold rain in what seemed like mere minutes. I closed windows and…

A damp, cloudy, cold morning in which “gloomy” seems the right descriptor for the weather’s mood. Much needed rain is forecast for tonight and tomorrow, followed by sun and relative warmth for the weekend. Many of our trees are in full leaf and the lilacs are on the edge of blooming. The redbud is adorned with buds, awaiting just the right moment to open. Over at the beach the osprey nest…

A cool, bright, high UV morning. Lots of birdsong just outside my window. The daffs are nearing the end of their season but an abundance of other flowers, both wild and domestic, are coming into bloom. The apple trees that dot our local landscape are lush with white blossoms. It has been consistently very cool, and today, as yesterday, the wind is beyond brisk. It whips the trees, shredding…

A lovely spring day, cool and bright. Here on the south coast spring continues to lag behind areas further inland, as we are reminded every time we go to Providence. Everyone here describes the trip to Providence as “down” but it is really over and up. Many trees are in full bloom, some are past spring peak, while others are still contemplating coming into flower. The rabbits are now out in the…

A warmish, sun drenched morning. Last night was warm as well and the peepers were in fine voice. We’ve been wondering where they were; I guess it has simply been too cold for them. Te last few days have been cold, dark, and windy, causing us to have the fireplace heater on in the evenings, and sometimes during the day when we need to thaw. When we have tried to go for a stroll, the chill and…

A cool, sunny day after a week of mostly rain. We were in Providence both Friday and Saturday, and enjoyed glimpses of sun and relative warmth between the showers. Here, there are daffodils and crocuses in bloom, and in Providence, redbuds and forsythia. Everywhere there is bird song and Jennie saw osprey on the beach nest! Here in the house, boxes are being filled, then stacked in closets and…

A grumpy, gray day. Windy and chill. It is difficult to believe that just a few miles inland the weather is much more springlike. On Saturday I went for a scooter ride through the neighborhood, looking for signs of spring. There were surprisingly few. Still, there are crocuses here and there, daffodils near blooming, and color and early blossoms returning to the bare branches atop trees. We’ve…

A rainy, windy, mid-March day. Maybe thunderstorms and flooding later. Dense fog. The maple buds are beginning to show red. Last week I came down with a cold, the first one in ages. It has lingered, so after a bit of packing or doing other tasks I am done for the day. This has meant that I have not been reading other blogs, an activity I normally cherish. I did manage, in a moment of being…

A pleasant early spring morning. Sunlight sprawls across the landscape and birdsong brightens the day. In the shadiest corners of the field thin snow drifts remain. Saturday evening found us in Providence as we joined extended family to view a gallery where one family member had splendid work in a group show. Then it was off to a food court where everyone dined on a wide range of interesting…

A dark, drear, chill, drizzly morning. Last night the coyotes were calling in the field. Earlier this week they seemed to be in our back yard, maybe chatting with the filling moon. A few days ago a mixed flock, mostly robins, but also waxwings and starlings, set upon our large holly. It was a circus, enacted right outside our dining room window. Within a couple of hours the tree was bare of…

A chilly, damp, foggy, mid-February day, definitely coastal in its feel. The next several days are forecast to feature rain and snow and sleet, Oh my! We’ve been out and about, which has meant my climbing a few stairs. Climbing stairs has, predictably, resulted in me feeling post-polio exhaustion, but happy to have been exploring the wider world. Last Saturday we went into Boston to celebrate…

Today is a cold, bright, snow covered day, following Saturday’s storm that brought the birds to the feeder in mass. Yesterday morning we were meeting friend’s early, for a long delayed cup of coffee, and were exultant to discover that “the guys” had cleared our driveway. We have now managed a healthy winter, certainly ending the snow drought, and hopefully have gone some distance towards…

A frigid mid-winter morning, deep snow and milky blue skies. The birds have arrived early at the feeder. They need to consume a lot of fats during these deep freezes in order to survive. This feels more like Northern Vermont than south coastal Massachusetts. All last week we heard about a possible blizzard. One day the models tracked it very close, the next day it was shown to be well out to…

A cold, overcast morning with fog and occasional flurries. Yesterday we received some ten inches of soft, fluffy snow. Overnight we had heavy sleet and a bit if freezing rain that contracted the snow into dense drifts. This morning Jennie refilled the bird feeder and there is now consistent traffic to it. We discovered that Nori the cat loves to watch big flakes of snow dance through the sky but…