Friday, April 24, 2015

Willy-nilly Friday Five: Fits and Starts

1.  When I took Olive the pug out this morning, I couldn’t believe it.  It was downright cold with a rather biting wind.  It made me think that I had under-dressed for the occasion and should have worn my winter coat or that maybe I accidentally time traveled backwards and it was really February.  But, no, there is no snow on the ground.  It’s definitely April.


2.  Well, I’ve lived here long enough to know that spring comes to New England in fits and starts.  I was out yesterday buying a new toaster but couldn’t decide which one to buy.  In order to put off making a decision, I decided to check Facebook instead.  On Facebook, there was post after post of people complaining that it was snowing.  I missed it yesterday because I was in Target trying to figure out what toaster to buy.  But I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to see it snow here today.

Some things are blooming here....really!
3.  Speaking of toasters, Greg and I have been married for close to 35 years and have had terrible luck with toasters.  I think we’ve owned six or seven in those years and we don’t eat that much toast.  We’ve had expensive toasters and cheap toasters.  I don’t see much difference between the two.  The best one we’ve ever had was a middle-of-the-road toaster pricewise.  It was the Oster that I was replacing yesterday.  I bought it at Target about ten years ago and it toasted our toast until a few months ago when it didn’t want to keep the toast down to finish the toasting cycle and had to be coaxed with curses and kind words.  I got sick of babying it.  So, off I went yesterday hoping to find the exact same toaster – the best toaster we’ve ever had – but unfortunately, they’re selling a new model of that Oster there now.  I bought it anyway and am hoping it lasts ten years like the last one, but I’m not holding my breath on that.

I got sick of waiting on the forsythia, too.  I brought this into the house and forced it.
4.  You know, we could probably get by in life without a toaster, but they are handy to have around.  The toaster I bought yesterday is red.  I consider that a kind of bonus.  Yes, I’m happy about that even though my favorite color is blue.


5.  Earlier this morning, I was sitting here at my computer with a blank expression on my face trying to think of what to write about, when I heard a great racket coming from the front yard.  There were six crows in the pines crowing louder than a Counting Crows concert.  I finally had to get up to see what it was all about and looking down, I saw a fox crossing the yard.  I believe the crows must have been warning the whole neighborhood that the foxes were out and about.  They kept at it for about five more minutes and then dispersed one at a time.  I think that crows are about the coolest birds going.  As a matter of fact, they are my favorite bird.  They may not be colorful and flashy, but they are sleek, elegant and intelligent and infinitely fun to watch.  What is your favorite bird?


Linking up with the crowd at Around Roanoke's Willy-Nilly Friday Five!


Around Roanoke


10 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

i'd have to go with a whistling duck, but i do love crows. :) sorry for the snow and cold. and all appliances these days don't seem to last like the old ones did. although it seems your old toasters weren't all that great either. :)

Pamela Gordon said...

Crows are quite interesting to watch and are highly intelligent. We have a group around here all the time. I watched as they gathered sticks for the nest building going on a short distance away the other day. I'm glad they are not building the nest in our trees! Baby crows have the most annoying cry. The flower photos are very pretty. I like the white and blue one. Here's hoping the weather improves soon.

Tom said...

Such great shots Barbara. Tom The Backroads Traveller

Latane Barton said...

Glad you got your toaster. I personally like a toaster oven better for toast as I can butter it first and it just makes the bread so much tastier. Red? I am with you. Like blue better.

Rose said...

We will have been married 39 yrs, come July, and we have either had two toasters, maybe three. I can't remember if we had a super cheap one when we first got married and replace it with in a year or two...I know we have had two since 1978! The one we have had for at least the past 10-15 years is a Black & Decker.

Spring is coming in fits and starts here, too...the wind has been off and iceberg for two or three days, though today was an improvement.

When I hung my set of sheets on the line, I put at least 6 clothespins for both the top and fitted sheets because I was afraid the wind would take them!

Barb said...

Oh, it's been snowing here, too - it just doesn't quit. Since my favorite color is red, I think your new toaster has good karma. I like the gray jays here at altitude. They sometimes follow me on my walks hoping for a handout. I love the drama of the first photo.

MadSnapper said...

my favorite bird id the pelican, 2nd is Dove. i do like crows and even vultures/buzzards. i like ugly birds and ugly dogs to.. in our 30 years we have had 6 toasters. 5 of those in the last 12 years, the first one Black and decker lasted and lasted. we bought the same one and it last 3 or 4 years, i have bought 2 toasters in the past year. i did a post on the 6 dollar toaster, it last about 8 months and now i have a red one i bought about 6 weeks ago.. my mother had one toaster my whole 18 years at home.

magda said...

Αγαπημένη μου Barbara, καλημέρα!
Σ΄ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ για τα επαινετικά σου λόγια!
Συγχαρητήρια για την καινούργια του τοστιέρα!
Όσο για τον καιρό, το ίδιο και στην Ελλάδα. Πολύ βροχή, κρύο και ακόμα χιόνια στα βουνά!
Το κλίμα, παντού έχει αλλάξει.
Υπέροχες οι φωτογραφίες σου και το χιούμορ σου, εξαιρετικό, όπως πάντα!
Πολλά φιλιά και μια όμορφη εβδομάδα!

Helma said...

It is indeed spring but outside it seems like fall. The cold wind makes you still need your winter coat. I would not mind the sun now seem to December:-)

kat from ky. said...

Crows are murder!(yuk yuk!)