IT'S SOOOOOO TIME FOR A CHANGE

I am SOOOOOO tired of winter.  I’ve grown tired of her aloof beauty after months of tolerating her icy tantrums and insincere efforts of late to mend her ways.

Sorry, I'm no longer impressed!

I’m tired of the cold; fed up with dressing in layers that add bulk to my bulk.  I’m tired of shoveling, too (okay, Jimmy is tired of shoveling, although he’s managing with help from grandson Grant).  

Snow kidding! We're one week into spring and the white stuff is still coming down.

I soooooo need some spring in my life! 

That's quite the spring in Jim and my dad's step.

I don't need spring in my step; I need spring in my life.  You know; birds singing, 

Nothing to sing about yet; still too cold.

flowers blooming,

Just put your two lips together and say, "SRPING"!

sunshine caressing my bare arms and legs with a velvety warmth approaching 80 degrees and no humidity. If I’m going to dream, it's not going to be a nightmare.

Nothing better than the sun's velvety caress, except maybe Jimmy's soft touch.

I need one week of warm weather followed by another and another and another; enough warm days so the aches and pains that come with the cold can be put to rest along with the heavy coats and  gloves, the boots and the snow blowers.  I need weeks and weeks of warmth so spring can morph into summer , into picnics and parades;

March in like a lion, out like a lamb.

into cookouts and concerts and baseball, and the sweet sounds of kids delighting in being kids.

Anyway you look at it, the warm weather is awesome!

I can even tolerate a little rain when it doesn’t come chilled with tiny pellets of ice.

Into every spring a little rain must fall.

I soooooo need to sit outside at the end of a beautiful day and watch the sun go down without a care in the world beyond considering the constellations.

Rock on, spring and summer.

I can't remember the last time I felt the sun on my face just tickling my fancy and my imagination.

Granddaughter Grace takes a moment to perfect her sun goddess pose.

I don't want to have to imagine sinking my teeth into sweet corn on the cob, into a juicy slice of watermelon, into a spicy, smoky rack of barbequed ribs.

I'm looking to pig out on some good barbeque.

And what I wouldn’t give right now for the smell of freshly mowed grass. 

It's funny what mowing grass will do for your disposition.

Damn the hay fever, the pollen, the sneezing and the runny nose.  Bring it on.  I need spring in all its glorious green garb; layers and layers of luscious green, the color of life, of nature, of hope and envy.

I want to stretch my fingers and toes, to relax every fiber and frond of my being.

Yes, I envy my southern neighbors right about now; their lethargy undoubtedly lifted weeks ago along with their outlook.  That first hint of real sun has added just the right color from their nose to their toes.     

My toes are itching to be bare, to feel the warmth of the sun all the way down to my soles.  

I could shore use some time at the beach.

My toes are dying (literally, if the dead skin accumulating between my toes is any indication; sorry for that mental picture) for some fresh air, not to mention a good pedicure followed by a sexy pair of little sandals (no, not the ones they give you for your pedicure). I am so done with heavy socks, shoes and boots! I refuse to answer to lumberjack anymore.

Alas, I refuse to believe another trip is the answer to navigating my way around this recalcitrant spring.  Travel has simply exaberated the problem; coming back to grey skies, cold temperatures, snow and ice is soooooo depressing.  Perhaps there’s a message somewhere in there (a permanent change of venue?).  

I’m tired of running away from the problem.   I’m standing my ground, hard and icy as that ground may be, until spring gets her act together and finally kicks winter to the curb.  

I think you may have fallen off that rocker.

I know; I’m certifiably nuts.  I’m definitely feeling very squirrelly; I'm suffering from the worst case of cabin fever EVER!   I just need a little more vitamin D; you know, the sunshine vitamin for those of us living where the sun don’t shine!  

Oops; time to dial back my diatribe.  
 
It’s time to think pleasant thoughts, sunny thoughts.  

Nothing sunnier than a sunflower!

Maybe it’s time for some spring cleaning to keep me busy, distracted; perhaps some yard work to follow. Why must I choose to feel like an expectant mother waddling past my due date waiting for spring to arrive?  
  
Yes, I'll just take matters into my own hands and start cleaning the house; rely on a surge of energy to get the ball/baby/spring rolling.  It will take days to thoroughly rid my closet of my winter wardrobe and all the accoutrements; 

Not my diapers!

days to scrub the floors, clean the frig, rearrange the pantry, wash the windows inside and out; a week to eliminate all the cobwebs, wash the baseboards and blinds and deck furniture and deck; air out all the stuffy rooms.  

By then it should surely be warm enough outside to tackle the yard work; collect and bag all the twigs that have fallen, rake and bag the dead leaves and grass; pull some weeds and then lay some mulch; plant some annuals; put together some potted plants for the front stoop. 

On second thought, I really do love to travel; more than I like to clean.  It’s been weeks, a month, truth be told, since Jimmy and I returned from our trip to Key West. We’ve never been to Tahiti, the Fiji Islands, the Bahamas.  Besides, do people really still do all that heavy spring cleaning? 
 
Maybe it’s time for a housekeeper; a lawn service.  It's certainly looking more and more like it's time to downsize. 

No doubt about it; it’s soooooo time for a change.