we finally crossed some finish lines this weekend. piano contest is behind us as of 10:45 sunday morning. all colleges and universities have been applied to as of 8:15 saturday night. at 8:00 this morning, steve begins his first full, seven-appointment day of tax season. i intend to wake up, mentally wave three checkered flags at my people, pour a particularly strong cup of english breakfast tea with milk and sugar, and begin figuring out what i want to do with the next two months behind the creative wheel, with a lane all to myself. sunday drive? indy 500? rush hour traffic jam? it doesn’t really matter. i have it to myself. and it’s going to be delicious.

wild turkey wing feathers

saint paul, minnesota

everything was dripping today. the eaves, the spruce trees, and, i realized in a panic, my son’s nose. let’s go everybody! we’re getting our flu shots!

spruce

saint paul, minnesota

i didn’t notice until just now how nicely the feathers of predators and prey are playing together in this wreath. Owls lying down with pheasants. hawks with turkeys. and then i noticed those little drops of blood in the middle.

vine wreath and found feathers: owl, turkey, pheasant, hawk

saint paul, minneosta

mountain ash is not related to ash trees at all but to roses. and like rose hips that glow in the underbrush all winter long, mountain ash berries usually hang on almost until spring, brightening the north woods with their clusters, which become increasingly alcoholic, and occasionally send songbirds on an unintended bender. or, who knows, maybe an intentional bender. wouldn’t you want a little nip after spending a minnesota winter outdoors?

mountain ash limb ( s. aucuparia)

minneapolis, minnesota

we just upgraded our cable internet from residential service to business service because my husband, while unlike most men in many ways, remains just like most men in his weakness for faster and more powerful technology. this is partly a utilitarian response to having to plough through 750 tax returns every year, but partly it is a pure testosterone response to speed and power that puts him in league with nascar fans and gamer geeks. any lingering doubts about his testosterone addled worldview were dispelled when i looked behind his filing cabinet to find a knotted nest of usb cables, coaxial cable, ethernet cable, and electrical cords. it looked a lot like this photo, and i wasn’t exactly sure where to turn when he asked me to unplug the monitor. it was a bad moment for this scandinavian minimalist.

honeywesuckle (?) vine

saint paul, minnesota