Sixty degrees

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am blogging to you from OUTSIDE on Thanksgiving Day. I am so thrilled to get a break from the freezing weather that I felt the need to string all my computer cords through the window so that I could sit outside and enjoy the weather. Because I'll be damned if I am going to miss a second of this spring day that was dropped right in the middle of the fall/winter transition. So far today I have gone to work (with the windows rolled down), fed peppermints to Star (who is up in the barn while I try to figure out what the hell is wrong with her feet!) and cleaned out my car. It is so exciting to actually see my house in the daylight- coming home every night in the pitch black has been utterly depressing. I've always hated the shorter days that come with winter, but have felt it more acutely this year since I am coming home in true darkness for the first time. No streetlights. No neighborhood lights. No reflection in the sky from nearby big cities. And while I love all of those things, it's a little depressing when that kind of darkness starts at 4:30pm!
So as I gaze lovingly at the outside of my house, I am making mental lists of what I would like to see out there in the spring. A hammock. Lilac bushes. Wouldn't some of those ground-covering vines look great over by that tree? What kind of veggies grow on vines besides tomatoes? Cuz I want some of those too! And sunflowers. And those little purple flowers for around the front porch... what are they called? Obviously, some research needs to be done before Spring, oh wonderful Spring, gets here.