Remember when it was eighteen below last winter?

.... It got up to 95 degrees today. I think it was 90 degrees by ten this morning. It feels kind of like a Finnish sauna right now.

Storms are moving through again. Scout is hiding behind my husband's chair, and panting.

I hear a few bolts of thunder.

If the power goes out, I will check in with you later.

Movie-Wise

Husband: It's going to be up in the 60's every day this week!

Me: Finally!

Husband: I think we just turned the corner, weather-wise.

Me: You can tell that we just watched The Apartment, recently.

Husband: Movie-wise.

P.S. have some serious posts brewing (and who knows what Scout is up to), but just need to get past the next few days. Tax-wise. and Meeting-wise.

Sleet

It started raining this afternoon, a cold rain with some wind behind it. Now it is 34 degrees and sleeting outside. It's also mighty windy. If it were snowing, this would be a blizzard. But it's not snowing -- yet. (I'm not sure whether the prediction for 6 inches of snow still holds. )

We have scheduled a discussion of our church's Draft Statement on Sexuality for this evening. Would anyone like to hazard a guess regarding how many people will actually attend this meeting?

UPDATE: It is still sleeting here. There is some slush accumulating on the ground. They are predicting 40 mile per hour winds tomorrow, and 3-4 inches more of snow/slush. Winter weather advisory is on until Saturday morning. Oh, and there were 4 people at our study, plus the two pastors.

What A Difference A Day Makes

Yesterday it crept up above freezing here, and today, it feels like spring! The water is running along the streets during the day, the snow is melting, and my dog gets really dirty when she goes out for walks! A friend told me she heard a cardinal sing yesterday. Can it really be possible? I know it is only March 11, but I feel hopeful.

Yesterday I also committed a daring act: I bought 2 tickets to a poetry reading by Mary Oliver. She is coming to my town the week after Easter. She was here last summer, and the event was sold out. So I am very excited to be going. Even though Husband is not a poetry fan, he says he will go with me.

And I signed up for the Festival of Homiletics in May. It will take place right here in my town, and at a very pretty time of the year. I hope that some of my blog friends will be coming, for I would like to show them a little of the city: perhaps a walk around one of our lakes, or a meal at a nice restaurant. I remember reading about others' experiences last year when I was quite new to the blog community.

Today is my Dad's birthday, too! He's 79 today, and he won't be reading the blogs (he has macular degeneration), so I'll call him later.

My dad used to sing Bing Crosby songs to us when we were little. He also liked to make up stupid puns (still does, but he doesn't hear so well, so he can't hear us groaning), and play silly games with us. At bedtime, he used to pretend he was Methuselah, the world's oldest man, who knew all the Bible characters. But, because he was so old, he would fall asleep during the prayers, and we would have to kick him to keep waking him up.