Just a Glimpse of Spring
If we would have had the sunshine for the past several days, as we had today, the snow would more than likely have disappeared in total. Taking a walk out to the east on the patio, and then the driveway to the west, guaranteed dry feet, I did enjoy this glimpse of spring. At a time when Carrie and Kevin were small children, this would have been perfect muddy dirt conditions to see how high the mud could splatter when stomped on. Oh, how I remember those days. The kids would come in with rosy red checks, and not wanting to get their hands dirty by removing their boots, they would take the toe of one foot in the boot and loosen the heel of the boot on the other foot and then kick with all their might. How far can mud fly? Mud droplets hanging from the entryway ceiling and on the walls almost made an abstract visual. On days such as these after the kids had been outside for hours, their sleep came quickly and deep at bedtime.
Our road date last night took us to the megalopolis of Dunnel, Minnesota, which is about 45 miles south of us. Dennis has a friend in that area that shares interest in all things that take shells. All that remains in this little town is two pubs and a post office. The many empty buildings on main street told the story of a town that was thriving in times past. The pub was busy and we were by far the oldest people in the place. The food was good, as burgers and sandwiches go.
As we drove home, the horizon to the south was much as if someone drew a line across the skies and dotted the line with many red lights. That area of Minnesota is heavy with wind-towers stretching from east to west, with the red lights as warnings for planes. The gray skies at six in the evening made it real that we were adding daylight heading towards spring. Yup, our road date had us home by six-thirty, just right for the older folks on Stauffer Avenue.