Loveliest of trees

 

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough,
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.
 

A.E. Housman (1859-1936) 

Housman was a great classical scholar, but he's best remembered for those "cherry blossom" lines from a set of poems called A Shropshire Lad. A fellow Oxford don described Housman as being "descended from a long line of maiden aunts."  He intimidated his students to the point of tears and didn't even try to remember their names, claiming it burdened his memory too much. Nice fellow.

Well, the first ornamental cherry trees are starting to bloom. The sun gets stronger by the day. I start out bundled up and I'm hot by the time I get home. February was a cold month and spring seems later this year. Or maybe I'm just more impatient. 

West Seattle is really pretty in the spring, thanks to all the homeowners who planted ornamental trees along their parking strips many years ago. That was once illegal, because the property technically belongs to the city. Anyway, Seattle has a program now giving free trees to homeowners if they dig the holes and promise to water them. 

After a year of relative peace and quiet, our neighborhood will soon roar back to life. The school district confirmed that two major projects across the street were approved. No surprise there, since the "community input" phase is really just a formality in the process. The decision was made long ago. 

Construction starts this summer on a large 2-story addition and enhancements to the athletic field, including tall lighting poles for city wide night games. That means even more traffic and parking issues. The school addition will partially block our west view of the mountains and sunsets and we'll also see the light poles. But for the folks living down the hill, those ultra bright lights will be a real annoyance. 

They are putting in artificial turf, which is actually a good thing, as it might deter the dog owners. The school athletic field has basically become an off-lease dog park, even though it is clearly posted "no animals allowed." 

I'd enjoy walking on the track again, but don't go down there because of loose dogs charging up and even jumping on you while their owners stand by smiling at their cute "kids."  I sound like a cranky old thing, but I love trained, sweet natured dogs. It's the inconsiderate owners. And they really don't belong on a children's game field.

I'm in a good mood this morning, as I'm getting a haircut for the first time without worrying about getting Covid.  And yesterday I pulled out some pretty summer clothes I haven't worn for almost two years and washed them for Palm Springs. Everything still fits, although those shorts a bit snugger than I remember?