A taste of summer

I like slouching in my new $18 Adirondack chairs from Lowe's, while taking short breaks from gardening.

The weather was glorious last week, especially coming off the wettest rainy season on record in Seattle history.  Between October and March we've had nearly 44 inches of rain.

To put that in perspective, our annual average precipitation here is 34 inches, so we're 10 inches ahead, even if it doesn't rain another drop for the rest of the year. (ha ha)

The temperature reached 70 last week, 15 degrees above average. This is heaven on earth for the flowers and plants. Their roots have been drenched for months, and now everything is taking off like crazy in the warm sun. Ditto the weeds.  I'm sure I post this same tulip picture each April, but it's a pretty sight I never get tired of.

However, my new little Billy Goat Gruff, who traveled up from the high desert with my sister, is getting wet for the first time this morning.  But never mind, it's supposed to be 70 again by the end of the week.

This elephant ear looking plant is called a Ligularia.  Surprise! It's never been this big before.  The gardener's mind tends to race ahead to Fall, when all this rampant growth must be cut back and hauled off.  Stop that. Enjoy the moment.

Who's flying?

Following up on yesterday's bird migration post, I forgot to mention a neat website called BirdCast  from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.  It gives real time, regional forecasts on migration activity. In the West, species on the move now include everything from barn swallows and sparrows to hawks and sea birds.

Speaking of the swallows, they love nesting in barns for obvious reasons, and come back to the same place each spring.  Unfortunately, each year there are fewer barns to welcome them home.  I've been around different horse barns for the last 15 years and they are usually greeted with disgust, instead of the pleasure and delight they deserve, considering the miracle of their long migration home from South and Central America.

Yes, they make a "mess" for a few weeks while they raise their young. But it seems like a small price to pay for the survival of a species.  And while summering at the barn, they eat many times their weight in annoying flies and insects.

Spring bird migrations

7 pm Wednesday

9:30 pm Wednesday

 2:00 am Thursday morning

Lots of birds!

And gone by 7:30 am

And to think all of this happens while we sleep. It's fascinating how the Doppler weather radar system is sensitive enough to pick up bird migration echos after sunset.  The weather is perfect right now for migration, as birds don't like to fly in the rain and prefer the wind at their backs.  

Speaking of migration, Marji will be winging her way back to Medford in her RV this morning, then on to home base in Las Vegas.  We had a great visit, topped off with a tour of Theo's Chocolate Factory yesterday.  Just livin' the good life in Seattle.

Highlights of the day

How do some Seattle visitors manage to hit the most spectacular stretch of weather of the entire year?  No, Marji, this is not a typical Puget Sound March day! But it's hard to convince the lucky tourist otherwise.  And for us long-suffering locals, all those months of bad winter weather suddenly seem like a distant memory.

John had the day off work which was nice, and the three of us took the ferry to Bainbridge Island to see the Bloedel Reserve estate gardens.

It was lovely and uncrowded, so we spent a couple of hours walking and taking in the beautiful sights.

And last but not least...

A final stop at Salty's on Alki for a happy hour pig-out. What a great birthday.

The best present

From Nova and Maya.

Alki Beach gulls meet Marji

Leftover fish and chips?

Hey, they can spot a tourist a mile away! 

It was a spectacular blue sky day in Seattle.
More fun tomorrow.