HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: It’s that time again! The ducks have arrived again in our backyard, and I am incredibly thrilled.
And it is endlessly hilarious: Eddy, the female duck, comes to the back door now, and tap tap taps on the window until I come and feed her. It is completely adorable.
Then, the other day, we found her asleep on the doormat, right in front of the back door, as if she were making sure we could not leave without her knowing.
And Flo, the male, is bringing pals. Sunday we had four ducks, three males and one female, quacking and flapping and generally doing duck mayhem. They are irresistible. Above: Flo, Not-Flo, No-Neck, and Eddy.
The hyacinths are blooming, the magnolias are out, and the tulips are thinking about it. My second-round revisions are almost done.
So tell us a good thing! What good things are happening where you are?
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Here’s a couple of good things for you, Hank. Saturday I spent the day making a small dent in the spring potting for the deck, patio, and porch. There are many more bags of potting soil to go, but I am so happy to see the bright colors every time I go outside or look out the windows. We grilled for the first time, and I saw the first hummingbird of the season. Oh, and the cardinals are nesting in the Benjamin Britten climbing rose again, so we will be keeping a close watch and trying to stay out of their way!
The hyacinths are blooming, the magnolias are out, and the tulips are thinking about it. My second-round revisions are almost done.
So tell us a good thing! What good things are happening where you are?
JENN McKINLAY: Since we seem to have gone to the birds. My wild lovebirds are back on the feeder outside my office window. Very squawky but still delightful with their colorful plumage. I bought a black mission fig tree online that came as a four inch high stick and now it is a foot tall and full of leaves. I’m almost done with my taxes (can I get an Amen?). And the rest of the month will be spent plotting the next few books - three mysteries, a women’s fiction, and something NEW. I can’t wait!
LUCY BURDETTE: Fingers crossed, by the time you read this I will either be in Paris with two dear friends, or on my way. You will be hearing more about this–and yes, it’s absolutely research!!
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: My favorite bird friends have returned - it’s the pair of turkey vultures, nesting in my barn again. I know, I know, but they’re so beautiful to watch swooping low with their 2 foot+ wingspans. No flowers here yet - it’s still pretty brown looking in my yard - but the daffodils and narcissus stalks are up, so it won’t be long.
Oh, and in my personal fitness record book, my Fitbit gave me an award for over 15,000 steps a few days ago. Was I hiking? Dog walking? No, I was beginning my spring cleaning! Turns out, if you have a big old house, you don’t need to leave to get a workout.
HALLIE EPHRON: My good thing is that my daughters, son-in-law, and grandkids are visiting and creating chaos in my house. Having them here has made it easier when it comes to fixing a gas leak (dryer connection) and boiler leak, and tomorrow the solar people come to install solar electrical. All of this will be super good when it’s behind me. Times like this I’m acutely aware of living alone and in a house where something is always about to go wrong.
RHYS BOWEN : My good thing is an abundance of wildflowers after a very wet winter. Sorry this is short. Just drove back to CA and I’m ready to sleep!
(We’ll announce book winners on Sunday–so make sure you comment on Heather’s and Juliette’s blogs!)
The daffodils are blooming, the lilac bush has green buds [yippee!] and the deer are once again wandering through the yard [without eating my flowers, thank you very much] . . . .
ReplyDeleteOur Colorado daughter and her family were here for a week [we went to New York to do all the touristy things: the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Intrepid Museum, the 9/11 Museum, a Broadway play] . . . next month the youngest grandbabies are coming to spend the summer [very big grin] . . . .
VERY BIG GRIN! Yay! And how are your deer so well-behaved?
DeleteJust lucky, I guess!
DeleteYou have VERY polite deer! xx What play did you see?
Delete"Sweeney Todd" with Josh Groban [my daughter's favorite singer]
DeleteWOW! (are you watching Schmicago?)
DeleteNo, we haven't seen it . . . .
DeleteI'm going to second the wildflowers. I drove up to Northern California and back this weekend, and the drive was so pretty. Lots of green, and plenty of wildflowers. It's rare I get to see that.
ReplyDeleteThe other good thing is that I spent the weekend with my family for Easter. It was wonderful to get to spend time with all of them.
SO lovely!
DeleteYeah, much of California is now Wildflowerpalooza, now that Rainstock seems to be over.
DeleteI love hearing about all the birds. We are going to have to put up some feeders on posts to get our birds back. Since we fenced in the yard and let our sweet doggie out there on and off during the day, the birds mostly have gone. We still have some sparrows and some robins though.
ReplyDeleteNow, good things. My daughter and her family came for lunch on Easter, and we had such a nice time. My granddaughter is Morticia in her middle school's Addams Family Musical, so I'm looking forward to going to see her in that on Friday and Saturday. I've got a great gift for her. I'm enjoying seeing some purple wild flowers in the yard. I finally got back to reading and reviewing, which makes me very happy. This last one is a good thing that could have been a bad thing. I fell last Friday, flat on my face in our TV room, hitting my head hard on the floor. However, the head scan showed that all was okay and more importantly proof now that I do have a brain. Also, I'm not sore anymore. That good report is a very, very good thing in my book. Oh, and my doggie Lulu's paw seems to be better. She's limping but not as much. So, check, check, check. I'm a happy camper right now.
SO glad you are okay, Kathy!
DeleteYikes, that is SO scary. (we can share experiences.) It is SO disturbing, and upsetting--and happens so fast! I am so relieved you are safe and well. ANd Morticia! What a wonderful role!
DeleteI love the wildflowers! And the lovebirds, and the backyard duckies.
ReplyDeleteSo far I haven't lured bluebirds to the box I put up last year, but the daffodils are stunning, and yesterday I sipped a glass of wine and worked on a puzzle on the DECK. Without a jacket. Bliss.
Plus, the new first draft is cranking along with discoveries every day, always a good thing for a pantser!
That is great! First drafts are so difficult, and it's such a relief when things start to work!
DeleteMy daffodils are GORGEOUS this year. And birds, yes! We have robins, barn swallows, red-winged blackbirds, grackles, and lots of what my husband calls "sputsies." He lumps all the small birds together under that one category. We also have a pair of red-tailed hawks that have a nest in the woods behind my house. There's often one perched on a utility pole outside my kitchen window. I love watching it, but it's why I don't have a bird feeder this year.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I spotted a bald eagle a couple of weeks ago as I drove into the city. A mating pair have a nest near Mystery Lovers Bookshop--as if we needed yet another reason to go there!
Wow, a bald eagle! That would be breathtaking! Sputsies--that is so funny! It's perfect. What's the derivation, does he know?
DeleteCoyotes are terrorizing the neighborhood, birds (cardinals, house finches, song sparrows, robins) are nesting all over the yard, and the crabapple trees are in full, opulent bloom.
ReplyDeleteNever a dull moment!
DeleteYay for Eddy, Flo and their friends making their annual appearance. My guess was a day early on April 4.
ReplyDeleteMOST of the snow and river ice has FINALLY melted in Ottawa due to this week abnormally warm weather. I saw a few crocus blooming on my walk yesterday. The leaves from the tulips are starting to appear up for next month's Tulip Festival.
Oh, send photos of the tulip festival!
DeleteSuch good news from everyone. Joan, the little grands come for the whole summer? Magic!
ReplyDeleteHank, the ducks are hilarious. And everyone's flowers and gardens and birds sound lovely. We won't put up a bird feeder because it attracts bears. We already saw a couple on a walk at the reservoir last week. Our daffodils are gorgeous and yesterday I brought some inside. The birds are all back and making nests. I have seen the neighborhood hawks flying around. Today and tomorrow they expect temperatures to 90° F. I guess it's time to bring up the porch furniture cushions.
The furniture cushions! Such a rite of the seacon! (Do your daffodils last longer than a day after they're cut?)
DeleteThe gardens are all blooming like crazy in Braga, and we've learned we are getting a bunch of visitors this summer/fall--two dear friend next month, whom we haven't seen for 3 years; four dear friends in September, likewise; and a relative of my god family whom we've met in pre-covid days and like very much--in July or August. Soooo looking forward to all of them. And I'm making headway on my new book. (The move was pretty disruptive for a while.)
ReplyDeleteYes, the travels seems to be back in force...and good luck on the book!
DeleteSpring has sprung,
ReplyDeleteThe grass has riz,
I wonder where,
The flowers is?
Tulips up, winter aconite and snowdrops done, scylla everywhere, crocuses waning. Too early to plant anything as the average last freeze is end of April up here on the tundra.
We are off to the public market today, pretending all those veggies haven’t been flown in from California and Equador
Hooray for good imaginations, Ann. And thank you for a childhood memory. “Spring has sprung” was my first piano piece…this tin ear never got much further. Happy Spring. Elisabeth
DeleteI say that jingle all the time! ANd have fun at the market--local is coming!
DeleteFrom Celia: what a bouquet of good news and I love the duckie news Hank. Easter was delightful with a luncheon invitation from Julia who is back as the hostess with the mostess. Our first big social outing and I wore makeup. Now playing really have to restock my face stuff. But sitting and talking with friends we haven’t seen as we live carefully now was a blast. Then a call from our daughter out of the blue who will be here later for a couple of nights - big yea! My daffs are just peeking through, the furniture is back up on the deck and the birds are back on the feeder. So happy happy Spring everyone.
ReplyDeleteNICE! (Yes, I realized when I needed to travel recently that the items in my travel cosmetic bag were three years old, and the tiny tube of toothpaste was rock solid.) (ANd I keep my lipstick in the upstairs refrigerator, so it's still fine!)
DeleteThe crocuses are blooming, my son (and more his dog) had 10 puppies – German Shepherds – definitely not my dog of choice, and FreeWilly is desperate to go out – not happening if I can help it until he gets de-knackered in 10 days. Meanwhile he stomps and sings and still won’t let us near him…
ReplyDeleteJulia, if I were to come back as a bird, it would be as a vulture. Never have to worry about your looks, first one to the feed, and best of all, if you want to impress someone, you can puke on your feet. What’s not to like!
DO you know the book A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES by T. Kingfisher? YOu all would LOVE it. It's brilliant and hilarious. And the first line: There's a vulture on my grandmother's mailbox.
DeleteOh, German shepherd puppies!! There is nothing cuter!! I would be in doggie heaven.
DeleteJust went to the library and am hold for the book. Thanks for the suggestion.
DeleteOur snow has been disappearing fast this past week, so I can now see the small back deck and I spent last Sunday afternoon reading my book with a cup of tea OUTSIDE on the front totally snow-free front patio. The sun was warm on my face. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteAnother kind of lovely good thing is the interview of Abigail Thomas, memoirist, by Anne Lamott of Bird by Bird. If you're on Facebook you can watch it here https://fb.watch/jTEZEbBoUs/. It's a bit rambling and a lot wonderful -- they talk about life and writing and living the moments.
Oh, I will look that right up. ANd yes, the spring SUN! Amazing.
DeleteI'm loving all the positivity! My biggest delight is the neighborhood red tail hawk couple. Two days ago, we had a sunbreak and I saw them doing a slow aerobatic dance in the sky. Then one of them landed on the nest. They seem to be spending more and more time there or very close by. I'm hoping for hawklets this spring.
ReplyDeleteHawklets! We cannot wait!
DeleteThe birds are out in force here. I'm not knowledgeable enough to be able to identify all the calls, but I have seen a pair of cardinals in my rhododendron bush, and there is always one at my neighbor's feeder.
ReplyDeleteAnd the daffodils are coming. My dash of color before the lemon balm takes over. Sigh.
Wonderful! (And cardinals say Wheat wheat wheat, pretty pretty pretty. )
DeleteIt’s warm this week and I get to open the windows and let the fresh air in!
ReplyDeleteFabulous! ANd oh, you remind me--we had our windows washed, and it is so glorious!
DeleteOn my spring list! But first SOMEONE needs to power wash the house...
DeleteNothing blooming up here yet, still have two feet of rapidly melting snow on the ground. Looking forward to the first greening of the lawns and the spring blooms in the garden! On the bird front - no surprise there - spotted the first robins a few days ago and yesterday brought purple finches and bluebirds to the feeder. The bluebirds were a shock. I'd not seen them here before although I know they are in the area.
ReplyDeleteYou have bluebirds?? WOW. Oh, I'm not. sure I have ever seen one.
DeleteWonderful to read all the spring news; ducks! flowers! birds! My tiny front and back gardens are full of varied daffodils, so the sore knees when I planted them last fall was worth it. And it looks like I might be finishing the first, very shaky draft of the book I've been writing forever. (Sort of embarrassing. Lots of interruptions) And I am going to Career Authors workshop in May! Had to skip Malice to make it possible, but excited. And the sunshine gives us a bright morning in spite of whatever else is out there.
ReplyDeleteWe are SO thrilled that you are coming. It'll be amazing. (and it is almost sold out!) https://mitendicotthouse.org/events/writers-retreat-2023/
DeleteAnother glorious day here--sunny, warm, trees bursting into leaf, all the varieties of daffodils in bloom, the magnolia in full bloom, the understory in the wooded park greening up--and warm enough for t-shirt and shorts! Love the ducks, Hank, the potted flowers, the lovebirds, Paris (!), and all the other good things posted by all the readers.
ReplyDeleteMy best good thing is that the first two episodes of my novella, LITTLE ANN, have been published on Amazon's Kindle Vella platform. Vella publishes episodes (chapters) of works to its app (you can also read online). First three episodes are free, then readers purchase tokens (word count determines how many tokens needed per episode) for the remaining episodes. Readers can comment, authors can share notes each episode--I'm looking forward to the experience!
Flora: Congrats! I saw this posted on Ann Mason's FB page and didn't make the connection to you. I don't think Kindle Vella is available to Canadian users, which is too bad.
DeleteAmanda, thank you! I'd forgotten that it wasn't available in Canada. I think there is a similar Canadian platform--will add that to my list of things to check out. Also, forgot to say, the work is under the pen name Emma Charles.
DeleteThat is so exciting. Whoa. Eager to hear all about your experience! Will you write a blog for us about it?
DeleteThat's so exciting, Flora! I will check it out immediately!
DeleteY'll gonna make me cry! Thanks for your support. And yes, it's an interesting experiment and I'll be happy to blog about it, Hank!
DeleteYesterday I smelled, for the first, notable time, freshly mowed grass. With severe drought we had in California, many lawns were allowed to brown out, so there has been little or no mowing for the past couple of years.
ReplyDeleteThat is quite the moment! It's always amazing, isn't it?
DeleteYou know, that might be true in your area of California, but isn’t true in many areas. Many of the new drought plantings require more water than California grasses. In my area it is all grass lawns still, it costs a lot of money to concert lawns too. We mow once a week,
Delete*convert
DeleteLovely to hear about spring in its different phases all over North America and in Portugal (anywhere else so far?) Here in Bern, we have masses of daffodils and flowering fruit trees. Flora, great news about LITTLE ANN. I'm glad to know about it and about Kindle Vella. My good thing is that I'm flying to New York City tomorrow, a place I love where I have family and friends. On April 18, the second mystery in my Polizei Bern series is coming out, SONS AND BROTHERS: the sequel to PESTICIDE. I'm excited.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Kim! I love it when I find new series and the books keep coming!
DeleteSO exciting! Safe and wonderful travels!
DeleteYay, Kim! I have the book on pre-order! Hope you have a great time in NYC!
DeleteI read and enjoyed Pesticide! I’m running out of new books to read. Your new book has been pre-ordered for several months. It is always interesting to hear about Switzerland, my daughter works for Roche and has traveled there several times in the last few months for business. I enjoyed visiting Switzerland several years ago. I live in the southern Bay Area where Spring is in February, our temperatures are now in summer highs in the nineties.
DeleteSpring is so beautiful here right now. Yesterday I noticed a couple of the shrubs I was worried about had broken dormancy, so they are doing fine. We had a lot of winter kill here, and have lost some plants, but not as many as I'd feared. The Doublefile Viburnum I planted a couple years ago is set to bloom for the first time, and it's going to be spectacular, if all the buds get to bloom.
ReplyDeleteSo glad Flo and Eddy have returned, Hank!
YAY! Garden victories! Love that. And aw, thank you...we are completely delighted, too. They are absolutely adorable.
DeleteAh, beautiful spring. I hope Eddy is well. Perhaps you represent safety to her. <3
ReplyDeleteRedbuds are in bloom here, and tiny leaves are making the trees look lacy. My favorite look for them. The birds are singing with such gusto and variety. It's Spring!
Aw, wouldn't that be nice? (And she is so right.) She is so peaceful, just in her little spot, basking in the sun.
DeleteI love spring and summer because of all the colorful flowers! It’s exciting to see daffodils again. There are some beautiful flowering shrubs not far from me. And here inside my condo complex, our landscapers do a fantastic job of caring for the numerous flowering shrubs throughout the complex.
ReplyDeleteIt’s great to eat my meals with the sliding door open to the deck. I love that it’s been warm enough the last few days to keep the slider open almost all day. I get to hear the bird songs. I need to get out my bird books to see if I can identify the birds. And there’s a website I have used in the past to identify their songs.
I spent Easter weekend with my sister and brother-in-law in northern Connecticut, and went to Easter dinner with them at their son’s house across the road from
them. My nephew’s kids keep chickens, and I was able to buy a dozen eggs from them. With the price of eggs being so high I’d rather give the money to family!
DebRo
What's the bird app? Merlin? It's great. And you are right, there's a birdsong identifier, too.
DeleteYes, it's Merlin. We use it practically every day.
DeleteWhat an uplifting piece! I love everyone's little good bits. Off to the accountant today so I'm happy to have Flo and Eddy cheer me on!
ReplyDeleteFlo and Eddy say quack quack quack! (That's their biggest and most enthusiastic compliment.)
DeleteI love everyone's good bits. We should do this more often. Yay, Hank!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteAwww..yes, it's very sweet! xxx
DeleteDifferent trees are flowering and they're beautiful! I have a crabapple tree next to my deck; I've named it Edna. Simpsons fans will understand. My neighbor's dogwood is blooming and I get to enjoy the portion hanging over the fence into my yard. Work on the house is almost done: roof scraped and painted and the house exterior and trim all shipshape and painted. All that is left is the floor of the porch to be stained and that happens next week. Frank the husband and Jack the dog should be joining me for an extended visit in a couple of weeks. Something to anticipate!
ReplyDeleteOOh, dogwoods! Gorgeous! And hurray for your...house guests!
DeleteWe had a Great Easter with our Wonderful family, including a fun egg hunt for our Sweet grandchildren! We have many daffodils, hyacinths, etc. blooming in our yard,& our flowering trees are beginning to blossom. I love all these photos- glad to see Eddy, Flo, & their friends have returned; the lovebirds are so colorful; love Springtime in the desert; pretty flowers; we enjoyed our time in Paris years ago. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHI, dear Susie! xxx Did you do the egg hunt with real eggs?
DeleteNo, they were plastic with candy inside!
DeleteSO cute!
DeleteWhat's good here, at the D&G Cross Home For Rowdy Dogs? Well, the 3 ton woodchip pile is down by half, as my back will tell you in a voice tinged with regret. My herbs and flowers and shrubs are gearing up for a great showing before the summer sun turn Sacramento into a convection oven. Our collective health is pretty good, adjusted for age in the case of we humans. Duke & Yoyo get daily trips to the dog park, which maintains our sanity, such as it is.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm not in jail or dead, thus disproving my Aunt Jean's prediction for the 50th year in a row.
You are SO funny! Good old Aunt Jean! xxx
DeleteThis is all making my very good day even better.
ReplyDeleteI have to sneak in another positive: I started reading The House Guest today! Loving it.
ReplyDeleteMy dog (Your Dog by Yoshito Nara) is back out of storage! At the Palm Springs Art Museum.
ReplyDeleteSorry didn't mean to be Anonymous -- I'm the Nara dog fan.
ReplyDeleteSpring! Bringing back the beautiful songbirds and flowers! I love this time of year!
ReplyDelete