Another couple of days of beautiful snow. Now, it’s going to warm up, rain and refreeze. How I wish I had finished some outdoor tasks. Oh well! There is an incredible amount of puttering to do around the house.

The week between Christmas and New Year’s is always interesting. Since I’m a couple of decades past my partying days, I am finding jobs at home befitting my advancing years.

It’s fun to be out and about during the day. Folks are in a great mood.

Violet Southwick

Violet Southwick

Since it is the end of year another year, I thought it would be a hoot to talk about another ending — that is to life. I took a drive into the Vineyard Haven cemetery to check on a loved one. Violet took a couple of photos of grave plantings. On three different resting places, we noticed the Alberta Spruce anomalies. Notice how another type of spruce is now growing as an odd appendage?

I’m not crazy about the choice. When planted they were, most likely, small and perfect. Over the years they have overtaken the head stones covering the names of the dearly departed. I did notice a couple of Hanoki Cypress. They were the dwarf variety, (Chamaecyparis obtusa). They were still a manageable size There are also some tiny varieties of boxwoods, which stay about 18 inches for years.

My family owns our own cemetery in Port Allegheny, Pa. Many generations reside there on the side of a mountain. They do not allow any plantings on individual plots. Because, I tend to be bratty. I dream of going there some fall and dropping a few daffodil bulbs on Mom and Dad.

Now that the hustle of Christmas has passed, I better go through my old seeds and start perusing the catalogs. I did duct-tape a few holes in the greenhouse plastic, as it is quite chilly in there. Shortly, I’ll set up the propagating mats in anticipation of another season.

The hens have already noticed the change in light. I got five eggs today — a first in months. Wonder how they “know.” The circle of life, I suppose.

What does not fit into my idea of the circle of life is the behavior of not only the Trump administration, but the press corps who cover it. Why can’t some brave reporter simply say: “That’s a lie.” Okay. Maybe a more gentle: “That’s not true.” We all know and can call B.S. when we see it. Then as the aforementioned reporter is being forcibly removed and, by the wall, called names — he or (most likely) she can yell: “Release the Epstein Files!”

I wish we could all keep saying it — you know the old adage — “The Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease.”

Clearly, the powers that be do not want the full truth revealed. Good thing they are also incompetent. Maybe that will be their ultimate undoing. One can only hope.