Time Travel -- Part One

First off, a question:

Am I the only grownup who believes -- in her secret heart-of-hearts --

that battery powered toothbrushes are dangerous? 

  I just can't believe that water and electricity belong in your mouth.  At the same time!

A recipe for disaster.  I am convinced I'll be electrocuted one of these days.

Howard says he knows the answer to the question I posed.

Yes, I am. 

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Today I am time traveling.

Now, we go back exactly one year:  Howard had recently lost his job and was busy taking pictures of anything that stood still long enough to get its picture taken, including these lovely signs of spring in That Old House's garden:

Hydrangea leaf buds, on 3/30/2010.  There are none yet this year!

Our small daffodils, with buds, on 3/30/10.  This year, only small leaf shoots.

Poppy leaves '10, well on their way to adulthood.  Barely above ground in '11.

And That Old House in March 2010, on a damp day, with brilliant green grass . . . and a missing shutter on the 2nd floor.

 Now, back to the present, and ch-ch-ch-changes.

Howard is working and that is A Good Thing, but the shoots and sprouts of spring are not nearly

as well advanced this year as last.  The grass is still a washed out pale brownish-green.

The rough winter has clearly had an impact on our re-emerging little green things.

About the only thing still the same ... the missing shutter.

And that's because after Howard reattached it, and it withstood months of bad weather,

it blew off again last week!

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Sometimes time travel whirls you back to a time

you don't even remember forgetting.

That happened to me a few weeks ago, when we had a party here to celebrate our daughter's engagement.

Me on the left, with my daughter and her fiance.

  On the day of the party, my cousin Judy brought me a package;

I thought it was a hostess gift, but it turned out to be something much more.

Something that whisked me back, and took my breath away.

But now I must fly; errands to run, and another daughter to visit for dinner and shopping.

I'll share the story of Judy's gift on another day.  Soon.

Enjoy Wednesday! -- Cass

And visit Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday.  Click here!

I hope everyone else's plants are not being held back by the terrible winters we've had.  I want to see blooms!

But ... ssshhh ... don't spread it around -- we're supposed to get, yes, more snow in northern New Jersey on Friday!

Mr. Dion is not pleased about that!