There appeared to be a dead squirrel on the back deck yesterday afternoon. It was sprawled flat out, looking rather like a small, worn out old rug; on closer observation it resembled a flying superhero, sans cape. Upon approaching further to investigate, it was a relief to see the squirrel get up and headed toward the Japanese Maple tree, although it wasn’t in any great hurry. I was just climbing out of my car at the moment and didn’t think to grab a photo of it, but it looked pretty much like this:

The pose reminded me of something dogs sometimes do – splooting – which I looked up regarding squirrels, and indeed this one was engaged in exactly that. Apparently they lie down and spread out in order to cool off their body. It was one of the warmest of spring days (so far), and it’s been rather dry too. Once it saw me, “Splooty Squirrel” made its way up the tree, where it stopped again to rest, draping itself along a limb. This time I took a few photos and discovered she is either expecting or nursing.

With sympathy I recall those long-ago hell-hot dog days of summer when I was hugely pregnant and later nursing myself. I probably would have loved to sploot, had I been able! Eventually she took off to wherever she is nesting. Today I left water and some peanuts for her – she did return and took what was offered. I will leave more treats tomorrow. Ah, fecund Spring!

I’m back from my west coast Spring #1 and fallen into a delightful Spring #2 just in time to discover the lone Trillium that pops up every year and never quite opens all the way is back.

Japanese Quince adorns a weathered fence.

A clump of Creeping Phlox at the bottom of the Urban Porch stairs has also made its return.

Grape Hyacinth is spreading all over the yard.

Many years ago I had planted Hellebore along the back fence. They used to be some of the earliest blooms, along with the Crocus, often making an appreciated appearance in March. Without any obvious explanation, they all died a number of years back. So that was that. But yesterday I discovered a small Hellebore had come up in a different area of the garden, nowhere near where the original ones were. Happy surprise! Go figure!

The Scilla continues to hold on.

Scilla fights for space with the Pachysandra, which has also flowered. A friend gave me a few cuttings many, many seasons ago and they have become invasive, although they are great for shaded ground cover. I have mixed feelings about them. When I was a kid my father planted them in our shady front yard and then expected a couple of us older ones to weed between them, which was a boring and unpleasant chore. Periodically they need to be thinned out. I may pull some up and give them away to someone else who needs to fill a bare patch under a tree.

Violets are everywhere, sweet, tiny bouquets waiting to grace a salad or two.

A different Annual Rando Tulip has emerged, this time from the depths of the Pachysandra, most likely planted by a squirrel – perhaps our splooting mama. I’ve never planted Tulips here and never know where they will turn up.

Poppy foliage is really beginning to lush out, hopefully to be providing another spectacular year of glowing, persimmon-hued joy for passers-by.

It was such a sunny, temperate day that I dragged the pillows for the wicker chairs down from the attic and began preparing The Urban Porch for another season of hanging out, observation and appreciation of the local world passing by.

On the topic of The Neighborhood, I am a little behind on updating The Fence Dinosaur attire. Last week it was rocking a bunny suit.

This morning it was sporting rainbow flower regalia.

While walking little Rudi last night, I happened to encounter the owner of the Fence Dino, who shared the actual story attached to it. At one point, somebody had taken it off the fence, ripped it apart and thrown it out into the street. I can’t imagine who or why a person would want to do something like that. The kids in the neighborhood (and grown-ups too) really enjoy the little bit of whimsy the Fence Dino provides. What possesses people to be so mean? She rescued it, patched it up and returned it to the fence. Fence Dino now is alarmed and under camera surveillance. What a world this has become….

Well, I’ll end with a few excerpts from Earworm of the Day, because how can I not?

Sugar Magnolia blossoms blooming

Head’s all empty and I don’t care

Sweet blossom come on under the willow

Sunshine daydream
Walkin’ in the tall trees
Goin’ where the wind goes

It’s been a gorgeous day, but also a long day, as I was at the audiologist this afternoon trying out a device that can sync to my hearing aids and help me decipher speech better one-on-one in noisy situations. All of this technology has a learning curve, is imperfect, and can often be finicky, unpredictable and frustrating. On top of all that, teaching your brain to learn/relearn how to hear and to parse out relevant conversation is often utterly exhausting. I’ve unexpectedly fallen into a nap three times this week.

I think I may need to go “sploot” for a while!

~*~

*”Sugar Magnolia” by the Grateful Dead, American Beauty 1970 (Robert Hunter & Bob Weir)