On top of all those stresses, (County Judge Ruben) Becerra has also had to manage warnings from his highly superstitious mother, who is afraid of the eclipse: “She says, ‘Don’t go outside!’ and I say ‘Mom, I’m the director of emergency management. I have to go outside.’” —WSJ

Weeds or flowers—it’s only nomenclature.
Granted beauty by changeable nature
Best embrace it to the hilt,
Lest it wilt.

a field of violets in morning sunlight

Don’t mistake her ‘cause she’s small.
You want a toy, go buy a doll.

Hildy the small white fluffy dog will eff you up

This is… mostly what I want. I haven’t come up with a way to do the texturing of the sunflower; the punch leaves dents and the awl is too small. Also not sure if I want color. But I’m happy with the butterfly.

chip carving of butterly and sunflower

In an attempt to be positive, if you positively detest Daylight Savings Time as much as I do, here’s a reminder that my solar clock will always tell you what time it really is, wherever you are. (On earth, anyhow.) And if anyone can make this into the lock screen for my phone, give me a holler.

Meanwhile, here are some flowers. Actually there were so many blooming along the Eno River today that I could not find a place to sit down to eat lunch without squashing them. So I ate my PBJ while walking.

trout lilies and sping beauties blooming at the base of a tree (actually only a stump, which you can’t tell from the photo—but now YOU know, ha ha!)

There’s a project in there somewhere… if I just keep planing maybe I will find it

one heck of a mess on my workbench. hand planes, wood, shavings

Time to harvest some spinach.

spinach and lettuce in the garden, some cut in a colander

I enjoyed my Leap Day hike yesterday… thinking I will make it an annual tradition!

sign with atrow saying Howell Woods Environmental Learning Center 8 miles

O to walk the greenway fair
When meadows all are grassing—
The birds singing their morning air,
And sewer pipes off-gassing