Spring approaches.

The other day, I noticed that something had dragged one of the pillows off the chairs in the front yard and ripped it wide open. But before I could collect it to throw it away, I saw a squirrel pulling a mouthful of foam from it and dashing off up a tree. Aww - getting a nest ready for a spring crop of baby squirrels! So guess who is leaving the pillow right where it is for now?

There are other signs of spring. My trusty hellebores have been blooming since mid-winter, but are absolutely full of flowers right now.

I've got crocuses up all over, looking very cheery.

And beautiful little dwarf irises, also in the front yard. All that rain has helped them.

But enough is enough. Our region has gotten so much water that the ground is saturated and many areas are flooded. The home of our friends on the street got three feet of water in the basement and their sump pump gave up the ghost in response. It was the rainiest February in this state since 1883.

[Note: Not my photo. This was on the local news channel's website.]
This is a street off the main thoroughfare in my part of town. My husband was going to the grocery store at the time and as he was headed out I warned him not to take that side street because it floods when it rains hard. I was right. Apparently one of our firetrucks went in to rescue a trapped person, and the edge of the road collapsed under the weight of the truck, tipping it over.

There is a four-foot chainlink fence separating these two yards in our neighborhood, and you can see that part of it is completely submerged. You could swim over it if you wanted to.

There were similar scenes on the drive into work, with one neighborhood submerged up above the houses' foundations.  I tried to drive in a little ways to explore, but soon ran out of dry road.

When we went to Aruba right before my mastectomy, we made a vow that we'd return to the ocean when my active treatment was over. Now that my incision from my port removal is closed up, it's time. A bigger trip will have to wait, but we're headed out now for a few days in the Florida Keys. Navy brat that I am, I believe the ocean air to be healing. So I'm leaving our soggy town behind for a bit and going to soak in the sun and the salt breeze instead.