TheSwirl.org

Wednesday night Jennifer came over to play with Eric and make Easter eggs.

Friday night we went to the last of the Floyd Fire Department fish fries with Skip, Steve and Linda. Saturday Eric and his buddy Trevor went to the VFW sponsored Easter egg hunt with a scary looking Easter rabbit.

Saturday afternoon I went to the ADK Mountain Club Iroquois Chapter Open House.  Most of it was pretty tame, but I bought a book, chatted with a couple of members and especially had a good conversation with Bill Ingersoll on possible and planned canoe trips.

Later Saturday afternoon we had Ed & family, Billie Jo & family for Easter dinner. Clockwise from lower left, Eric, Jim, Kelly, Ed, Billy, Dakota, and Billie Jo. Not in picture Kathryn and Izzabella.

On Easter Sunday we went to church and then to dinner with Mom, Robert and others. Upon our return home late afternoon we watched the common snipes and flickers foraging on our lawn.

When spring hits it comes with a rush. In the past week the ice has left the stream fed pond and about 1/4 of the spring fed pond is ice free. The Canada Geese are regular visitors to my neighbor Gary’s pond. I am hoping they settle there where they have taller grass and leave my ponds alone.

The Red Wing Blackbirds arrived two weeks ago, Robins last week and this past weekend we heard Killdeers. Last night Eric and I heard and saw a Night Hawk flying high, eating bugs and making their characteristic whoop, whoop, whoop as they dive for bugs.

The snow is largely gone. Here is our yard with a before and after pictures spaced about 2 weeks.

I follow the Syracuse University basketball program through out the year.  I often peruse a bulletin board devoted to discussions of Syracuse Basketball.  Sorting the wheat from the chaff in these postings is often difficult as some topics take a beating.  One poster said it best recently: 

1. Zone versus Man - 4 million mentions (mostly from one surly poster)
2. x is not a point guard - 2 million mentions over many years
3. Paul Harris can’t shoot - 1 million mentions over the last year
4. Carmelo…Carmelo…Carmelo - 1/2 million mentions since 2003
5. Hopkins Coach Where When and now…how much 400 times a day (but only in the off-season)
6. New uniforms – love them or hate them (a recent topic)

 You have to be a fan(actic) to sort through this stuff.

Kathryn introduced the April Fools Day Dinner into our family and we have always done a “backwards” meal on 1 April with the kids. Basically we all dress crazy, eat the meal in reverse order (dessert 1st), spaghettie is the normal fare and we use kitchen utensils instead of normal silverware. Obviously it is always a hit with the kids. I was talking with Billie Jo last night who intended to do the meal and had told one of her friends, who was doing it with her kids. Here are a couple of pictures from our April Fools Dinner.