the way to work

[Beowolff]

well, we've had several harsh thunderstorms lately (including the one that fried my modem the other night) here in Tennesse and last night was no exception... heavy thunder and lightning, strong winds, hard rain, even some hail. and yet this morning as i arose, the black clouds had sped on past, the sun was peeking over the hills and all was pretty calm.

i had my morning coffee as usual, fed bugsy and lil' pete and the cats, then jack and miss Bell outside. got ready and took my truck out of the driveway on my way to work. and somewhere about halfway there, i noticed something... the world had changed overnight.

yeah, really. my grand dad had always told me that it took a heavy thunder storm to break away the winter set of the trees and bushes and start them budding and leafing for spring... lol. and perhaps he was right, for this morning I noticed GREEN color everywhere i looked. yep, a green so bright that it hurt the eyes to look at it. all sorts of bushes, saplings and full grown trees had suddenly and mysteriously budded and leafed out over night. a sort of miracle.

even patches of grass that had looked stale, dry and brown, yesterday---looked full of green this morning. and there were even some flowers from some of the early Flags that grow along the highways around here. beautiful.

and what about the sunrise this morning? yes, sir. just right. a mysterious thing how a heavy thunderstorm seems to wash away the impurities and such in the air and leave the morning so bright, cheerful, and CLEAN. amazing. the sun light filtering through the new greeness of the trees, even seems a bit magicial---i don't know---different, from ordinary sunlight. softer somehow, more pastel, yet at the same time brighter too... cleaner. more pure.

i rounded a bend and three wild geese flew over my truck's cab... i mean really low, barely fifteen feet in the air. as i said, the air was so crystal clear and the soft morning light so pure that the big birds seemed to be moving in s-l-o-w motion. heck, i could count near every feather on the beautiful creatures as they beat their wings in perfect time and unison across in front of my truck.

a bit further on down the road and for the first time in a LONG time, i spotted an old snapping turtle crawling out of a small ditch. a big, bastard, and one that had been around for a long, long time, very old, with his giant, heavily scarred shell on his back and his thick, knobby, reptilian legs and feet. i actually pulled over by the ditch and got out of my truck, and watched him climb out of the mud and water and inch himself up towards me. i spoke to him naturally, a friendly hello, and he obviously did not like my company or my looks and spoke back to me with his raspy, snake-hiss of a voice that snapping turtles always have---a voice and tone telling you to, "Back off, Jack!" and yeah, i backed right off. those suckers can really put a bite on you if you whiz them off and they can move their knarly old heads like greased lightning when they want to.

and while i was standing there watching the turtle, i heard the frogs a bit further down in the slew... been a while since i heard them grunting and bellowing and carrying on.

i glanced at my watch and it was time to go, so hopped back into the truck and hurried on. but man, it was a friggin' wonderful ride into work. a magicial one. and i'll tell you lads, i really hated for it to end. too bad i had to give up the wonderful morning for something as mundane as work at the store.

and yeah, Spring just hit Tennessee.

i love it.

salute!

Beowolff

[:FI:Heloego]

Right On, Beo! (For any welders out there, that is "Wrought Iron!" )

The desert is waking up in New Mexico. too! Mornings you can quite literally see for over 70 miles! And, though short-lived, the Cholla, Praickly Pear, and assorted mongrel cacti flowers are some of the most beautiful I've seen!

This is a a fair surprising time of year.

From 700 ft AGL the ground actually looks green, even though the tufts of grass are in many cases several feet apart.
The Bosque (both sides of the Rio Grande) in Albuquerque is so thick with budding Cottonwoods it seems as if they've already leafed out.

For the "Land of 10,000 Shades of Brown" there certainly is a lot of color in Spring!

[Beowolff]

yeppers... i've been through New Mexico in the early spring, Helo... though its been a long while. and it was indeed beautiful there too. but the colors are different somehow from up here.

guess Spring's a wonder no matter where you're at or from, eh?

Beo

[Deathsledge]

isnt springtime the best, everything is new again

[:FI:ZekeMan]

Damn Beo, that was <sniff> just beautiful, <sniff>

[Baderslegs]

Yessir Beo its always good to stop, take a few moments and admire nature.

Reminds me of a time when I was quite young:-

It was a beautifull, warm, still summer night ( a most rare occurance here in Scotland). I had went for a short run on my Yamaha 125cc bike. I stopped at a place where two rivers met, just as the sun was going down. I got off my bike and walked down the river bank to the rivers edge to watch the trout jumping for the flies.

Man, what a night, warm, peacefull, all was well with the world. Up behind the water meetings was an old ruined country estate house, and you know how these things always have stories about them being haunted, well this one was no different.

Anyhows I'm kneeling down by the waters edge just taking in the tranquillity of the scene in front of me when it happens.
I hear a blood curling scream!

It lasted about three seconds I guess and I'm thinking "SHIT" someones getting attacked. Then it stops.

No I tell myself it can't have been a scream.
The hairs on the back of my neck are up, my hearts beating like it's going to burst but my head is saying "NO it was't a scream" don't be silly, theres some reasonable explanation.

I try to calm myself down but all my senses are hightened and on edge. I can hear every little sound, even the flies above the water.
Then a couple of minutes later it goes again. Slightly longer this time, and all the while my brain is saying "IT IS A SCREAM, IT IS A SCREAM", then just as suddenly it stops.

Man now I'm really kackin myself. No doubt, that WAS A SCREAM.
Heart rates back up. I don't know what to do (I was only 17), but I'm sure someones getting murdered.

Just then my motorbike falls off its stand!!!!!!
F!*k,F!*k,F!*k. Now I'm really scared!!

As I run up the riverbank to my bike the scream starts again!!!!
No doubt this time it is a scream!!!
Sounds like a woman being throttled, but absolutely no doubt now in my mind.

I lift my bike up and try to start it. F!*k the engines flooded. Kick,kick,kick it wont start.!!!!

Then there goes the scream again!!!!!!!!!!

Kick,kick,kick,kick shit i'm ready for running and leaving the bike where it is!!!!

Then the bike starts. Whoosh I'm off. Sorry missus but if you're stupid enough to hang about an old haunted house at dusk then on your own head be it.

I flew home as fast as my single cylinder would take me. I admit it, I was absolutely terrified.

When I got home some of my mates were hanging around the local park and when I pulled up they were wondering what was wrong with me as I was white as a sheet.

So I tell them my story and they go "Cool, lets go over and see what is happening". By now its nearly dark.

No f!*king way I tell them. Go if you want ,but without me. You were not there I was. It was me who heard it.

Well you can guess I got called all sorts, chicken shit, etc,etc, but guess what they didn't go either.

Next day, nothing in the newspapers, no one missing, nothing.

It wasn't till years later I found out what the noise was.

Isn't nature a wonderfull thing.

[:FI:Snoop Baron]

So what was the scream!!!!????

[Beowolff]

ah, the ole cliff hanger routine... well, good on you.


i'll wager a guess though. tree frogs? screech owls? (a woman actually being throttled?)



Beo

[:FI:Heloego]

...

So what was the scream!!!!????

I'd guess an owl.

[Beowolff]

lol, we posted right together, Helo. i must have beat you by one second.



Beo

[:FI:Heloego]

...and you'll see I was late again!


One full minute!





BTW, you forgot one...Booga Booga! Surprised sheep!

[Baderslegs]

It wasn't till years later I was watching a nature program on TV when I heard the scream again!!!!

Phew!! what a relief!!



I always thought Basil Brush was a bit scary.

[:FI:WillieOFS]

Got a better pic? What kind of furry lil beastie be that?

Over here is the wee lil tiny owls that scream so convincingly.

[:FI:Gurberly]

Wallabe... maybe?

G

[:FI:Falcon]

a wallabe?



where?!