16 March

We didn't get much snow. It is still cloudy and we may get some rain. The warm up should start tomorrow. Like most of the gardeners whose blogs I read I am restraining my self. No planting--absolutely not. However, looking at the arrangement of various pots and other items on the patio, we are looking at taking out the remains of the last small "greenhouse." The bones are still there but the cover disintegrated a good while ago. I never replaced it because it never really functioned well as a greenhouse. I have said before that the patio, with its white fence and cement pad, is a hot box. The greenhouses could be as much as 20 degrees above the ambient temperature in the spring and summer though it did not hold any heat in the early spring or autumn. I have tried putting it in different places but nothing seems to work. Taking it out gives me more space which is badly needed. I will keep the wire racks--they will make nice trellises.

Kevin Tillman, writing on Tomdispatch.com, wonders why we were so shocked by the events of January 6.

Honestly, it could only seem that way (shocking) if you imagined our domestic politics as completely separate from our foreign policy. But if we’re to learn anything from that maladroit attempt at a government-toppling coup, it should be that they are anything but separate. The question isn’t whether then-President Donald Trump incited the assault on the Capitol — of course he did. It is rather: Since when have we cared if an American president lies to incite an illegal insurrection? In all honesty, our commanders-in-chief have been doing so abroad for generations with complete impunity. It was only a matter of time before the moral rot finally made its way home.

That is a very good observation. Our government, at the highest levels, have repeatedly lied to topple governments we didn't like. Remember the "WMD" (weapons of mass destruction) claims that led us into Iraq? Tillman covers that in the article along with other U.S. interventions based on lies.

💚🍀Happy St. Patrick's Day🍀💚

It is still dark so I can't see whether it is cloudy. The temperature is supposed to go into the 50s--may even reach 60. We have had a busy day vacuuming and cleaning up a bit on the patio. We do general housekeeping when the spirit moves and we are thankful it doesn't move frequently. But at a point, after we have noted several times that something like vacuuming or dusting needs doing, we finally decide to do it. Today was that day for the upstairs and stairs. Tomorrow we will do the downstairs. It is simply too exhausting to do it all at once. I got the former mini-greenhouse emptied, retrieved the wire shelves, and moved it out of the space. Then I swept the leaves out. I also got the bird feeder changed out with feed for the smaller birds. I will get some more done tomorrow.