Greetings and salutations, everyone; yes, once again it is I, your popular host, Mani the purebred border collie, here today to tell you all about our upcoming awful weather, and post some nice pictures, too. You may remember me from such posts as “Not Spring” among so many, many others.
Here I am in a characteristic pose. A bit slanted, like last time. 
The guy I live with just snapped my picture with his phone. Sometimes the phone takes good pictures, sometimes it doesn’t. That’s true of the other cameras here, too.
Like for instance, these pictures of hens-and-chicks:
Those were taken with a 90mm macro lens, which cost more than the point-and-shoot camera that took these pictures:
There’s probably a moral there somewhere. Maybe not. He likes taking pictures of hens and chicks. There are a lot of them here.
Well anyway, here’s the scoop on the weather.
Today, right now at almost 7 p.m., it’s 64 degrees Fahrenheit (18C) with eleven percent humidity. Sunny and dry.
By tonight it will be snowing, with a low tomorrow night of 16 degrees Fahrenheit (-8.8C), with about ten inches of snow predicted, and then snow all week long.
You can possibly imagine what the guy I live with thinks about all of this.
But whatever. This has been a pretty stressful week here, as it no doubt has for a lot of people. It was pretty unsettling not to have a car in the garage, which the guy I live with admitted was a first-world problem, but he was so used to having the car (which he bought for his wife) sitting in the garage, ready to take us wherever we needed to go, if we needed to go somewhere. It wasn’t so much not being able to go anywhere, though that was something, but the missing car was like a gap in the continuity which is so important here.
The guy I live with has been having food delivered, but just this evening he discovered he could have food delivered from the Indian restaurant he and his wife went to all the time. He was so happy he cried a little.
The guy I live with also cut his own hair. It looks pretty good, actually
Now I have some more pictures.
Muscari leucostomum.
This is a named form of Iris bucharica, but the label has been lost. Probably broken by hail.
A pulsatilla, with Scilla melaina (possibly) in front of it. 
The native bluebell, Mertensia lanceolata, which is common along the foothills here.
An achillea, maybe Achillea umbellata.
Here are some forms of Corydalis solida. The guy I live with really struggled to get decent pictures of these. I’m not sure why he had that problem. 
Last year there was this red corydalis seedling way out past where all the other corydalis are, which was kind of interesting, so today the guy I live with took a picture of it, and it wasn’t until the picture got posted here that he noticed the purple one next to it.
Pretty cool, huh?
Well, that’s all. I guess we’ll be buried in snow for the next week.
I’ll leave you with a picture of me looking at a cat in a neighbor’s yard. That was pretty exciting.
Until next time, then.
the miserable gardener 
Neighbor cats can be pretty exciting! I get excited every morning when I see they’ve visited my front yard. Interesting yarrow. I have to look into it, the leaves are different from other kinds, and I see photos of the flowers are much different.
I gave up using my camera, and just use the phone. I forgot how to use the camera last time I tried!
Hope the snow was exaggerated.
The guy I live with said the achillea came from one of the Czech seed lists. He hasn’t ordered anything from them for a few years now, because of life getting in the way, you know. So not sure which species it is. Turkish, though, I think.
It’s snowing here, and everything is frozen. Coldest Easter in 90 years, they say.
EEKKK yore apposta get more S-N-O-W???? CATFISH that iss NOT funny Mani… 😦
Wee had sum Swinter here 2 dayss ago butt snow melted quiklee. Trubbell iss it iss chilley with that stew-pid North wind so wee are stuck INN!! An cloudy!! So cloudy LadyMew keepss askin THE Heavenss “Did wee not pay enuff of our SUN bill??”
It iss so gloomy wee have to have litess on innside. An LadyMew iss well…cranky…..sad too.
Shee said shee ree-latess to yore ‘guy’. That car iss a symbol off ‘freedom’ an with it not there it iss a reeminder hee can not go anywhere far….
All mee knowss Mani iss this Virus iss messin up our entire werld an how do fix it???
Let’ss just go fore a walk among yore lovelee flowerss OKay?? Wee solve werld problemss another day….
***purrsss*** BellaDharma
Yes, snow. It’s well below freezing right now and is supposed to be this way for a week. It does get cold and snows here in April (and May) but not this cold for this long, I think.
The biggest thing with the car is that now I can go have my annual checkup. And maybe the guy I live with can go to the store later this week so not spend so much money on having food delivered. Though it’s nice to have people bring food.
So sorry about the snow ahead. But what gorgeous Corydalis! I particularly like the red one, but that purple’s an exciting find, too. I bet they’ll shrug off the snow and be even more beautiful after the thaw.
Thanks; maybe. The guy I live with isn’t all that certain because the next warm day is supposed to be this coming Saturday, with temperatures below freezing (22F) every night. That’s a long time for recovery.
Yikes, a whole week of cold. Well, still; fingers crossed. I figure a lot of these early-flowering plants have evolved with regular late doses of winter.
Western Virginia’s off to one of the earliest starts ever. The earliest flowers, winter aconites and earliest daffs, were almost a month ahead of normal. Things rolled along steadily during March, but without much enjoyment for the gardener; it was the greyest March ever, adding to the grimness of the news. April has been a big step forward just for all the sun.
The plants in bloom now are typically the ones that peak during Garden Week, the last week of April: dogwood, lilac, earliest herbaceous and tree peonies, pearlbush, and mid-late tulips.. Only the latest daffs still going. The native Jacob’s ladder, Polemonium reptans, has finally self-seeded enough (with help from me) to be convincing as a naturalized ground cover around the dwarf fall witch hazel. We’re getting a nice soaking rain tonight, so things should really take off this next week, with seasonal 60s.
There wasn’t much of anything flowering here, shrub-wise, except for Prunus tenella ‘Firehill’ and Viburnum farreri (very, very late this year).
Right now it’s 20 degrees, won’t get above freezing, with more snow on the way.
There’s not much happy gardening talk around here right now. The guy I live with took me on my morning walk and I thought the snow was pretty nice. And you know, he says my happiness is much more important than his.
Blessings, boon companions!
Thanks. Same to you.
**shivurrss** Mee hopess yore snow comes an goess quiklee!!
It iss borderline too chilly here…wee can not spend alot of time outside….which makess LadyMew cranky! Beein not abell to go anywhere shee needss to at leest have patio time….
An Guud Luck with yore fizzical Mani! You will pass with flyin colorss. Oh mee furgot to menshun yore foto iss lovelee…yore such a hansum doggie!!!!
An wee adoor all yore flowerss too!
**purrss** BellaDharma
Thanks; I think I am pretty handsome but the guy I live with says that’s immodest.
It’s snowing, and it’s supposed to snow every day this week. That’s not all that unusual for this “awful climate” (guess who says that?) but the cold is pretty extreme for this time of year.
The guy I live with says what he really would like to do is go to the store. One of the Indian groceries here in town, over on the east side. It feels weird to be hesitant about doing that.
Yore alloud to think yore hansum…mee knowss mee iss furry purrty!! Mee not flaunt it; mee just knowss Mani…coarse LadyMew sayss mee iss ‘beeuteefull’ alot too! 😉
LadyMew iss hessytant like yore “Guy’ ’bout goin to Farmacy…it iss cold an furry windy an rainy so mee thinkss shee will wait fore a bettur day!!!
SNOW= UCKY! 😉
It is a burden being good-looking, I know.
The guy I live with said that he might not go out at all, except to take me for my check-up, and he might have to go to the doctor, too, later. Other than that there isn’t anything to do. He can’t go see his friend, can’t go to the botanic gardens, or restaurants, so what the heck.
He said it doesn’t matter that much. I guess we’re more used to doing nothing than most people are.
Having those cold overnight lows here in southern Wisconsin this week too. Have some Erythroniums in bud for the first time. Spring! I feel lucky to be able to moan about the garden as we are all OK here and have enough to eat and lots of books and computers to play with. Best to you and the guy you live with.
Thanks; same to you. The guy I live with says that the erythronium buds here may be frozen. (He said “toast” which seemed weird to me.)
What is so interesting about neighbor kitties? They are just kitties, and they are so smug and . . . kitty like. Rhody is afraid of baby kitties, but wants to chase them when they grow up.
Well this one insists on hopping out onto the path I’m walking on, slightly ahead of me, and trying to scare me. Kind of rude.
Totally RUDE! There is a skunk here that does that with Rhody.
No skunks here for several years now. Fortunately.
They relocated to here.
Oh. Well, a smelly time will be had for all, I guess.
I try to avoid them, and I try to get Rhody to avoid the; but you know how terriers are.
Bitey, I hear. I mostly just bark at skunks.
Bitey?! I never got bit by one. I relocated a few. They try to follow me back, and want to jump back into the car. It is rather sad.
Terriers, not skunks.
Yes, of course; but Rhody doesn’t fall for that one anymore.
Dogs can be clever. I know that for a fact.
Generally. Of course, there are boxers.
I guess. I’ve kind of forgotten what this was about, now. ..
There’s a foot of snow on the ground, and it’s still snowing.
Well, snow has a way of distracting.
It seems to.
So do moths.
I suppose so, I guess.
Mew mew mew Mani yore cute!! Hansum an humbell….winnin combo fore sure!
AHHH yore ‘Guy’ can not see his lady frend?? Well that iss sad…
**sighss** This Virus has messed up efurryone’s Life….
**purrss** BellaDharma
No. She is in Arizona right now. Things are pretty weird.
Airy-zona?? That iss so far away from youss’….CATFISH! No wunder yore ‘Guy’ iss sad….
this Virus iss pawfull to say THE leest!
A long way away. The guy I live with said he is really missing human contact. He talks to his neighbors, sometimes, though.
There’s a foot of snow on the ground now and it’s still snowing.
Here in Southern California, having wheels is everything. Only place we drive is out to Cays Dog Park once a day and to grocery stores here on the island as little as we can. We can even walk to the vet’s office. We walk to pick up meal orders and wine. Having meals delivered with memories attached is the best kind. I’d say be good to each other, but I know that you each are, sun lover and snow lover. I hope your sun appears soon to shine onto all lovely flowering plants.
Thanks. It’s been snowing here like crazy. About a foot so far. I know the guy I live with finds this massively depressing, but there isn’t much we can do about it. My evening walk was okay, though.
It’s about two and a half miles to my doctor’s office but we could walk there if we had to.
He had Indian food delivered this evening. Enough for three nights, he said.