Every year about the time cabin fever begins to kick in I start haunting the boards at Gardenweb.com, planning for the new growing season, and looking at the garden junk forum for ideas. Then I spend hours planning for the new season.

Last winter I spent the time hovering over a landscape plan for my yard, not to mention dozens of hours learning about raising poultry before I dared place an order for chicks, ducklings and goslings.

This winter I’ve done some planning, adjusted my landscape plans a bit—adding a bed with trees and bushes, putting up the fence to keep the birds out of my gardens, and installing the flagstone patio are my main projects for this spring. I’ve also begun working on yard decorations. Glass totems, decorated bowling balls and playing with the thought of tufa projects are all high on my list of priorities.

Of course, that means I’m not focusing as much on my writing as I should, but I haven’t let it slip completely, and the upcoming writing conference has helped me keep writing near the front of my mind.

And between gathering eggs, watching the tulips and daffodils pop up through the ground, and chasing my geese out of the neighbor’s front yard, I’ll make the time to keep writing, because I must. Even spring isn’t quite right if I’m not working on some storyline or other. Extra note: I had planned to post pictures. Darned if I can get the pics off my camera though, so that’ll have to wait for another day. Maybe I shouldn’t have deleted the kodak picture software off my laptop after all.