Goodbye Winter, Goodbye Bunny

Yesterday was winter.

Today is summer. It is 80 degrees and the daffodils and hyacinths all fainted. I don’t know what happened to my tulips. Was it too cold, or did a gopher eat them?

I was weeding the parking strip when my 86 year old neighbor Bill wandered over.

We chatted about his lawn mower (the hubby delivered and picked it up for him at local small engine repair shop.) I learned that Allie, his dog, would have an afternoon bath. He commiserated with me over the resilient grass and weeds that I was digging from the gravel.

He always has something to share with me, but this morning it was my turn to show him something.

I took him into the back yard where a wide circle of rabbit fur indicated the last moments of one of our little cotton-tailed friends. I was hoping it wasn’t the work of our cats. The Contessa has no claws but L-G (Little Girl) is fully loaded and has a history of living outdoors.

No body parts were left behind so we concluded that it was the work of a hawk or another wild animal.

“I had some company this morning,” he announced. I’d seen the two unfamiliar cars out there earlier.

“There were five of my former students that stopped to see me,” he smiled, and told me their names.

“I told them they should take some flowers to their mother, and so those boys picked a big bouquet of daffodils.”

He was proud; pleased that they had taken time to come visit him on a Saturday morning, and pleasured that they enjoyed his early blooms.

I, however, was amused that he still calls his former students,these men in their sixties, boys.



Look! You can just see the snow melting!!



Comments

Beckie said…
Wow, I hope someone still calls me a 'girl' when I am in my sixties. That is pretty cool.

That was really a bunny?! Ewwwe. We had something like that in our yard this morning, but it was the stuffing from the edge of the trampoline. Apparently some squirrel or bird needed it for a nest.
Susan in va said…
Yup - my grandmother still calls her sons "boys." She'll say, "Susan, go tell the boys it's time for dinner." (As in LUNCH not SUPPER :D)

I can't believe that's RABBIT fur! Poor little Peter! Yeowch!
Sandy said…
At least the predator waited till after Easter!

Beautiful weather you're having today and lovely pictures.
Sandy said…
At least the predator waited till after Easter!

Beautiful weather you're having today and lovely pictures.
Susie said…
Great pictures and your neighbor sounds delightful! Having the "boys" pick flowers for their moms was too cute! My Mom called my two brothers "boys" right till the end (they were in their 50's)
Poor little bunny. I don't think our Vincent could ever hope to run fast enough to catch one, but a hawk sounds like a real possibility.
xo
Christy Woolum said…
Wow!!! Eighty!! Eastern Washington will probably go from winter to summer and skip spring. lol.
Wendster said…
Do you know that I have SEEN a hawk in action? Way back when (we lived on/worked on a ranch when I was first married) we were feeding a chicken and her baby chicks when a hawk hit BAM and took off with a baby chick. That mama chicken was in the air giving chase IMMEDIATELY! She got the hawk, too. Made him drop her baby chick.
OK. You'll hate me, but I don't remember the outcome, except I clearly remember NOT seeing a dead baby chick. Ha. So it probably lived.
You have California weather today. We were at 97 this afternoon!
Tammy said…
Such a sweet story...my mom calls her nephews boys, and they are in their late 40's now. But I can remember when they were indeed boys!

You must have gotten some of the same weather we did here in western Oregon...gorgeous and high 70's! (But I hear it's back to 50's and rain by Monday! Boohoo!)

I've posted Part 2 of the road trip...:)
Have a blessed Sunday!
~Tammy
Gattina said…
How sweet ! (not the poor rapid, that's rather sad, lol) My friend also calls her grown up in their 20th and very big sons "my boys" and what did we laugh when we saw them for the first time ! We were expecting 10 year old once !
ChrisB said…
I could put up with my tulips wilting for that kind of heat. I often refer to my daughters as girls~no matter that they are reaching middle age( they will kill me for saying that)!
katy said…
I am afraid i call my son my baby, he is 22 this year!
love the view in the last photo, to see that daily would give me juch contentment
Jenni said…
Poor bunny!

That is funny that your neighbor still calls men in their 60s boys. We often see people who knew my husband when he was a toddler. I guess he was a kid everyone remembers because he was rather rambunctious. They always shake their heads and say, "Little Danny _____, why I remember when you were knee high to a grasshopper." But then, I've done the same thing myself seeing kids I knew all grown up. It's hard to believe so much time has passed, especially if you weren't around to watch them grow older.

I don't know if I will get back to the mall to check on the goose. I will look up how long it takes to hatch the eggs and call the store to see if anyone has a report if I can't go myself.

Did I write about the stupid hike in property taxes? I don't remember that, but it's possible. I sure would like to know how our house increased so much in value last year when it still is not finished and the housing market is in such a slump.
BarnGoddess said…
boys! lol, that was cool. I still call my nephews boys and they are grown men.....

poor bunny! methinks it wasnt a puddy cat.

you can see the mountains from your house?!?!?!?!?!

oh, I am soooooooooooooooo envious of you Pamela
Unknown said…
Poor bunny! 80, just like that?! That has to hurt. Your neighbor sounds very nice. :) Did the "boys" pick your daffodils?
kitten said…
Isn't great to have such lovely neighbors. It's been hot here also, but it's 32 degrees this morning. I'm glad I didn't put up the winter clothes yet.
Poor little rabbit!
Jan said…
Love the Bill story. I'm sure Bill still sees them as they were in his classroom, not old and grey. Glad you have Bill in your life.
Shelby said…
We need more Bills.. :)
Anonymous said…
LOL! That's exactly what I've been telling bloggers. We're going to skip Spring and go straight to Summer!
Hayden said…
wow - that's some weather! We've got the heat this weekend down here in Northern Ca too - but we don't have snow to contrast with it.
C... said…
Snow in April. It's chilly here too.
Anonymous said…
Well - I remember Gram and Pops always calling you and dad "Kids" - and I couldn't understand that because to me...you were sooo old! ha ha ha
Walker said…
Lovely view! So sorry about the bunny. :-(
Anonymous said…
My dad was a teacher for 35 years and he taught the boys of the boys and some of the grandboys of the boys and remembers and recognizes many of them. So sad for the bunny, but that is the nature of things. We still have no spring flowers. Today is much cooler than yesterday.
Rurality said…
Heh. I am always saying something like, "This girl I know..." and half the time I'm talking about someone who's retired. :)

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