Longing for Moisture: I Like Deserts but I Miss Spring Back Home

I write this from Reno, Nevada.  I am here for my 18^th visit to the United States Bowling Congress Open tournament.  Every year, the USBC runs the event over five months where bowlers from all over the country test their skills on a challenging lane condition.  The event used to be held in a different location each year but economics and host city priorities have found us returning to the National Bowling Stadium more often than some of us would like.

National Bowling Stadium, Reno, NV (11 May 2007)

In a rare example of (almost) real-time blogging, I’m actually riffing on what’s happening now...and it ain’t pretty.  As a (sort of) outdoor, environmental, naturalist guy, I appreciate arid places as much as the next person.  What living things do to survive in habitats with scant water is fascinating and the imagery of desert landscapes, with their palette of earth tone colors can be beautiful.

However, this is a harsh environment and I really don’t appreciate waking up with a dried out, stuffed up nose.  Beginning each day by blowing crusty, bloody debris out the schnoz is not my idea of a good time.  Also, some deserts can be visually stunning.  The Sonoran desert in Arizona comes to mind, with its majestic saguaro cactus. The high, dry country in this part of Nevada is not as aesthetic.  That and the tacky, worn, deadbeat character of downtown Reno makes me miss home and long for moisture and the green, thriving life that springs forth this time of year.  It also presents an excuse to show more springtime pictures.

The heavy, wet air of a foggy spring morning inspires a mood one rarely finds in the desert.

Misty Morning in the Woods Behind the House (22 March 2012)

If winter comes, can spring be far behind?

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822)

Brookside Gardens, in the suburban D.C. area of Maryland, has grand plantings that bloom in the spring and a terrific Christmas light display during the Holiday Season.

Brookside Gardens, Maryland (16 April 2012)

Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made 
and forgot to put a soul into.

Henry Ward Beecher (1813 - 1887)

Skunk cabbage is known as a ‘wetland indicator’ species.  The path behind the house runs through a lowland hardwood forest.  The ground is too wet to build on...thankfully.

Skunk Cabbage (12 April 2010)

Sherwood Gardens is a charming city block of plantings in a Baltimore neighborhood near Johns Hopkins University.  Every year, they plant wonderful patches of tulips among the flowering trees.

Sherwood Gardens, Baltimore (20 April 2010)

O, how this spring of love resembleth
the uncertain glory of an April day! 

William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616),

"The Two Gentlemen of Verona", Act 1 scene 3

For only about a week in the spring, the woods behind the house brings forth a carpet of lush, delicate, ground cover plants with bright, yellow flowers.

Green and Yellow Carpet, Columbia, MD (19 April 2013)

Stretching his hand out to catch the stars, 
he forgets the flowers at his feet.

Jeremy Bentham (1748 - 1832)

Hope you have had a fine, lush, temperate spring where you are and your summer is easy and pleasant.  This past winter owes us that.