Spring is finally arriving

I spent Easter in central Kentucky. I expected to find spring there--leaves sprouting on trees, nesting birds, and lots of wildflowers. But the trees there were as bare as the trees here. However, their daffodils were blooming and I have not seen any blooming here. One night it was cold enough to put a layer of ice on a bucket of water left outside.

Even though there are still remnants of snow piles in parking lots, there are lots of signs that spring is beginning. I have some crocuses blooming in my yard. (A Facebook friend had some kind of flower blooming in February, so mine are far from early flowers.) More importantly, my rhubarb looks like it is starting to grow. Walmart is setting up its garden display.

The Community Garden, which got a lot of publicity in the past week from the Rensselaer Republican, was tilling the garden plots this afternoon. There are still a couple of empty plots. That is very different from what happens in some other places. My son got up extra early in Bloomington, IL to stand in line to claim a garden spot a few weeks ago. If you do not get there early, you do not get a plot. He is taking gardening seriously--he has dozens of little plants already growing under grow lights.

Brookside Park has its summer complement of trash cans out. Last week the park people were setting out picnic tables in the shelters. This year all the benches will be the plastic tables made from recycled milk bottles and some of them are designed to accommodate wheel chairs. Some of the old wooden picnic tables will see use at the Little Cousin Jasper Festival and maybe some short duration events.

I thought that demolition activity at Monnett would be over this week, but when I stopped by I saw that a large fuel tank had been partially uncovered. It seems to have been a tank to store fuel for heating. I suspect that at some time after Monnett was built, the heating was switched to natural gas.

 I stopped by Lending Hand because the office is now open with a big "Grand Opening" banner in front. The office was very simple--a couple of desks. I learned that the headquarters of the company was not Lafayette, as I originally wrote, but in Monticello.

Steinke Funeral Home will soon be undergoing renovation. There is a sign in front showing the planned changes with the names of contractors and architect.