A cup of dark roast coffee usually clears my brain fog every morning, but, when it comes to the fog in the ‘hood … well, I have to depend on Mother Nature to clear that away for me, and, sometimes she takes her good old sweet time.

When I first looked outside around 7:45 a.m., it was way too murky to head out. So, I was patiently biding my time, 9:00 a.m. being the latest I can leave to get in a decent walk and be home in time for work.

So, I piddled around with this and that.

First, I hung up the Easter wreath, which looked all perky and Spring-y looking in the dull and gray morn. I was reminded of my friend Marge’s recent comment on  my blog, after I mentioned how quickly the red or pink hearts and flowers and chubby cherubs from Valentine’s Day are whisked away to bring forth the St. Paddy’s Day décor to adorn our front doors.  Marge said “each new wreath on the door this time of year brings us closer to Spring and Summer.”

Our Spring weather, just like the dissipation of this morning’s fog, sure travels at its own pace … and that would be SLOW. I could feel that cold air seeping through the front screen door while I adjusted the wreath this way and that, and, the next few days are going to be even worse … downright cold and maybe a snow or sleety mix, at week’s end.  Oh well, we are, after all, barely one day into the official Spring season.

After the final adjustment to the wreath was made, out of the corner of my eye I saw a bright ray of sunshine poking through the clouds. That sunbeam momentarily lit up the sky, so I figured the murkiness would soon disappear.

I got myself ready to go in record time and headed out. I soon realized, that while it was fairly clear for the distance of about one block, the visibility was not so great beyond that.  Even the spires on two nearby churches were cloaked in fog, and trees in the distance looked like thick dark figures in the mist as I walked past Ford Park.  There were pendulous drops of water hanging off wind chimes, awnings and vehicles as I passed homes on each city street.

I walked to the footbridge where the ice had finally melted, but beyond that point, I could see the fog would be worse the closer I got to the River, so I paused a few minutes then turned around to come home. In the Creek, at least a dozen mallards were paddling along paying no mind to the fog.

In fact, most of the ducks were paired up, swimming along amiably, the beautifully colored drakes and their blah-colored mates. At least I assumed it was their mates, since the mallards generally paddle along in pairs, unless they are off eating or preening themselves.

My friend Ann Marie tells me that it must be near mating season for the Canada Geese since she sees them chasing after one another every day around the pond near her apartment building. It was rather comical last week, as their pursuit of their mate (or potential mate), found them slip-slidin’ away on the icy surface of the pond.

Ahhh … young love.

A trending topic on Twitter earlier today touted “World Poetry Day” and nothing is synonymous with Spring more than Victorian poet Lord Alfred Tennyson’s line from the poem Locksley Hall: “In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.”

You know you’ve heard that line before … maybe in your high school English class?

The world is lighter and livelier in Springtime … if only it would get here.

Meanwhile, on the subject of love, around the world, several hundred thousand viewers have been spying on April the Giraffe, as she awaits the birth of her baby, courtesy of a web cam set up in close proximity to April’s living quarters. The proud papa is Oliver and he lives in a separate pen from April.  If you’ve not been to the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York site yet, or watched the story on “Click on Detroit”, you can take a peek at April at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClnQCgFa9lCBL-KXZMOoO9Q/live

And, if you decide to be a voyeur and check out that video cam, you’ll discover that April and Oliver are occasionally making goo-goo eyes at one another across their enclosures. I peek in at least once a day.  April does nothing but eat, chewing her cud all day long, or simply staring into space.  There have been 246,000 video cam views as of this evening, and comments galore (4,000+).  One person suggested that April appears to be enjoying Bubblicious Bubble Gum every time she looks in.

Meanwhile, at the Zoo, there is a webpage devoted to April: http://www.aprilthegiraffe.com/

This will be the fourth calf for April, who is 15 years old, and, probably a little exasperated by now, since the originally predicted due date (and proclamation of “any minute now”) was February 22^nd.  The gestational period for giraffes is 15 months.

Some folks have set up a GoFundMe site for April, Oliver and the unborn calf and to help pay for expenses for their annual care and eventual upgrade to their enclosures, plus a permanent video cam set-up. Lest you scoff at that idea, I just checked and they’ve far exceeded their $50,000.00 goal, with a whopping total of $78,603.00 in funds raised to date.

And, just for kicks, there will be a baby-naming contest after the big birth event takes place.

I personally think that Mama Giraffe is holding out to next month to deliver that calf – it would be fitting to have April’s baby born in April, don’t you think?

Yup, we all need a little diversion in our lives … it beats the hum drum existence of these dregs of Winter and the political goings-on, which often leave us collectively shaking our heads.

It is Spring after all – so, it’s a time to be in love, and, if not – then at least be light-hearted!