Yellow iris on the shores of Lake Natoma

As I write this, we’re getting buckets full of April showers, just because Mother Nature decided that this year is meant to make up for all the past years of drought. I’m not actually complaining! — but I have to laugh because I drove to the supermarket in slightly drizzly weather to pick up a few things, and when I came back outside the water works had been turned on full blast.

Of course, I was parked at the far edge of the lot. So by the time I reached my car, my trousers were soaked, my shoes were soaked, and my hat was soaked. I’m just grateful I didn’t decide to walk to the store!

Thanks to all the rain (and mountain snow) this season, the weeds as well as the wildflowers are busting out all over. It’s a pretty sight at the moment, but soon enough the foxtails will dry up and turn brown, creating potential fire hazards — and dangers for any dog or cat unlucky enough to get one embedded in an ear, or nose, or even a foot.

My morning also got off to a bit of a crazy start today. I’ve been listening to Stephen King’s book Insomnia via the Overdrive app on my phone, and I knew my loan was about to expire; in fact, when I opened it up this morning, I had a mere 50 minutes left! I was very close to the end of the book, so I hit Play and determined to keep going all the way to the end. Even once the book began showing up as Expired on my device, Eli Wallach was still reading along, and I’m sure I was within three pages of the end of the story.

Which would have worked out just fine, as long as I didn’t do anything stupid — like hitting the Pause button.

Mimulus, AKA monkey flower

Alas, just as I was reaching the most dramatic climax of the story, the Big Guy (who is not a Reader) popped in to let me know his plans for the morning and his voice momentarily drowned out Eli Wallach’s voice in my ear; I got flustered and hit Pause. Whoops, that did it… and I was SO CLOSE.

Since this is Stephen King, and his books are always in high demand on Overdrive, I discovered there were four other people already waiting for the book. Even if I immediately placed a hold, it might be months before I get the chance to hear the ending! At that moment, I couldn’t imagine a worse form of psychological torture.

Fallen pine on the lakeshore trail

Luckily for me, the Folsom Public Library is just an 8-minute drive across the river. I rushed to my car, forgetting to eat breakfast because what is physical hunger compared to the terrible suspense that was hanging over my head?  (It’s a beautiful library, by the way, and not just because they happened to have the book I needed.) I easily located their single copy of Insomnia — hardbound and 3 inches thick — and sat down, with Eli Wallach’s voice still clearly in my head, to devour the last three pages and claim my desperately needed closure. Phew!

Pipevine swallowtail butterfly

[These photos were all taken on my hike two days ago… before the rain came back.]