
As I sit in my box of warm air gazing out at an icy world, I think of poetry and realize, and not for first time, I have none in me. I’ll just scribble a little about the late, unlamented month just past.
Snow and cold come to mind first, but there was also some decent weather with a few beautiful days sprinkled in to keep our spirits up. The moisture, though not abundant, coming on the heels of that that we got in January was gratifying. Compared to last year, it has been a veritable bonanza so taken all around, February was a good month. Joyce and I finished off the last of our firewood Friday and Saturday as we lazed around the house reading, watching TV and generally wasting time. I managed to get out to the Bluff Wednesday and continue cleaning up the grounds. It was a little chilly when I started about 9 a.m. but soon warmed up to something more comfortable. I also patched a leaky PVC pipe connection in the catchment system and felt satisfied with myself.
Among other things, I also managed to improve the ecology of the aquarium in the cave. From the get go it has had a problem with algae growth, which I’ve blamed on others for overfeeding the fish. In January I broke it down and cleaned it thoroughly, a process that includes taking everything but the fish and water out and soaking it in a Clorox solution to kill the algae accumulation. As you can imagine, that isn’t something I want to do very often. Having got the aquarium in tiptop shape, I was careful to be the only one feeding the fish and still it wasn’t anytime before the algae began to show up. It occurred to me the water I was using being well water wasn’t chlorinated like city water is and therefore more prone to allowing for algae to prosper so I tried adding a tiny bit of Clorox but it was a mistake since all I succeeded in doing was to kill a couple of fish. Finally I went to Petco and bought a catfish and a snail in hopes they would feed on the algae and keep it in check. Gratifyingly, they have. The snail zooms around the aquarium like a miniature vacuum cleaner removing algae from everything it slimes its way over. The catfish hides in the big conch shell by day but is active at night doing its part. When the water warms up, I may try a few of each in the lily pool.
We are looking forward to a visit from the Wylie women next weekend. I presume Dave will stay home to hold down the fort. Since it will be their spring break, I expect they will spend most of the week with us. Here’s hoping the weather is pleasant at least part of the time.
I’ve been reading letters Mom wrote in 1951-1952 encompassing the move to California and the subsequent move back to SA. I wonder what interested parties will have to refer to in another 60 years should they want to get a feel for what was going on back in the day. I haven’t written a letter since Mom broke her hip and was confined to a nursing home in 2000.