It's official.  I've become the old geezer that repeats herself over and over.  Fred just pointed out that I'd used the same photos from Tuesday in two consecutive posts.  So tonight I'll post some new pictures and will try not to repeat them.

We had a thunder storm and some rain that turned to hail this afternoon.  I got pictures of the marble-size hail stones.  Somewhere in the middle of the storm there was a very nice rainbow.  It was early in the afternoon, so the colors appeared low over the Walden hills above Route 15.  It was hard to see among the trees, and I almost gave up looking for one, but sure enough, it was there.  The hailstorm only lasted a few minutes, but the ground was white.  Most of the stones melted right away, but we may get some snow during the night.  The forecast is for our weather  to change so we'll get some "measurable snow" - too little, too late, but we are ok with the weather turning colder in order to keep the pond ice intact a few days longer, perhaps.  We'd really like to have a normal ending rather than one sneaking up on us before April 1st.  Diane was saying today that the block and flag look perfectly stable, like there has been no melting going on around it at all, but we know things are happening, even though we can't see any evidence of melting.

I was remembering that the clock has stopped twice on Easter Sunday - in April 16, 2006 and April 8, 2012.  Easter is earlier this year, March 27, so I don't think it will happen this year.  With colder weather, we're going to make it until April, I'm pretty sure.

We got a new toy for Woodie - one he can't chew and destroy.  Perhaps it's a little bit for us, too.  We were at Jamie and Marie's last weekend and Jamie showed us how both Otto (dog) and Rico (cat) react to a pin-point laser light.  Otto chased it with as much enthusiasm as Rico, and was a whole lot noisier about it.  He has a masterful bark!  Rico, on the other hand, was far quicker and more agile than Otto, and didn't hesitate to go under or over his big black friend to chase the dot.  We have been thinking Woody should get more exercise during the dull winter months, so when we were in St. Johnsbury earlier this week, we picked up a lazer pointer light.  Woody is far more dignified about chasing it than Rico, but does go after it, although he prefers to lie in wait for long periods in between bursts of chasing.  It could be a difference in hunting techniques - or just that he's older, heavier, and of far different temperament than feisty little Rico.  But it works to get him moving and keeps him (and us) entertained.  

Now he's stretched out on his rug beside my desk, keeping me company as I work on the computer.  It's an every-night ritual after he's satisfied it's too cold for him to be comfortable even in the garage, and gives up pestering to go out and knocking to come back in moments later.  That routine gets old really fast since I'm closest to the door and the one that answers his knock.  I've tried ignoring his pleas to be let out, but that doesn't work.  He persists until I shut him out of my office, and then he gets Fred to let him out, and because Fred is in the far end of the house, he usually doesn't hear the knock, so I'm still the door tender.  We think a nightly workout chasing the lazer beam may tucker him out and he'll forget about going in and out all the time.