annual rituals of the season

[OT from cottage renovations]

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this week saw three rites of spring:

• the first fireflies, seen Wednesday evening. 
   
• the annual exercise of clearing everything off the porch and then going after it with hose, map, brush and Murphy oil soap.  it's amazing how much crud accumulates (thanks, kittycats) and what a difference it makes to remove it. 

grimy -> gleaming

• the results of the first-hummingbird-in-the-Grove contest.  the only ones I've seen this year have been in California (heading out there again this evening and presumably will be seeing more of them over the next couple of weeks, but it's not the same).  the feeder has been out on the porch for over a month with contents refreshed, but to no avail.  the usual defeat was reported by telephone this morning and I replied with as gracious a concession to the victrix as I could manage but the outcome was not so bitter: it was a relief to learn there are any around at all.  I had been starting to wonder.