Queen Jolene

It must be spring, because gravel was showing in patches through the snow on the gravel road today!

I haven't been for a proper walk since my back began making an exhibition of itself, but this afternoon I got 15 minutes down the road and turned around at the seventh twinge rather than risk overdoing it. Can't wait to get back to normal. Shouldn't be long; almost there. So grateful to have a healthy back again, I can't tell you!

In other news, those who know my cousin Jolene (Neil's daughter) may or may not be aware that she was in a bad accident on Friday afternoon that she was lucky to get out of alive. She is banged up pretty good, with broken ribs, breastbone, pelvis and foot, bruised lungs and a lacerated spleen. And god knows what else; it's quite a list. She ran into a semi or under one or something, or it ran into her. She thought she was a goner, and so did everyone else at the scene. She will be on her back for a month or so and is still in a lot of pain -- almost vomited when they got her up for physio today, she said.

But she will be all right. She is a very feisty person and she will need all that feistiness, too, over the next while.

Everett, my son: I will be so busy texting Jolene to help her keep occupied that you may get a break from my texting "jokes" for a while! Or maybe not. Cross your fingers.

Jolene and I spoke on the phone a couple times today. She is, even flat on her back, telling her husband what to do and how to do it re looking after their 9-yr-old daughter, taking care of business, and so on. Like a queen, I said!

Meanwhile, the deer are still coming into the yard; there were six today, including this little one:

Ate all the birdseed under the feeders. What else is there?