Desperate for Daffodils

So desperate for spring and the daffodils, I am driven to making paper flowers. I am amazed at the cheer that even that spot of yellow paper brings to the room. In the garden tender shoots here are beginning to poke through the soil. We planted another 50 bulbs last fall, so it will be exciting to see them bloom.

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud

by William Wordsworth

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Outdid the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such jocund company:

I gazed--and gazed--but the little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude:

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils

From: A Portable Anthology 2n ed.
Gardner, Lawn, Ridl, and Schakel

Video by my iPod Touch--amazing.

Peep Update: They are a week old now with wing feathers. They all seem to be getting along. Four more come  home tonight, giving us an even dozen. The coop is nearly done. The head Chicken Herder finished the roost and the poop deck yesterday. Now we need to secure the dog run in the ground and make it predator proof. Nesting boxes will come later.  They will remain in the house under the heat lamp for another two or three weeks. I am growing accustomed to their little peeps and cheeps and will miss their soft conversations in the background.

Max inspects the roost and poop deck. He seems to approve

Max is quite comfortable in the coop, for it used to be his dog house.
He much prefers the Lazy Boy Reclined these days.

Spring break is almost over. (Prolonged sigh). I've done a dumb thing, joined a health club, so I am off for a swim this morning and probably some tread mill, if the swim doesn't do me in.   Hope everyone has a good week-end.