Buds on the bushes

Now is the time of year when I proceed to geek out about the weather and outdoorsy stuff. Although I have to admit that what my brain wants to do after the phrase "buds on the bushes" is continue singing, in a sultry R. Kelly voice, "...over by the stove, put you on the counter, by the buttered rolls..." Which reminds me, I'm finally finishing Haroun and the Sea of Stories, in which there is a character named Butt the Hoopoe. Naturally, I think of Mott the Hoople.

Okay, brief foray into my brain: over. Back to the weather. It's been warm and alternately rainy and sunny for the past few days, and I love it to death. T-shirt and pants weather. All around my house the bushes have buds or tiny leaves, the trees are starting to bud, the grass isn't that ugly brown anymore ... man. I love early spring. It'll be 90 degrees before I know it, so I want to savor this.

Finally, I forgot to mention one final thing that was awesome about my weekend. On Sunday I got back to Madison to find mail waiting for me. In the stack was a large packet from The Onion. I was puzzled for a few seconds, and then I realized what it must be, and tore open the envelope. Free tickets for the New Pornographers' private show at the High Noon in two weeks! Eeee! When Spoon did a similar show here I know they ended up releasing tickets to the general public a few days before the show, but I didn't want to have to hope that would be the case in this instance. And now I don't have to! Yay! I'm excited. I have to buy Electric Version before then. That's the day after Rhett Miller plays at the Barrymore, too.

Sunday ramblings

It's time once again to wax rhapsodic about springtime. Today I noticed that the wild raspberry bushes behind our apartment are coming back to life. In the past week or so, all of the other bushes in the courtyard have become violently leafy - in that classic, slightly crazed neon green of early spring. The crabapple trees around my office are also showing promise of blooming, and most of the really big trees are at least at the tiny bud stage.


Swooon. Though it also means petals stuck to my windshield ... swoooon anyway.

Yesterday I went to the Sanrio store at Gurnee Mills and bought kleenex and band-aids. (What, you don't go to Sanrio when you need kleenex and band-aids?) I also visited a used CD store, where I picked up REM's "Great Beyond" single for 99 cents. I illegally enjoyed the song back when the Andy Kauffman movie first came out (moment of silence for the old Napster) so it was a fun find. The b-side is a live version of "Man on the Moon," which sealed the deal. Because for 99 cents, you have to be choosy. I also scored a Baby-Sitters Club 'super edition' of books 1-3 of the series for $2.30 at the Borders closeout store. I can't wait to read "Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls" again!

Finally, I found an abandonded little Playmobil guy on Friday. I have no idea what the holy hell he's supposed to be; he looks like a combination pilgrim/martial artist/pirate. He appears to be missing a hat and perhaps a sword of some kind - although one of his hands is a hook, so I'm thinking he can probably defend himself with that.