False Spring returns--or maybe not false?

We had our chill spell and then it slowly warmed back up again. Today it was 81, very nearly summery feeling. My apricot tree has bloomed and is rapidly losing the blossoms. I'm not sure whether we;ll get a good crop or not.as last year was medium. Now the funky old Nectarine tree is starting to flower; its fruit are small, bitter and wrinkly so I leave them mostly for the birds.

If it stays warm for a few more days, I may have some lilacs blooming! Iris and lilies are coming up with lots of green leaves but no bloom stalks yet.  I have to remind myself it is still barely March for it feels like late April. However we're due for another cooler and maybe wetter blip next week. Everyone is a bit disappointed that El Nino has been kind of a bust an we have not had the good rains we need. The snow pack was good but is fading fast with heat and dry winds. The long term forecast still says cool and wetter than normal for March, April and May, especially April. Who knows??

With the Iditarod kicking off this coming weekend, I will be sticking close to my computer and following the action as much as I can from some 1500 miles away.  The annual rock and gem show is going on in Deming, NM from March 10-13 and I may try to run over that way one day, but we'll see. I'm still into playing with rocks and two years ago I did buy some crystals from up in the Huachuca Mountains, the site my late husband and kids and I got some back in the early 1970s and where we were heading when I broke my right ankle in 1999.  I gave the double one to a friend in exchange for a double he had given me but still kept two. I really like crystals, especially those with a history and a story behind them! And after that I may try for a week or so in Arizona again.

We've been talking a little bit about maybe wanting to go back to Arizona as the dust and wind here is really bad for my allergies and eyes and my brother's allergies too. By accident I stumbled on a place near Oracle, which is about 40 miles north of Tucson, around on the back or north side of the Catalinas. It is a manufactured home and a little bigger than our current house but it has a lovely 30x30 steel building that looks almost brand new and that is a huge temptation to a couple of people who always have projects going and need a lot of work space plus storage room for  things we cannot quite part with. However, the idea of moving again--we are still tired from the last time!-- is utterly daunting and this area is still mired in a bit of a recession and real estate is not selling like hotcakes. So for now it is more of a vague dream than a real plan but never say never, I guess. Oh well, what is life without a dream or two?