Trying to get in the habit of this...

I'm trying to get in the habit of this whole blogging thing... but naturally the times when I think of things to write about are when I am not near the computer, usually on my walk to the train from work. I do not have, nor do I plan to get, a smart phone or anything else I could blog from, so... I guess I should start writing things down.

Some of the things that have occurred to me to write about (that I can remember, anyway) are things I see on the walk. Strangers laughing together as their dogs run and play together, a couple taking a quiet twilight stroll, a young father playing in the snow with his little girl. These things make me smile, and I can almost always use that after a long day at work. Watching these things, these sweet, everyday moments, reminds me that not everyone is as self-centered as many I encounter during the work day.

The one thing that has made me happiest this week is that there is still daylight for my walk. I've been a little uneasy all winter, walking six blocks in the dark in Chicago. Now, though I remain and always will be cautious, I feel a little less suspicious of anyone who happens to be walking behind me. Spring is on its way, at long, long last. On some of the warmer days (in the 30s!) I can smell that decadent aroma- slightly warm, slightly rainy, wholly expectant- which comes in these few weeks in which winter ends and spring slowly begins. I can hardly wait for the first soft rain, the first of the flowers poking their little green selves through the soil, the chirping of birds as they come home for the summer, or that first day the temps are warm enough for me to celebrate spring by driving with my windows down with music blasting.

What are you looking forward to most about spring?