Lucy Park Spring Sprung Green Vernal Equinox Nature Communing

The Big Blow which began hurricaning last week, with one short break being like the eye of a hurricane, finally quit blowing today, the day known as Thursday, the third such day of the third month of 2025.

So, after seeing my drug dealer to pick up some prescribed pharmaceuticals, I ventured on to nearby Lucy Park for some wind-free, dust-free, smoke-free, semi-warm nature communing.

Since my last Lucy Park visit, a week ago, give or take a day, the dominant color is no longer brown.

Green is taking over. On the ground, and in the trees, with some trees beginning to sprout leaves.

Seeing all this green had me wondering when Spring gets sprung, this year.

So, back at my computer I Googled "when does Spring begin in Wichita Falls Texas" and got the following information...

Spring officially begins near Wichita Falls, TX on March 20th, 2025 with the vernal equinox, marking the start of the season. 

Time: Spring begins at 4:01 a.m. Central Time (CT). 

So, that was one nice Spring walk around the increasingly green Lucy Park backwoods jungle today...

Goodbye Winter Hello Spring Looking For Tulips

Scrren cap from Skagit Breaking News via Facebook

No, that is not what is known as a Luenserized look at a North Texas, or Fort Worth, scene you are looking at here.

The mountain foothills in the distance is one clue this is not a North Texas scene.

That and the huge field of daffodils.

This harbinger of spring flowerly view is from my old home zone of the Skagit Valley, with those daffodils blooming in a field in what is known as the Skagit Flats.

The Skagit Flats is one of the world's most fertile agricultural areas.

Only the Netherlands produces more tulips and tulip bulbs than what grow annually on the Skagit  Flats.

A harsher winter than is the norm, with more rain than is the norm, has slowed up the blooming of the flowers this year on the Skagit Flats.

The annual month long Skagit Valley Tulip Festival brings over a million Tulip Tourists to the Skagit Valley.

I have blogged about the Skagit Tulip Festival a time or two, such as Tiptoeing Through The Skagit Valley Tulips, and way back in 2010, The 27th Annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival.

I lived in West Mount Vernon way back in the last century during the early years of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. At that point in time I did not like the traffic jams which brought a sort of gridlock to much of the Skagit Flats.

Over the years much of the traffic jam problems have been improved, spreading Tulip Tourists out to more locations, with destinations like Tulip Town, and events in the valley's various towns. And better signage directing incoming tourists to the various freeway exits available.

North Texas gets colorful this time of year too. Not so much via planted fields of flowers, but via Mother Nature in the form of wildflowers.

Spring is the most colorful time of the year to visit Texas...

A Cold Vernal Equinox First Day Of Spring Palm Sunday In Texas

Winter of 2016 is now history. Spring of 2016 is now freshly sprung.

As you can see, via the view from my patio balcony, Spring at my location has sprung with a bright sunny Sunday.

A cold first day of Spring.

Only 37 degrees when the sun arrived this morning. So, the pool was a too cool no go for a first day of Spring refreshing dip.

In addition to today being the Vernal Equinox it is also Palm Sunday. That being the day Jesus made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, to be murdered five days later, and then supposedly sprung back to like two days after that, on the day known as Easter.

I think I have my bible story correct. It has been a few decades since I have been in Sunday School....

Hot Tub Hydrotherapy Prior To Today's Springing Of The Vernal Equinox

As you can see, via the view from my patio overlook on the outer world, with just a few minutes left in Winter, my hot tub is back full of water and thus providing me much needed hot tub hydrotherapy, of which I availed myself early this morning whilst Winter was still providing a wintry chill.

The hot tub back being hot afforded three semi-lengthy bouts in the still sort of cool pool.

My previously semi-aching arthritic joints are really feeling the benefits of this morning's hydrotherapy. My joints are feeling so good I think I will take them on a bike ride today with the Indian ghosts who haunt Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area.

If my sources are correct, and they usually are, we may have already reached the Vernal Equinox, or will soon, like within the hour, beginning the period where the sun is ever higher in the sky til it reaches the Summer Solstice part of the cycle to begin its long Fall back to Winter.

With the arrival of Spring we should soon see the regularly scheduled arrival of wildflowers, with that arrival being the most colorful time of the year in Texas.

I saw one outbreak of wildflowers on the Tandy Hills yesterday, but they were not colorful enough to motivate me to photo document them.

The Sunny Green View From Miss Puerto Rico's Formerly Snowy Balcony

You are looking at the Sunday afternoon view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony. As you can see the view has gotten way greener than the same view a couple months ago.

We had ourselves the most wintry Winter this Winter, outdoing all my previous Texas Winters, with its icy, snowy, cold Wintriness.

Currently this Spring is being the mildest Spring of all my previous Texas Springs. I can not remember the last time I've heard the tornado sirens. I've only felt compelled to turn on my air-conditioning a couple times, so far, with my windows being able to be open way more often than I recollect in prior times.

I do not know if this trend bodes ill or well for the coming Summer. Last Summer we did not have very many 100 degree plus days. My Hottest Summer in Texas, I don't remember which year, but I do remember there were dozens of days over 100 degrees.

I'm guessing we are heading towards a record breaking Super Hot Summer. I'm usually wrong about such things. It'll likely turn out to be a record breaking Super Cold Summer, now that that Global Warming brouhaha has turned out be a myth.

I do know for almost absolute certainty that it will not get cold enough, this Summer, to cause a repeat of the snowy, February 12, view from Miss Puerto Rico's balcony.

I am returning to the Tandy Hills today on a Sunglasses Search Mission. Wish me luck.

Missing Persons Found In Texas With A Cold First Day Of Spring

I was in no mood to go hiking today, naked or otherwise. It's just too cold and windy. So, I went to my neighborhood Super Wal-Mart around noon.

Parked next to me I saw the sign you see here in a pickup truck window.

I experimented with that type hiking, last summer, after reading about this being a fad. It was not an enjoyable experience.

I don't know if the moon is full or if the first day of Spring causes kookiness, but I've had my plate full today.

Tootsie Tonasket called with the need to vent about the Tonasket police raids on her gang regarding alleged deer poaching. With it being warm enough in Eastern Washington that Tootise is BBQing today. Something one would not want to do today in my zone of Texas. I assume Tootsie is not BBQing deer meat.

The Queen of Wink is no longer missing. I had a long talk with the Queen. She had a fine time in San Antonio.

Elsie Hotpepper found Steve Doeung, so he is no longer missing.

And in what may be the kookiest thing of the day, Twister is very concerned regarding my undefined pectoral muscles and the need to alleviate this sad situation. Push ups are the prescribed solution. Maybe if I lost that extra 40 pounds I've gained it might prove valuable in this definition resolution problem.

Miss Puerto Rico called while I was doing lunch. I let it go to Voice Mail. I've not visited the Island Girl for a couple weeks. I assume she's left a message asking me to come over. I'll try to refrain from soliciting Miss PR's opinion regarding the sad state of my undefined muscle problem.

It is currently a balmy 45 with the wind continuing to gust. Three more months until Summer. Maybe it'll be warm by then.

Pushing Through Snow Drifts To Go Swimming On The First Day Of Spring In Texas

You're looking at the view of my pool, out the weight room window, with bushes covered with snow, on the first day of Spring in Texas.

If I remember correctly, last year, on the first day of Spring, the water in the pool was already a pleasant temperature and I already had a suntan. Those type Texas days are gone, now that the state, apparently, has decided to re-locate in the Arctic.

When the sun finally got around to lighting up the place, this morning, there was more snow to be seen than I'd expected. Due to the high wind, most areas, like around the pool, were swept clean of the cold stuff.

It is 33 out there right now, coming up on 10am. It was colder than that when I went out, pool-bound, about 8.

In the still photo, extracted from video, you can't tell I was reacting with a bit of a shiver when getting in the water. In the video version I verbalize my reaction to the cold saying something like, wow that's cold.

After I took the video picture I retreated to the Hot Tub to warm up. After that was accomplished I jumped back in the ice, from the deep end, and hurried to the shallow end.

If it weren't for adding an additional 40 pounds of insulative adipose tissue I don't think I'd be able to enjoy these cold morning water experiences. Does a morbidly obese person feel the cold at all? I can't help but wonder.

Still no word from any of the missing persons.

And on a totally unrelated note, the movie star Sandra Bullock is married to a guy named Jesse James. Apparently Jesse was a bad boy and has been in the news lately. Years ago there was another bad boy named Jesse James. Long ago I made a webpage about Jesse James and his imaginary connection to Granbury, Texas, titled "The Truth about Jesse James." Due to people looking for information about the modern day Jesse James bad boy, my webpage about the other Jesse James has gone through the roof, hit wise, due to people Googling for the truth about Jesse James.