Thursday, January 27, 2011

Bored, Bored, Bored

The dogs are bored. Lucy is bored. Ennui is a scratchy woolen blanket draped over all of us in the house, muffling the light, the sounds, activity. Lucy expresses her boredom by stalking through the house, meowing unceasingly in a tone akin to fingernails scratching down a chalkboard. Okay, I suppose that's not the tone, but it's certainly the effect. Lady hops up each time we approach the closet that holds the jackets and leashes, only to turn back when she realizes we aren't going anywhere, the disappointment written all over her drooping body. And Lucky is simply invisible, hibernating on his bed in the back bedroom like a bear denned up for winter.

The recent rain hasn't helped. Nor the fact that each day holds only about 5 hours of sunlight. All right, maybe not 5, that's Alaska; I tend to exaggerate when bored out of my mind. But, it's dark now, and it will be dark when I get home from work. I find this part of winter tedious. The novelty and beauty of early winter has worn off, and turned dull, flat. I'm tired of the activities that a couple of months ago brought cheer and contentment, making the big pot of chili, reading by the fire, getting cozy in a blanket.

But in just a few short weeks, we'll be headed toward March, and crocus will be popping up here and there to surprise us. I know where to look for that first one, too. It will be in the front yard of a house on the left side of the road as we start out on the neighborhood walk route we refer to as "the lower loop." Oh, I can't wait. I'm so grateful to live in a place with four distinct seasons. We'll make it. In the meantime, maybe one more pot of chili, and some TV to pass the time.

4 comments:

  1. There ya go, at least you have some TV to watch, BOL
    Benny & Lily

    ReplyDelete
  2. The darkness is really the worst. I'm still in my classroom teaching when it gets dark outside, so it makes it feel like a really long day. I think Spring is the best with all the flowers and anticipation, though here in Chicago we sometimes have an extended winter that just jumps into summer.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lovely descriptive piece! I particularly liked "Ennui is a scratchy woolen blanket . . . " although for me Madame Ennui would be a soggy woolen blanket because she is freakin' heavy! LOL And how you shared each animal's unique response to the situation--loved it!

    However, I have to say that I'm fine with winter, as I enjoy hibernating and rarely know how to even spell board, oops, boared, oops, bored . . . oh, except for the year that we didn't see the ground until MAY. Ugh. :-)

    GREAT photo of Ms. Lucy!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great image for ennui -- and I love your previous post about the wren!

    ReplyDelete