An amazing sight last Tuesday afternoon. A magnificent bald eagle landed in the street that runs beside our building and pecked at the demolished body of a run-over rabbit while crows, who had been holding their own feast, objected loudly. One crow dared to land behind the eagle while others cawed from nearby trees, but the eagle turned to give him a hard look, and he decided the better part of valor would be to join his friends in the trees. Then the eagle scooped up the last large fragment of red flesh and leaped into the air, to disappear over tree- and housetops. It was a glimpse of, like they say, nature red in tooth and claw. Well, beak and talon.

Technically, it is too early to plant. Here in this part of Minnesota, the informal rule is, wait until Mother’s Day. But the temperatures have been so mild, I couldn’t wait, and put up my plant pole and transplanted the azalea I got from church into a bigger pot. This is the third year for the pole, and I like it more than ever. I bought it at our State Fair and it’s an easy way to get a lot of plants in a small space, stacking the tilted pots up it. Last year I had a geranium that was so healthy in the fall that I kept it over the winter in our apartment. It started blooming in February and I was glad to get it outdoors last weekend. It’s the variety that droops over the edge of the pot – which it didn’t do last year, but does this year.

And here’s a picture of Java the Bombay cat, showing off her exotic profile.

Last night we were introduced to the applications of candidates to be my church’s next rector. They seem different from one another but very qualified and it’s going to be a hard choice. And I’m still thinking this search would be the basis of a good mystery story.