Today's daffodil display is brought to you by the King Alfred variety.
These, and the petite daffodils pictured in my previous posting are lighting up my front garden.
Last night I attended my town's Board of Selectmen's meeting. During the reports by department heads--Health Officer, Welfare Officer, Fire Chief, Police Chief, Road Agent--we heard about the incredible property- and soul-destroying damage throughout the town. FEMA has already made it's initial pass through the area to assess, and the Governor toured the disaster zones over the weekend.
This morning I tore myself away from the garden and drove to the capital--a tree is flowering on the State House lawn!--for a morning Caucus followed by two public hearings in my committee.
Our Chairman is very good about involving all committee members in the process--writing blurbs, drawing up amendments, chairing hearings. Last week he asked whether I wanted to preside over one of today's hearings. I didn't say I didn't want to.
So at 10:45, the time of the second hearing, he ceded his place--and his gavel--to me. I got accustomed to being addressed as "Madam Chair" and concentrated on banging the gavel with authority. The first speaker was a Senator, the primary sponsor, followed by a representative of the Fish & Game Department, then the head of the Audubon Society (a slight acquaintance, the Chap worked with him for a couple of years) and a gentleman from the Nature Conservancy.
In the back of my mind I was wondering--though I never actually asked--when a female last sat in the Fish & Game Committee's chairman's chair. If ever. Last term there were, I believe, 19 men and 1 woman on F&G. This term it's 18 and 2.
After we recessed, we took our wonderful, efficient, hard-working, patient Committee Assistant out to lunch. Lots of people had the fried clams, which were rather good. However, I shall not reveal where we ate so no feelings will be hurt when I say that the place features the worst créme brûlée ever conceived. When my female counterpart on the committee and I heard what flavour it was (we would be sharing one between us), we dithered. It sounded dodgy. Because it really was. It was not of a créme-y consistency, nor was the top the least bit brûlée.
I never actually believed there could be bad créme brûlée. Now I do.
"It's more like a pudding," said my friend just before I laid down my spoon in defeat. Not even a good pudding. I let her finish it off.
On a happier note, this unnamed establishment restaurant was conveniently situated next door to the tire company that services our vehicles. So I left my Saab there while lunching and by the time I walked back to pick it up the snow tires were off and the regular tires were on.
I hope I'm not tempting fate. It's so warm and sunny right now, snowfall is but a dim memory.
Unbelievably, after all the flooding of last week the fire danger is extremely high and brush fires are breaking out around the state.
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