1st pussy willow, 99RestWest

There are times when the daily treks that inspired this endeavor are not strictly in keeping with the purpose stated on this site's blog introduction, which is to say, there are times when I just can't hit the natural history trail. But nature can be where you find it: looking out a train window, walking city streets, or, in this case, trekking across the parking lot between the local Stop and Shop in Westerly, Rhode Island, and the local CVS. En route while climbing over snow drifts, I noticed something intriguing in the landscaping that surrounds the local 99 Restaurant: the ornamental Pussy Willows have felt the increase in the daylength—the sun's now not setting until about 5:30 and there are at least 10.5 hours of sunlight—and begun to display their "furry" parkas. The distinctive bud covers are one of the surest signs of incipient spring and they help protect the flower parts getting ready to lure in early pollinators from another incipient sign: the rapid and potentially destructive changes in the finicky weather that might bring in more snow and cold.