"Pear" and some thoughts on weather forecasting

We have a winner in the basement paint decision making. It is Pear, by Behr. Here's a picture pulled off the web (source below) with a rockin' blue ceiling that I'm not going to do this round, but really like.

I intentionally picked something kind of bright because the basement only has a couple of small windows. It's funny how different the paint chip looked at Home Depot vs. in my car driving to work (stopped at a light, of course), vs. when I was in bed with the compact fluorescent bulb lamp illuminating things vs at work. 

Compared to the color of this on my screen, the paint chip has a bit more yellow than the picture. I figure it will match nicely with browns, as well as blues, and yellow as well. I'm going to finish my coffee, have some breakfast and get to it.

We are supposed to have a doozy of a winter storm today, and so far, it's been a bit of a disappointment, although it is snowing steadily at the moment. We had temps in the high 50's this week, so surfaces are pretty warm to begin with, and the temperature is in the low 30's now. Even if it just rains, we in CO are so grateful for moisture, as it has been a very dry winter. 

It's time to think about starting seeds, and I'm on the fence about what to start. The chances of me being able to grow lettuce starts comparable to those I can find at the local nursery are slim. And it helps that they satisfy, in that I buy a red leaf, a green leaf and a spinach and like my salads just fine with those. I have a packet of seeds that is a variety of spring mix things. Maybe I'll give that a go. I can always buy the starts if if doesn't work out.

One thing I am most certainly going to start is several varieties of zinnias. They've consistently done well in my hot, south-facing alley garden, so I'm going to take advantage of that. There are so many kinds, too. For the rest of the growing slots in my little bit of seed starting space (one heat mat and one 2' grow light) I'll have to ponder and see what appeals to me.

I have had the great good fortune to cross paths with a super-gardener. She's in the gamer group I joined about a year ago, and growing food is her thing. I am so inspired by her, and look forward to talking garden stuff as this season progresses. She's also come to most of the trivia nights that I've been organizing, so she is a friend as well. Win-win!!

And speaking of trivia, it has been a lot of fun to get some friends together and participate. The music is too loud sometimes, and we probably don't drink as much as the bar would like us too (I say that facetiously) but I have really enjoyed it. This past week, there were people from three different parts of my life there, and that was really cool. 

Image from here.