Photos by Steve Bloom/The Olympian
Brian McLaughlin, 14, a Yelm Middle School student and 4-H member, releases a newborn lamb at the family's Rainier-area home. McLaughlin says that the young animals are a sign that spring has arrived.

Daffodils, a sure sign of spring, can be seen around South Sound.

Cherry trees begin to bloom as a wet, cold winter draws to a close in South Sound.

Signs of Spring

After a particularly dark and chilly winter, South Sound welcomed the first day of spring on March 20 -- with mixed rain and snow.

Alas, spring hadn't quite sprung as most had hoped.

Yet some signs of the season are imminent.

The Olympia Farmers Market opens Thursday. Olympia's Arts Walk arrives April 19 and 20, and Procession of the Species will take over the streets on April 20. And the Lacey Spring Fun Fair, planned for May 4 and 5, follows soon after.

We asked South Sound residents to share their own signs of spring, and here's what they had to say:

- "It starts to look like spring when new things start happening in your yard and garden. You see the spring birds coming. The robins are beginning to show their faces." -- Jane Annegers, a Master Gardener who lives in Olympia.

- "It's baseball time. The crack of the bat, the smell of the grass. Anyone who doesn't say baseball (is a sign of spring) is un-American. Go Mariners!" -- Denny Heck, president of TVW, Washington's equivalent to C-SPAN.

- "Our lambs are usually born right around spring. And everything starts to grow again." -- Brian McLaughlin, a Yelm Middle School student and 4-H member.

- "The natural fields of sweet violets. When they start popping up out of the fields and the lawns, you know that spring is for sure going to get here. Before there were florists, the fellows went out and picked them for their sweethearts. And it was a labor of love and patience because they've got these spindly, short little stems. Seeing them grow free and natural is especially pleasing to me. It's a sign that, hey, we're going to make another year of it." -- Shirley Dziedzic, president of the Lacey Historical Society.

- "Well, this year I would say we're still kind of guessing when spring will come. But I was driving home the other day past Woodruff Park and I saw the flowers pushing up through the grass in the middle of the park. That was a sign that spring had sprung." -- Chris Serface, company manager for Olympia's Capital Playhouse.

- "It's the increasing daylight hours, the changes in light. The birds are more vocal. There's elevated spirits and hope." -- Gita Moulton, the organizer of Olympia's annual first-day-of-spring bubble-blowing celebration which, for the first time in 10 years, happened on a chilly day this year.

- "I grew up on a farm (in Yakima) so, to me, it's seeing the fruit trees bloom. I look over into my neighbor's yard right now and I see a beautiful, pink plum tree." -- Rep. Sam Hunt, D-Olympia.

- "When I see the crocuses and daffodils coming up, I know spring is here. I think the most important thing to me is that we start getting out of these gray, cloudy days." -- Bryant Russell, an HIV/AIDS volunteer and gay rights activist who lives in Olympia.

- "The first time we get to see the sun shine!" -- Bjorn Beech, manager of The Fly Fisher in Lacey.

- "A sign of spring here at Evergreen is that you start to see more people hanging out in Red Square. Students are out studying in the sun and enjoying the outdoors. For the college, it's a winding-down period. People are starting to relax." -- Jose Dominguez, director of student employment at The Evergreen State College and Tumwater resident.

- "The tulips popping through the ground, the smell of the dirt with the warm spring air. And being that I work for the Farmers Market, a sign of spring is the opening of our doors." -- Wil Carlsen, community relations manager for the Olympia Farmers Market.

- "For me, it's a sign of spring when your bulbs start coming up and the deer start eating them. And what they don't get, the slugs do." -- Olympia arts manager Linda Oestreich, who lives in Shelton.

- "I have horses I keep and when I clean the stall in the winter, a huge pile of manure collects south of the barn. A sure sign of spring to me is when I put up a sign for free manure and people actually come and take it away." -- Rep. Kathy Haigh, D-Shelton.

Ross Raihala covers entertainment for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5406 or rraihala@olympia.gannett.com.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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