Wearing a red national team uniform, San Lorenzo Valley High School senior Anna Maxwell represented the United States junior team at the Bupa Great XC International Challenge Run. This event was held in Edinburgh, Scotland on January 11. Only six girls were chosen to compete on the youth team in this 4000-meter race. Maxwell finished 11th overall and 3rd on her team in 14 minutes, 32 seconds. Battling a soggy, wet course with rolling hills and a creek to cross, she was the only high school girl on the U.S. team.

In our neck of the woods we could change the iconic saying inscribed on a New York Post Office that reads "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night…" to "neither drought nor freeze nor wind can stay the coming of spring."

Last year my hubby and I agreed to do away with gifts; gifts that were expected, gifts that television and newspapers tell us we should buy, even gifts for our animals. We are at that stage in life where fortunately we really need nothing. When I put this no gift idea to Hubby Norm instantly a wave of relief spread across his face.

As the high tide started to recede, the deeper holes of the San Lorenzo River lagoon filled with coho salmon and steelhead as they wait for rain.

The unusually warm January weather has made the early flowering trees and shrubs bloom even earlier this year. Actually it's not so unusual for us to have a warm streak around here in January. What is unusual is the prolonged dry and stable conditions we have encountered. The high pressure system that blocks our usual winter rains does not usually last more than 2 to 3 weeks even in the heart of the rainy season. The persistent ridge has not behaved in a typical manner. We can only hope the ridge breaks down in the next few months and brings us more than a smattering of rain here and there. What should a gardener be doing in February?