"Tree!" and unexpected frogs

climate change?
four horsemen of the apocalypse?
my friend denny writes, "...I saw a frog in our little garden pond. I see green plants everywhere that have yet to die off because, like the two previous winters, we've had only brief cold spells."
I thought that was weird (who ever heard of frogs in December), but wouldn't you know it...I discovered one on the way to work this morning.
everything around is named cedar hills, but there ain't too many cedars in them hills no more...
So i'm walking down the hill from the transit center, minding my own affairs, and as i walked past the slope dotted with ferns and baby douglas firs poking up out of the slate-y rock, and what do i hear in the ditch just past the group of alders, but a frog croaking! how shocking indeed. it's been warmish this week, but i didn't think it was THAT warm. but then again the syringa is kicking out buds like it wants to bloom. what is UP? it is NOT spring!
while conversing with an unexpected frog cheered me up, it also made me sad...poor little guy's clearly confused.

wonder if we're even gonna have a winter in 10 years...
i'm with denny, i don't know if i like the way things are going in this world. i see abuses of the environment every day that offend the hell out of me. and that's only the stuff i can actually see. but as much as i'm tempted to go unabomber on the next muthafucker that throws trash along my sidewalk, i figure i ain't goin' nowhere so I gotta make the best of it...