Such an ordinary week...

that I have very little of what Ray calls "blog fodder." Not much of great interest going on around here. Which, given all the possibilities, is probably good news. Spring seems to have finally arrived. Flowers and rain—rain and more flowers. Spring in Portland. It is beautiful and wet.

Remember a couple of months ago I wrote about a young man being murdered in front of my grocery store and the sad, dreary memorial that was growing in front of the store? This evening I parked at the grocery store just in front of where the memorial had been and saw that it was gone. In its place is a jazzy red bench and the bike rack next to it has been painted to match.

Closer inspection shows a plaque attached naming it as a memorial to the murder victim.

Someone had left a pansy blossom below the plaque. This warmed my heart. What a lovely way to remember someone, with a beautiful bench where the elderly store patrons can wait for their ride, or store employees can take a break and enjoy a cup of coffee in the sunshine. So much better than wilting flowers and ratty, wet Teddy bears. In coming years people will probably wonder who Ryan Lee Johnson was and how he died so young and perhaps never have to know what an ugly scene this was on one cold, rainy day in the winter of 2012. Rest in Peace, Ryan Johnson. Rest in Peace.

And inside the store I spotted these radishes. They looked so extra red and beautiful that I had to bring them home.

Spring. Don't you love it? The world just seems new and shiny all over again.