'Weather' -- or not -- 'tis a fine time to be alive in Montana

BIG SKY COUNTRY CHARMS, EVEN WITH ITS WEATHER SHENANIGANS -- and oh, the birds!

Columbine and poppies, bending in the wind and rain, look toward the sunshine in the changing weather at High Chaparral.

STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS
PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER

Cookie's at the weed whacking, as the endless summer yard work begins.

MY GRANDMOTHER Olive often described Montana weather in this fashion:
"Nine months of winter and three months of company."
I'd add: "We've gone from rain coats and fires in the fire place to weed whacking and short shorts -- in less than 10 days.

Canada geese stop for a spring stroll  and snack
on our hillside grasses.

MOST STATES have some version of "If you don't like the weather, wait five minutes."  But in Montana, we've experienced drenching storms and flooded main streets (Harlowton suffered through crazy thunderstorms a couple weeks ago, with torrential rains. "I've never seen anything like it," said my 70-plus year old
Catch up with 'Lilian's Last Dance'
cousin, who has lived there most of her life.) Lightning, hail and thunder visit Montana most Junes and sometimes into July.  But the radical change from cool to sweltering is always a shock.  The thermometer at my Billings bank said 96 yesterday as we dashed around for errands. It was a nippy 46 degrees 10 days ago.
WE CAN'T control the weather, and here in cattle and ranching/farming country, it's blasphemous to curse the rain.
So we smile and slog through the mud, and peel off a layer when the sun shines.  We relish the bird life that comes and goes -- tanagers are plentiful this year, gold finches, orioles, chickadees, and the gorgeous lazuli bunting with his showy aqua and orange plumage.

A lazuli bunting caught in song, outside our home windows.

We've had hawks, owls and eagles fly right over the place, resting on a telephone wire just out the front window. So, thanks, Gram, for your sayings, which included this little ditty you sang, always with an Irish accent!

Whether the weather be fine,
Whether the weather be not,
Whether the weather be cold,
Whether the weather be hot,
We’ll weather the weather, 
whatever the whether,
Whether we like it or not!

A baby wren squawks for supper
from inside a bird house in our yard.

THE BIRDS MAY BE CALLING... But theater and national parks take starring roles in upcoming whereiscookie posts! We show what can happen when an enterprising opera company and an inventive theater troupe merge their resources and creativity. And we explore splendor in our two nearby national parks -- Glacier and Yellowstone! Remember to explore, learn and live, and follow us Wednesdays and weekends for our twist on travel, the arts, nature, cruising, pets and interesting hotels.