Favorite Things...

I absolutely love things with a vintage feel and touch. I know that I am not alone in this personal interest and have lots of company in the pursuit of all that is time worn and beautiful. As a kindred soul, with an appreciative beholders eye, I never seem to tire of the hunt for things with a memorable past. Ever since I was a little girl, I have had a love affair with the endless variety of wonderful memento's created before my time. For whatever reasons, it seems to draw from within me and will always be a part of me, providing a source of great joy and comfort in my everyday life. Finding special objects seems to occur by sheer accident at times, yet it is always fun to come across something unique that "asks" to be purchased and taken home for endless moments of enjoyment.

A Patch of Oregano

It was a day filled with glorious sunshine when I walked outside and sat down on the steps of our walkway to finish a bite of sandwich I made for my lunch.

I glanced down the walkway at the flower bed that fills that corner of the sidewalk leading to the driveway, and thought of the plans I have had in mind for this flower bed... yet fall short in making them happen. I have even bought plants in the past, intending to plant them there and visualizing how beautiful they would look once given a place to grow and flourish.

In the winter months, this area is absolutely barren without much sign of plant life, with exception of a couple of Rose bushes, a stately Japanese Maple tree and some Evergreen shrubs placed just off the curbside. Come Spring and warmer weather, the scenery slowly begins it's transformation and dormant plants beneath the soil begin to creep to life. A few Tulips rise up from the ground and bloom their springtime flowers, and then suddenly and steadily the Oregano plants surface and begin to grow. I have two varieties within that flower bed...each with a different hue of purple blossoms that display along the stems as they shoot up in height to maturity. I love the way they look when they are in bloom, but I am not the only one attracted and appreciative of these perennial herbal plants. They represent an important meeting ground and hub of activity for many different varieties of bees in all shapes, sizes and colors that converge each year upon this patch of oregano.

In they fly on a mission with a purpose. Time is short and of the essence for these busy and buzzing bees. It's an amazing sight to witness...really, and to acknowledge how Mother Nature created this wonderful Eco system where dedicated bees gather nectar and pollen that enable plants to reproduce. In return, pollen feeds baby bees and nectar is turned into honey to be enjoyed by other bee inhabitants in their respective hives.

As I sat there taking in the flying, the darting, the swooping down of the bees upon and amongst those flowers, I began to think that perhaps what I am witnessing truly is important..and that the least I can do is to maintain the status quo. I am sure that the bee communities that arrive, without fail, in my garden each summer and descend upon my patch of Oregano would be in complete agreement with that decision.

GONE..COMPLETELY OUT OF THE PICTURE

I got up very early today and couldn't get back to sleep. Since I was wide awake and had some energy to do so, I logged onto my computer. An hour or so quickly passed by and soon I heard Mark moving around in the kitchen. I joined him there where he had just made a fresh pot of coffee and we chatted as we enjoyed our usual cup or two for the day. He mentioned how he and Jim would be starting the removal of the Cherry Tree within a few hours. By this time, my lack of sleep had caught up with me, and feeling too groggy to remain awake I went back to bed for more needed rest.

A little past 10:00 A.M., I awakened and remembered the scheduled task for the tree. I got up and glanced out the upstairs bedroom window and could see that they had removed one of the larger lower branches...as it was already on the ground. Then, right before my eyes, without so much as a loud thud, the tree came down. The deed had been completed and the tree was now gone forever. As crazy as it sounds, I am going to miss that pesky tree.

ABSOLUTELY THE TRUTH

My husband, Mark, is going to play George Washington tomorrow...that is, along with the help of our neighbor, Jim. First thing in the morning, they are going to chop, or I should say chain saw down the Cherry tree located next to our driveway. We have had it for years and sorry to say this, but it is nothing but the "pits" to have around. Excuse the (groan) pun, but after the tree blooms, the blossoms do indeed develop into cherries..it's just that they are not that tasty, the majority are difficult to reach with a ladder for picking, and when ripen, they drop off the tree onto the driveway and on top of my husband's van which is parked there. An additional problem is the tree's root system. Over the course of time it has been growing in that location, a portion of the roots have developed into a protruding ridge that could eventually errupt beneath the neighbor's driveway.

We drove to Lowe's this evening where he found and purchased a saw for tomorrow's tree removal. It sure didn't look all that powerful to me, and I hope the two "woodsmen" are up to the task of getting it down carefully and safely. For the record, we did not plant it as a fruit tree. Originally it was a Weeping Cherry and remained as one until one day it's grafted Cherry branches took over..so upward and onward it grew instead of remaining as the original drooping variety with branches bent downward towards the ground.

I am definitely sad to see this tree taken down, but it is the only feasible solution.

A Quarter of a Century

I spent some time this morning snapping photos of assorted plants that I have growing in containers on my deck. The Christmas Cactus is placed there for the summer months, which actually improves it's appearance over that course of time. Unbelievable as it seems to me, the placing of this plant in it's out door location has been a ritual for the past six seasons.

It is a special plant to me as it once belonged to my Mom and Dad. It is at least twenty-five years old..maybe, even older. The folks kept it in the middle bedroom, which had been unused for years, except for a few house plants placed on an old chest by the bedroom window. My parents watered and tended to each plant's care...keeping them alive and thriving throughout the many years they were kept in that room. The plants sat directly in front of the window where they were exposed to incoming daylight controlled by my parents when they periodically opened and lowered the window shade. The Cactus always managed to get the right levels of light and darkness, thereby guaranteeing many wonderful blossoms every holiday season. Since it has been home with me, I have yet to duplicate the same magical formula for the annual flowering of this plant. However, the good news is that over the years it has grown ever so big while in my care. The branches are bountiful, healthy looking and shiny, and it responds well to it's summer location on a shaded corner table of the backyard deck.

I like to think of this plant as a continued blessing and reminder of a parent's love that remains with me even though they are no longer a part of my life or of this world.

The Frog Days of Summer

The Seattle area hot spell had taken it's toll on my deck plants, so I diligently began spending time watering them...once, or even twice a day as needed. I had created an Ivy topiary and it is a work in progress. Hopefully, it will produce more needed growth so I can continue the twining look that I love about these plants. The other evening, as I started to water this Ivy, I decided to repeat the efforts a second time so I poured some more water into the pot. Just as I began to turn away to continue on with my plant watering, I caught a glimpse of something on the edge of the bucket where the Ivy pot was housed inside. Sure enough, there he was, and looking a bit startled by having his space invaded with the sudden wet disruption! Holding on to the top of the bucket was a small, green garden frog that had been forced out of his "happy" little hiding place. I can only imagine his froggy thoughts for having his serenity disturbed by the likes of me.

Amazingly, the next two plants that I watered also brought out resident frogs forced to surface from the flash floods created with my attempts to maintain plant life. My watering chores brought more than a few smiles on this day, thanks to the delightful encounters with Mother Nature's garden variety!!!

“Remember, happiness doesn't depend upon who you are or what you have, it depends solely upon what you think.” — Dale Carnegie

SUNNY THOUGHTS....

A while back, I stepped out of the the comfort of our air conditioned car into what felt like an inferno fueled by the heat of the afternoon sun. My memories were jolted as I remembered the years I spent growing up in a desert town located in Eastern Washington.

I used to joke with my parents that they had plenty of summer sunshine over their way, but neither hide nor hair dare step outside when the weather reached scorching daytime temperatures. When the thermometer escalated into the "teens" from the intense heat of the afternoon sun, little relief was available..and all one could do was deal with the hot spell until it passed over.

As a kid growing up in that town, cooling off was as easy as running barefoot through the sprinklers in the yard or plopping down in the living room in front of the air conditioner to enjoy the cool breeze blowing from the fan.

Just talking about the hot and dry weather of that desert area makes me thirsty for a tall, cold glass of home brewed ice tea!

WELCOME...PLEASE JOIN ME ON A GARDEN PATH

“I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all” — Laura Ingells Wilder