I meant to clear just half of the rest of the garden yesterday but by the time I got the biggest tuft of quack grass dug out there wasn't that much of it left so I just kept going, and I'm very glad I did because look what I found. The first three spears of asparagus (I know they're hard to see but, trust me, there's asparagus in that there photo) were hiding in the violets so I pulled out the violets around them very carefully and around the other places that I know asparagus pops up. Eeee, asparagus!
Here's the weedy part of the garden before and then the whole cleared garden after. Doesn't it look nice? The green on the left in the lower photo is the blueberry bushes and the green at the top of the picture is where the daisies, echinacea, and asparagus grows.
The tulips up on the retaining wall are in full bloom. These yellow and red ones are just gorgeous, aren't they? There are still plenty of violets in the lawn blooming merrily away, at least until the lawn mowers arrive and do away with them.
I read in the newest issue of Birds & Blooms about saucer-style hummingbird feeders where the nectar reservoir is below the feeding ports so you can see the birds no matter where they're having a sip and it's harder for bees, wasps, and other birds without the nice long hummingbird tongues to have a drink. The thought of keeping wasps and hornets away sent me to the birdseed store to see if they had one, and they did. Too often I've noticed hornets chasing hummers away so we'll see how this works. Still haven't seen one but we will soon, once the flowers start blooming.
Last night I realized that I was nearly out of cocoa butter cream when I went to slather it on my scaly legs after my shower so I went downstairs to my laboratory (aka the laundry area) to whip up a batch. I put in a touch of grapefruit essential oil. It's lovely and it smells so nice, plus my legs don't look like I have leprosy anymore.
May 7--Domenico di Michelino, Divine Comedy Enlightening Florence.
Imps dance over flames,
the damned haul rocks on their naked backs,
rain lashes huddled souls,
each circle seems worse than the last,
up or down doesn't matter,
every one offers its own exquisite nuance
of Hell's damnation.
~~~~~
Sorry about lapsing back into poetry but that painting was a bugger for my sleepy brain to decipher. A couple hours ago I went to Stein's Gardens and brought home four straw bales, some fertilizer, and some soil. From Home Depot I got a couple rolls of hardware cloth (which isn't cloth at all but half-inch wire mesh to keep gophers from tunneling into my bales; I had to insist that they had some when I asked where the fencing was, then I took it up to show the greeter and the manager-on-duty *sigh* and they weren't young kids either). When I got home I drove right around to the back yard (I'm so glad I can do that, it saves hauling heavy things), got the wheelbarrow out of the shed, unrolled the hardware cloth, and got the bales positioned in the garden. Tomorrow I'll pound in stakes to hold them in place, install soaker hoses, and sprinkle on fertilizer to start conditioning them. I'm starting very late, a month later than I should have but it's been so cold and rainy I couldn't get out to clear out the garden. I'll put weed barrier on the ground around and between the bales and cover it with newspaper to keep weeds down. I'm excited about gardening for the first time in years. This is a good thing, plus I've easily "made my steps" every day for the last three days. Yay, me!
--Barbara
I had this fantasy that I'd get up this morning and in a couple hours I'd have the garden all cleared and ready to have new landscape fabric laid down so I could get some straw bales this weekend and get them started composting so I can plant in a couple weeks. Well. I was a good girl and did my yoga first, then had breakfast and did the Jumble and worked on yesterday's Sudoku (I needed a little hint; it was a 3-star puzzle and I'm new at this), got dressed, gathered my tools, and out I went. It was a lot more strenuous (a LOT) than I thought to strip off the old landscape fabric since weeds had grown up through it to anchor it in spots plus all that bending over made my back ache. So I decided to take it in steps. Here's where it started (the blueberries are across the front closest to the camera) and below it is Step One after an hour's work (it seemed like two or three hours to my out-of-shape self). I also used the lopping shears to cut down a couple volunteer trees growing behind the rental side, trim the forsythia a bit, tidy up the top of the retaining wall, and drag all the sticks to the street.
I took a little break on the patio once I was done and a cardinal came to the feeder and left immediately when he realized I was there but he flew up into the tree behind the house and spent a few minutes singing his "cheer, cheer" song. Then I watched a hawk being chased by a biggish black bird, a starling or a small crow. It's funny how the hawks let themselves be driven off instead of turning around and nabbing the bird.
The apple tree has tight little pink knobs of buds getting ready to burst into bloom. Funny how they're so pink now and will be white when they open.
May 5--Woman Testing Telephones Before Dispatch to the General Post Office Stores. The jangle and whir of the room full of telephones was enough to drive DeeAnn crazy. She had been so excited when they told her she would have her own office but it had been barely an hour and she was ready to beg to go back to the typing pool. There were nineteen black phones on shelves around the small room. Each one had its own distinctive ring. Some had bells, others made a kind of clacking, and still others made a low whir like an angry squirrel. The phones were numbered and she was supposed to record which ones rang, how often, and who called. She supposed she should be glad that there was just one notebook, that each one didn't have its own notebook. She spent her second hour in the room looking for a hidden camera.
Hey, happy Cinco de Mayo! My friend AT and I were going to go to a Mexican restaurant for lunch today but fortunately I realized the date so we're going to a diner, the Blackstone, instead. Whew. Gotta shower, I'm all sweaty and dirt-y. Bye.
--Barbara
It's sunny again today. There are a few decorative clouds in the sky but it's mostly sunny and I couldn't be more thrilled.
Since I convinced (whined enough) Durwood not to have the lawn people spray pesticides or herbicides on the lawn (because it kills beneficial bugs and if they kill the weeds our "lawn" is even more splotchy than it already is, besides no chemicals costs less) we've got these lovely patches of white violets (with a few purple ones) in the spring. We don't plant them, we never planted them, the birdies plant them and then they spread. I love them. I love their flowers. I love their round, almost heart-shaped leaves. I'm keeping them.
I knitted yesterday. At work I added rounds of sock leg. It's easiest to knit the helical socks at work because I can rest the balls of yarn on the desk and shift them so they don't tangle. I am amazed at the difference pulling that one skein from the outside edge makes. Granted these yarn balls are various sock yarns tied together with Magic Knots so this solid color yarn, while attached to the blue speckledy stuff, isn't the same yarn at all. I don't care.
Then after supper I added an inch or so to LC's 3 Sweater. I think I'll start with that one at work today, change things up.
It was feeder time this morning. It was tricky to get then all in the frame but there's a Cardinal, 2 Goldfinches (one bright, one dull) and a flying Sparrow in the right corner that looks like a dust bison rolling by. And the tulips outside the front door are doing just fine. One of these days I'll capture them when they're open but for now I'm just glad they haven't become rabbit food.
May 4--Robert Delaunay, Runners. Clint heard the pounding of their feet behind him on the cinder track and their breathing sounded like stampeding cattle. The crowd sounds were like a distant storm rising and falling on the wind.. He knew he could win, knew he had the speed and muscle to power to the tape before anyone else. The yellow stripe passed under his feet, that meant only a hundred yards to go. He gulped air, filled his entire body with the oxygen he needed to be first. Suddenly he felt as if he ran in place and the stands and the infield were moving like some virtual reality treadmill. He felt light, as if his feet were only skimming the ground. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a pair of fists pumping, knew that was Jarrett pouring it on. From somewhere deep in his gut he dredged up just enough to maintain his lead, to lean forward, and break the tape. As soon as he did sound came back. He heard the crowd roaring and the announcer calling his name, felt the hands pounding his back as he walked to cool down.
Very exciting. You'd think I could run. Working again today. I'm thinking people will remember about SCUBA diving and start streaming in. Maybe now that it looks like it'll finally be warm for more than one day in a row. I'm hopeful. The birdbath wasn't icy this morning. Woohoo!
--Barbara
I sleepily put my hand up to the shade over the window above my head as I lay in bed, snapped it up, and lo and behold, there was sunshine out there. My eyelids slammed open and I vaulted out of bed. Okay, maybe I didn't vault but I rolled out with more enthusiasm than I've had in days. Look at that blue sky. Isn't it gorgeous? Even so the birdbath was iced over and the grass was frosty when I opened the curtains. Will it never warm up?
I probably shouldn't say this out loud but the rabbits haven't found my tulips--yet. The orangish-peachy one is still blooming and there's a pale pink one right above it. *sigh* I begin so see why tulips are DIL1's favorite.
Mr. Cardinal stayed at the feeder long enough for me to snap his picture this morning. Yesterday evening he and the Mrs. were at the feeder together, then they flew up into the apple tree to feed each other. So romantic.
Most of yesterday I spent getting the snowblower stowed in the garden shed, rearranging things so it fits right next to the lawnmower and in front of the wheelbarrow. That meant I had to take the chairs out of the shed which meant moving some planters that had overwintered on the edge of the patio which meant moving some rolls of wire which necessitated disposing of a baby bunny that didn't make it. I was sad for the bunny but I was very grateful that I was wearing gloves, had a plastic newspaper bag handy, and that today's garbage day. Then I took my car to Joe's to leave it until Friday to have some rust ground off and some repainting done. It won't be a body shop level job but it's just the bottom of the fenders so I don't think it'll be too noticeable. I'll be the one steering Durwood's battleship of a van for the next few days. Hmm, maybe I'll nip into Target for that second car seat after work since I've got all that hauling room.
I did knit a bit, putting more rounds on the Helical Sock SOCK #2. I am so glad that DD told me to put each yarn ball into its own tiny ziplock bag, snip a corner, and fish the end of the yarn out so there's a whole lot less tangling. Brilliant. Thanks, DD. I love you so much.
May 3--Jacques-Louis David, Mars Being Disarmed by Venus. "He's the god of war, you know," Inspector Gigot said. The young man beside him chuckled. "Being undone by a bevy of naked women," said Sergeant Nicks. Gigot shook his head. "Not just any naked woman, no less than Venus, the most beautiful woman there ever was." Nicks made a small sound. "Aren't you forgetting Helen of Troy? Nefertiti and Cleopatra? Beauties all and each capable of disarming the most militant of men or so the legends say." Gigot turned his back on the painting to look at the body sprawled on the polished marble floor of the museum gallery. "Do you think a woman destroyed this poor soul? Was he shot here to make a point or is it a coincidence that here is where he fell?" Half a dozen technicians went about their work, the quiet sounds of digital cameras and shoes encased in booties, low murmurs as notes were dictated gave the impression that a machine had started running and wouldn't stop until they had answers.
Hmm, not a bad beginning. I see that I should be driving away at this very minute. I'll slap a few photos on here and head out. No time for philosophizing today. Toodle-oo.
--Barbara
I haven't been knitting much lately so there's no yarny goodness to share, but I did look very closely at the planting bed right outside the patio doors this morning.
The first thing I spied was a raindrop twinkling in the sedum,
looking even closer I found a tiny, tiny, tiny lily of the valley bud barely poking out of the curl of leaves,
then I realized that one of the ferns is sending up curly fronds. Don't they look like they're from another planet?
A couple weeks ago I watched a Pioneer Woman episode on Food TV about making one-dish things, you know, sheet pan suppers and one-bowl cakes, but the thing that intrigued me the most was a ramen noodle soup bowl. She used thin slices of raw steak which I don't have and have no plans to buy but the essential concept was something I had to experiment with. I sliced off a little bit of grilled chicken breast and cut it into matchsticks, thin sliced a single scallion, grated a couple baby carrots into the bowl with the meat and onions. Then I sloshed in about a tablespoon of low-sodium soy sauce, about a teaspoon of hoisin sauce (you could use oyster sauce instead if you'd like), and a tiny squirt of sriracha. I broke up the noodle cake a bit, sprinkled on a bit of the seasoning packet, poured on 2 cups of boiling water, clapped a cover on the bowl, and let it sit for about 5 minutes. Mmm, yummy. Yesterday I made one batch in two bowls to share with Durwood because I'm a nice person and, to be honest, the bowl with the whole cake of noodles was a bit much for me for lunch. Even better a whole cake of ramen is only 6 Weight Watchers points so with an ounce of meat (1 point) and some sauces (maybe a point combined) it makes a good lunch, especially if I put in more veggies. I love lots of veggies.
May 2--Gustav Klimt, Roses Under the Trees. Cheryl thought the roses looked like snowflakes or stars against the dark green trees. She wouldn't think there was enough sunlight for them to survive, much less thrive tangled in the branches the way they were. Of course these were hardy shrub roses, wild roses not hybrids. The roses in the trees had a single frill of petals around their center and the fragrance hadn't been bred out of them. She spread her blanket in a small clearing, ate her lunch, and got to work on a short story but she got distracted by the thick overpowering rose aroma that rolled over her out of the tangles of roses.
It's still cold and cloudy. I dropped my car off at Joe's to get some body work and painting done and it was darned cold and pretty darned windy walking home. Not that I regret the walk but it would have been a whole lot more pleasant if it hadn't felt like my hair was going to blow off.
--Barbara
... I sure hope it's warm where you are because it's barely 40 degrees, windy, and rainy here. See? I saw a flicker of a Cardinal at the feeder but it's even too crummy out there for the birds today.
The forsythia is still blooming happily and the poppy leaves are getting bigger but no buds yet. The bleeding heart is getting big and the blueberry buds are swelling nicely. If only the sun would shine...
My big accomplishment last night was getting the May pages of my Bullet Journal set up. Ooh, way to get the job done, Barbara.
May 1--Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird. She wore the necklace as if it were priceless gems and not digging into her flesh with every step. The stuffed hummingbird hanging like a bauble from the thorny noose moved like it struggled to get away. People looked at her and then looked away in pity or in anger as if her presence forced them to acknowledge their own frailties. If anyone had bothered to look at her, to really see her, they would have been moved by how fragile her calm was, how near to trembling her slightly pursed lips were, and how deliberate her steps were as if she walked on broken glass.
I have a feeling that I'm going to do nearly nothing today. I'll make sure that all the full-spectrum lights are on all day. Come on, sunshine.
--Barbara
I meant to clear just half of the rest of the garden yesterday but by the time I got the biggest tuft of quack grass dug out there wasn't that much of it left so I just kept going, and I'm very glad I did because look what I found. The first three spears of asparagus (I know they're hard to see but, trust me, there's asparagus in that there photo) were hiding in the violets so I pulled out the violets around them very carefully and around the other places that I know asparagus pops up. Eeee, asparagus!
I read in the newest issue of Birds & Blooms about saucer-style hummingbird feeders where the nectar reservoir is below the feeding ports so you can see the birds no matter where they're having a sip and it's harder for bees, wasps, and other birds without the nice long hummingbird tongues to have a drink. The thought of keeping wasps and hornets away sent me to the birdseed store to see if they had one, and they did. Too often I've noticed hornets chasing hummers away so we'll see how this works. Still haven't seen one but we will soon, once the flowers start blooming.
