Lilies and Lessons Learned

It seems like July's been a long, hot ordeal for everyone. 

The hand of fate may have dealt us all another really messed up month but the lilies in my garden have kept their promise and showed up in spite of everything.

Sometimes I forget all about them because they bloom after the roses and just before the hydrangeas, both big, showy attention grabbers. Or it could be because they bloom on tall stalks that blend into everything else so when the flowers open it seems like they have suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

In any case, they're great little surprises, especially when they pop up in places I don't remember planting them! 

Speaking of surprises. His Madness and I waited a little too long before getting our last booster and came down with covid a week after our fourth shot. Even though we pay attention to the news and knew there were variants about, it seemed reasonable to expect some level of protection after four doses of the vaccine. We were wrong. On the bright side, it didn't kill us and I really don't mind not being able to smell the garbage but I would like my sense of taste back. 

In the middle of our covid craziness a line of thunderstorms with strong winds blew down a couple huge trees in our neighborhood. It's not unusual for bad storms to pass through our area in the summer but we've never lost power before. It was another learning experience! Now we know what we need to do to be ready for the next time. Luckily, I was on a decluttering binge and had just come across a candle and a lighter when everything went dark. Once I found my phone I used the flashlight to find a few more candles and some batteries for the Luminara ones - that oddly, don't give off nearly as much light as the real ones, but you can put them anywhere without starting a fire. 

It started to rain around six o'clock in the evening and we should have realized something big was on it's way when it got so dark the we needed to turn on the lights. HM managed to override the electric ignition on our gas stove and remove all the hair from his right forearm at the same time. Another plus for having no sense of smell. He was making paella that evening and had everything chopped up and ready to cook which kept further injuries to a minimum. 

Thanks to this little guy from Cracker Barrel's online store our living room stayed lit enough to navigate through for the rest of the evening - on three AAA batteries! Sometimes it's handy to be so obsessed with Halloween that you start shopping for decor in July. Another thing I learned was if you turn off the flashlight on your phone and absentmindedly set it down in some random spot, it's really hard to find. 

In the middle of the night all the lights came on when the power was restored. A rude but very reassuring way to wake up, at least we got back to sleep. It took nearly a whole day to restore the internet and cable. I was stunned to realize how much I rely on electronic devices! Eventually we figured out ways to pass the time without electricity and resolved to always keep the piano well tuned. Is this going to change our internet addiction? Probably not but we will definitely be keeping our vaccines up to date. 

Stay safe and thanks for stopping by!

Back Again

It's been six years today since I started this blog . . .  and two months since my last post!

 

Not to make excuses, because I've never been a very consistent blogger, however this was a long absence even for me. For awhile now I've been really tired and feeling like I was in a fog. I blamed it on the usual suspects - general laziness, the pandemic, a lack of motivation, the war in Ukraine, my mother, those idiots Trump put on the Supreme Court, the weather, assault weapons, allergies, general contractors, stress and anything else I could think of. After casually mentioning this to my doctor, she immediately started doing all sorts of horrible tests that took forever and scared me half to death. It turned out to be a vitamin D deficiency. Seriously. It's understandable that they want to rule out the serious stuff but I'd really rather not have had to go through an MRI of my brain in order to find out I needed a vitamin. Anyway, it was a huge relief to discover it was something easy to fix. Now, after three weeks of massive doses, I'm feeling better but I still can't handle the daily news.

 In my absence, Mother Nature has been doing a great job of looking after my garden this year. She could exercise a little more self control when it comes to the heat but otherwise I can't complain.

It's so handy that perennials come up on their own every year, not that I know where these daisies came from, ha! After they have finished blooming we cut them down to just a couple of inches and they blend into what we jokingly refer to as a "lawn". It's made up of daisies, violets, clover, dandelions and various other weeds. Still, when the summer turns hot and dry it always stays green instead of turning brown, like the actual grass in the front yard.  

Like the garden, the Skeleton Crew have been neglected lately too but somehow they always manage to be cheerful.

They look pretty happy about finding orange and black petunias in the spring.

Kibitz has his own ideas about what needs to be planted in the garden. 

To get things moving, Kibitz brought out the only pumpkin left from last fall.

They got the hint and decided they needed to hurry up and get those pumpkin seeds planted!

 

Meanwhile, there's still a few things about summer to enjoy before we get to pumpkin season.

Happy Pride Month to all my family, friends and readers!

(Sorry for being so late.)

Thanks for stopping by!

We're Halfway to Halloween!

A few days ago, between the bare trees and snow on the ground, it was definitely looking like Halloween here! This was our backyard on the morning after Easter. I was feeling very sorry for this poor little bunny all alone in the cold.

Until she started kicking up her heels and dancing around in the snow like it was the best thing ever! Wish I'd been quick enough to record it. Life is definitely what you make of it and that bunny was making the best of it! 

I wasn't really too upset about winter hanging on either, although I passed on dancing in the snow. Most of my perennials never got properly pruned last fall and it's been so cold they just stayed dormant. That gave me some extra time to get it done. How's that for silver linings? So now, at the end of April, the snow has turned to mud and it's looking a little more like spring - inside anyway.

A couple of weeks ago, around Easter time people were posting about it being 200 days until Halloween. Then just recently Disney started selling special treats and putting out press releases about Halfway to Halloween. This sounded like a great excuse to do a little spooky decorating.

Burt and Ivy volunteered to search the internet for more Halfway to Halloween ideas. As usual they strayed from their task and ended up watching silly videos on instead. 

When I removed the Christmas Village, shortly before our renovations began, the curio cabinet turned into a multi-holiday, store-all. Who knew there would be an excuse to get out the Halloween decor in April? I had no idea where the regular contents of the curio had ended up last fall, so there was lots of room to display my latest finds with some seahorses and Easter eggs, of course. 

Bunnies and pumpkins are a great combo, since they both live in gardens.

Burt and Ivy didn't come up with many ideas from the internet, so they made do with some new finds, some creepy Easter decor and the Toad Witch, who always manages to avoid being packed away.

His Madness decided Halfway to Halloween needed its own special treat, plus he'd been watching a few YouTube videos and wanted to give this idea a try. The recipe is easy, it starts with a piece of ready made puff pastry cut into four sections, then the top half of each section is cut into thin strips. 

Chocolate chips are spread on each section.

Then they're rolled up, starting with at the solid end and ending with the cut end. Some of the chocolate chips fell out but it was easy enough to just shove them back in under the strips.

After an egg wash and a generous sprinkle of sugar, they were baked at 400 degrees F. for 20 minutes or until they look golden. 

They may have looked like scary monsters but they tasted great! A newly made up treat for a newly made up celebration! Now they need a name, any ideas?

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you're having a wonderful weekend.

Happy Halfway to Halloween

It's Been Awhile!

This post was meant to go out into the blogosphere last month while the Rooms of Blooms event was still on but hey, its Earth Day today so it's still kind of relevant, right?

I just couldn't begin a blog post with such a crappy photo but I've been absent for a very long time (due to renovations, obviously) and felt an explanation was in order. We didn't think it was going to be so bad, especially since the contractor said it was a simple job. The next thing we knew our whole house was torn up with gaping holes open to the outside in below freezing temperatures. Then it all ground to halt for a couple of weeks. Why do we continue to trust these guys? It was really irritating but after a couple of days I started to feel stupid about being so upset because this was nothing compared to what the poor Ukrainian people are going through! Donating to worthy institutions - Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders - always makes me feel better and it was at least something positive to do. As for the building site we currently occupy, that's still an ongoing situation but it will pass. 

 Every other year the Paine Art Center in our town invites local florists to showcase their best creations. Ivy and Burt are always eager to see something new and scare up some fresh ideas for this year's garden or maybe even Springoween!

Ironically, this slightly autumnal color scheme of oranges and golden yellows was very much on trend throughout the rooms but there was a lot of pink mixed in, too.

For the most part it's a great collaboration since the mansion was originally designed to be a stately family home with formal gardens. Filling the whole place with over-the-top floral arrangements really brings the period rooms to life.

Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence was featured in the gallery this year. It's a traveling exhibition of bead art done in the ndwango technique that was developed by a community of women from an agricultural area of South Africa called KwaZulu-Natal.

The Ubuhle collective was started as a way to create profitable employment for rural women by using their traditional skills. Abstracts of cattle and Christianity made up the bulk of the subject matter in this show, which I guess was fitting for the season and all of us cheeseheads.

 Actually, this group of women artists are credited with created a new form of bead art. Each piece is crafted by applying glass beads, traditionally used to embellish their headscarves and skirts, onto a black fabric base, which is stretched on a frame like a painter's canvas. I can't imagine how much they must weigh or how long it takes to create one.

Due to the translucency of the glass, each tiny bead catches the light differently, creating a shimmering surface as you walk by them. The effect was absolutely magical, unfortunately my photos can't do them justice.

 I would definitely recommend paying a visit to the show if it turns up in your area; these pieces of art are much more beautiful in person. If you're in the area, the exhibit will be up until May 22.

 As much as I love this event, I wish they would skip putting arrangements in the gallery. It's just my personal opinion but with works of art, especially these that are done with such intricacy, they end up being more of a barrier than an enhancement. At best, the flowers look out of place. (Although this combo caught me totally by surprise and no thanks to my farm girl upbringing, I laughed way too loudly!) I went back for a better look at the art when Rooms of Blooms event was over.

In honor of the African artists there were lots of exotic blooms of the Protea shrub everywhere. They originated in South Africa and Australia and are sort of new on the North American garden scene. It would be fun to give them a try but they're only hardy in zone 8 and above. 

In the great hall the florists team up with caterers and bakers to see who can concoct the most elaborately impossible dining situations you could ever imagine. I'm sure I would catch a sleeve or my hair in something and bring down the whole display.

Visitors can vote for their favorite but somehow the winner never seems to get mentioned, ha! It's all very wonderland-ish and whimsical. Sitting down to have even a cup of tea would be nerve wracking but still, they're fun to look at, especially the ones with extravagant fabrics and sparkling dinnerware. 

It's always worth the walk through the snowy gardens to the conservatory where they serve afternoon tea. This year there was even champagne!

The conservatory also gets done up for the event but it's a lot more casual than the mansion.

It's generally something fun, like dresses and hats made out of flowers, anything they wouldn't dare do in the mansion. I used a light bulb vase like these to hold incense in my college dorm room. It was against the rules but somehow I got away with it. Of course, that made me think it was really cool, ha!

Would you stand underneath them though?

The autumnal color scheme was on display again. Currently, I'm on the hunt for whatever sort of colored film they used on these windows! Could this be a preview of the colors they're planning to use this summer in the formal garden? That's something to look forward to - if it ever warms up!!!

Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!