Good Folks, Good Times

The proverbial questions....where do I start counting our blessings? 

How about my new flower bed?

So far it is performing beyond my wildest expectations, but then again, can that be true? Actually I had no expectations but I did have hope that the plants would work well together and hopefully compliment each other at the same time. The blooms on the pink hydrangea are huge below with the one above just coming into it's own. I await the zinnia blooms, but holy cow, are the plants getting tall and to think that I started them with seeds makes my heart swell with happiness.

Seriously, the idea that a tiny seed holds such potential sounds preposterous, yet by golly, it is true as I have discovered for myself.

A cabbage from the garden,

was used in this quick dish because I did not have time for anything more elaborate. Such as coleslaw!

A few days later I did make coleslaw to go along with the pulled pork we brought home from the cook out at the Libers.

It was very unfortunate that while the drive there is beyond beautiful( I still can't believe we get to see this view regularly),

there was the little matter of getting the start time wrong on my part. Yes indeed, I remarked to Bruce on our way that I was surprised we did not see anyone we knew on the drive and that would be because the gathering began at one o'clock rather than 2:30 as I told Bruce! In my defense, I called and texted earlier with no answer so I will take most of the blame. Sadly, in the back seat, the salad that D'Anna requested for David, was far too late to be eaten by the crowd. I will say it was pretty what with cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion and my very own parsley. Topped with some red wine vinegar and a few splashes of olive oil.

It won't be too much longer when I can make the same salad with the tomatoes in the garden,as well as the cucumbers which are beginning to flower. Since I wrote this earlier today, I did eat my very first tomato and it was delicious.

Reading every day about some gardening practice or another, I read where should you leave the broccoli stalk in the ground and it will produce more and sure enough, that has turned out to be true. 

We shall see what they taste like soon. Not everything I have read has turned out to be true for me such as putting my peony buds in the refrigerator to open at a later date. I finally looked at them this week and it was a sad day for me. While oftentimes I've shared not so pretty things, I just could not bring myself to do so in this instance.

Our pickleball friend, Lori, gave us a box of small plants including more hostas and some grasses. With the last of my Mother's Day Lowe's gift card, I bought a few other discounted plants, and between the two of us, we cleared out a bed, 

which frankly was a lot of work because to the right of Bruce you will see landscape border stones piled up, all of which were buried in this bed! I began the work, picking up a dozen or so with the shovel and then Bruce got into the act which was not unwelcome, I will say that much! On Bruce's left are stones we found in said bed, as well as about a hundred bulbs which produced plants but no flowers. It's going to be interesting to see what the remaining ones do next. 

Which brings me to an exciting happening and that is the day lilies that Tammy gave me two years ago are blooming! Last year there were a few blooms but this year every plant is raring to go!

Isn't the color just gorgeous? 

Gorgeous would not be the adjective to describe what I discovered in the huge pile of magnolia pods.  Otherworldly comes to mind.

I will keep you posted on what happens next!

Another happy thing that is going on is my roses seem to be getting established in their new environment and are producing more this year; some more than others but that is to be expected as they were planted a year apart. Matthew reminded me to fertilize and that seems to be working magic.

Thursday was fantastic for several reasons, beginning with the ribbon cutting for the downtown improvements that Laura was so involved in. The town is decked out for America 250.

Laura gave a fantastic speech about third places and if you don't know what that means, I get it because I didn't either before she explained it to me. If that sort of thing intrigues you, click on this link for more info. Before her speech Braden Rumfelt sang the national anthem a cappella. 

And here is Ms Laura with her beaming smile, doing the official ribbon cutting. 

The truth is that the new road paving is still underway, but the project that has been going of for nearly two years now is nearing the end, and we are all the better for it!

Meanwhile, I heard from our new neighbor, Jessie, that she was already at the park for the free concert so we got our folding chairs and carried them the few blocks to meet her at the park where I walk beside the river.  What a lively young woman she is and when I say young what I mean is that she is but a few years older than our son Matthew who is turning 50 on July 5! 

The sun was hot as blue blazes as we watched the hometown boy sing his heart out with his band which includes his twin brother on the guitar and his best friend singing with him on this song. 

Because we have been here awhile now we forget how easy doing things is compared to what we were accustomed to. We may not have loads of opportunities for some things, but what we do have is done without difficulty.

Murphy is mighty proud of this young man for making top five on American Idol. What happens next for him is still being figured out. One thing to note is he played baseball for years in this same park!

The Murphy master gardeners have been doing some improvements on the river walk and the perennials are coming along nicely, including this plant appropriately called Bee Balm.

I bought red one for here that is beginning to bloom so I will show you that soon. Much to my dismay the Echinacea seeds I planted did nothing, but the real gardeners know what they are doing.

Sunday was very special indeed. 

I said to Bruce can you even imagine we are witnessing this? One of the things I love so much about living here is that I so often have new experiences. Sure everyone does that, say, while traveling to a new country but we are doing it close to home. So am I killing you with suspense yet? Haha! 

A river baptism friends. Yup. Methodists are not known for this, but the young boy asked if Wil would do the baptism at the Lochaby place along the Hiwassee River before they move to Waynesville. Freddy, who is on the board of trustees with Bruce, has been a member of the church all of his 78 years. He cannot remember a time without a garden and he keeps it up with a little help from a neighbor. Look how big it is! There are two rows the length of the garden planted in sunflowers and Freddy's sister who was visiting said to come and cut them when they begin blooming. How can I turn down that invitation?

The setting was so beautiful and is but a little over two miles from our home. When we don't get out of town I sometimes forget how stunning the landscape can be, especially at this time of year. 

The water is super cold but little Jack did a good job hiding it. 

Aside from Wil, everyone is a Murphy local. I won't get into it but last evening we visited with two locals and they talked about how people think that they are hillbillies and make fun of them. I'm pretty sure that is why we are friends with locals because we think they have great value. Some worry that Murphy is growing and I rarely tell them how much our hometown grew from when we were children. It's horrifying to see what has happened to Orlando but those who did not know it like we did think it is just great. I suspect it happens all over the world, people being protective of their hometowns. 

Just when you think I have it all together, this past week I had an unwelcome reminder that I DO NOT. First off, I learned from the pharmacy that I had no medication insurance and to shorten this story to its' essence, in January I paid twice for Bruce and none for me. It took multiple phone calls to sort out what happened. I knew that I had paid it and even wrote on the little payment book the date, but with the last digit of our policy one number different, somehow I made the mistake. They told me sorry, try again at the end of the year. So there's that. 

This morning I stumbled on a curb and although I landed on both hands and knees (!!!) on the concrete sidewalk, thankfully, the only real problem is my right knee is hurting like a son of a gun. When I finish this I plan on icing it for the second time this afternoon.  Good grief! That said it could have been so much worse, so for that I am grateful. 

Bruce has been painting and supervising at the parsonage since 9AM where they are painting much of the interior before the new pastor arrives in two weeks time. He put together a good sized crew of volunteers so hopefully a few days will be sufficient. 

And with that news, I think I will put that knee up and on ice!!

your friend,

Gail

One Thousand, Three Hundred and Eighty Three

And that my friends is the number of photographs I took from early Friday morning, through Sunday late afternoon. And while I admit it sounds like a lot, and let's get real, it is, between award presentations and action shots, I could have taken far more with 177 participants in the inaugural Murphy Pickleball Tournament. Thank goodness I did not!! D'Anna and David's son Patrick married in February and they just received the digital images and there were around 2,000 between the various events associated with the wedding. When we married, the photographer was the only one with a camera and our budget allowed for twelve 8x10 prints and a handful of 4x6. I mention the only one with a camera because at the tournament when I was meant to photograph the winners, I kept having to remind them to look at me rather than their friends! Slightly irritating, but after a few days of it, I learned to do what I could! 

Big Brothers and Sisters benefitted from the registration as well as a raffle of some pretty darn amazing items. We won nothing, however, Grayson, Bruce's little brother, for those who don't know, won a new paddle. The age limit was lowered so that Grayson could play with Bruce and as it stood he was the youngest. Now, just try to imagine Bruce having to play against, not only big fellows, but YOUNG ones as well!

You might note the guys sweat-stained shirts and that is because it got so incredibly muggy by Sunday afternoon. I don't know what was worse, standing in the sun all day, or the mugginess. Both were very unpleasant for this volunteer. The good news though was that folks had fun, predicted rain did not fall, and money was raised for a worthy charity, although truth be told what they need are volunteers to be mentors. 

Grayson is experimenting with a new look in case you were wondering. 😀

Another crazy thing happened this past week and that was while walking on the river walk, I found a set of car keys lying on a bench. With not a soul around, I got in touch with Laura who runs the facebook page for the river walk, asking her opinion on how to proceed. Her suggestion was that she would put it on the Facebook page and I should take them to City Hall which is what I did. It was a bit of a trek, not to mention hot and sunny, but I turned them in hoping the owner would maybe look on the Facebook page. Thursday, while volunteering at Soul Table, where. we had a record 60 guests I might add, I thought to call the fitness center and pass on the information. Gosh I hope they got them back! 

Downtown Murphy is having a decorating contest for America 250 and the independent book store on Tennessee Street is doing their part.

Before all that happened I was imagining a leisurely walk, as is my wont, when I could observe and bask in the wonder of nature. 

What a privilege it is to walk out the front door and within minutes be surrounded by wildness. Of course man-made bird boxes are not wild, but you get my drift. In this post, which you may or may not have read,  there are some photographs of a Tree Swallow and Bluebird at odds with one another on who was using the bird box. Along the other end of the walk, I saw a Tree Swallow flying around and discovered it had won the box race with a bluebird and was flying hither and yon to find food for these hungry ones.

You've seen this type of bird before in the Camera Crazy annals, but I suspect you are dying to see one again, what with their beautiful jewel-toned coloring.

There were some goslings on the river who seem to be calling out to their parent leading the way.

While preparing to put posts together I scan through my photos and choose ones to share, however, sometimes I don't use them and they remain on my desktop, which is what happened with this photo that now that I look at it, I believe it deserves an audience!

So let's meander to the neighborhood and specifically to Campbell Street.

In the post that I linked to above, I asked for opinions on the frame color for our new painting. What I did not show you was why I chose the white to match the window frames.  

Please feel free to tell me it was not my best idea and share yours!!

Rose of Sharon are beginning their blooming season!! Yipee!

The early morning light is so good on everything. 

I wish I could tell you that I had a bumper strawberry crop but that would be a falsehood! It remains to be seen how many tomatoes we will have but so far so good. 

The new flower garden is coming along nicely. 

Bruce fertilized the yard last year and it shows. Now you can see why my garden efforts are a bit challenging because I took this at high noon and no sun in the yard aside from the sides.

I love the photo above because Bruce must have just mowed the yard and there are no magnolia leaves all over the back part, unlike what it probably looked like a few hours later. That tree is something else but man does it produce a lot of litter! Between a huge number of leaves and seed pods, it keeps us busy. 

Look who made a pie crust that turned out just fine!

It's not perfect, but it got the job done. As I recall, I made a quiche. 

Bruce is sitting at his desk, working on a new sign listing the new pastor's name. It is shocking how many things that the trustees are in charge of. Next up, a group of volunteers will be painting the interior of the parsonage; the paint Bruce had mixed is in our basement. Seriously, you would think he's gone back to work! 

Having a blog for nearly twenty years is just great for me because even though I don't do it often, I can go back in time. For some reason I did just that recently and came across the photo below.

Remember those days? It seems impossible what all happened during Covid doesn't it? I asked Bruce who I gave these masks to and he replied, "a bunch of people." 

The back yard looks so pristine in the photo above but truthfully we have piles here and there of grass clippings, magnolia pods (a gazillion), and sticks and lumber. This little Song Sparrow was having a little fun hopping amongst the sticks.

I forgot the landscape bricks too! 

My neighbor Becky has been sharing her blue bird box camera footage and to say it is remarkable is an understatement! I wish I could share it with you but imagine FIVE baby bluebirds in one little nest!! Fantastic clarity on the camera too. To watch the parent come through the hole, well aren't we the lucky ones?

Monday morning I needed to get away from looking at all of those weekend photos and what better way than to go outdoors? One thing that happened is my first cabbage, with all the outer leaves removed, came into the house!! 

I am like a proud parent!! Actually what I said to Bruce was that I needed to attend to my outdoor pets which includes the plants and the birds!! I came across an opened bird egg which we believe was one that came from the box that I saw the Tufted Titmouse going in and out of. Never have we seen any babies, so who knows, but those bird eggs are so small and delicate, it is a wonder it all works.

But then again, aren't most things a wonder? Seems like they are to me.

your friend,

Gail 

Mostly About Plants

Sometimes vignettes just appear before me, this being one of them. Red fence, mountain laurel, several shades of green--what's not to like?

So yes, I did come across this, but what my intention was on that afternoon was to find the source of the loud chirping I was hearing in the lane. Lo and behold, luck was with me that day. This is a pair of House Wrens, birds that I rarely see, but there they were, really almost out the back of our yard 

Loud as can be, it was not but a few days later that they went out on their own. I think they might be coming to our feeders now and if not, some look-alikes are. As in small brown birds.  It is astonishing how many birds we are attracting at the moment, including one of my favorites and definitely not a regular, but welcome nonetheless, a Eastern Towhee with a little sunflower seed in his mouth. 

Here's something that is a little bit amusing, or some might find it so. My bean harvest to date.

Green beans are said to be easy to grow, however I had a heck of a time getting them to sprout, thus one plant and four beans to date. Unlike my romaine lettuce that grew too big and with the constant wet weather of last week, that I wrote about here, began attracting slugs, thus I did a big clean up of the garden and pulled all of the lettuce leaves off.

Whether it was a good idea or not, for a different reason I also clipped off all the bottom leaves on the cabbage plants. And what would that reason be, you ask? They were so large and were shading the burgeoning cucumber plants. The four cucumber plants are now flowering, the broccoli is forming new little plants, and there are tomatoes on the vine. Aside from some "pest pressure", I am overall pleased with how things are progressing.

The rainfall since last I wrote has diminished somewhat, yet still the threat of rain has loomed meaning finding the right time for Bruce to paint the parking lot with a new directional sign using a giant stencil he made using a large cardboard box, was tricky. 

Buying a stencil that large was not in the budget, so he got creative.

Unfortunately, people are still coming in the wrong direction, but he did what he could. Note the looming clouds pictured above and about two hours later it looked like this!

Not a whole lot later, the clouds opened up wide.

As I have mentioned before, hard rain is not that common here; instead it is slow and steady, however on that day, it came down hard and fast!

That same day, while waiting on Bruce, I met the new pastor and his wife and son who were coming to Murphy for the first time. Porter, aged four, is as cute as a button. A catered lunch was held on Sunday following church for Pastor Wil, Lea, Nathaniel, and Norah. 

Nathanial, aged nine, was still just a baby when they came to Murphy, but now he is a budding preacher because he took the mic at the after event with no nerves at all.

Mayor Tim Radford spoke as well because Wil was such a presence in the community. Saying that they will all be missed is an understatement!

Weren't we supposed to be focusing on plants? The title says it so it must be true.

I was a little greedy, thinking I could separate the plant above (Paristemon), and by golly I seemed to have done it with success as two of the three are now in the ground. Whether they will make it is another story, but I'm thinking that if they were going to die, that would have already happened..

Lavender in pots on the front steps, 

and Autumn Sage, a very fragrant plant, adjacent to the front door. 

I keep buying more plants, in part because I can, and in part because so many are new to me I want to see if I can grow them successfully. 

So cute, right?

Hummingbird's Lunch Cigar Flower and Strawberry Fields Gomphrena are two newish plants in one pot near the hummingbird feeder because they are meant to attract the same.

Speaking of hummingbirds, sightings to date have been few and far between, but every now and again, a little gift of seeing one happens. One morning I was captivated by the antics of one on this plant below.

Keeping a garden notebook is helping me keep these new names straight! What in the world did I do in the winter because I sure was not tending to plants? 

One thing I have not done as much of lately is walk on the river walk, but yesterday afternoon I corrected that, in spite of the warm weather which we all know I am not a fan of. The depth of color, as well as the shades of green when I was at the park made me think of a book I once loved, How Green Was my Valley. No coal was mined around here, as far as I know, but talc was, as well as marble that still is  being mined.

Anyone else read that book and love it like I did? That was a long time ago for sure, but it just popped into my head. There was a small flock of Starlings that would all fly off at once, in a very mini-murmuration. It's fun to watch that sort of thing and try to catch it with your camera. I failed miserably, but I did get this one shot that if you look closely you will see them all lined up on the fence top.

Something else that caught my eye that was something entirely new to me.

I have no idea what happened, but the butterfly seemed to be trapped and never moved while I watched and waited. So strange.

According to my notebook, this garden experiment began on March 5, 2026, and I've learned more than I can imagine with a little help from our friends on YouTube, as well as friends who have gardened here for years.  It's very common here and you know what they say..."when in Rome" . Yup, that's me.

your friend,

Gail