Third Time is the Charm

Coughing woke me up this morning around 6--perfect, I'll write my post and get on with the day. Without a working keyboard, that is hard to do. I now have a brand spanking new keyboard which feels very good indeed.

After errands and lunch, I began again. In the midst of that attempt, the little ring of FaceTime came through, signaling a call from Matthew. Perfect! While I lay sick in bed those days I couldn't help but think of the time I lay there for six weeks; a perfectly horrible time in my life. It was while I lay there that Matthew had the opportunity to move to London, and being the good son that he is, he vacillated--should he, or shouldn't he? My vote was to take an amazing job in one of the most exciting cities in the world, and eventually he decided the same. Am I ever glad he did--what a life he has led these six years! Plus, he would have never met Tom Terrific had he not gone, so there's that. Later this week he flies to Jakarta, Indonesia for business, followed by some days in Singapore. Imagine that.

Following our conversation, I decided it was high time to visit Herb and Corrine, bringing them some of the peanut butter cookies I made yesterday. Poor Herb--he is in the early stages of dementia and it is painful to observe. Their house is still a wreck outside, but the good news is the insurance adjuster finally came; if all goes well, the $8,000 repair will be covered. Following that visit, Baxter and I checked in with Angela. Adding to last weekend's mishaps, there was a little miscommunication, and instead of taking Baxie home on Friday, she did not come and get him until Saturday around noon. Poor little doggie--home alone for nearly 24 hours!! All is well that ends well--apparently he was lively and fun during our absence.

So, here we are on the third attempt, and what shall I write about? How about the garden in springtime? We've a new visitor around these parts, in fact, I think there are two of these guys, although I can't be sure.

Why wouldn't we have a woodpecker anyway?

Over the years I've purchased orchids from Jim and Kathy; once they finish blooming, usually they are tucked under some other bushes until such time as they decide to bloom again. For nearly two weeks I've waited to see what color this one would be:

Then too, the orchid given to me by my sister-in-law Ruth's parents blooms yearly now, and not just one bloom--loads of them.

I'm very happy with how, what I'm calling my red, white and blue garden is coming along, although it won't be long before it is too hot for the petunias!

The blue in the middle is one of my bargain finds--last year it was a straggly mess, but this spring--o-la-la!

The ivy geranium is filled with beautiful blooms,

and the petunias out front--gorgeous!

T

There are loads of hibiscus flowers--red and peach, and every now and again, the yellow one blooms.

The nandina is in prime form right now with both large bunches of red berries and white flowers:

My little supertenias have survived yet another move--they began life in a small pot. After outgrowing that container, I moved them to another, and finally they have found a larger home:

Speaking of supertenias, last year I bought two pots in the discount area of Lowes--original price $20, my price, $6. One of them did not last the winter, while this one, although it looked like it was a goner for a while, came back, and is flourishing!

That's my gazing ball behind it, nestled amongst the ferns. Sounds so cozy doesn't it? Well, for about a month, it lay on it's side because I could not get it to nestle, however, there is someone in this household who could make it happen, making me very happy indeed.

Here's some little cuties visiting the Nuttery:

I have no idea how we've all of a sudden attracted goldfinch, but I'm not complaining. Recently, while looking for something in my photo library I discovered last years baby cardinals born at the end of March. For the first time in several years I have been unable to locate a cardinal's nest in the bushes.  What is going on around here? Woodpeckers and goldfinch, with nary a baby cardinal in sight!

While we're on the subject of nature, I must report on the beautiful wildflowers we saw along the highway on our drive to Gainesville. Driving on the trip up there, I have no photographic evidence, and on the way back it was too dark to get any shots. Trust me on this one.

Because I am a fool for flowers, there will be more to share this week....

Peach Pie for Breakfast! Oh My!

Because I had both lovely peaches and blueberries, I made a pie yesterday afternoon combining the two, using a store bought crust. Rarely do I not make my own crust, and after this pie, I suspect I won't be going this route again any time soon. There's really nothing like home-made is there? Instead of a top crust, I made a crumble using crushed vanilla wafers and old-fashioned oatmeal, butter and cinnamon.

Now before you go getting all high and mighty about having pie for breakfast, I told Bruce that with the addition of ICE CREAM, it was almost like having cereal for breakfast, only in a different form!

Both of us thoroughly enjoyed pie for breakfast, in fact, I imagine it won't be the last time this summer that we do so!

Before I ate my decadent breakfast I went for my ride, which if you're counting, I'm up to 170 miles since beginning this experiment. For once I was up early, early, as in like 5:30, so, waiting until daylight I took off, riding down Summerlin, around the curves, parking my bike alongside Lake Pineloch at sunrise.

Dave and Michelle live directly across the lake, as does Bill. This morning, perhaps because we finally had a nice rain last night, the air was fairly pleasant. I started to say cool, but you knew that was an exaggeration didn't you? Speaking of the oppressive heat, normally inside our back gate, the temperatures are a wee bit cooler than the rest of the yard. I can't imagine what the thermometer would have read had it been on the outside of the fence!

Of late, my cardinals have been somewhat elusive. Where could they be? Remember when I wrote the post entitled  Our Garden Birds, using Matt Sewell's title? Well, I sent that post along to Mr. Sewell and he replied in clever fashion, sending me the link to his charming post, Cardinal By Matt Sewell. Needless to say, I was delighted.

The red-winged blackbirds have not been as scarce, but now that I say that, it's mostly the males that screech their way around the yard.

Oh, I forgot to tell you, the townhouse has lost it's ground floor! Despite all of our efforts, going so far as to add a squirrel baffler above the feeder,

the wily squirrels somehow, which neither of us have actually seen in person, jump between the baffler on top of the feeder. Every now and again one of us will look out there and there is one of them, happy as a clam, eating away. So, now it's a two story affair, after being knocked to the ground!

Damn those pesky squirrels!! I lied, here's a cardinal. Just not so many. :-)

The garden is looking sadder by the day. Despite multiple blooms, my beautiful ivy geranium is going by the wayside any day now, with brown leaves like mad.

I am, on the other hand having some excitement indoors. Only about a week ago, while at the market, I told Kathy that the African violets I purchased from them didn't seem as if they would ever bloom again. But, then this happened:

Mind you, only one of the three is doing this, but I'm calling it a small victory! Jim tells me that sometimes they are just using their plant energy to grow leaves rather than flowers. I'm wondering if the mottled leaves below should be removed? Knowing nothing whatsoever about the plants, I need to do some research. I've heard that some folks become obsessed with African violets, adding more and more to their collections. Somewhat like orchids. Which brings me to another exciting development!!!

I was pleased as punch when I bought this orchid from Jim, even more so now that another stem is forming with blooms! This was ten well-spent dollars!

Finally, my birdie mobile has a new home:

Cute, huh?

We've discussed ad nauseum my horrible memory; let's add one more item to the list of things nearly forgotten. Thank goodness, while eating my pie, I was reading the newspaper, more specifically, The Calendar section which lists the around-town happenings. Before falling asleep last night Bruce asked me if I wanted to go on a date tonight? I answered, "we'll see." Good grief, I'd already planned a date, buying tickets last Friday for The Pitmen Painters at the Mad Cow Theater!! What happened was that I tried to purchase them for last weekend, only to be told that all the shows were sold out. The helpful young woman on the phone asked if I'd like them for tonight which seemed like a good idea at the time. You can well imagine how disappointed I would have been once I remembered after the fact. Not to mention the wasted cash outlay.

The lawn is mowed, finished soon after eating that big, fat, slice of yummy pie, and the clothes are soon to be on the line. Life is good.

I've Got a New Plan

Although I said in my last post that I had used two iMacs to write those 1,000 posts, I was mistaken; proof, as if you needed it, that you can't believe everything you read. For some reason, can't remember, I landed in the 2007 portion of my way-too-full photo library and lo and behold, I came across this.

Not only is this a reminder of that horrible Historical Geology class, plus Algebra, I realized that I'd begun blogging using what I think is the pictured Dell? Duh--what a memory I have!!

So while roaming around that portion of my library it struck me that we must have been plum crazy to think I was any good at taking photographs! What a bunch of duds in there. Not all, but plenty, and as I recall, I've already done a pretty thorough job of deleting! So, here's my new plan---I will not load any new pictures until I've deleted the same number of old ones. Lord knows, there are more than any sane person should keep on their computer. On the other hand, Sunday I sold one that I took two weeks after receiving my camera. So, there are a few decent ones, just not many!

Aside from roaming around in the past during the holiday weekend, we kept plenty busy. Maxine's again on Friday night after Bruce's haircut with Monica. I've been lazy again, letting my hair grow too long; I'll be seeing her this week after bridge. While Bruce was at the office on Friday afternoon the folks who were making him some clothes met him for the fitting. Everything fits perfectly, and boy do I like this new shirt.

What's that he has in his hand? An iPhone of course! I had to take this right quick in between his business calls. No surprise there.

Saturday was mostly spent around the house; dinner outside by the pool with the music playing, the fountain babbling, and the torches blazing. Good times.

The market was better than expected for a holiday weekend with enough folks to make it interesting. Unfortunately, as is so often the case in the days of smart phones, a decision was made to close the market early because they were sure the radar showed stormy weather was imminent. Looking at the sky I thought, who are they kidding? Yes, it was gray, but rain--no way! Others scrambled to pack up but I just took my time, phoning Bruce only after having taken down most of the art work. He'd been hanging out by the pool at Dave's condo, so guess what? Pictures of some of the family! After we finished with our take-down we went back to socialize. The pool sits adjacent to the lake--a beautiful setting. I'm not sure what kind of heron this is but I thought it was a pretty one, what with those white feathers off his head and the deep blue body.

Every weekend a group of folks from several generations hang by the pool, swimming, bar-b-queing, and socializing. Here is Mr. Bruce with his twin sons, Bill on the left and David on the right.

Those Peck men are pretty darn cute if you ask me and that includes the two absent sons!

People are always asking me if I have any grandchildren and I say no, only one of my sons is married. And here he is with his bride of three + years, Michelle.

I'm only just now noticing I took this before Michelle had time to really get ahold of David! The cloudy skies kept things cool with a great breeze blowing off the lake. So, that was fun meeting some of their friends, some of whom are our age. One of the ladies, Lisa, had her phone and a wireless Bose speaker with lots of great music. She began taking requests and what fun that was. She played some Squeeze for me. No, not  "Black Coffee in Bed", but "Tempted," both very, very clever songs.

Finally on Memorial Day it rained. Great timing right? It did not stop us from heading up to Altamonte Springs for a party with Judy and Cris and extended family. Although we brought bathing suits, the lightening and cool breezes kept me from even thinking about going in the lake to ride their Jet Ski. I've never been on one before have you? I intend to rectify that this summer some time or other. Dave, Michelle, and Bill came up as well, looking all glam, but that doesn't surprise you I bet. Plus they brought ice cream sandwiches which I've not eaten in ages. My word, they were tasty. Because the gloomy weather kept most folks inside, or on the back porch, a spirited game of Buzzword took place in the dining room. Those folks love a good game and this one is as fun as can be. I'm thinking I need this game for the next family gathering here.

We left earlier than some, heading home in a light rain. Good grief, when we pulled up to our house we could not believe what a mess the yard became in our absence! Apparently, the rain and winds were much greater on our end of town because Bruce and I filled two giant trash cans with debris. I needed to work off my stuffed belly so this was as good a way as any I suppose. My handy rain gauge showed 1.5 inches of rain, which as you know, is sorely needed around these parts. I still am not great at it, but it doesn't stop me from trying to get a lovely photo with hanging rain drops.

Speaking of sons, are there any amongst you that can believe we have a son in Dubai on a business trip this week? Two weeks ago Brazil, then Istanbul, and now this? I, for one, find it pretty amazing. Never once during his childhood could I have imagined the things he's done. I never doubted he'd be successful, but this world traveling stuff--unfathomable. Here's hoping he'll have a few moments to take some photographs!

Last week I went to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel with Bev and Linda, which was both a good movie, and a fine travelogue. They really captured the color and chaos of Indian street life.

Today has been gloomy with I guess lingering effects from Beryl, so let's conclude with what we know best--a little sunshine and shadow play, shall we?

I really kind of liked seeing the number 1,000 on my blogger dashboard for the last few days. So what? 2,000 might take another five years! Yikes!