Dirt Under Her Fingernails

If you thought for a moment that I was done with flowers, you were sadly mistaken. We've only just begun.

Turning my attention to our yard, I neglected to mention that our baby tabebuia tree is now in bloom, such as it is.

Originally Gerry put in a pink one, however as much as I like the pink variety, I like the yellow even better, so he changed it out before firing me.  It is absolutely thrilling when the first cluster of blooms open up; next year, Lord willing, it will be even larger and more impressive. Those azaleas are looking mighty fine, don't you agree?

I made a trip to both Wal Mart and Lowes yesterday, with several projects in mind. While at Ross on Tuesday, getting my senior discount, I found another glass jar which begged to become a terrarium. Seriously, at the outset I thought one would be sufficient, but seeing this jar changed my mind in a heart beat. It was just too cute to pass up. When Angela saw it in it's pre-planting stage she couldn't believe I found it at Ross. She complained that she never finds anything there. I say she's just not looking.

I intentionally left this one dark to show off that cute little glass birdie on top! While making a collage last night, I found, upon inspecting the photo of the first terrarium, that it has grown a bunch already. I'll have to get out the scissors soon and do some pruning!

I didn't find any small plants at Wal Mart, but I did find some hanging baskets for $7.00, brimming with a captivating shade of yellow petunias. I know, they won't last much longer, but I could NOT resist. According to Mr. Randy, our garden curator at the Polasek, plastic containers are the best at keeping plants moist. He knows a thing or two about container gardening so, following his advice, I bought these large green planters. Voila!

You might notice that the light is getting dim because this was the last of my projects. Forgetting to wear my gloves resulted in some pretty dirty fingernails, that's for sure.

Another project was splitting an extremely root-bound peace lily. Doesn't sound so hard, right? It was. In fact, I had to get out my kitchen cleaver, rocking it back and forth through the roots. My goodness! I hope that now both sections will thrive in their new containers.

I planted more petunias, a lovely coral shade, as well as some dynamite crimson dahlias for the patio tables.

Neglecting the above advice about using plastic pots, these also came from Ross last fall. To be honest, I think I find more things at Ross than any of my other favorite discount stores. Their prices are the best for so many things, especially pillows, housewares, and shoes. Savvy readers know this already.

Unaccustomed to much outdoor activity, I was slightly weary when all was said and done last evening. My sister Lisa is a dynamo working outdoors. Me, not so much these days.

I couldn't help but think of Lisa when I saw this article from the Times: Healthy Eating is Overrated
There are lots of comments from readers, most of which are just plain ridiculous to me. No doubt, those eating habits of the subjects didn't start when they were eighty. That generation never gave much thought to what they ate, they were glad to enjoy the variety of modern food choices. With the food police condemning something most days, isn't it a wonder we can eat anything safely? Hype I say. Anything in moderation...

My street art loving readers may find this interesting:  Photograffeur

I mentioned making a collage last evening, planning to call it "The Domestic Life." Here's what I've done so far, however, I'm not sure it's good enough to show just yet.

Funny, now that I see it by the light of day, some of these have been posted on this very blog before. We'll see. I'll be doing my first "art show' of the season March 12th at Baldwin Park and I want to have several ones to show. Definitely the one that's been selling, which by the way, has a fairly large image of my wrist and hand with a lady bug on it. Nice Skagen watch too. I wasn't sure how folks would react, but they seem to like it just fine.

This morning I went to meet with the ladies for bridge practice at the Einsteins in Maitland. David, while in high school worked at one of the first in town. I can still remember how upset he was when they raised the price of a bagel from 50 cents to 60. That's my boy!

Today there were two new ladies, whom, although they are in the class, I've yet to chat with. I've liked everyone very much. This is where the real learning comes in with practice and discussion. Hmm...what should I bid? How many points do you have? Do you have a major suit? So many, many rules to follow. We all agree that at our age it's hard to keep them all straight!

Off to the store to buy more potting soil because yesterday I had to skimp a bit trying to stretch what I had. Tomorrow there will be more evidence that our part of the world is awakening with the beauty of spring. Stay tuned.....

What Shall We Make Today?

How about a terrarium? Recently I became aware that terrariums are all the rage these days, which doesn't surprise me; pretty much everything makes a comeback. I can clearly remember making one in a large brandy snifter during our first year of marriage, which for those of you who don't know, was 37 years ago.

Here's what I gathered for mine:

We had a hard time finding plants small enough, and to tell you the truth, these are a tiny bit larger than I would have liked. I bought some from Jim at the market, however, when Bruce was out and about on Sunday, he stopped by a garden center, buying me a few more, including the tiny little podacarpus I used. So, mine looks like this at the moment:

After watching this slideshow, Terrariums on the NYT site, I'm thinking I need to do better. I was lucky to find this lidded jar at Marshalls, however I think I'll be on the lookout for something more creative.

Monday night was bridge class. It was pretty good actually. In the afternoon I dealt out the cards as if there were four players, practicing my arranging skills before heading to class. No need to make a fool of myself. I'm happy to report that somehow, when it was my turn to be the declarer, I actually won my hand. Beginner's luck for sure. Trish is in the bright pink top in this shot taken before class started. I'm telling you, I'm definitely getting my money's worth with the class costing $100 for 13 weeks. Mind you, Mr. Perry Poole teaches the entire two hours, making the cost somewhere around $4 an hour. Now that is a bargain, don't you think?

There is but one student under 50 in the class! Some of the folks mean business, which is why I did my little home practice session.

Earlier on Monday I stopped to see my friend Lois who was in her yard gardening. Showing me around, she pointed out the tulips and daffodils peeking up through the soil, as well as the poppies and anemones. Showy days are coming! I brought home this incredibly delicate, and more importantly, fragrant pink rose:

After photographing it in the gorgeous light of my brand new office, I moved it into the kitchen for water. This morning I found all the petals on the counter, which knowing me as you do, means photography!

I absolutely love how the petals are shaped like little hearts!

After a somewhat busy day at the Polasek, and some errands following that, I came home just as the predicted rains began. Apparently, along with the rain, there were tornado warnings for late in the night or early morning, however, as far as I can tell, none materialized.

And I should know...reverting to my childhood ways, I stayed up WAY too late reading. Try as I might, I have not been able to get into The Girl With the Dragon Tatto. I know there are people who are wild about the series, however, after reading 50+ pages, I just didn't care enough to continue. What I did devour is this:

More than a year go my friend Linda suggested I'd like this book. Knowing our tastes are pretty similar, when I saw it at Borders for $4.99 I picked it up, and am I glad I did! Baxter, on the other hand, had no knowledge of my nocturnal ways, whimpering at his usual time. I'm afraid to pick it up today because I know I'll never get anything done. I remember reading another novel by this author, who is female by the way, titled Prep, which is just as much of a page turner.

Actually, for some reason my left heel is hurting very much, so I doubt I'll be going anywhere today. Sounds like maybe it is a good day to put up my feet and read...