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You are here: Home / Archives for flowers

Flowers and Autumn

September 2, 2022 at 8:09 am by Claudia

A small bouquet of zinnias that Don gave me when I returned home last Sunday. He got them at the Farmer’s Market. Since we will have no zinnia blooms this year (thanks, bunnies) these are a lovely addition to the den.

It’s actually chilly this morning. I had to don a sweater. We’ve had such high temperatures for so long that we almost don’t know what cooler temperatures feel like. And for all of you in California, I’m so sorry that you’re dealing with another heat wave.

Both Don and I are glad to turn the page on the calendar and anticipate autumn. I don’t think the fall colors will be great this year – we’re in a drought – and some of our leaves started to turn brown a few weeks ago. In fact, when I drove up the driveway after my trip to Rochester, I noticed that 2 or 3 of the trees in the woods have already turned golden brown.

I’m going to say it: what a sucky summer it’s been.

I felt out of it most of the day yesterday and briefly worried about Covid, but then I realized that we’d had a major weather change, so my sinuses were in outrage mode. I started a new puzzle, which kept me occupied, but didn’t do any of the other things I had on my list. Thankfully, I’m feeling better today, so I’ll run a few errands and do some cleaning.

And then, on Sunday, I’ll head back to Rochester.

The sunlight is lovely today. I certainly see the change in the quality of the light as we head into September.

For once, I’m more than ready to leave summer behind and embrace fall.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

 

Filed Under: autumn, flowers 21 Comments

Lakes

August 20, 2022 at 8:54 am by Claudia

From the days before the coneflowers started dying a month earlier than normal because of no rain and relentless heat.

I get depressed every time I go outside.

Anyway, I’m tired today after a week of coaching, so I’m going to take it easy. Except for the usual: watering plants outside, watering plants inside, cleaning, laundry.

And working on the puzzle.

Maybe dressing a doll or two.

And finishing my book which should have been finished long ago. My attention is a bit scattered lately and it shows in the slow pace of my reading.

Next Saturday, I have to drive to Rochester – clear across the state of New York – for a run-through of Jane Eyre. And the following week, I’ll do it again. I don’t know if I’ll have much, if any time to explore Rochester, but it looks lovely. At the very least, I’ll drive to Lake Ontario to take a walk by the lake. I’m  a Great Lakes girl, having grown up in Michigan. I’ve spent a lot of time by and on all of the Great Lakes and I miss them.

I miss lakes in general, having also grown up going to the cottage owned by my dad’s family. Eventually, the siblings sold their portions of the cottage and my beautiful Aunt Lettie (and Uncle Charlie) became the sole owner. I’ve got photos somewhere of my grandfather and his sons building the cottage, which, at the time, was either the only cottage on the lake or one of only a few cottages on the lake. Now the lake is overrun by increasingly bigger houses. I think I was last there about 20 years ago? Maybe longer. Summers at the lake are part of my DNA, I guess. At this time of year, especially, I yearn to sit on the dock listening to the water lap against the shore. If I have one regret, it’s that we somehow never managed to have the money to buy a small little cottage on a lake.

My cousin Eileen and me at the lake.

Me and our dog Friskie at the lake.

Don is, of course, an ocean guy. He grew up in San Diego. And I love the ocean, too. The few times he has taken a dip in a lake, he has been amazed at the ‘smoothness’ of the water compared to the saltiness of the ocean.

I know a feeling of peace is ephemeral. But I always feel that I’d be a bit more at peace if I was at a lake on a daily basis. I miss it terribly, more so the older I get.

Ah well.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

 

 

Filed Under: Eileen, flowers 62 Comments

Tuesday in the Heat Wave

August 9, 2022 at 8:39 am by Claudia

Not to harp on the weather, but this heat and humidity is relentless. Both Don and I are in bad moods. With the heat index routinely around 104 degrees, it’s hard to think, let alone come up with a sunny mood.

But we try. We try. We may have some storms today, but I’ve learned not to trust those forecasts this summer. In the meantime, I spent hours yesterday adding up figures in my quest to gather together our deductions. We need to submit them to our Tax person by next Monday. I got a lot done, but I find that I can only work in the morning in this weather. By afternoon, I’m fried. So, I have to divvy up my time between dialect prep and tax prep this week. I’m supposed to work with Jim later in the week, so I have to get all my ducks in a row.

The coneflowers are drying up early this year, which breaks my heart. Even those steady little dependable flowers can’t withstand the relentless heat. Oh, and the bunnies ate all the blooms off my zinnias. I had to break it to Don that he won’t see his favorite flower this year.

Spring and summer lover that I am, I am ready for Autumn. I can’t imagine how farmers feel when faced with a drought. I feel powerless, even when it involves only my little garden. But when it’s your crop and your livelihood, my goodness! How awful it must be.

As soon as I finish this post, I’ll go out and hand water things. I briefly considered letting it go because we might have rain later. Nope. I have to do it, because what if it doesn’t rain?

But Don made an apple pie, so there’s that! And we had sugar-free vanilla ice cream!

One additional thing about Blythes – there are some customizers who routinely command high prices. Prices I could never afford. You’ll start to notice who they are. They all do beautiful work and have a distinctive style and to a collector, those dolls are worth the price. Remember, we’re talking about Art Dolls, highly collectible creations with resale value. Anyway, there are plenty of beautiful dolls out there that are reasonably priced. One other note: you might see a price of several thousand dollars on an Etsy listing and that’s usually because the doll has been sold and the seller wants to keep it in the listing so that potential buyers can see their style. That confused me at first. They price it high so that you know it’s gone and/or would never even think of paying that much.

Okay, my friends.

So sad that Mar-a-Lago was raided. Well, technically, not raided. A search warrant was executed.

I’m crying big old crocodile tears.

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

Filed Under: flowers, garden 20 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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