flowers — Page 86

Day Fifty-Eight

May 10, 2020 at 9:34 am by Claudia

More difficult, slower going, but a good challenge. This one will take longer than my previous forays into the 1000-piece puzzle world. I will say this, I’m really learning about Van Gogh’s brush work!

I spent what seems like way too much of the day yesterday trying to figure out what the low would be here. One forecast said 31. One said 33. Another said 32. And yet another said 34. As you all know, the difference between these numbers is huge when you’re talking about plants. Should I try and cover some of my perennials? Or should I just let go and hope for the best? I went with the latter and, as far as I can tell this morning, all is well. I did cover the potted hollyhock and geraniums again, but that’s all I did. It looks like it might go down to 32 on Tuesday and Wednesday – hopefully, that will change – but after Wednesday the weather should be back to normal.

After I finish this post, I’ll begin lugging all of the plants back outside. And I’ll be able to get to the vacuum again, as it’s currently blocked by big pots of pansies.

I just found out that one of my colleagues from Boston University died. Bill Young was a marvelous actor, a wonderful teacher, as well as being funny, eccentric, and a joy to work with. Rest in Peace, dear Bill. Thank you for everything. There are legions of students (and colleagues) who adored and respected you.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of you moms. And to my sister, who is a devoted mom to all her boys, human and animal. It’s always a bit of a difficult day for those of us who have lost our mothers, of course. I sure miss mine and would give anything to be able to see her again.

And Happy Birthday to Fred Astaire, who is and will always be my favorite. I’ve been a devoted fan since I was 12 years old. I just had a conversation with reader Kay about our shared love for Mr. Astaire.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Day Fifty-Seven

May 9, 2020 at 9:53 am by Claudia

The way things will be until tomorrow. It’s unbelievably cold out there with high winds. The wind chill is down in the twenties. In May. Tonight there is a freeze warning, though I don’t know why there wasn’t one last night, as our temp went down to at least 32, more likely 31. The water in the bird bath is frozen. The only thing this day has got going for it at the moment is that it’s quite sunny out there. That helps a bit. Who knows what will happen tonight? We brought everything in and then I covered a few potted plants, like the geraniums in the barrels and the hollyhock in the zinc barrel right outside the kitchen door.

First I tried covering the geraniums with a sheet but it got so wet in the rain that I worried it would freeze and impact the plants. So I ran out there and covered the plants with two of the gardening totes that I use around here. I covered the hollyhock with a metal planter. I’m not even sure if I should take them off during the day because it’s so windy. I’ll wait and see.

Even the doves came inside!

One thing: there was no snow on the ground when I woke up at 6. That’s good news. But I’ve seen photos from friends north of me and there was definitely snow on their plants.

The worst of it will be today and tonight, but nighttime temps are going down to the mid to low thirties every night until Thursday. Insane.

I’m already a week behind sowing seeds and I sure won’t be able to sow anything until the ground warms up a bit. The catalpa shows no sign of leaves yet. It’s always the last tree to leaf out. I checked out our catalpas up in the woods, as well as our neighbor’s catalpa and they’re all behind. Will the peonies bloom late for the first time since we moved here 15 years ago? The lilacs are late, too. Let me remind you that a week ago, it reached 80 degrees.

I’ve never seen a spring like this one.

Ah well, enough of that for now. We’ve done all we can do. I feel the most for those who have already planted vegetables and truly have tender plants in the ground that are in danger. No one wants to lose seedlings. And farmers can’t afford to lose a crop. It’s much more dire for them, so I’m praying there is no damage and that steps can be taken to cover the plants.

All in all, a continuation of what has been a surreal year.

Gosh, what else? Not much, as this has been consuming us for the past 24 hours. I’m still reading Love in a Cold Climate and I’m starting in on the letters of the Mitford sisters. After that, I might reread some Robertson Davies, one of my favorite writers ever. He was a Canadian writer and I got hooked on his writing in the late seventies. I can’t remember how I discovered him, but I read everything he wrote as well as two new novels that were published during that time. I long ago lost track of my copies, darn it, but I did buy a used copy of The Cornish Trilogy and The Lyre of Orpheus a few years ago when I realized I missed his presence on my shelves. I think I found them at The Strand in NYC. I’m going to replenish my Robertson Davies library. If you are not familiar with him, you should google his name. He looks positively Dickensian and he was brilliant. It feels as if the Universe is telling me to reread him. I find I’ve been thinking a lot about him, looking over to my right at the books on the shelf, and just a week ago, I read a post from a fellow bookstagrammer about him. All signs point to Robertson Davies.

But first, the Mitfords.

I started the puzzle. It’s hard, but not nearly as hard as the one I scrapped. And it’s beautiful.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Day Fifty-Two

May 4, 2020 at 9:38 am by Claudia

Today’s flowers from Don, presented to me as he came in the door from his morning walk. He is the sweetest man in the world. (Of course, I’m biased.)

A few weeks back, Don mentioned that he was concerned about a pair of Canada Geese he’d seen down by the river on his morning walk. After several days of seeing them together, suddenly there was only one. I thought that since the goose was in the same general area, he may have been guarding his mate while she was sitting on a nest. Today he, saw this:

Five little babies, protected by Mama and Papa. Isn’t this adorable? So now we know. He was protecting the nest. That should bring a smile to your face this morning.

We worked outside yesterday – a lot – Don was out there even longer than I was. We were pretty tired and achy at the end of the day, so today is a day of rest. The temperature hit 80 degrees yesterday and it was beautiful out there. Of course, 80 is too hot for this time of year and today’s temperature will only reach 60 degrees. But it’s sunny! And gorgeous. And the porch is coming together, though I have to buy more potting soil and a couple more plants. I’ll probably do that tomorrow. I’m going to wait to plant seeds until next week. Usually, around here, we can sow them the first week of May, but it’s been so cold, I’m holding off.

Don’s been clearing a part of the property that we’ve sort of ignored over the years. He likes a project and it gives him something to do. I must say, he’s doing a good job of cleaning it up. More and more tiny leaves are appearing on the trees, more and more green surrounds us.

Very grateful for green things and buds and pretty potted flowers always, but especially at this time of year. We’re still watching Cheers every night. Situation comedy doesn’t get much better than that show and we’re really enjoying it. Last night, as we started a new episode, we realized it was the one Don was in. It’s called The Last Angry Mailman – a name I’m well familiar with as it appears on residual checks – and Don has a scene with Cliff Clavin, played by John Ratzenberger, and his mother, played by the fabulous Frances Sternhagen. I’d seen it long ago, but it was fun watching it with Don. You know I saw Don on several series, Hill Street Blues, LA Law, Cheers and more, before I met him. I specifically remember him on LA Law because he had a recurring role as an attorney and one of the most memorable episodes was one he did with the late, great Ralph Bellamy. I remember watching it. Who knew I’d end up married to the guy many years later?

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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