garden — Page 189

The Garden and Something New

May 14, 2015 at 9:15 am by Claudia

5-14 catalpa leaves

The last of the trees to show its leaves – the catalpa – is getting ready to roll. I love this tree with its heart-shaped leaves and blossoms that appear in June. Unfortunately, that bloom will occur while I’m in Chautauqua. Ah, well. I’ll make Don take some pictures.

I ended up going to Hartford yesterday as many of you assumed given the fact that I hadn’t replied to any comments. (I did reply to your comments this morning, so if you asked any questions – and some of you did – check back.) It was a glorious day to drive there. I got to see some of the show, but unfortunately, Darko changed his work schedule, as often happens at this point in the process, so the work-through from the top of the show became something else – working the fights and some of the transitions. I think I took one note. Frustrating. I got home – having made a stop at Trader Joe’s – at about 7:30.

Thankfully, Don didn’t have to get up at some ungodly hour this morning to get into Manhattan/Brooklyn. His call is at 1:00, so he’s heading out the door at 8:45 to take the bus into the city and then the subway to Brooklyn.

Scout and I are going to hang out together today, while I do some weed-whacking, watering and lawn mowing. I love working outside! It makes me a very happy camper.

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At the top of the garden: a wonderful mix of grasses, crown vetch and daffodils. I love what I call a ‘riotous’ look to the garden; not too neat, more of a glorious mix. Both the ornamental grass and the crown vetch spread nicely. In fact, the grass and vetch are now growing outside the boundaries of this garden and are headed toward the Funky Patio. Good for them!

Something arrived in the mail yesterday. Hint: it starts with the letter M.

5-14 mccoy2

I couldn’t help myself. I’ve never seen this piece anywhere in the past, not in a store, not on eBay, not on Etsy. In fact, one of my reference books says “This vase is hard to find, but it’s worth looking for.” It’s quite large, about 9 ½ inches high and 8½ inches wide. McCoy mark on the bottom. From about 1957.

When I first saw it on eBay, the seller had set a very high price for it. I figured it was because it was so rare. It was too expensive for me. I kept it on my “Watch” list and eventually it was relisted because the seller had made a pricing error. The new price was much, much more affordable and I put a bid on it.

I was the only bidder!

And now it’s mine. I love, love this one.

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Don said it reminded him of the Michelin Man. Maybe we’ll call it the Michelin Vase.

Faint crazing, gorgeous aqua glaze. Be still my heart.

Happy Thursday.

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This or That?

May 13, 2015 at 8:09 am by Claudia

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The temperatures dropped over 20 degrees overnight and today will be in the sixties. Then, back up to the seventies – maybe we’ll get a week or two of actual spring weather?

I’m in a bit of a quandary at the moment. I’d planned to go to Hartford on Thursday to watch a final dress rehearsal with the orchestra in the afternoon. Then one more visit on Sunday afternoon to watch a preview. Everything was planned and written in my calendar. Then in the mid-afternoon, Don read an email to me that said he’d been cast in an episode of a new series that would be filming on…Thursday. (He will also be in two more episodes that will film in the coming weeks.) Good news, yes, but you see, we have one car. And we have a dog who needs one of us around most, but not all, of the time.

Don has to have the car on Thursday. I, therefore, cannot go to Hartford. Should I go today, when there really won’t be run-through? If I go tonight, I have to drive home late at night because Don needs the car early tomorrow morning. I don’t want to be making a two hour drive home at 11:00. So, do I go this afternoon and hang around for part of the evening? Or, do I go on Saturday, for example, watch the evening preview, stay the night, and then catch another preview on Sunday?

I sent off a flurry of emails (too many) to the Stage Manager and her response today was what I knew it would be and should be: It is up to me.

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Most of the time, having one fourteen-year-old car is fine. But at times like these, it’s a pain in the tush. I comfort myself by acknowledging that even if we had two cars, both of us could not be away for a long period of time on Thursday. No can do. Little Scout needs one of us around.

Sometimes making a decision like this one is extremely difficult for me. How do I do my job to the best of my ability? I owe them two more days of work. How should I handle it? How can I best serve the actors? And then my head starts spinning.

I remind myself: in the end, it’s not an earth shattering decision.

I’ll probably go hang out there today.

Or maybe not.

5-13 wild honeysuckle 1

On top of that, I had to look at timetables, etc., and figure out if I wanted to take the train or a plane to and from Chautauqua. I did both last year and each has its advantages. The train trip is five hours long and arrives in Buffalo and then there is an hour and a half trip from there to Chautauqua. Some planes arrive in Buffalo, some in Erie. If the flight goes to Erie, the commute to Chautauqua is much shorter. But all plane trips involve connecting flights which total about five hours flight time and, let’s face it, flying is a hassle, plain and simple.

I went with the train.

One decision down, one to go.

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And then Don has to sweat whether he can take the bus into Manhattan on Thursday or whether he will have a very early call and have to drive into the city.

When you freelance at our age, you’re faced with lots of days of ‘leisure’ and then you’re suddenly thrown into a whirlwind of activity and decisions that have to be made and you’re driving or flying here and there and you’re worrying about how many hours you are away from Scout and you work hard and then…it’s back to slothdom.

Sigh.

Happy Wednesday.

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Lilacs At Their Peak

May 12, 2015 at 9:19 am by Claudia

On Sunday evening, after a day where the temperature hit 90° – yes, you read that right – Don and I ventured out to the porch and sat for a while on the glider. We’d visited our local nursery earlier in the day. I’d been feeling sad this Mother’s Day, so we decided that the nursery just might bring a smile to my face, and it did. I came home and potted plants, adding some hanging baskets, and the porch was now adorned for the season.

There’s nothing prettier than the view from the glider; lush green everywhere, the sugar maple arching over the big garden bed, and the lilac bush blooming in the distance. Birds were calling back and forth, a breeze had finally kicked up, and we sighed with contentment.

This is what we wait for in the last days of winter, when spring seems an impossibility.

Of course, temperature-wise, we’ve sort of skipped spring. Yesterday was 87 and humid, today it will be 89. But tomorrow? Back into the sixties. What a bizarre season it has been so far!

I did some more work outside yesterday until the oppressive heat, along with the pollen that is everywhere, did me in. My cough came back and I realized that I have to lay low today until tomorrow brings some relief.

At the end of our time on the porch, we ventured over to the lilac bush to catch some of its heady, heavenly scent. Camera in hand, I took some more photos of the lilac at its peak. I also took some photos of the flowering quince and the wild honeysuckle (tomorrow’s post).

Here you go, lilac lovers:

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5-12 lilacs 2

5-12 lilacs 4

5-12 lilacs 3

5-12 lilacs 5

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Close your eyes and imagine the scent.

The tiny bush I planted over seven years ago is now just about six feet tall. This year’s bloom has been the best ever. I can’t bring myself to cut any of the blooms. I’m that way with a lot of the garden flowers. I like them in the garden.

For so many years, coaching took me away from home at this time of year, so I never take the sight of any of this for granted. It will take me away again for three weeks in June and early July, but three weeks seems like nothing compared to the ten I used to spend away from home.

I travel to Hartford on Thursday and again on Sunday and then my work on Kiss Me Kate will be done. I can’t wait to see it onstage, with the set and costumes.

Happy Tuesday.

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The Garden and Something New

This or That?

Lilacs At Their Peak

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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