Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Muscling Through

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thursday limelight hydrangea

This process of writing a brand-spanking-new blog post every day is usually a true pleasure for me. Somehow, I always seem to find something to talk about, even when I think there is absolutely nothing that is even remotely interesting happening in my life. Every post is written by yours truly. I don’t pull photos from other sites or blogs and use them as the basis for a post. As tempting as that may be for those days when I could use some ‘filler,’ it just doesn’t feel right within the context of this personal blog of mine, which has always consisted of original content. There’s nothing wrong with that kind of thing, but I have to stay true to my vision.

So it’s all me, for better or for worse.

thursday zinnia

Some days I find myself thinking, “What can I possibly write about today?” Or I find myself looking into the future and wondering if I can even hope to keep this up and maintain a certain level of interesting and compelling writing. Because I couldn’t bear it if the content on this blog became boring. Or routine. And I’m only human. Some periods in my life are more exciting than others. Some days are rather humdrum.

Or I worry about what I will take pictures of when the gardens have faded. How many times can I show you my living room? What happens when I finish my dollhouse? Then I remind myself to stay in the present and take it one day at a time.

This week has been a little tougher than others as I’ve been under the weather battling something that we are now pretty sure is Lyme Disease. We’re very familiar with it around here. Don has had it. Both dogs had it. (I was the last holdout.) Most everyone in these parts has one or more family members who have had it. I would go so far as to say it’s commonplace in our neck of the woods. Anyway, on Monday, I finally connected the dots between a few things that have happened – starting with that 24 hour fever and virus thing I had about 3 weeks ago. So off I went to the doctor and he drew some blood and prescribed Doxycycline, which I started taking right away. I’m improving for sure, though I’m awfully tired.

So I’ve found myself struggling to write interesting posts this week. And what do I do when that seems to be a problem? I’m honest with you and I ‘fess up. And then, what do you know? I have a post.

thursday pink phlox

Don’s been taking care of me and I’m feeling much better. When taking Doxycycline, you are supposed to stay out of the direct sun or your skin can be affected. Not everyone who takes it suffers that side effect but I have very fair and sensitive skin, so I have to be careful. That’s a drag for this gardener and lawn mower. And wouldn’t you know it, we just got those passes to hike the trails in the mountains. Frustrating.

Ah well. It is what it is.

Back to the blog posts. I’m stubborn about them, you know. I won’t recycle an older post. I won’t use photos from other sites and comment on them. I won’t take the day off, unless I have to and I tell you about it ahead of time. I power through, because writing is cathartic for me and muscling through that ‘roadblock’ always takes me to the other side where I discover something to write about. And I feel better for it. The daily challenge of crafting new material is a good discipline for me.

So there you have it. Dear friends, don’t worry about me. And, as well-meaning as I know you mean to be, please don’t tell me stories about others who have had Lyme Disease. I believe in staying positive and eliminating anything negative from my consciousness, especially when dealing with sickness. Believe me, we’ve been through it before and it’s under control and it’s not a big deal and I caught it early and all is well.

thursday zinnia 2

Let’s close with this photo. Remember the zinnia bud I showed you on Monday? Here it is this morning. Little miracles happen every day.

Happy Thursday.

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A More Striking Presentation for Riley’s Dish Garden

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I don’t do much decorating these days. The walls need painting (how long have I been saying that on this blog?) I still want to build bookshelves in the den. And I want different window coverings in the living room. None of those things are urgent. I’ll get to them when time and funds allow. Other than that, things are pretty much the way I want them.

I did change a little thing the other day, based on a conversation I was having with Don. The center of the kitchen table has been taken up by the Vernor’s soda crate and Riley’s Dish Garden. Since the table isn’t that big, those two items take up a lot of real estate. Don mentioned he was a little tired of seeing the Vernor’s crate there. And then we talked about Riley’s Dish Garden, which is important to both of us, but let’s face it, the blue plastic dog dish isn’t all that attractive.

Hmmm. I wasn’t ready to move the Vernor’s crate out of the kitchen, so I moved it to the end of the kitchen island.

vernors crate on island

And I added the mug full of pens, pencils and scissors. There’s notepaper in one of the other compartments, along with my older camera and a jade plant. I tend to write out lists and pay bills while standing at the island, so this works rather nicely.

Moving it to the island meant that I had to find a place to store the cake stand and glass dome, which were pretty but were serving no purpose other than to accumulate dust. Since storage space is at a minimum here, finding a home for them took a lot of maneuvering. They had become a source of irritation, so I’m relieved they are out of sight.

Then I spent about an hour trying to figure out what to do with Riley’s Dish Garden. I knew I had to disguise it a wee bit, so I pulled out various pieces of pottery until I hit on this combination:

rileys dish garden 1

I grabbed the larger of my two Homer Laughlin Orange Tree bowls, then spent what seemed like an endless amount of time trying to find some little piece to put in the bottom of the bowl to work as a base for the dish garden.

But that didn’t seem like quite enough. So I plucked my vintage Fiesta platter from high atop the pantry and plopped it under the bowl.

I really like that splash of contrasting color.

rileys dish garden 2

Those succulents are getting a bit out of control. On the other hand, they look sculptural and I like that.

So there you are. The not-so-pretty plastic dog dish deserved a prettier presentation. To the rescue: a couple of pieces from my pottery collection.

Love you, Riley.

New post up on Just Let Me Finish This Page.

Happy Wednesday.

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Thoughts on Traffic Noise and Garden Colors

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Sometimes, when I sit here in the morning (or any other time of day) with the window open, all I hear is traffic: trucks rumbling by, cars, motorcycles. If I somehow tune into those sounds, the noise of it all becomes overwhelming. It’s enough to make me want to scream.

But how is it that at other times I’m not even aware of those sounds? Same amount of traffic; but I’m able to tune out all of that noise. I’m barely aware of it. I suppose it’s all in the level of concentration on whatever task is at hand. I didn’t sleep so well last night, so this morning I’m tired and a bit edgy. It’s harder to concentrate. So, it follows that I am hyper aware of all the traffic noise.

But if at some point today I am able to become completely engrossed in a book, all of that sound will fade away.

I’m looking forward to it.

Just one of things I contemplate during the course of a day.

tuesday - zinnia bud

Zinnia buds are little works of art.

tuesday - group of phlox

Walking by the big garden bed is such a pleasure these days because the scent from the phlox is so heavenly. Don tells me that when he lets Scout out late at night, the scent from those flowers fills the night air. We’ve determined that the white phlox has a stronger scent than the purple and pink volunteers that have sprung up in the bed.

tuesday - purple phlox

Though I have to say that the purple phlox is quite lovely.

I looked around my gardens the other day and I’ve come to the conclusion that there is very little red in my garden. I like red, in fact, there is quite a bit of it in my house, but I’m not so crazy about it in the garden. The bee balm is red, of course, and some of the first roses that bloom are red. Though, to be honest, those roses were yellow when I bought them. I wanted yellow roses. And I got them for a few years but since they were grafted, the red blooms eventually emerged. I’m not so crazy about that deep red.

Truly the most predominate color in the garden is purple in all its shades and variations, with white coming in a close second. There are pops of orange and yellow and pink here and there. But purple and lavender are the winners.

If you have a garden, do you find yourself continually drawn to a certain color? What about when you buy flowers for a bouquet?

(Don’t forget about the book review on Just Let Me Finish This Page. I’m giving away a copy!)

Happy Tuesday.

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Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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