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The Giving Tree
As I pondered which book has been the most influential in my life, I browsed the shelves in my home and thought back to the classics I read in highschool and college. There are many authors that have challenged and shaped me such as Katherine Patterson, Annie Dillard, Ernest Hemingway, Milan Kundera, Anne Lamott, and Thornton Wilder, but as I reached back further into childhood, one book that stands out and I’ve always considered as my favorite is Shel Silverstien’s The Giving Tree. Let me say upfront, it’s not a warm, inspiring book. I know it is read as a love story, but it’s more of a tragic romance. A quick…
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It’s Another New Year
I don’t really buy into the whole new year, fresh start, clean slate bit. All of me at 11:59 pm on December 31 carries across to 12:00 am January 1. Chances are high that I’m not changing. Not really. That Costco box of Cheez-its will still be on the counter the next morning, and I will still be sneaking 2-3 crackers at a time and letting their tangy goodness dissolve in my mouth. If you’ve never munched on chocolate and Cheeze-its at the same time (alternate bites, don’t cram them in together), you really should. It will blow your taste-buds. I do buy into slow, progressive improvement, reflection and re-upping…
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A Pruning of Personality
My house is gross, and it’s really only my fault. I chose to adopt two cats. I chose to buy my son two parakeets. I chose to have two kids. The vision of the piles of clutter often feels like a hot, thick vapor in my lungs, and it’s the reason I’m driven out into the yard where I can feel the breeze and watch things grow. However, at the end of the summer season, the veggie garden and perennial beds start to resemble the “cat room” of my house and provides little solace from the tasks I’m avoiding inside. The weeds and the rotten tomato vines pile up and…
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Renee’s Garden Seeds
The following Renee’s Garden seed packets were free for me to sample. These are not affiliate links. Renee’s Garden Seeds Renee’s Garden Seeds! I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve been sampling Renee’s Garden seeds and sharing pictures of the produce for several years now, and every year I anxiously await picking out new seeds to try each winter as I prep for Spring planting. Some of my favorite garden varieties come from this company: Trombeta Squash, Slow-Bolt cilantro, Italian Pesto Basil. Each year, Renee introduces new varieties, and I enjoy trying a few of them and a few of my proven favorites. I can also count on my favorite local…
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Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’
Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ is a plant that has been banished from our fenced vegetable garden because it multiplies and grows well on its own without any attention and is a total space hog because of it. Last fall I dug up the crocosmia corms and moved some down to the street beside the rosemary and moved some just at the bottom of the deck stairs just outside the garden fence. They all popped back up this spring. The leaves are similar to the leaves of irises. I was worried we would be too rough on them with active kids running around and the garden hose being dragged back and forth beside…
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What’s Growing May 2017
Aster Moss in the birdbath Poppies Poppies So proud of his garden Curry plant Roma tomatoes Lettuce, unknown variety & super bitter Smaller pole bean teepee Peekaboo kitty Corn and squash patch Broccoli Rose Grapes Big Bertha peppers Tomatoes, yellow beefsteak
