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Sit down, have some coffee, and try not to get newspaper ink on your clothes.
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Please recommend (and unrecommend the Cafe/Lounge from earlier)
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Morning Andi!!!
For no particular reason I just thought I tell you that there are a huge number of stars out this morning.
Stars are a good thing. That means a beautiful clear sky. I love stars and they do seem closer to the earth during winter when you see that beauty through a cold crisp pre-dawn sky.
Very true and very nicely said — and really imporessive that you write such an intelligent sentence so early in the morning.
LOL Thank you Andi. You would never know that writing is one of my passions or was for many years. I really do need to start back working on it. I can put into words what I cannot draw or paint. I did get myself a copy of drawing on the right side of the brain and a sketch pad and will start trying to free my mind and learn to draw in my late middle age. LOL
I’m not at all surprised about your writing background — your diaries do an excellent job showcasing your ability.
If you get serious about the drawing you should post some of your efforts in the cafe — it would be fun to see how you progress.
The Geminid meteor shower peaks tonight if you have a clear view. It’s pretty small compared to the Leonid and the the Perseid, but it’s famous for producing large fireballs. We saw several last night just while we were untying the Christmas tree from the car.
Hi AndiF and Refinish!
What’s YAHD? Something about hump day?
Speaking of yahds, mine is looking pretty good this morning…did the leaves on Sunday, and yesterday my tree guy spent the day cleaning up all the dead stuff in the yeard and grinding old stumps out.
Now I just need to start researching whata kind of tree I want outside my office window come spring. I was thinking dogwood or maybe something else (small) that flowers and smells good.
Any suggestions?
yet another hump day
redbuds are nice and are more reliable bloomers than dogwoods.
Do they smell good? I was also thinking some sort of dwarf crabapple might be nice, but are they messy?
I really don’t know — since I only get close to them in our woods where there are an abundance of things growing.
This is a picture of a redbud blooming from this spring (with dogwoods).
Our next door neighbors had crabapples trees and the main thing I can tell you is that they definitely attract birds (but then so do the berries on the dogwood).
Redbuds are striking in the early spring against all of the brown. I wish spring blooming trees lasted longer, but I guess their fleeting nature is part of their beauty. That’s it for waxing poetic for me. My brain hurts.
Redbuds are pretty, but do they get big? I want a smallish tree.
Good Morning Ado, Refinised and CG.
What am I, chopped liver?
Morning, FM.
Mm, how are you today, Miss Paté?
I’m fine and dandy, Miss Mojito. How are things with surly boy?
The hurricane has slowed to an intermittent squall this week. He’s looking forward to a month-long Outward Bound adventure in Texas in January, and we’re all hoping that gives him a new perspective on things (and maybe some maturity?).
And we just have 11 more days of school to get through before then, with the vacations and all.
Thanks for asking. 🙂
Ah hormones. Ain’t they lovely? 🙂
How does a month-long thing work with school?
I filled out the educational travel form, and honestly, his attitude has been surly enough there that I think they’ll be relieved to let him go.
Will he have to make up a bunch of work when he comes back or do they count OB as vocational training or something?
The OB folks offered to work with the school to come up with a project (they said some kids have brought along a digital camera and then done a powerpoint presentation on their experiences when they got back to school), but the school wasn’t very responsive about it. They just said they would come up with some minimal amount of makeup work to be done. His science teacher was pretty interested in it though, so we’ll see.
I’m psyched for him to go, and not just because he’s been so grumpy lately. I think it will be a great experience for him.
I’m sorry SN, Of course your’re not chopped lifer. Maybe a luteksisk srtuffed chitilisns though.
Yuuuck. :/
Were you napping all day yesterday?
Just about. No matrter where I was, he’s aa;s th .
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I sort of liked chopped lifer. And we don’t worry about typos around here. They only add to the fun. 🙂
No wonder HJ looks at you so adoringly.
Good morning everyone.
Either that or the cow trachea in my pocket.
I always think it’s a good thing for kids to get out of their comfort zone a little bit and experience something completely different from their everyday world. Expanded horizons are a good thing and you’re a good mother for making this happen for him. It will also be a good chance for CBtY to be an only child for a month – to be able to shine without all of the attention being on his brother.
He’s a little nervous about flying out there alone (I’ll fly out for a parent thing during the last 2 or 3 days of the trip and fly home with him), but I think it will be good for him.
And I’m looking forward to being able to do some stuff with CBtY alone that CBtE has no interest in.
I think they get pretty big. Dogwoods are nice. Cherry trees are nice and smell good and it’s fun to watch the birds.
I will do that and I am hoping the drawing will progress where I can use the drawings on my design sites.
They are a lot smaller than dogwoods. The one that has been at the end of our porch for about 15 years is about 10 feet tall.
You’re right. My old neighbor had an enormous dogwood.
I’m partial to lilacs but they’re really a shrub and not very attractive once they’re done blooming. They were all over the place where I grew up but I think it’s too hot down here because I haven’t seen any. I used to bring my mother armloads of stolen lilacs every May.
The redbud is definitely high on the list, then.
They probably get a taller out in the open than they do in the woods since they would get more light and have more room to spread. According to a site I just checked at, their height at 20 years is about 10 feet and they can get up to 30 feet but that will obviously take a long time.
Well, I’m definitely in the woods, although my front yard is cleared enough to get a little sun.
Now I’m tempted to post a picture of Chez Cabin so you can see where it should go. 🙂
You should wait for homemadesoup to show up and get some professional advice.
Good morning everyone and I must say, another fine pic to start the day. I’ve not seen that one before.
and thanks. I go out walking most days and usually get a new picture or two and I have a pretty good stockpile so I should be able to make it through even the most blah winter with new pics.
Still taking pictures of the roses?
🙂
No more photos of roses — just the ones I took the other night.
I seem to be off by a factor of 14. 🙂
when im not doing porn im a landscape designer…so i can give you some advice.
no to the lilacs…unless its a really sunny location they tend to get powdery mildew…even the new powdery mildew resistant varieties get it so unless you want to spray it and prune it constantly they are too much trouble.
redbuds are cool but i think better seen from far away…more impact….dogwoods are good but i also like them from far away….although they do have 4 season interest.
so is this something you want planted right outside your window or out farther?…if its out farther the fragrance wont matter….what kind of sun will it get?
the most interesting first line I’ve ever come across — wonder if I could get an erotica story out of that…
on the left side of the house
after looking at the pics i think you should stick with natives in general.
maybe franklinia alatamaha would be good….small tree…open branching, nice white flowers (sort of a cross between a camelia and a magnolia) and one of my favorite plants in general…discovered by john and william bartram on a plant collecting tour of georgia, sc and fl…they collected it and it has never been seen again in the wild….named if after their friend ben franklin…its a great little tree.
other plants i would think about in general if you are ever interested in planting anything else in your yard are oak leaved hydrangea which is one of my top 10 favorite plants of all time, carolina allspice, and dogwoods including the chinese version which blooms later and longer than the american version and doesnt get the diseases the american dogwoods tend to get.
I’ve been to Bartram’s Garden, and the franklinia is a lovely tree. 🙂
And I love oak leaved hydrangea and dogwoods too.
cool….my whole family has been involved with bartrams garden for 10 years…they will have franklinias for sale at the annual spring plant sale along with other cool native plants you may be interested in.
Am uncertain about your location but how about a magnolia? Some are big but many are slow-growing and trainable. Some of the dwarf crabapples are very nice especially if you can find one with colorful berries (teeny apples really) that the birdies love. I’ll try to think of some more once the caffeine kicks in.
im partial to the magnolias too….i think cabin girl is in zone 6 but if its a sheltered location she could go for southern magnolia….if not a japanese magnolia would be nice…www.waysidegardens.com is a good place to do research and see whats out there…although ordering a tree from them gets you a pretty high priced specimen that is usually very small….i like to find what i want there then ask the large garden centers or even a wholesaler if they can get what i want…its always cheaper and larger.
I think there’s one kind of magnolia that could work, and I love the smell of them, but when the flowers drop it’s such a mess.
My old neighbors had one, so I got to enjoy the fragrance without the flower debris. 🙂
The dwarf crabapple would be nice for the birds (did you click the link in my reply to anna in philly?)
crabs are good as long as they are far from the house…the dropped fruit attracts bees and it sucks to walk over rotting crabapples covered with hungry bees.
there are crabs that dont have fruit but why bother? plus they like sun and will be prone to disease if they dont get it.
Hi Anna, I noticed you said you were a landscape designer, I wonder if you could help me to identify this plant I having been trying to find the name of for a year now. A picture is here, the second pic. down. Thanks in advance if you can help.
hi diane
they are common morning glories
you can grow them from seed….but they germinate better if you soak the seeds in warm water overnight before planting them…they need something to twine their vines on and climb up….fencing, long sticks or even other plants.
they come mainly in pink and a light purply blue but you could also find seed for a dark red and purple…white flowered plants that look like them are moonvines…they are white flowered and bloom at night….same deal with the warm water germination thingy.
Well they look like morning glories from the flower, but the leaves (3 sections) and also the seeds are different…these have multiple flowers growing from a flower pod, which then dries up and leaves nothing that looks like a seed, although it could be very small. I have grown morning glories and I am familiar with their seeds and seed pods and these are totally different. I started this plant from some I found growing at daughters house, but have not been able to start from these “seeds”.
It will root at stem segments, also which is the way I have propagated a couple. The flower too is different, it lasts a day or two, not like the morning bloom of MG’s.
I suppose they could be a variety of mg’s, but I have not been able to locate the exact plant on any web site I visited and I looked at dozens trying to find the plant.
Perhaps this is native to socal or grow semi wild, it does tend to take over areas.
Thanks for your help in any case and taking the time to look.
hi diane
im 99.99% sure its morning glory….but i couldnt be positive unless i had one to examine and im not a west coaster and have never studied west coast flora….but i believe its Ipomea triloba which explains the 3 lobed leaves…there is a lot of variety in the morning glory family because they are extrememly promiscuous (maybe thats why i like them).
there is very good discussion and pics on the different morning glories here http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0804.htm
with an alternate school schedule in my brain — school year divided into three trimesters, three months in school, one month off. And during the month off, the kids who are behind could get special tutoring to catch up (rather than being stuck in summer school for three months), while the kids who don’t need extra help could take special enrichment classes offered by the schools — either stuff that’s not offered regularly, or intensive study in a particular subject (like a Master’s class in art or music), bringing in experts from the community to teach for the term. Or they could just have a month to kick back and relax — each trimester would be self-contained, with no homework during the breaks (actually, my dream school would have no homework at all, but that’s another story for another day…)
I like that idea. Especially for kids who don’t exactly fit the traditional mode… 🙂
Actually up and about early today — even though I got to bed waaay too damn late. Spouse is hoping the BP is low enough to actually get the thumbs up from the doctor and DMV to get his spud butt back to work; he says that he’ll be rehired if he gets his medical card back, but I worry that he’s hiding crap from me again. 🙁 I’ve just been so stressed out this year, it’ll be good to get back into routine (or what passes for same).
Not much else today — picking up a few non-essentials at the store, then dropping them off at the Opportunity Center; InnVision (local ministry to those in need) is putting together a “Toy Shoppe” for parents to pick out presents for their kids, but without paying for them. They need about 1000 toys and other stuff (including about 450 gifts for older kids, 10 and up), so I’m thinking about picking up some cute watches…those always come in handy for quick gifts. Since I don’t have to shop for my family, it’s great to shop for others…
Okay, need to finish getting dressed…hope everyone has a great day…
Hi, y’all! Very tired today, especially after my ealier client. Some people just need to let things go and move on with their lives.
I hope that things are good where you are.
I am still at work but wanted to say hi to all the ponders!!!!!
So, I’m home sick all day, sleeping on and off, running a slight fever, sneezing prodigiously, and looking for sympathy. And where is everyone? No lounge, the cafe is empty, KS crashed (end of semester overload) and the cats crashed with her.
Oh, in what I hope were lucid moments, I wrote and posted the beginning of Family Man’s Backstory. Be sure to read it in order, starting with the Overview.
I’ll just be sitting here, suffering in silence. You healthy people go about your business. <<sniff, sniff>> Don’t mind me ….. I’ll be fine ….. Kitties? and kitties around? I guess not. <<big sigh>>
Sympathy available in the Froggy Bottom Lounge. Please repost!