Finally

I can't believe that it's finally raining. We've been watching the development of the newest and latest hurricane, Hurricane Beryl (what kind of a name is that, anyway?) in the event that we might actually get rain. The storm is coming nowhere near Ocala but maybe, just maybe, the outer bands will drop a little moisture our way. 

The garden tolerates watering by artificial means but there is nothing like real rain to make it thrive. And the birds......Right now, it is raining a slow drizzle and the birds are having a ball flying from tree to tree just to get a little wet. This is their favorite kind of day; cloudy, breezy, and drizzly.  

It is a perfect day for humans too, especially since it is a holiday and there is no real reason to go out for anything. I don't like to venture out on rainy days. I never have. I thought I was weird until I went to Cuba and discovered that the Cubans don't go out in the rain at all if they can help it. I felt very vindicated by that fact since I am part Cuban. Now I know where I get it. So today, I will be indoors enjoying the rain from my cozy little chair. Ok, well, maybe on the porch. But that's it. I'm not getting wet.

Meet Harry Potter

You know how in the Harry Potter books, Harry is known as the
"boy who would not die"? Well, meet Harry Potter, the Christmas cactus who would not die. 

I have owned this cactus for about the last ten years. It moved here with me from Brandon, so I have nurtured it along marveling at its beautiful blooms from Thanksgiving through Christmas. Last fall, I took a two month vacation and forgot to tell the house sitter that the cactus needed to be watered.  So, upon my return, the cactus was dead. I turned it upside down, out of its pot, and threw it in the green garbage that goes to the yard waste pick up. That was last November.

I don't take yard waste to the "yard waste place" until I have several cans filled with brush. And so, in February, I decided that, yes, it was time to take brush to the pick up site. I opened the can containing the cactus corpse and, lo and behold, the sucker was alive. Not only was it alive, it had new growth on it. Must have loved the hot, moist environment in the garbage can. So I re-potted my cactus, watered it well, and gave it a Coca Cola, classic not diet. (That's the secret ingredient my hairdresser uses for questionable plants).

I christened my cactus, Harry Potter, the cactus that would not die. Voldemort is nowhere around and neither are Hermoine or Ron. But the cactus is thriving and lives on. And I think I've seen a silver stag around here too.

Chores and Nothing But Chores

There's a lot to do out here all the time. But spring and summer bring a plethora of chores. It's just the season that keeps on giving. First, the gate light needed changing because it was dark as pitch out there last night.

 Then, I noticed that the snowball crepe myrtle was starting to bloom and that certainly was worthy of a comment or two. I talk to my plants all the time, letting them know when they are doing a "good job".  So the crepe myrtle received many compliments this morning.

 And, of course, since the birds are nesting and fledging, the feeders always need filling.

 The new bean plants are full of blooms and should be setting beans very soon.

 Here is the little salad section; the lettuce and the tomatoes with the eggplant trying to catch up.

 The dwarf sunflowers are finally beginning to bloom. Plants get three chances in my yard and then, they hit the compost pile. I think the word is getting around.

Tablecloth Heaven

I found these beautiful vintage tablecloths at a yard sale Saturday. A bunch of guys had cleaned out someone's barn (lots of that around here) and were selling everything dirt cheap. These babies transport me back to my childhood really fast because my mother always had a cloth on the table, no matter what meal we were eating.

I plan to list these in my Etsy shop but for now, I will enjoy the memories they evoke.

The Studio Is Ready; A Tour

My studio if finally finished and yesterday, we completed the "decorating". Well, at least until I think of something else. The studio is mainly two colors, lime green and light, soft orange. This view is the "gardening" side of the studio because all of the space was originally dedicated to gardening and I still need some storage for my tools and fertilizers.
This view begins the "studio" side where you can see the wooden art table my granddaughters use when they are with me and the great mid-century chair I found at the thrift.
From here, you can see Chickee-Lala, my green dress form. She was named by my daughter LeeAnn the moment she saw her. I use her for display. Right now, she is wearing hanging crystals to reflect the light. I have quite a bit of storage and have purchased small, galvanized garbage cans with lids to store paper. Otherwise, the little varmints might confuse art material for nesting material. In addition, I purchased large cookie cans with lids from the thrift (25 cents) and painted them white with colored lids. These are used for storage, as well.
This is the view with the two windows that let in glorious morning and afternoon light. You can see the Tabouret, a multi-colored storage piece with a myriad of drawers. I love this unit and it contains all of my glues, pens, scissors, ets. The green wicker chair is where I sit to think. The tall black stool is where I sit to work.
Yesterday, we installed the mirror tiles and the chandelier. The tiles reflect the light back and forth from one side to the other. Fabulous!! The iron chandelier was a gift from a friend many years ago, was used outside for several years, and now has found new life in my studio. I am now ready to begin creating. Actually, I have a mosaic piece in process that needs to be completed. After that, I have about a zillion ideas I want to work on.

A Little Bit of Art

This is a grid drawing that we worked on in Art Group this week. One works from a grid on a photograph that mimics a grid on the watercolor paper. As you can see, I need to work on both the drawing part and the watercolor part. However, it was great fun.
This is called a Zentangle. A Zentangle is a small drawing done on a 3x5 paper in black and white ink. It is a free form "Zen-like" drawing that one can get lost in. I love doing these because they match my abstract random personality with a little bit of need for order.

These are great fun to do and can be done anywhere because all that is needed is paper, a pen, and a little imagination.

Fun Things For Today

Knock-out rose blooming in the backyard.
Crepe Myrtle getting it's new leaves.
Volunteer patch of Spiderwort.
Honeysuckle in full bloom on the white pergola.
A very full jar of bottle caps awaiting a new project!