Brutal Colour!

Washed Bins

I liked this one so much I decided to use it as my header for my blog!

Nikon F801s, Nikkor 50mm f1.8, Kodak Profoto 100.

Retail Therapy

An opportunity to indulge in some welcome plant retail therapy this weekend as plants sales seem to be thick and fast on the ground. Yesterday was our garden club sale .Typically the day started wet and in fact continued most wet throughout. I must have had a premonition as I decided not to have a plant stall this year. So I was delighted not to be traipsing round in the rain early in the morning, gathering up crates of plants and desperately searching for loose change at thevery last moment. No frantic labeling as I realise that a dozen or so pots have escaped my beady eye and although I know what they are potential buyers may not. Instead I could take my time and although I helped my friend D. on her busy stall I had plenty of time to wander round the other stalls at my leisure. I came away with some unamed plants including a white phlox and a purple campanula as well as a cirsium rivulare 'Atropurpureum', which I have been contemplating buying for some time.

Today it was further afield to another plant sale about five miles away or so. At the advice of friend D. we arrived just before the start time of 11.00am. I am so glad that we did as within half hour the sales area had been decimated. The sale was not due to finish until 2.00pm so latecomers would have been rather disappointed. Coming home with me was the oak fern that you can see below~



a phormium to replace the one I lost in the winter as well as monarda 'Gardenview Scarlet'. Before we left there was time for a walk round the windswept hilltop garden with its fine view of the Cheshire countryside. Better weather is predicted for tomorrow, the ground is warm and damp so ideal planting conditions for my new purchases.

Unusual Books

It never occurred to me to publish my own book, but in the past few years I have been given books that individuals have elected to publish.  With both of these books the authors have invested their own resources in the creation of these bound volumes.  One of the books is one by Betty Bird Foy Sanders, wife of the former Governor of Georgia, Gov. Carl Sanders.  The book is a collection of Mrs. Sanders art and it's a beautiful coffee table book.  I received the book one year during the holidays when I was helping with the packaging and mailing of the newly published volume.  

The second book I want to discuss is one called An Extra Eye, by Roy Ward.  It's interesting to note that he has published five books prior to this one though I have never seen the others.  Roy Ward is a retired country doctor who lives in Watkinsville, Georgia and much of his works highlights life and art in and around Oconee County, Georgia.  I've met him once and truthfully he would not have been someone I would have noticed in a crowd but to me his book is notable.  

The book features Dr. Ward's photography with scenes of farmers, fields, animals, country roads, barns and "four-square" churches.   Most living in the Athens, Georgia area are aware of the development and urban sprawl that has taken place in the past 10 years so Dr. Ward's book captures many sites that have begun to slowly disappear in the south.

My favorite chapter in the book is one titled A Woman of Importance.  It tells the story and showcases the art of Amelia Simpson.  Dr. Ward tells the story of being a young doctor who'd finished school to return to a small town only to quickly decide he wanted to go  live in a city.  His story goes that he first met Amelia as a young doctor when she was sick and he had been treating her for pneumonia.  The night before he left to start his new work in Jacksonville, Florida, it was cold and pouring rain.  He couldn't stop thinking Amelia Simpson.  There was no one to care for her.  It was that night that he decided to stay in this rural community to serve as the country doctor, where he retired and lives today.  At the end of the chapter Dr. Ward says, "she never knew she changed my life, and to some degree, that of our community as well."

Amelia Simpson lived in an old tenant house that had been thrown together on an old estate, most probably dating back to the days of plantations. The house had never been painted and the wood had weathered beautifully over time.  In the winter the house was all closed up so the house, warmed by a wood stove, smelled of whatever was cooking.  In the summer the house was completely opened up - no air conditioning and would smell fresh with the fragrance of the season.

Of course Ms. Simpson had a garden that provided for her and she maintained a perfect swept yard (I love swept yards and will be posting more about them in the very near future).  She lived there alone and was often heard saying, "she never needed no man."   The significant thing about Amelia Simpson was her artistry.   Dr. Ward spent a lot of time over the years with Amelia Simpson, capturing her with her amazing quilts, a beautiful swept yard and garden, "wall paper,"  lady-whirls and  of course, bottle trees.  

This photo captures two lady-whirl paper designs

In many of the old tenant homes it was very common to see walls decorated with scraps of paper, thus creating "wallpaper."  Bottle trees, like swept yards, were a tradition that was derived from an African burial tradition.  Slaves were the original southern gardeners who brought to America new and beautiful techniques that were unfamiliar to European settlers that were quickly adapted to what became known as the southern garden.  

In his book Dr. Ward expresses regret that through the years he tried repeatedly to draw attention the the incredible eye that Ms. Simpson had, especially in her quilt designs.  Each told a story using  whatever fabric was available.  The book features many of her quilts and fabric designs that covered chairs, tables and the bed in the house.  

Interestingly, all of these photos were taken more than 50 years ago.

In memory….

Only in Key West does the American flag ...have a hint of Hibiscus flower and Palm trees for stars…Oy.

In memory of those who serve…

and served.

How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!

~Maya Angelou

Moon Rise

The Girls From Ames

Have you read the book yet?  I started it last week and couldn't put it down.  It is the true story of a group of 11 friends and their 40 years of friendship. Reading the book made me reflect on the girlfriends that I have been blessed to know and share memories with.   

Girlfriends have always been very important part of my life.   Growing up, I wasn't popular or part of a clique in school but I always had a good and trusted friend.  One of my high school teachers once said, "if you can live your life having made one true friend, you have experienced more than most people do in a lifetime."   I treasured those words.

After reading the book I wanted to talk about it with someone so I hope some of you have read it, or will read it and add your thoughts.  I was so surprised at the large circle of friends, being so connected without the discussion of jealousy.  There were plenty of other emotions shared but that one element was missing...I think it to be a good thing.  One thing that was upsetting was reading about the "mean girls" incident.  It was painful to read and something that I'm sure many of the women regret today.  Sally had a huge heart.

My 40th Birthday Party in 1996 - a wonderful circle of friends

 

When I turned 40 I wanted to honor my friends and all but 2 of my  closest friends were able to gather for a party that was held in their honor.  Each of them have given me the gift of friendship for many years and I love each of them dearly for their incredible gift.   As a part of the celebration I wanted to give each of them a keepsake gift to mark the occasion.  It was funny when I went to buy their gift(I ordered engraved silver cuff bracelets), the shop where I did my shopping thought I was getting married!

 My girlfriend Chris.  I wish I had a picture of her with her chickens.

I've never had a group of friends that were connected in any way, nor did I feel that they needed to be.  Each of them knew something about the other, but my friends come from different parts of my life.  

 Here's Judy!  Just can't imagine my life without her in it.  We raised our kids together. 

There are friends from when I taught school, worked in the firm, from junior high and high school, college, church and my neighbor of 18 years.  Each are important to me in so many ways.  Most celebrated my 50th birthday too.  It meant so much when my Dad died to start the funeral and realize that Melinda, Judy, Fran and Tricia had traveled 2 hours or more to be there for me. 

My high school friend, Deborah

If only there were more hours in a day.

I'm so lucky to have a soul sister like Adrienne...

Adrienne in France

and we are so connected. She lives in NY but we still manage to see each other once a year.

Adrienne on the Great Wall

 There is also my soul sister that lives in Seattle.  She's the mother of my Goddaughter, Shea.  Of course we have to connect as often as possible.  I don't want to miss out on watching Shea grow up.

Caitlin and Shea

Then there is my sister.

Me and my sister - the laptop sisters (notice the matching pajamas - we still buy matching clothes).  Please overlook the morning face with no makeup.  BTW- the critter hanging on the bed is a possum.  I call my husband Hossum and he calls me Possum and I actually found a stuffed 'possum at Cracker Barrel!

It has always seemed that each friend is like a facet of me and they polish and add shine to my life.   I would love to have more time for girlfriends.   After reading the book I want to have girlfriend reunions every year.  Please add your thoughts.

Wow.  The power of sisterhood.  It's one of life's greatest gifts.

James Earle Jones said, “One of the hardest things in life is having words in your heart that you can't utter,”   and that's exactly how I feel about my friends.

Scentsational

S IS FOR?



SUBLIME~ inspiring uplifting emotion because of its beauty!

This sight and its accompanying scent certainly uplifted my spirits last week after a rather difficult few days.

Saunter over to ABC Wednesday for more snippets on the letter S.

Plane in a Dramatic Sky

Cute Puppy Portrait

Nikon F801s, Nikon 50mm F1.8D, Ilford XP2 Super 400 C41 process B&W film. Scanned on a CanoScan 5600F. Edited with the GIMP.

Thoughtful Clown

Indomitable Nikon F801s, spectacular Nikon 50mm f1.8D, and vastly underrated Fuji Superia film. Edited with the GIMP.

Summer moves in with ego in Florida…

Not shy…

more like a pusher… it’s rising barometer

daring us to inhale it.

Smirking at times.

And yeah… we push back

in the beginning.

Because we think this may be the one that saunters in slowly…in our time. Not it’s.

This is the year we’ll get everything done so we can enjoy.

go ahead...laugh away.

But we can never push it back…It comes, and seeps in cracks…and warms everything

to hot. To scalding...even.

Old tired pools beckon…plead

…even beg.

Work never ends…it slows…

In the heat.

But never ends…

Tireless comrades remain faithful…

albeit hot under black fur.

even though they do have cute white sneakers.

but...Pleading all the same.

Then… evening rolls in

in pink and purple and Gray

cool colors

calming colors

healing colors

And we beckon another day.

gratefully.

"In summer, the song sings itself."

~William Carlos Williams

A Gift

Time in the garden and the allotment has been precious during the last few days, especially as I have been away from home unexpectedly. In my absence a long awaited spell of warmth has really spurred on growth. Whilst my back was turned all sorts of flowers have suddenly unfolded from nowhere, faster than the speed of light. I have spent a most pleasant and calming evening just pottering about checking out the openings, squidging the dreaded greenfly which have appeared on my tomato plants as well as trying to keep up unsuccesfully with the potting on. Last task of the day and the most pleasant was trying to decide where to plant a couple of cortusa matthioli - a gift from Patient Gardener. As far as I am concerned plant gifts are the best gifts of all and I will certainly treasure these plants which were just showing colour last time I peeked at them and now look!

Lyndy Broder and Clematis

Seeing all the clematis in bloom this week reminded me of a friend from that I've lost contact with over the years.  Back in the mid 90s I worked to start a garden club that really bloomed into something extraordinary.  As the club formed, I reached out to the current president (at the time) of the state Master Gardner's association who just so happened to live in our county.  He offered to help round up incredible speakers for the first year so that we didn't have to pay speakers fees and it wasn't long before our club grew gaining some amazing members and plant experts.  One of those experts was Lyndy Broder.

I don't really recall what I knew about Clematis before I met Lyndy but after spending time with her and visiting her gardens, clematis became an important part of my garden. First, I'll tell you a little about Lyndy and then share a few things about clematis.

Lyndy was a busy mom with career and four children so she didn't really begin to garden until her early 50s.  Lucky for her, she was able to retire early and one of the first things she did was to complete the Master Gardner's program.  Lyndy got involved with a number of the plant societies but one of the plants that captured her attention most was clematis.  She began to study the plant and learned that there were varieties to be found on the tundra and in our woodlands.   After hearing about Brother Stefan Franczak

Lyndy made a trip to Poland to meet Brother Stefan and to study some of his developed varieties.  Over the years Lyndy has become an international expert on clematis and has more that 200 varieties in her garden in Stockbridge, Georgia.  Most recently, she was a contributing author for a new book by Dr. Allen Armitage on vines and climbers.

At Lyndy's you quickly learn that this beautiful vine can be tucked in with so many other plants to create a multitude of unexpected blossoms.  She will often tell you that she plants a clematis with, and at the same time as another tree or plant with the intention of additional blooms.  The thought is that if the plant has bloomed, you can get a second showing with a clematis added to the planting.

A few years ago we moved and in planning our move, I rooted and dug up many of my plants in order to be able to take some of my favorite ones with me.  Unfortunately only six of my clematis survived the process but that gives me an excuse to buy more!  Just in case you are looking for a place to shop for clematis besides your local  nursery, check out Donahue's Greenhouse.

Gotta love that Nikon 50mm f1.8D!!

Next on my wish list is the 85 f1.8 and then the 35 f2.0.

Another sharp Nikon 50mm f1.8D photograph.

Continuing on the subject of how sharp the Nikon 50mm f1.8D is, here is another portrait. I had it printed to 6"X9" yesterday and it's amazing how every stubble of beard and every pore is plainly visible in the print. The computer screen version simply doesn't do it any justice, which leads me to believe that for photographers the final goal really has to be the print. Or if you shoot slide film, then it has to be the projected image.

How many of you still bother with prints, or do you stop at the point of keeping your precious photographs in digital medium on a hard drive.

For myself, very few of my photos ever get printed and displayed in a frame on the wall, but when I do print and hang them I am usually left wondering why I don't do it more often.

Time For A Change

Up till now I've had my dining room table set for spring but with all the hydrangeas starting to bloom I think it's time for a change.   The room looks really happy with lots of yellow, orange and green. 

It may be hard to see but the egg cup is resting on a flower plate..  

 

I was especially happy when I found these lollypops that looked like spring candies. 

These linen napkin ties are one of my favorite things.

Today is our neighborhood cleanup so I'll be headed out to work on neighborhood projects but when I get home, it will be time for a change.  

Have a great day!

P.S.  We had great fun at the neighborhood clean up.  Here's our team:

"Fake" Vintage Photograph

 I got a demo copy of Paint Shop Pro and it has some cool effects, I particularly liked this vintage look.

While the little gimmics in PSP are kinda cool, I still prefer the totaly free GIMP graphics program. You heard right, FREE! And it really works. Aside from the picture above, all the photos on this blog are processed in the GIMP. You can download it here: GIMP Download Page.

We interrupt this post for a {horsey} commercial break…

And growing…

sigh

carry on.

Isaac and Alisa - Wedding

 

Nikon F801s, Nikkor 50mm f1.8, Fuji Superia film.

I may have posted this before, but I was looking through my files and realized just how sharp the "nifty fifty" from Nikon is! Why pay R17899 (US$2294) for a "pro" f2.8 zoom when this lens is at least as sharp, and faster as well? All for only R1399 (US$179), and that's the cheapest lens Nikon makes!

Also consider that this was taken on a 21 year old camera and cheap "consumer" film.

My biggest problem these days is finding a decent lab to process my negs. If anybody knows of a good lab in Pretoria, please contact me and let me know.