it’s cute right?
too cute.

and it doesn’t look anything like this anymore. a few weeks ago there were monk’s robes hanging in the window and there was a pet snail. i saved that snail’s life by showing it to the monk. it was living in the squash bed and now it lives in a Buddhist temple in NY city. the monk wants me to send him another one so he can breed a white snail. why? for his jewelry. i don’t know how long snails live but i think he might have a bit of a wait for the shell.

so now the studio has brilliant orange and teal curtains and colorful batiks on the bed and a bob Marley pillow and instead of a rug there are dirty clothes and books covering almost every inch of the floor. really, I’m not exaggerating. there is a little space in front of the door.
she’s baaack!

the monk wants the studio back. he has changed his retirement plans he says. i think he may have given up his Alaskan retirement plan altogether now. the one involving a bottle of brandy and a long walk in the snow.

that is the power of the studio.
and the lair.
i guess he and em will have to work it out amongst themselves.

i’ve got the sewing machine out and i’m runnin‘ that baby like it’s a hot rod. i’ve created some beautiful things. clothes mostly but there is a quilt in the works.
i’m liking it.
i’m in the groove.

it’s cute right?
too cute.

and it doesn’t look anything like this anymore. a few weeks ago there were monk’s robes hanging in the window and there was a pet snail. i saved that snail’s life by showing it to the monk. it was living in the squash bed and now it lives in a Buddhist temple in NY city. the monk wants me to send him another one so he can breed a white snail. why? for his jewelry. i don’t know how long snails live but i think he might have a bit of a wait for the shell.

so now the studio has brilliant orange and teal curtains and colorful batiks on the bed and a bob Marley pillow and instead of a rug there are dirty clothes and books covering almost every inch of the floor. really, I’m not exaggerating. there is a little space in front of the door.
she’s baaack!

the monk wants the studio back. he has changed his retirement plans he says. i think he may have given up his Alaskan retirement plan altogether now. the one involving a bottle of brandy and a long walk in the snow.

that is the power of the studio.
and the lair.
i guess he and em will have to work it out amongst themselves.

i’ve got the sewing machine out and i’m runnin‘ that baby like it’s a hot rod. i’ve created some beautiful things. clothes mostly but there is a quilt in the works.
i’m liking it.
i’m in the groove.

it’s cute right?
too cute.

and it doesn’t look anything like this anymore. a few weeks ago there were monk’s robes hanging in the window and there was a pet snail. i saved that snail’s life by showing it to the monk. it was living in the squash bed and now it lives in a Buddhist temple in NY city. the monk wants me to send him another one so he can breed a white snail. why? for his jewelry. i don’t know how long snails live but i think he might have a bit of a wait for the shell.

so now the studio has brilliant orange and teal curtains and colorful batiks on the bed and a bob Marley pillow and instead of a rug there are dirty clothes and books covering almost every inch of the floor. really, I’m not exaggerating. there is a little space in front of the door.
she’s baaack!

the monk wants the studio back. he has changed his retirement plans he says. i think he may have given up his Alaskan retirement plan altogether now. the one involving a bottle of brandy and a long walk in the snow.

that is the power of the studio.
and the lair.
i guess he and em will have to work it out amongst themselves.

i’ve got the sewing machine out and i’m runnin‘ that baby like it’s a hot rod. i’ve created some beautiful things. clothes mostly but there is a quilt in the works.
i’m liking it.
i’m in the groove.

patty melt with a pickle and some kettle brand potato chips, (the tuscan three cheese is pretty deadly) and a cup of chai.

ingredients for the patty melt are: tuna in spring water, dried cranberries, mango chutney, mayo, mustard (the good kind with seeds in it), parsley from the garden, green onions and provolone cheese. grill on stove with lots of butter.

mmmm.

patty melt with a pickle and some kettle brand potato chips, (the tuscan three cheese is pretty deadly) and a cup of chai.

ingredients for the patty melt are: tuna in spring water, dried cranberries, mango chutney, mayo, mustard (the good kind with seeds in it), parsley from the garden, green onions and provolone cheese. grill on stove with lots of butter.

mmmm.

patty melt with a pickle and some kettle brand potato chips, (the tuscan three cheese is pretty deadly) and a cup of chai.

ingredients for the patty melt are: tuna in spring water, dried cranberries, mango chutney, mayo, mustard (the good kind with seeds in it), parsley from the garden, green onions and provolone cheese. grill on stove with lots of butter.

mmmm.

somewhere between trader joe’s and the home despot i lost my wallet.
it wasn’t the $2 or the bank card or even my anthropologie gift card which granted, only has about $20 left on it, but still, it was the wallet itself i felt the loss of. it’s a little red faux leather thing with a little black monster with sharp gray teeth that folds over and holds the whole thing closed. i could drop that wallet in any of my purses and find it easily in and amongst the detritus. i would definitely miss that wallet. i couldn’t get that whole letting go thing to work for me.

so i’m feeling particularly hopeful and joyful and there is a spring in my step today despite this weird knee thing, because someone did call late in the evening and said someone had found it and i could pick it up anytime. and my $2 and my anthropologie card and my bank card and even my little post it list of things to get was still in there!

thank you whoever found my wallet and returned it! thank you dishwasher for going through all that rigmarole to get it back to me!
thank you.

has it really been that long?

it feels like summer has only just begun and really it’s not much of a summer. it’s still pretty chilly but at least the sun is out most of the time now. i waited until i couldn’t any longer before planting our tomatoes not only because it was so chilly and gray but also because the mary rose had so many blossoms i didn’t have the heart to move her but move her we did and she looks pretty dead to me though the dishwasher believes she will revive. the tomatoes are going great. both heirlooms. green zebra and…. must remember to keep those little tags next time.

the brussels sprouts grew to outrageous size. behold…

and all but one plant was so infested with aphids that we had to toss them. the remaining plant got a serious spray from the hose and i’m keeping an eye on that one.

the fortnight lilys made a brief appearance last week ….

and the hydrangea are finally fleshing out in front of the lair. yay!

the monk also made an appearance and this year’s project was a rock garden. he got to work soon after arriving gathering all the stones and broken pavers he could find in our yard and built his little “ruins” rock garden up on the hillside ….

i haven’t been able to muster up the mojo for planting it yet. i don’t know why. it’s probably best i wait for the rains anyway though i’m planning on succulents and whatever else volunteers. cerinthe and bachelor buttons would be most welcome.

it’s reached the point where it pretty much does what it does without much attention from us. the whole veggie garden thing has been a bit of a disappointment this year. the brussels sprouts loss took a bite out of my enthusiasm. that was alot of investment in time and water for what was to be one harvesting for each plant. i won’t do that again. i’ve got a beautiful and slightly scary butternut squash vine creeping it’s way around one of the beds and the fourth bed has 4 bush bean plants which put out about 9 beans altogether. the eggplants are still going though and i had the first one in last nights panang curry. delicious.
the parsley has been the best performer so far. it’s huge and this after i cut it down to the ground 2 weeks ago.

that is all.

somewhere between trader joe’s and the home despot i lost my wallet.
it wasn’t the $2 or the bank card or even my anthropologie gift card which granted, only has about $20 left on it, but still, it was the wallet itself i felt the loss of. it’s a little red faux leather thing with a little black monster with sharp gray teeth that folds over and holds the whole thing closed. i could drop that wallet in any of my purses and find it easily in and amongst the detritus. i would definitely miss that wallet. i couldn’t get that whole letting go thing to work for me.

so i’m feeling particularly hopeful and joyful and there is a spring in my step today despite this weird knee thing, because someone did call late in the evening and said someone had found it and i could pick it up anytime. and my $2 and my anthropologie card and my bank card and even my little post it list of things to get was still in there!

thank you whoever found my wallet and returned it! thank you dishwasher for going through all that rigmarole to get it back to me!
thank you.

somewhere between trader joe’s and the home despot i lost my wallet.
it wasn’t the $2 or the bank card or even my anthropologie gift card which granted, only has about $20 left on it, but still, it was the wallet itself i felt the loss of. it’s a little red faux leather thing with a little black monster with sharp gray teeth that folds over and holds the whole thing closed. i could drop that wallet in any of my purses and find it easily in and amongst the detritus. i would definitely miss that wallet. i couldn’t get that whole letting go thing to work for me.

so i’m feeling particularly hopeful and joyful and there is a spring in my step today despite this weird knee thing, because someone did call late in the evening and said someone had found it and i could pick it up anytime. and my $2 and my anthropologie card and my bank card and even my little post it list of things to get was still in there!

thank you whoever found my wallet and returned it! thank you dishwasher for going through all that rigmarole to get it back to me!
thank you.

last night i dreamed that em was pregnant. a soft round ball pressing out the front of her overalls. i spent the rest of the night thinking about what blanket to knit for the baby and listening to lu licking herself. She’s lately taken to coming into our room in the middle of the night and waking us one at a time for no apparent reason. scott thinks she’s having bad dreams. or maybe it’s our dreams waking her…

last night i dreamed that em was pregnant. a soft round ball pressing out the front of her overalls. i spent the rest of the night thinking about what blanket to knit for the baby and listening to lu licking herself. She’s lately taken to coming into our room in the middle of the night and waking us one at a time for no apparent reason. scott thinks she’s having bad dreams. or maybe it’s our dreams waking her…

last night i dreamed that em was pregnant. a soft round ball pressing out the front of her overalls. i spent the rest of the night thinking about what blanket to knit for the baby and listening to lu licking herself. She’s lately taken to coming into our room in the middle of the night and waking us one at a time for no apparent reason. scott thinks she’s having bad dreams. or maybe it’s our dreams waking her…

Scott is painting the house. I am not helping at all. I seem to be in slug mode but not liking it much at all.
In spite of that I managed to plant some foxgloves, snapdragons, bacopa, basil, poblano chili and another little eggplant. I also potted up the Bird of Paradise and did some laundry.
It’s windy again and chilly but at least the sun is out. We had a couple of really hot days a week ago. 90 degrees. In April!
Here’s what it looks like around here…

The back deck. Moved the little $10 Japanese Maple back there to protect it from the wind and now I can see it from my bed.

Buff Beauty busting out. Also nice to see from the bedroom.

The Lair. Looking very festive with our Ikea curtains.

The deck behind the studio. The bamboo is starting to fill in that little bed. Soon it will be a wall and that little spot will be a private little nook.

Brussels sprouts and spinach. Looking great!

Little girl with apple hiding in among the poppies, daisies and bachelor buttons. The soon to be tomato and zucchini bed. Just don’t have the heart to tear out all those Bachelors about to bloom.

These succulents seem to like living in the old tool chest.

Mary Rose shows no signs of slowing and so is also being spared a move at this time. The Love-in-a-mist is also blooming here giving me pause.

That is all.

The lair has new curtains! They dance in the wind.
This week we’ve had monster winds. I had to tie them down and they were fine but the mats and balls and pillows were blown hither and yon. Yoga and meditation in this lair is magical.

Meanwhile…

I’m waiting for the Mary Rose to finish it’s bloom fest so I can dig it up and put her in a pot in front of the studio where she will get tons of sunlight and then I can proceed to plant my tomatoes in her spot. Same with the bachelor buttons. They’re just starting to bloom and I’ll maybe be able to transplant them on the back hill so they can naturalize along with those crazy daises all up on that hill.

It’s musical chairs in our yard at this point. Move this here and that there.