“Whosoever is in Your grace is neither slain nor conquered; and distress does not reach him either from afar or near.”
Rig-Veda (3.59.2

It’s raining today and it rained yesterday and it will probably rain tomorrow. This is good news for my seeds. Forget-get-nots, sweet peas, morning glories, arugula, rappini and spinach. The last three have already sprouted. I check the others with a hopeful heart each day.

I am doing some spring cleaning this week. I started with myself and am having a difficult time not eating sweet things and bacon. Yesterday I cleaned the studio and that helped to keep my mind off of Vietnamese Pork Sandwiches.
Today I’ll probably try sewing some scraps in the studio and try not to think of chocolate covered macaroons.

I finally got to the bed behind the Lair. It was filled with sweet grass and even a couple of nasturtiums. Brave little vines that they are. I tried not to pull them up but they are, for all their bravado, very delicate. It takes very little handling before their thick juice soaked stems snap. I’ll throw some seeds back there at the end of the season and see what happens. I think they like more sun than this though.

I discovered the old jade plant that’s been back in that corner since we moved here 12 years ago? It’s in beautiful shape so I made some cuttings and stuck them in around the Buddha along with a fern, some succulents and an ivy I’ll have to keep my eye on so it doesn’t take over the world!
This is not my ideal design for this bed but more a use what I’ve got and what suits for the moment.

The Monk told me to study and think on my abandonment issues so I also threw in some forget me not seeds. I hope that takes care of that.

Later in the afternoon I noticed a fat little Bluebird studying the whole area like he was looking to move in so I’m guessing that when those little forget me not seedlings appear, they’ll make for a tasty treat and a good lesson in letting go.

This little monkey sits on my dresser. He holds my earrings and sits among the dozens of necklaces and bracelets I keep up there. I do need a better way to keep these things. Even he thinks so.

This little monkey sits on my dresser. He holds my earrings and sits among the dozens of necklaces and bracelets I keep up there. I do need a better way to keep these things. Even he thinks so.

This little monkey sits on my dresser. He holds my earrings and sits among the dozens of necklaces and bracelets I keep up there. I do need a better way to keep these things. Even he thinks so.

Here is my little plant hospital. It’s where I’m gathering all my volunteers, cuttings, seedlings, transplants and spent bulbs. This is only the beginning. I’ve spent the last 2-3 days digging in the dirt and moving stuff around. The weather is perfect for working. If only I could say the same for me. I’m more perfect for laying about and dreaming. All this work has left me bruised and battered. Really. My legs are covered in bruises and scratches I don’t remember getting and my arm was attacked by a rose thorn the size of my dog’s claw. It’s an angry swollen thing and makes me cry and whine like a baby at night.

And here is the second veggie bed. That innocent looking growth in the back left hand corner is The Killer Rose. Buff Beauty. She of the giant claw/thorns. Approach with extreme caution!
In this bed I have planted 4 little Japanese Millionaires (eggplants) and 5 Blue Lake Bush Beans.

They were sorry looking specimens from the get go but I was so excited to find these Japanese eggplants that I thought I’d give them a shot anyway. They seem to be doing OK. I will probably throw some lettuce seeds in between.
The other two beds are so lush with flowers at the moment I’ve decided to let them go for the time being. Instead I’ve started work on the back hill.
Slowly by slowly, as the Monk says.

You’d think I lived in Montana. I’ve shamefully ignored the garden the entire winter. And it doesn’t look half bad. This is definitely a result of all the work we’ve done putting in the “bones”. It made a huge impact when we defined everything by putting in all the paths and planting beds and we have such lovely weeds. Daisies and sour grass/clover! All cheerful little faces.
All the tulips I planted came up early and strangely. They bloomed as soon as they sprouted and then grew tall and somehow, even though I bought a huge bag of mixed colors all the pink ones are in the front garden and all the purple in the driveway. Go figure. They have become my favorite flower.
As my first order of spring garden business I dug up one of the beds in the central garden which I have designated the veggie garden this year. I relocated as much as I could from that bed to other beds and caged it and worked in all my beautiful compost and planted brussels sprouts.
One down, three to go.
It’s good to be out again.

I can hardly believe it but spring is most definitely in the air. I know March is that tricky month where anything can happen but for the most part I think winter is ready to head out. My tulips are blooming! I’ve got enough daffodils and lilies to bring to the table almost everyday. It’s warm and sunny between rain storms. This is the time of year I’m usually tempted to start planting and though I vowed not to do that this year because it usually freezes a couple more times and kills off whatever little thing I’ve planted, I went ahead and bought some primroses because there they were at the Rite Aid for $1 all sparkly and sweet and I’ve wanted primroses for a long time but could never find any around town.
So that happened.

And I’ve gone ahead and made my refashion pledge official over at the Wardrobe Refashion site and here is my first official Refashion.

The sweater is from two men’s XL sweaters. The navy was (and still is!) a gorgeous Italian cashmere and the green ruffle taken from this

a merino wool polo. I used the bottom portion to make the ruffle around the edges and sleeves. It’s dreamy soft. The pants are made from another thrift store score.

And right now. Today. I’m boiling oranges.

for this Clementine Cake

I can hardly believe it but spring is most definitely in the air. I know March is that tricky month where anything can happen but for the most part I think winter is ready to head out. My tulips are blooming! I’ve got enough daffodils and lilies to bring to the table almost everyday. It’s warm and sunny between rain storms. This is the time of year I’m usually tempted to start planting and though I vowed not to do that this year because it usually freezes a couple more times and kills off whatever little thing I’ve planted, I went ahead and bought some primroses because there they were at the Rite Aid for $1 all sparkly and sweet and I’ve wanted primroses for a long time but could never find any around town.
So that happened.

And I’ve gone ahead and made my refashion pledge official over at the Wardrobe Refashion site and here is my first official Refashion.

The sweater is from two men’s XL sweaters. The navy was (and still is!) a gorgeous Italian cashmere and the green ruffle taken from this

a merino wool polo. I used the bottom portion to make the ruffle around the edges and sleeves. It’s dreamy soft. The pants are made from another thrift store score.

And right now. Today. I’m boiling oranges.

for this Clementine Cake

I can hardly believe it but spring is most definitely in the air. I know March is that tricky month where anything can happen but for the most part I think winter is ready to head out. My tulips are blooming! I’ve got enough daffodils and lilies to bring to the table almost everyday. It’s warm and sunny between rain storms. This is the time of year I’m usually tempted to start planting and though I vowed not to do that this year because it usually freezes a couple more times and kills off whatever little thing I’ve planted, I went ahead and bought some primroses because there they were at the Rite Aid for $1 all sparkly and sweet and I’ve wanted primroses for a long time but could never find any around town.
So that happened.

And I’ve gone ahead and made my refashion pledge official over at the Wardrobe Refashion site and here is my first official Refashion.

The sweater is from two men’s XL sweaters. The navy was (and still is!) a gorgeous Italian cashmere and the green ruffle taken from this

a merino wool polo. I used the bottom portion to make the ruffle around the edges and sleeves. It’s dreamy soft. The pants are made from another thrift store score.

And right now. Today. I’m boiling oranges.

for this Clementine Cake

Things are slow at the Inn these days. The phone rang once the entire day I was there and it was for me. I’ve been baking on days like that. Whoopie Pies, Chai Cup Cakes. I’m also knitting and watching tv. Catching up on my Big Love episodes. All that drama. All those egos. I just about almost get close to managing my own. And then I don’t. Then I realize there is no managing it. I’ve settled for watching it like it’s some kind of docudramadey. Because that’s what it is.
PS. Yes those are yo-yos on my skirt. My grandmother made an entire bedspread out of these once upon a time.

Things are slow at the Inn these days. The phone rang once the entire day I was there and it was for me. I’ve been baking on days like that. Whoopie Pies, Chai Cup Cakes. I’m also knitting and watching tv. Catching up on my Big Love episodes. All that drama. All those egos. I just about almost get close to managing my own. And then I don’t. Then I realize there is no managing it. I’ve settled for watching it like it’s some kind of docudramadey. Because that’s what it is.
PS. Yes those are yo-yos on my skirt. My grandmother made an entire bedspread out of these once upon a time.

Things are slow at the Inn these days. The phone rang once the entire day I was there and it was for me. I’ve been baking on days like that. Whoopie Pies, Chai Cup Cakes. I’m also knitting and watching tv. Catching up on my Big Love episodes. All that drama. All those egos. I just about almost get close to managing my own. And then I don’t. Then I realize there is no managing it. I’ve settled for watching it like it’s some kind of docudramadey. Because that’s what it is.
PS. Yes those are yo-yos on my skirt. My grandmother made an entire bedspread out of these once upon a time.

I had lunch at my friend Tim’s house. It’s a fun house. Really. Everywhere you look there is some thing you need to look at for a long time. This interactive tableau was in front of his toilet. Among other things. Like any good museum, you need to make a few trips to Tim’s house to see the entire collection.

It’s pouring down buckets of rain today. Not that semi wet stuff we’ve had earlier this season but real starting to flood the yard rain. This means there will not be any walking up and down hills today.

I had lunch at my friend Tim’s house. It’s a fun house. Really. Everywhere you look there is some thing you need to look at for a long time. This interactive tableau was in front of his toilet. Among other things. Like any good museum, you need to make a few trips to Tim’s house to see the entire collection.

It’s pouring down buckets of rain today. Not that semi wet stuff we’ve had earlier this season but real starting to flood the yard rain. This means there will not be any walking up and down hills today.