Gardening

Did an incredible amount of work in the front garden at 18 Mesa yesterday. When it isn't too hot and humid and life isn't too too busy, the garden is one of my favorite places to be. You wouldn't know it by looking at my overgrown (understatement) back yard project, or at my pathetic half-wilted half-hideous flowerbox here at the apartment, but I love to garden. Admittedly I haven't got a real TALENT for gardening, but a passion? Yes.

I've always loved to learn to distinguish one plant from another, which ones like full sun and which shade, and I always love how satisfied I feel when its starting to look half-decent.

Anyway, all the work yesterday took along time, wore me out and left the poor little front garden a little denuded looking and lopsided. Remember the lack of talent I mentioned? It turns out I have a marvelous talent for planting the wrong plants in all the wrong places! When I was younger I had a poor grasp on inches and feet and so planted short ones in the back and tall ones in the front and so forth. I got a little better at discerning which plants should go where, but sometimes I still doubt what the book says and plant a tall-y in the front or short-ys in the back! Then there's always the delightful situation of transplanting; I have taken several species of plant from their original homes in the back garden and moved them to the front to fill in space... well they always have the tendency of performing in a very very different way out front than they had done in back! So a nice, compact 24" high bee balm is suddenly this sprawling, leggy, 5' high giant dominating the small front space!

So folks, even though my garden isn't pretty by any stretch of the imagination, it is still a source of pride. I want to tackle the back jungle but don't know if I have the time or energy. I wish to heaven I had my own garden at my own home. It would be so nice to be pruning or weeding or snipping and have Aaron come out with an iced tea for me, and a kiss, and a vague "this looks nice".

Mum's still in the hospital. The Florida cousins are leaving tomorrow. I still haven't won the lottery. Nor cleaned the house. In a little bit I'm headed over to make dad a burger (never cooked a burger before!) and then visit Mum.

Despite my body aches and fatigue we had a great visit with the Florida Cousins yesterday. It was a really great day. And today Aaron and I had a date at the Lux Level to see Julie & Julia, which was wonderful (I'm a sucker for Nora Ephron) and which is probably my inspiration for blogging about my little hobby- the garden!