“in which a Maine writer reflects about nature, living in a small town, people, social concerns, art books, and food.”
Laurie Graves
Laurie is also a fiction writer who recently completed the fourth and final book in The Great Library Series.
Of Time and Magicis dedicated to Laurie’s blogging friends, where she notes that the Great Library novel series has traveled the world.
I enjoy supporting independent writers and the Little Free Library movement, so it was fun purchasing several copies to share in our communities’ Little Free Libraries, or LFLs.
Here are a few:
San Jose’s Willow Glen neighborhood LFLInside: Of Time and Magic by Laurie GravesThis is a fairly new LFL, also in Willow GlenThe interior of this book box shows off Clif Graves book design
This gorgeous library is in the Cambrian District of San Jose. It’s a delight.
This library was almost empty when we got there. It’s at the trailhead of a Los Gatos parkPosing with Laurie’s book in front of the Bel Gatos LFLTwo bloggers represented here: Laurie and Marlene of In Search of it All
We have two small libraries in our front yard. A friend built the first library using reclaimed wood. Then, a few years later, Donna Pierre gave it a complete makeover. When the pandemic hit three years ago, and we were all shut down, I put a clear bin outside with children’s books. Kids were out of school, so a book box dedicated to young readers and later crafting kits were a hit. Eventually, I bought a second book box from the non-profit Little Free Library to replace the sun-damaged bin, and once again, Donna worked her magic.
Our Little Free Libraries, Cambrian area of San JoseOur Children’s Little Free Library
In short, I love books and sharing books, and what could be better than sharing books written by a wonderful blogger who’s written four novels about the Great Library?
Now that spring is underway; the garden is filling nicely with greens and flowers. So it’s nice to join theCathy’s for some Monday cheer.
After gathering greens from one azalea and three calla lilies, I cut a handful of the fading yellow Freesia. Try as I might, though, I couldn’t get the flowers to work in one arrangement. I arranged two smaller vases, one with Freesia and azalea greens,
Over the weekend, I arranged another vase for a friend’s birthday. I wish all of my friends celebrated birthdays this time of year. It’s so cheering giving flowers from one’s garden.
Please follow this link to see the other In A Vase on Monday posts.
Thank you, Cathy, at and Cathy at Words and Herbs.
I’ve never been averse to a bit of dirt. After all, gardening involves:
Digging in the soil.
Hauling extra dirt from the garden center.
Sweeping the spilled dirt off the patio after transplanting or planting something new.
Still, there are a few jobs that I have to be in the right frame of mind for, like fussing with the compost pile. But, once I get going, the other jobs easily follow.
Path leading to the compost cornerFlattened compost behind the hydrangea
The first of these jobs involved mucking around in what I call the surplus compost pile. We live on a small lot, which limits the space available for a three-pile compost system. Over the years, I’ve dabbled with a few ready-made composters and eventually happened upon a pyramid composter.
It works well, but I have more yard waste at certain times of the year than others. So I started a second, smaller pile in the corner next to the pyramid beneath the orange tree. We share our oranges with neighboring squirrels, tree rats, and probably opossums, so they also add half-eaten oranges and rinds to the pile.
I sorted the pile, removed and bagged the rotting oranges, and pulled assorted twigs, which take longer to decompose. As a result, the stack is now flatter, making it easier to access the fence for additional work. Seeing all those earthworms working beneath the soil did my heart good. It’s been too dry for too long.
A fragrant, slippery mess
My next dirty job involved cleaning the bird bath. I generally clean and disinfect it with white vinegar and a big brush, but my friend Donna suggested hydrogen peroxide to help reduce algae. So I researched and confirmed that it’s safe for birds and plants. A little goes a long way, and wow, what a difference.
I believe that’s a Chestnut-backed Chickadee
The final dirty job for the week involved rust removal from my fairy garden gate. I fell in love with this cast iron piece when I spotted it in a neighborhood shop years ago. This John Wright piece used to be a doorstop. It’s the perfect size for a miniature garden, and the weight deters marauding squirrels who love digging through the planter. I’ve always thought a bit of rust added to its charm, but it started looking more orange than I liked, so I brought it in for a cleanup.
Rusty gate in a white vinegar bath
I soaked the little gate in white vinegar for over 24 hours. I used a piece of steel wool to try and loosen the rust, then switched to a stiff brush.
After several rinses, I switched to lemon and salt, soaking and scrubbing again.
The lemon returned some of the original colors, so while some rust remains, I’m happy with the results.
After the final rinse
I need to do a bit of maintenance in the miniature garden. I’ll share photos when I’m done.
Cathy at Rambling in the Garden arranges flowers in a vase year-round, and posts her creations each Monday. I’m always impressed with what she pulls together. In addition, several bloggers join the creative process, posting there In a Vase on Monday and linking to Cathy’s blog.
I discovered Cathy at Rambling in the Garden through Cathy at Words and Herbs, yet another example of how I love this blogging world. I like to refer to them casually as The Cathys. I hope they don’t mind.
I filled today’s vase with my beloved Freesia in yellows and whites. Then, I clipped some greens from our Pittosporum (Pittosporum tobira). The Pittosporum, sometimes called mock orange, is one of two trees that preceded our move to this house 27 years ago.
Rounding out the color are a few orange nasturtium (Tropaeolum). The stems are weak, but I couldn’t resist their vibrant color. They self-seed all over the garden this time of year in reds, yellows, and oranges.
I found the vase at a vintage shop a few years ago. I bought it for a song, telling me it’s neither vintage nor valuable, but with a ceramic cat hanging from the edge, it’s priceless.
Please visit Rambling in the garden to see what other bloggers have arranged In a Vase on Monday.
We woke up Wednesday morning to grey skies but no rain. I thought we missed the hyped storm, but it was running late.
By mid-morning, the skies darkened, and the rain followed. Between 10 and 2, we had thunderstorms, followed by hail, which eventually gave way to sunshine. Cold temperatures left a shallow layer of snow in the foothills.
I can’t remember a time when we sampled such varied weather.
The winds remained at bay, and the power stayed on, but we stayed vigilant about falling trees.
I paid a visit to my favorite crafting store and saw the remains of this once-towering tree. Unfortunately, one of the recent storms toppled the tree, lifting the sidewalk as it crashed across the drive, smashing into a small sign. Thankfully no one was hurt.
Thursday and Friday delivered uneventful weather, and today we enjoyed warm, clear, and sunny skies.
Our cats, Tessa and Mouse, are sleeping soundly after a day of fresh air and sunshine. They used to quibble over the basket on the table behind the couch, so now there are two. Never mind that they have dozens of cozy spots for slumber throughout the house. Like toddlers, bickering is more fun.
I replaced my label-maker after 15 years of reliable service, never imagining it would double as a chin rest.
Intoxicating Freesias continues to dominate in the garden, with purples and reds joining the earlier yellow and white mix. The nasturtiums are back, and several nepeta have self-seeded as well. Now that the hydrangea is covered in fresh leaves, pink and blue flowers will soon follow.
It’s difficult to imagine looking at this photo, that another powerful storm is due at midnight. We’ve had a few sunny days, but it’s been cold.
View of our front garden including two Little Free Libraries, a grand magnolia, wisteria, camellia and Freesia
On a side note, the title of this article made me smile: Flowers and Grammar Have a Strained Relationship. I’m always looking up plant names to determine upper and lower case usage.
Spring waits for no one, so it’s been a treat watching the Freesia populate the garden.
I’m seeing an abundance of California poppies as well. Both plants self-propagate, making seeing where they’ll put on a show each year a joy.
California oppy Eschscholzia californica
Our white camellia is also in bloom, but the foliage doesn’t look healthy. My research led me to the probability of an algal leaf spot common to this type of plant. I garden organically, so I need to look at methods to control it. As an aside, I learned that a camellia can live for 200 years!
One stroke of luck as I went outside to clip a few leaves: an Anna’s hummingbird arrived and sipped nectar at arm’s length allowing me to snap several photos. I couldn’t believe my luck.
This hummingbird is either a female or an immature male. The adult males are more colorful.
I’ve been busy removing the various types of grass from the garden, front and back. We had the garden professionally landscaped many years ago, and these grasses were part of that mix. Unfortunately, the two in the front garden have grown to dominate the space, crowding out other plants. Further, our cat Mouse chews on the grass, but he’s unable to digest it, causing him to gag lengthy bunches of grass.
I’m trying to improve his diet with a brand of cat food that includes spinach. I bought wheat grass at the grocery store as well, but he’s eschewed that fresh grass entirely. Picture me chasing after him saying, “Mmmmm, doesn’t this look tasty?” as I’m met with a look of disdain. In addition to grass domination and poor kitty’s tummy, I poked myself straight in the eye with one of the blades last year during pruning. That hurt! So the grasses are no more.
It took some work getting the two largest grassy plants out of the ground, and I created additional tasks for Mike, who had to come behind me and repair the in-ground irrigation.
In the end, I removed two large grass plants from the front garden and one large and several small ones from the back. With luck, the salvia that is now free to grow uncrowded will fill the space in the back native garden.
The rest of the project will need to be hired out. The plan is to create a paving stone pathway that curves from the sidewalk to the stone steps. Once finished, I’ll plant well-behaved and smaller-scale native plants to the right and left of the new walkway. It looks a bit forlorn for now.
Spot for new walkway. The smaller plants pictured are just coming out of their dormant stage.The proposed walkway will start here and end at the sidewalk.
We’ve all got our fingers crossed that tonight’s storms don’t claim any more lives. It’s been a challenging time for California.
When my oldest son moved into his condo in late 2021, he took his bed, a desk, and a small table. He’s a minimalist like his mom. My son takes comfort from the familiar, whereas I enjoy change, so it worked out beautifully for both of us.
Mike and I bought a bed and a nightstand from Scandinavian Designs for the room, and that was it for a year. After that, I didn’t have the time or the energy to do more. I spent the last few months of last year researching assisted living for my younger sister, cleaning, clearing, packing, and organizing movers for a rainy December day. I set up her new space, hired a realtor, and cleared out what remained at the condo. Her place sold last month.
Between those hectic weeks, I made lists. Then, I spent evenings looking for unique bed coverings online.
Now and then, I would flop down on the new bed and think about how the space should feel. Once you have a sense of the feel of the room, design features naturally follow. I wanted a botanical vibe, green, but not too much green, and the idea of lemons and sunflowers entered the mix.
Digital lemon artwork (Etsy), Original Sunflower (a gift from Kelly), and Original cat painting, (artist/friend Barbara Oertli)
I must have mentioned this to my friend and fellow volunteer, Claudia. She gifted me a pair of beautifully hand-sewn, lemon-themed flannel pillowcases on my last day downtown. That gift got me moving.
Lemon flannel pillow case, a gift from my friend Claudia
The yellow room features bargains and splurges, unique items from my home, and plenty of cat fur.
I bought a yellow towel for the cats, and most of the time they sleep on it (Mouse looking entitled)
I found a package of decals online that assembled into a lemon tree. I wanted the tree to cover part of two walls, and after some thought, I decided to start the tree trunk along the baseboard. It worked! I spent a couple of afternoons adding clusters of leaves and then added the lemons as a finishing touch. The hummingbird decals came with the tree.
Completed lemon treeCloseup of the tree decals
Our local Michael’s had a 90% off sale on custom framing, so I pounced. They framed three calendar pages from my 2022 wall calendar, and to my delight, they look fantastic. I hung the pictures for a few weeks before deciding to have the windowed wall painted green. Green walls made everything pop.
I found a few bargains at Cost Plus World Market:
A small wicker table
A decorative yet functional water sprayer
The round wicker piece over the bed
and that cute cat vase
Given our earthquake penchant, I never put anything heavy or breakable over a bed.
The floral chair swivels, so it will work nicely with the desk. It was s splurge!
The room is almost done, except for two details. First, a narrow desk is on order and should arrive in April.
The desk will go along this wall, currently reflecting the shuddersTreasures on the nightstand: mini-apron, a gift from Marlene, watering can frame, a gift from Carrielin and a sunflower card, a souvenir from my son’s trip to Florence. The lemon tray traveled from the kitchen.Organic cotton light-weight sunflower blanket and assorted cushions from Ownkoti. Painted cushion by krupa paranjape.The ficus once lived in the corner
Sadly, the gorgeous Ficus I bought for the room dropped 80% of its leaves. I need to sort something else out for that corner. The room has very little natural light, so this was a one-plant test. I’ve moved the plant to a brighter location, hoping it will rebound.
The plant looked nice while it lasted
The guest room is officially open! Here are a few more pics. I’ll share an update when the desk arrives.
The winds are back with a vengeance today, along with steady rain. The power is on, at least for now. My friend pointed out that I could have used our summer coolers to preserve our groceries during the last power outage. It just never occurred to me at the time since lengthy power outages are rare. I feel more prepared this time around. (Thanks, Donna!)
Rainy Tuesday: Happy Succulents on Deck
Just outside the window, a hummingbird is making the rounds. He seems unperturbed by the rain and happy to stop at the flowers and the feeder for a meal. Earlier this month, we had regular hummingbird visits to the Anemone virginiana.
The hummingbirds pluck the fluff, the non-technical term for diaspore, and use the downy surface to build a nest.
Ana’s Hummingbird gathering fluff for her nest
It took weeks to capture a three-second video. Mike and I both delight in this sort of thing.
The California grey squirrels were busy this morning, but unlike the hummingbirds, they prefer to wait out the storm. Unfortunately, I don’t have any recent pics, so I’ll share a few favorites instead.
This year, life has settled into a more reasonable pace, affording me more time to putter and play. I’m finally decorating my son’s former bedroom. He moved into his place nearly a year and a half ago. It’s been years since I’ve had the chance to redecorate a room, so I’ve been taking my time and enjoying the process. I’ll share more details in an upcoming post.
Neutral Walls, Future “Lemon Tree”
I’ve also sorted the house top to bottom as I do for my organizing clients, passing on small appliances and underused items from the kitchen. My crafting area got a do-over as well. When both boys were off to college, I claimed the side-by-side IKEA desks that they used in our den. We’ve had four desks in that room, one for each of us. It worked well for homework and was a place for the kids to play video games with friends.
Time to Reconfigure the Crafting Area
After nearly a year of using the space, I realized that the configuration of side-by-side desks didn’t work as well for crafting. Having my back to the windows didn’t work for me either. I’ll share more details of those changes as well.
Sometimes you only realize what you’re missing once you get it back. I’ve missed writing, puttering, gazing out the window, and time to be. It feels good to be back in this blogging space and to have the time to leave thoughtful replies. I’m so glad you’re here.
Today marks the vernal equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere. So, at 5:24 p.m. eastern time, spring will officially be underway. I’m ready!
California has had a rough winter, with 12 significant storms since late December. Our beautiful state swings from drought to drench with little in between, with devastating consequences.
Our suburban neighborhood is not at risk for floods, but the wind storm that followed last week’s rain packed a brutal punch. We lost power for 28 hours, along with several businesses, large and small. Traffic lights were out at major intersections, making it challenging to get anywhere and scary. Trees, large and small, were uprooted and dropped on fences, roadways, sidewalks, and trails. Snapped twigs and branches littered the roads along with debris the winds gathered along the way.
The railing across our deck twisted in the wind, then fell into the garden with the windchimes and two hummingbird feeders. Parts of our roof tiles littered the deck, and our back fence is now leaning precariously. One of my frost covers has traveled to parts unknown, and one of the two hummingbird feeders smashed, leaving broken glass and sugar water in its wake.
An enormous Monterey Pine leans across our back fence, making it hard to relax in the living room of our home when the wind is strong enough to shake the house. I’ve worried through many storms that the tree might come down, though, in a stroke of good luck, I had the tree assessed by an arborist late last year, then arranged to split the cost of a significant pruning. The arborist says the tree is “extremely stressed by drought conditions.” Removing dead and dying branches took a day and five crew members. The tree sits in our neighbor’s yard and towers over four properties. During the worst of last week’s windstorm, I either left the house or hung out in the front corner of the house, farthest away from the tree. I’m happy to report that the tree remained upright.
That evening, we found a charging station with power so Mike could get his electric vehicle charged for a presentation the following day. As we drove to a power station, we passed neighborhoods in complete darkness, while others kept their power.
Using the FDA guidelines for food safety, I had to pitch 90% of the food in our fridge and freezer. Fortunately, we have the resources to replace what we lost, but it is a painful reminder of many struggling to get by. An extra cash donation to our local food bank is in order. The needs here are significant.
These storms haven’t ended the drought but have filled several reservoirs, which is excellent news. Melting snowfall is also a significant water source during the warmer months, so as long as it melts slowly, it’s a fabulous resource for our parched state.
Thanks, as always, Kate, for hosting this monthly challenge.
Every few months, I get the urge to use my Gel Press, usually when I find something interesting on the garden floor.
Last month I picked up a decaying leaf that maintained its skeleton-like structure. (Sorry, no pics) I wanted to capture the leaf pattern using a Gel Press, brayer, watercolor paper, and ink. I imagined the delicate veins of the decaying leaf in minute detail. Instead, I created several blobs. I call the first blob “cranky man-in-the-moon.”
Sigh.
This brings me to ScrapHappy, the oops edition. I set the images and my discouragement aside for a time. I decided to use them this month to make some cards.
While I had a general idea of using the blobs as backgrounds for my cards, I lacked direction. In the end, I have:
The Under-achiever: Pretty but ho-hum
The first card incorporates one of the blobs cut into a rectangle and mounted on a scrap of purple paper. The watering can is fussy-cut from an old wall calendar. I’ve saved old calendars in years passed when I couldn’t part with the beautiful images. It’s fun to incorporate them into cards.
The Over-achiever: Not knowing when to quit
This second card got away from me. I inadvertently got mired in “everything-but-the-kitchen-sink” mode. While I love the punched background made with a gorgeous crafting die from PinkFresh Studio, I wish I had spent time experimenting before adding details. I stamped the floral image with versa mark ink, embossed it in black, then colored the flowers with markers. Placing yellow circles behind the image helped them stand out. When I stamped the word “hugs” on the image, it looked small and out of scale. I fixed that oops with another die cut of a leaf. Time to quit.
The Surprise: A happy accident with paper and ink
The final card looks yellow in this pic, yet all three backgrounds are the same shade of green. I tried transferring ink to the Spellbinders embossing folder, but the results were mixed. Thinking I had wiped off all the ink, I was surprised to see small amounts of purple ink transfer to the green. You can just make out the leaf image in blob number three.
Gardening Nirvana 