gardening

Seeing Things Differently

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I have not been seeing things correctly lately.  I am beating myself up about not doing enough creative work.  But, I have been producing.  Maybe not in volume.  But, I have done some things.

Recent accomplishments:

I potted up two sago palms and filled top of pots with marble rock.  They now enhance the front entrance to our home.

I cooked a recipe of Oriental Chicken I have had for years.  I thought it turned out great.   It tasted like I thought it would taste and I liked it.

I crocheted a stack of dish washing rags and dish drying rags for my daughter.  I am working on some for my own use.

I have posted on Raining Orchids each week and included a photograph of my own production.  Each photo I have used is one I have taken with my phone and edited with the simple program included in the camera application.

I continue to challenge myself to being as honest as I can when writing for Raining Orchids.

I continue to challenge myself to do what I need to do to be better at everything I do.

I smeared paint on paper and found some satisfaction in the exercise as well as the results.  Yes, I actually painted, again, finally.  I set up a TV tray on the porch and brought my paint box out.  An hour or so later, I put everything away.  But, I had four pieces done.  Two of them were more pleasing.  All were learning exercises.

As a result of the production, I bought some more paper and a few canvas boards.  I found it acceptable to use the temporary work station after all.  I had been resisting that idea.  A quote from a book states  something about it not being the workplace, but the desire to work that matters.

The upcoming days include plans for a trip with him.  We will be seeing dear friends.  My girls are scheduled to come see us when we return home.  I will have a couple of days off to putter around the house and garden.  I will have opportunity to cook and bake for my family.

Simple.  Beautiful.  Raining Orchids.

 

Texas Summer

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We had Texas Spring for about an hour the other day.  The morning was fresh and clean feeling.  The birds were singing, the scent of flowers wafted, the breeze was light, the sun gentle.  Yes, about an hour the other day, it was spring.

Texas Summer, with its heat, has arrived.  It actually was late coming this year. The calendar still says April, but the weather says early summer. Damp, stifling, thick hot air.  The world is a steam bath.  Suffocating, deadly. 

I love it!  Really.  Not joking at all.  I love my Southeast Texas summers. 

Sunshine, thunderstorms, trips to the river to laze on the banks and cool off in the deep, clear waters. 

Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, melons grown just out the back door.  Banana trees reaching up to provide shade on the porch just in time for the hottest days. 

Making pickles.  Watching fireflies.  Firing up the pit for barbecue.  Fish fries, fireworks, flags waving. 

When I was a kid, living in this same house, we did not turn on the air conditioner.  We used an attic fan to draw air in from outside.  Mother would cover the arch from the living room to the rest of the house with a king size sheet and run a window unit in the evenings while we watched one of the two television stations we received.  Musical/comedy variety shows, family dramas, detective shows. 

At 6:15 p.m., the house was quiet to see the local weather forecast.  Ssshhhhh……the weather is on…….. In summer, so near the Gulf, plus a sailor father, the hurricane season was as critical as the football season.  No longer any sailors with us, but the habit lingers.  And the hurricanes still come. 

The roads were white sand.  With the baking of the sun and the grinding of car tires, the sand would become like the finest talc and coat my bare feet and legs by the end of a day of bike riding.  There were ever flowing artesian fed pipes of cold water scattered at the park on the lake.  Refreshment.  No need to go home for a drink.  The white sand and the artesian wells have fallen prey to “progress”.

Summers.  Memories.  Already we are planning our summer adventures.  The river beckons.  The heat reminds us of rope swings and muddy banks.  Sand bars and blow up floats.  Wade fishing before the other boats arrive to crowd the shore. 

I love my Southeast Texas Summers……………

 

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