This was one of those days I thought would be "rained out" in the garden, but it turned out to be pretty productive. The rain held off long enough to get in some of the last winter pruning, we got a bunch of pansies transplanted from the nursery beds up to the front of the house for their spring show, and got a lot of things cleaned up that are starting to flush out for spring.
Everywhere one looks, the plants are "at the starting gate," with tiny flushes of green showing around their bases. Many of those special winter bloomers are blazing with color against the grey and brown landscape, and what seems like hundreds of birds are at the feeders.
Between the heavy downpours this morning, Chuck was roaming around with his camera. Here are a few shots to bring a little bit of warmth to this rainy weekend.
You know, I was just feeling all excited and smug because I managed to throw together a dinner that was actually GOOD--I'm no cook and this rarely happens. I browned a bag of frozen shrimp, scallops, and calamari (no salt added!) in olive oil with some garlic and pepper. It was runny so I added some flour (I KNOW this must seem ridiculously obvious to a chef, but to me it was like a miracle!), a bit of butter, and a bunch of parmesan cheese. I then boiled up some pasta, and tossed it into the mix with parsley, grape tomatoes, and the piece de la resistance, salami which I'd dried out in the microwave until crumbly. Oh, helllo!
ReplyDeleteBut then I take my plate to my computer to read blogs and soon my triumphant mood comes crashing down around me. And why? Why you ask? Because of that first photo in this entry.
That's a freakin' magnolia bud, isn't it?
Isn't it?!
I love those big buds of promise, but we get do not get those until mid May, at the earliest.
MID MAY!!!
Ahem. Excuse my outburst.
I'm OK now.
And the quince and witch hazel are cute.
My dear, for what it's worth, we're expecting freakin' snow in Atlanta tomorrow afternoon! Snow!
ReplyDeleteIf it's any consolation, that is a bud, but it's from a star magnolia, so it's much earlier than the regular Magnolias. Does that help?
Dinner sounds pretty awesome, but there's not a chance you're getting me to Michigan in February!
I actually LIKE snow, and so do my plants. It's good insulation in Michigan, where the temps vary so much and things can heave otherwise. I just hate the endless cold and the endless gray and non-bloomy-ness of it all. But at least it's March and soon I'll be counting frogs and toads!
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