Odds and Ends

I've had this fish for years. The tag said it was made from oil drums somewhere in the Carribean. This year, it graces my pump house.

This guy is new; I thought the fish needed company. I should have bought the BIG one when I saw it. It was almost three feet tall and would have looked terrific on the pump house all by itself.

I bet my poison ivy is bigger than yours. The vines going up the oak tree really are poison ivy, and you can see the "leaves of three", on the lower right side, under the oak leaves.  We have it sprayed every spring, but this one has never fully succumbed to the spray. About ten years ago, before I knew what the vine was, I touched it. BIG mistake. I had never caught poison ivy before, but this vine is some sort of super ivy, I guess, and I was covered with it. That's an ouchie I hope never to have again.

My rambler rose is performing quite well this spring. Just wait until the Japanese beetles come back - hard on the heels of black spot. It never fails.

Weeds are better than nothing, right?  I have not been in the mood to buy plants (or seeds) this year, so I have let the weeds take over this (and a few other) pots. Some green is better than plain dirt, isn't it?  Do you know what kind of weed I'm cultivating here? 

 

 

The plumber is here now, along with some house cleaners. I had to put my high school Spanish to good use today, while leaving the cleaners a note: 
En dos banos, yo tengo agua caliente solamente; no agua frio.* Considering that I haven't had a Spanish lesson in 53 years, I think that's pretty good.....lol     We hope that the plumber will be able to repair the leak today, so they will be able to do the necessary wet cleaning. Have a good weekend!




*In two bathrooms, I have only hot water, no cold. 

Old Flower Photos

At Carolina Country Club for a party.

North Carolina Museum of Art. Shortly after this arrangement died, the container was stolen from the museum. It had to be an inside job, and I was devastated to lose it. I bought that cachepot at Fitz and Floyd in  the Dallas Mart in the 80's, and hand-carried it back home on the plane. The handles were antelope heads.

For a large corporate party in Greensboro, NC.

For the grand opening of a Pediatric Medical Practice in Raleigh. 

 

 

 

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I had hoped to show you some photos I took on Easter Sunday at the Marriott Brunch, but only one of them turned out well. Mr. kenju's lazy eye was lazier than ever, and it is hard to tell where he was looking when I took the shot. Only one eye was on me, and even it was slightly askew....lol. I doubt he'd want me to show that to you!

We are expecting more storms tonight (Wednesday.) There is a tornado watch until 8:00 pm (unless they extend it) and it will be stormy again tomorrow. We need the rain, but this is ridiculous!

I'll be working for the next three days, so visiting may be curtailed. If you are in the path of spring storms, I hope you fare well.

Odds & Ends

Colossal Shrimp at Wegman's. I don't know how many you would get per pound, but it wouldn't be many!

In Virginia, on Route 81, enroute from Charleston to Northern Virginia. Spring is barely happening there, but there were beautiful red bud trees, some dogwoods and some forsythia in bloom. Since ours in NC have bloomed and gone, it was nice to see the ones up here. The mountains were beautiful, despite the lack of green.

My excellent mahi mahi, over cauliflower mash, with the tastiest, most tender big asparagus spears I've ever had. Sorry, but I simply HAD to take a few bites before I took the photo.  It came from Sweetwater Tavern in Falls Church, VA. I liked it so much that I went back the next day for lunch (with my cousin Joy) and ate a grilled chicken and havarti sandwich (also very good).

I can't ever recall having blooming roses this early in the season!

This is a small piece of some of the debris we found in our yard after the tornadoes swept through NC last Saturday. It is plastic house siding. The edges are so sharp, that had a human been in the path of it, it could have cut through skin as easily as a knife through warm butter.

I Give Up

I've tried 3 times to  photos and it doesn't work with Picasa, nor does it work directly through the blog. I will try next week, maybe.

 

 

 

 

 

Odds and Ends

They aren't as lush as they are in the spring and summer, but I just can't get over having blooming roses in late November!

My pretty grand daughter holding my grand dog, named Snoop. It was hard getting him to sit still long enough for a photo.

The newel post at the Cardinal Club in Raleigh. We decorated there today. I posted photos on Facebook, but I'll put them up here in a few days.

Raleigh, from the 29th floor.

Odds & Ends

No, I don't have agitation, nor does mr. kenju (at least at this moment, he doesn't.... LOL) I saw this old ad in an email and thought it was funny. Current employees of GSK will notice the former company name.

This is a corner of a fireplace surround; one I saw at the Thomas Day exhibit at NCMH. I can appreciate the quality of the carving - but would you want this sad face staring out at you every day? I surely wouldn't!

Even if your chandelier isn't as fancy as this crystal beauty, you can add a fancy bow made with glistening ribbons and spice up your dining room. This one belongs to a woman for whom I did Christmas Decor. I thought it was 2006, but she says it was 8 years ago. I guess time flies when you're having fun! She thinks it might be time to take it down and dust it off. I tend to agree.

Leaving a restaurant in a local shopping center after dinner recently, I saw this interesting and colorful sky and of course, I wanted to share it with you.

I will be working today and starting on the day after Thanksgiving, I work almost 14 straight days. Posting and visiting may be slim to none during that period. I know, I say that every year, so we will see.....

Dawn Series (the Umpteenth)

#6 They loaded from bottom to top, so view them in reverse order to see the actual series. This was the last in a series of about 20 shots, taken at Carolina Beach in September.

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The Last Hurrah

You may have seen my rant last week about Blogger/Picasa/Google telling me that I had reached my limit of uploaded photos, and couldn't post any more on my blog without buying extra photo storage. That's not likely, since I don't think it is fair - but afterward - I deleted a bunch of photos from Picasa and I was able to post the photos in the last post.

I just tried to post a photo of the last roses of the season tonight, and was once again told that I had reached the limit. What I don't understand is how deleting at least 30-40 photos allows me space enough for only 4 or 5 more photos??? I don't know anything about "sizing" the photos (as someone mentioned) so it is all Greek to me. 

At any rate, my only rose bush is putting out its last neon magenta hurrah, and I was hoping I could show you the last eight blooms. The purple petunia is blooming its little heart out too, as are the  pink and yellow lantanas. These plants are all within the confines of the fence, but the ones that are out in the front yard are taken by the deer as soon as they bloom. My front yard looks like a desert.

There may have been another last hurrah in this household. I took my driver's license test today, and they asked a series of questions I don't remember being asked the last time I took the test. Such as:  have you had heart trouble? Have you had a stroke or seizures?  I was able to answer no to all of the questions, but I wondered what that might mean for mr. kenju (who had a stroke three years ago), so I asked the examiner if there was anything a stroke victim should know before they attempt to take the test. She said that he would be given some papers to have filled out by his doctor and would also have to take a road test. I did the eye and road signs test. I  only missed one sign, and I passed!!

When I delivered that information to mr. kenju during dinner, he was frustrated and sad, saying that he might as well not even try to take the test - since he would probably fail it. He has tried to drive once since his stroke, but only for a few blocks in our neighborhood. The last time he drove any distance was the day he had the stroke, 38 months ago. The way he put it was..."I'll be dependent on you for the rest of my life, under your thumb everywhere I go." I certainly understand his frustration. If I couldn't drive it would devastate me. I'd probably go to bed and pull the covers up and stay there. He knows I have been deathly afraid of his trying to drive - so at this point I don't know what I can say to ease his frustration - he won't believe me anyway. How would you handle it?

The Dovecote at Fearrington

As usual, the photos went on the blog in reverse order. I know, I know -  it's user error. All the things you see here are available at the charming shop I told you about yesterday. You can see their web-site if you go back one post and follow the links. I call the one above "A bucket of Love."

They have amusing signs, soft and cuddly stuffed animals, a whole wall of spa products, each one more luxurious than the next.

Cute moss dogs with bandannas and purses galore. Do you prefer green or orange? If that's not your bag, they have black, white, coral, yellow ocher and everything inbetween!

Small trays with pithy sayings....brain coral from the sea,

T-shirts to advertise your whereabouts or where-I've been's...in every color imaginable. The banded cows are called belted Galloways. They are the symbol for Fearrington Village, chosen by the people who started the village many years ago. And one last photo from the luncheon...see the "gathering" on the wall? It's an ingenious use of farm and garden implements, all painted the same color. I want to make a similar one for my pool pump house, and paint it the same color as the pool water!

Wold you believe I still have photos to show you? Tomorrow, or in a few days, I'll show you the rest of them.

I'm working this weekend; helping to do and deliver floral arrangements and decor for the Jim Valvano Cancer Research Gala Events. Posting, visiting and commenting will have to take a back seat to work, but I'll return!

Golden Oldies

At one of the recent wedding receptions to which Mel I and delivered flowers, these photos were on display. I think it is a nice idea to show the guests and family members how the other couples in the family appeared on their wedding day, and these are lovely examples! Did you display your wedding photos at your child's wedding - or do you plan to?

I Think That I Shall Never See...

This one looks like something at DisneyWorld. See the carvings?





































I love art and creativity, but nature is all I really need. What could be more artistic than the branches and mossy roots of these trees?

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Al of a sudden, the gizmo on blogger that controls alignment won't work. What's up with that? I don't like ragged margins on the right, darn it!

Today is a cool, overcast day - suited to cleaning and laundry. Yes, I know it is Sunday, but women who work have to do those things on the weekend. It must make mr. kenju feel guilty for doing nothing, because he always rants at me when I feel in the mood to clean, like it's a sin or something. Pooh.