Wordy Wednesday

I'm sitting on the dining room patio, watching a light rain fall and sipping a glass of Pinot Grigio. It's cooled off here as predicted and they're saying we'll have a low of 44 tomorrow night. I like the sounds of that since it got up to 81 today. It's a lovely way to end the day. The rain smells fresh and green, like the garden on which it falls.

Today an old friend dropped by to tour the garden and talk with me about bringing some structure to the front gardens. My dream has always been to have low stacked rock walls to border the beds but constraints of time, money and energy all kept me from realizing that dream. I finally have the money to pay someone else for their time and energy, so I called upon David to help me execute my plans. David told me once that he traces his interest in gardening to watching a classmate's mother hand pollinating daylilies to hybridize her own. He now grows daylilies himself, in addition to running a garden design, maintenance and refurbishing business. If you've visited the daylily booth at Houston Plant & Bulb Mart, you may have met him. Life takes such interesting twists and turns ... back when we were in junior high and working in the library for Mrs. Michalak, neither of us would have entertained any possibility of our working together (muttermutter) years later. As we strolled the gardens, talking of plants and design ideas, there were moments when I felt the specters of our teenaged selves walking alongside us.

I'm not sure what our time frame for this undertaking will be. I'm sure his crew would appreciate our scheduling it before the worst of the heat gets here, though! One of the reasons I chose David to help me with this is that I've seen pictures of his work and knew that he would understand what I was trying to achieve here. It's not Sissinghurst or Mount Vernon, true, but it matters to me that it be MY vision and sensibility that shine through.

Well, the rain has stopped, dang it. We could really use a few hours of gentle rainfall to nurture all this verdancy. Dusk is falling but the birds are still chirping. I just spotted a wren darting about on the back fence. earlier today I saw a House Sparrow and a Starling duck into the birdhouse in one corner of the back garden, one right after the other. I watched for a while but didn't see either emerge. Surely they're not setting up housekeeping together?

I finally opened the box for my new Canon G11 and installed the software, only to find that it did NOT come with a memory card. I purchased one of those at Best Buy earlier today and then took the camera out for a spin. I've got a LOT of learning to do and I feel very intimidated by this camera, truth be told. Thank goodness for friends like MA of Gardens of the Wild Wild West, who shared her own story of trepidation at using a new gadget she felt unworthy of owning. Tomorrow, I'll share some of the pictures I took. I'm going to do my best to remember my mantra: "Get started. Keep going." as I work on learning my way around this amazing device.

It's getting too dark to type and my wine glass is empty ... I'm going to post this and head inside before the toads start singing and the mosquitoes start biting!

Comments

Can't wait to hear more about that front garden Cindy..and the camera. I need a better camera, but hate to learn how to use another one all over again!
Your new project on the front garden sounds very exciting. I can't wait to see how it progresses.

Good luck with learning your new camera. That's what keeps those brain cells healthy--learning new things. I would love a new camera so that I could take macro shots.
A garden is never static, but your garden seems to be undergoing more changes now than usual. How exciting to begin on a new project.
Rose said…
What a lovely way to end the day, Cindy! Nothing like sitting back and enjoying the fruits of all your hard work. The changes to your front garden sound exciting; I look forward to seeing the photos of its changing appearance with your new camera.