A junkyard to some, most likely. Sometimes I pretend it’s an art gallery in the making. The other day, the Husband thought the yard looked like a cemetery. What do you think?  That’s how the backyard looked at the beginning of March before the rain kicked in. After years of drought, I’m enjoying this old-time rainy weather, the look, the sound, the smell. March delight! Here’s how it looked yesterday.  I disappeared again, I did. My last post was five weeks ago on the same day that the Husband’s triple whammy of sore and painful joints, a respiratory virus, and norovirus began. Not all at the same time, but pretty much overlapping each other. I had a 36 hour bout with norovirus, fortunately, after the Husband’s worse of his tummy woes were nearly over.  All’s well today, hurrah! Hope you are all feeling strong and with wonder! ❤️

"Did you see our new butterfly sanctuary?" I asked the Husband.  "Look to the South. . .by the fence. . .to your right. . .I mean the other way." "Where?" The husband turned his head here and there, mostly here. "There," I said. "Our butterfly sanctuary!" The Husband groaned. "I thought you meant real butterflies. You nut!" :-)

Zip, rip. Wrap. Zip, rip. Wrap. "That looks like fun," said the Husband. "Want to make one?" See the yellow butterfly in the above photo mosaic. That's the Husband's creation. I love it when the Husband plays artsy-crafty with me. Over the past few months, we transformed hangers and colored and patterned tape into four butterflies. The fourth butterfly was shy about getting its photo taken. We think it may be hiding near the back fence. I thought it would be cool to hang butterflies around the backyard. I was done after making three. I still have a lot hangers. What to do with them? What to do? A PLYWOOD BOARD Who has made a desk by setting a solid piece of plywood (or door) over two file cabinets (or something like that)? My canvas of a plywood board was once my desk top when the Husband and I lived in the big city area almost two decades ago. Pshew, wow. I wrote a whole bunch of good stuff on that desk. Before being my desk, the plywood board was the

Beep, beep. It's summer. Be safe, Friends. Keep your humor. Over to All Seasons I go. Come along, should you please. Beep, beep.

1. Next month the U.S. Post Office will be selling forever stamps that celebrate Hip Hop. According to the USPS website, the sheet of stamps features rapping, break dancing, DJing, and graffiti art. I don't know what floors me more -- Hip Hop commemorative stamps or that the first kids into hip hop are now in their 40s and 50s? 2. Our local library has been closed since early March due to the coronavirus pandemic. This month, the librarians decided that we, patrons, can check out books online for pick up. The pick-up process today was easy-peasy, even though I forgot to bring my library card. Nine new books to entertain me. Yippieeee! 3. A few weeks ago, the Husband painted this headboard, full of delight and whimsy, perfect for the Banana Room, once known as the Shady Room. The banana plants look to be coming back, and the bamboo, gardenia, and wongo-wongo plants seem to relish their move there. I also replanted a camelia shrub by the headboard. Does that all s

"Do you think someone might report our backyard as a nuisance?" "Nobody can see back there." answered the Husband.  "Snoops can," I said, thinking about that drone we saw one afternoon turning around above our house. I wondered if it had followed us home. The bastard. As Mama liked to say after I said something weird, but quite entertaining to her, "You have too much imagination." "It's nobody's business how our backyard looks," the Husband said.  I imagined him word-sparring with a snoop. The Husband, my hero.  At this particular point in time, the backyard looks like a colorful junkyard in the Spring. I find its look comforting. It's familiar to a time past. It gives me strength to keep on keeping on. I wonder if that's how Mama felt when she played out there, growing her vegetables and tending to her flowers.  It's my turn now to transform the backyard into a fantasy of my making. I have

Percy the Basket Pelican has sat on our front yard for two years. I'm thinking he's happy. "No more paint job for me," said Percy from New Jersey. I'm fine with that.      Yesterday was sunny and cold. Today is rainy and not so cold. The forsooth sayers were correct: Wear long pants, not shorts, and put on socks and a knit cap when I'm cold. Sixty-six, I'm still learning. Keep on smiling! That I shall as I hop over to All Seasons . Wilst thou join me?

I forgot what I thought I wanted to write about. That's what happens when too much time passes between Ah-ha-I've-something-to write and turning on the computer, which may only be a matter of climbing the stairs to the office. Obviously it wasn't anything worth saying out loud. Ever wonder if you've said or written something that was quoted by others? Wouldn't that be cool? Yesterday our governor (in California) urged all of us, senior citizens, to stay put in our homes so that we won't risk contracting the coronavirus. The Husband and I pretty much hunker down most of the time, so this suggested decree is not a burden. Although I did panic for a moment when I thought we might not pay our property tax bill on time because the bank and the tax office may suddenly close. Then it came to me that we can use a credit car to pay online or over the phone. I'd rather not, so I may suggest to the Husband that we go out in the world sooner rather than l

1. Pop! went the left lens of my eyeglasses. So much lighter with just one lens. And, when I perch the frame on my nose just so, and hold my head just so, everything straight ahead is clear and in focus. 2. It was one week ago that steady-handed Dr. Eye made that slit in my eyeball, extracted the cataract, and implanted a brand new artificial lens. Hmmmm. What if the science fiction stories about implanting chips into unknowing people were true?  Shudder. 3.  Purrrrrrrrrr. "It's only your imagination," says Molly the (wild) Cat. 4. Yesterday, the Husband drove me to the library. I don't want to drive until I have full vision in both eyes again. That may be May. Was that a sigh I heard? 5. "I'll take that." The Husband carried my bag of books from the house to the car, then from the car to the library counter, and vice-versa.  I'm not supposed to handle anything over 10 pounds for a while. Jiggity-jig. 6. I'm not allowed to bend,

"Knock on wood, said Dr. Eye, who then knocked on the side of a medical supply cabinet. I turned to my left. Nothing but eye examination machines. All metal. I looked back at the cabinet. "About the closest to wood," Dr. Eye said, somehow knowing what I was thinking. "Maybe this," I said, leaning over to tap a small box, probably made of balsa, on the cabinet. "It probably does have the most wood in this room," Dr. Eye said, tapping the box. Someone asked me if I felt confident about Dr. Eye taking out my lens and inserting an artificial one with my current prescription. Totally. Four more days.  :-)   Linking with All Seasons at The Jesh Studio.

Missy Girl watched Midnight scurry along the fence and cross over to the next yard. "You want to go out, don't you?" "Miarrrr." "It's cold and wet." A few minutes later, I opened the sliding door. Molly stuck her head out for a few seconds before sashaying forward. She carefully maneuvered around and through puddles, then scoot between two geranium bushes. Was she really going to sit in that wind? I glanced back at my task of sorting Mama's seed collection. Only a second. Maybe two or three. Molly was out of sight.   She wouldn't have gone after Midnight. The chimes and hanging things from the dead apple tree were dancing wildly. More than likely, she was exploring the yard and making sure everything is fine. Still, it would be best to go get her, I thought. I had nothing to worry about. Like a sprinter, Missy Molly by Golly ran into the house. She looked quite pleased with herself. All Seasons and Mosaic Monday are

Usually my paintings and drawings end up being a wilderness landscape such as the scene I painted on the box, which I'll use as a planter in the backyard. The Husband noticed the running theme, too. He wondered if it's somewhere that I want to be. I certainly do. The Husband says he'd like to be there, too. I backpacked a regular bit from my 20s to 40s. Desolation Wilderness in the Sierra Nevada, mostly. I rarely carried a camera on my trips because the beauty of the land did not translate in my photos. Now, look at me. The essence of what I experienced in the wilderness way back then is pouring out through paints, pastels, and pencils. Yippieee! Off I go to All Seasons , a weekly meme hosted by Jesh at The Jesh Studio . Come chcck out the other participants with me.

It certainly has been awhile since I've peeped my sweet peepers out of my not-so-dark hole in the ground. I love the way you say things, Jeana, of The Ched Curtain . You, too, Widders, of Widdershins Worlds . Thank you very much for wondering outloud if I was still kicking.  :-) So, what was I doing while silent crickets and frogs took over the blog? I've thought about things such as why girls couldn't also be made up of "snips of snails and puppy-dog tails", and wondering if anyone has coined future fossil fuels yet. I've raked at least two years worth of dried leaves from beneath the flowers and plants in the front yard.  Not to say, learning yet again that I, no, we need to rake leaves right after they've fallen.  Also prune brittle and drying branches. Deadhead the flowers, too. And, pick up the fallen fruit sooner rather than later. It certainly has been a long time since I've strung sentences together for fun. I am simply dancing with

I like to keep a bunch of rocks nearby when I paint so that I can use up any leftover paint on them. Wouldn't it be funny if the rocks in the yard seek hidey holes because they dread the thought of being splashed with clothing? Now that would make for an interesting story. Be my guest. This afternoon I happened to notice the various faces of a green painted rock. A different story on every face. These are only four of its faces out of eight, possibly 10 or more. What stories do you see? On Mondays, when I can, I like to participate in Angie's Mosaic Monday at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf . Come check out the other bloggers with me. By the way, here's what happened at last week's City Council meeting that I was in a hurry to check out live on TV: The Council voted 3-1 to disregard the mayor's appeal to stop the construction of a project to build condos on top of retail stores and another building to house nonprofit organizations on a downtown lot that h

Once upon a time there were people who collected other people's trash and resold the items. Some of these early recycling entrepreneurs were said to go down the street calling out something like "I'm here for any rags, bottles, and bones." Rags, bottles, and bones. For me, it would be books rather than bones. But, I'm not looking to purchase any rags, bottles, or books. Not at all. I mention the phrase because the past week, I've been repurposing fabric scraps, wine bottles, and old books. RAGS The elephant scene (above) is my first try at fabric art. I machine stitched everything but the the red flowery thing, which is the top of a tree, onto a purple napkin. The zipper is the second, if not the first, one I've ever sewn. I have several more purple napkins and a whole bunch of scraps so I might experiment with more fabric art. We shall see. BOTTLES Last year I decided to make a garden border with wine bottles that I collected mostly from our

Last year I discovered that I enjoy repurposing stuff into colorful planters and whatevers to hang out in the garden.  The last couple of days I've been getting ready for when I can set up my work table on the patio. I've already got a whole bunch of things set aside that have potential into becoming garden art. a bunch of plain tiles a plastic storage bin (from a freezer?) a metal Christmas tree stand cut pieces of garden hose rocks soup bowls part of a bougainvillea stump the Husband pulled out from the front yard a floor lamp with several arms  a vanity dresser 2-gallon black plastic pots wine glasses wire food wrap organizer old decayed boards A lot of fun coming up ahead.   :-) I'm hanging out at several memes. Hope you have a chance to check them out. Thanks to all the wonderful hosts! ABC Wednesday Thursday 13 I Like Thursdays