Hello again! I just got back from Seattle, which I consider home. Seattle is the only place I've ever moved of my own initiative--and I've lived all over the country. My father was in the Army, so we moved a lot when I was a child. After graduating from high school in El Paso, TX, I moved to Chicago, Los Angeles, back to El Paso, north to Albuquerque, all while following jobs. I moved to Seattle in 1990 because I wanted to be closer to family. That, unfortunately, didn't work out.
I also wanted to live somewhere beautiful, and I always felt that living in Seattle was like living inside of a postcard! That part DID work out! Nowadays, I really miss the mountains (especially checking every day to see if Mt. Rainier is out!), the ferries, Puget Sound, Pike Market, my church (University Congregational United Church of Christ), hiking in the Olympics and Cascades, driving across Lake Washington on a floating bridge, crabbing at Golden Gardens park, and all of the events that marked the passing of each month--the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, the Skagit Tulip Festival, Opening Day for the Seattle Mariners, Seafair and the Blue Angels and the Hydro races, opening day of boating season, salmon fishing on Elliot Bay...
I moved to Colorado Springs in 2004 for my job. It's been interesting, to say the least. People are very nice in Colorado, but I don't particularly like the weather. It's too severe for me--blizzards, windstorms, hail, tornadoes, thunderstorms...give me mild conditions and rain any day. Give me GREEN and WATER any day, too! However, it's easier to live close to your domicile. There's something to be said about being able to drive to work in under an hour, instead of planning 3 flights ahead and spending 6-8 hours getting to work--when you commute, you put in an entire day before you even start!
Right now, though, I am weighing the benefits of living where my heart is but returning to the commute, versus living somewhere that holds no appeal to me but makes my life easier. With 20 years left to work, the big question is: Do I live where I want to live? Or do I wait 20 years until my life can "start" again? Or would moving to Denver help create a sense of community that I don't have in Colorado Springs, while giving me the benefit of an easy commute? Could Denver ever be "home?" I guess we'll see...and I don't have to make a decision until my house sells...
Anyway, I had 9 days off so went to Seattle for the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. It was a yearly event for me when I lived in Seattle, and I've missed it terribly. I had additional agendas as well: meeting Dean's new bride, Lori, as well as seeing my friend Jayme and her mom Susie, and meeting Jayme's husband Marty and their new baby Gunner. I also wanted to visit my friend Baze and his wife Kim, and see their new house, but Baze had to work so our plans fell through. However, everything else worked out! Dean and Lori graciously hosted me in their beautifully renovated home--thank you so much, again, for your hospitality!
I arrived in Seattle on Wednesday night, February 20th. It was the night of the total lunar eclipse--in fact, it's the last total lunar eclipse until 2010! I have a new camera--a Nikon Coolpix S51, and tried it out. The orange cast of the moon is the full eclipse, and the bright object to the lower left is the planet Saturn. The star Regulus is to the right, but didn't show up in the photo. Still, I'm thrilled with the quality of my new camera, and I was THRILLED to be able to witness such a wonderful, special event while in my favourite city. I hope that you got to see the eclipse as well!
Lori & I got up early and took Dean's daughter, Caitlin, to school, then I got to meet Lori's horses. She has a wonderful old palomino mare, who is gaited. She is a rescue from the Humane Society. Lori also has two beautifully bred Arabs; a nice mare and a 2-year old colt. I have a weakness for Arabs--they are my next-favourite breed (after mustangs!). We played with the horses for almost an hour, then headed downtown to the Convention Center, to a gardener's heaven!
Lori & I spent the rest of Thursday at the Show. Here we are at one of our mutually favourite bouquets, which line the entry to the Show. Lori's personal favourite is pictured below; she said that it reminds her of a waterfall. It had some wonderful features, including the carved heron. There are 4 pussy willow (Salix) branches below the heron that were trained to grow together as one, then peeled off as a design feature. I can't remember if this arrangement, or the one above, took first place, but I think one of these two did.
My absolute favourite is below. It was an arbor arrangement created by training curly filbert over a meadow of plantings, including hyacinth, tulips, succulents and mushrooms. I'd love to grow something like this in a planter...in a much milder, accommodating climate, of course!
This man was a carver from Boruca, Costa Rica. The Borucans carve amazing masks, one of which is pictured below. Note the jaguar, lizard and tree frog among the birds, and the sloth hanging from the bottom of the face--isn't that amazing? The masks are about 18" tall, and all are hand-carved. The Borucans sell their masks through a cooperative that enables indigenous people to make a living with traditional crafts. They had a display garden featuring masks and orchids, which is one of my favourite plants (I have 7, four of which are currently blooming).
As I said, orchids are one of my favourite plants. I bought my first at my first Flower and Garden show, back in the mid-90s. It survived, surprisingly, and rewarded me with flowers again the next year. I was HOOKED! I've purchased several orchids at each show, my last being in 2004. The orchid below is that orchid, and it's currently blooming with a double stalk. It's an Oncidium cross named Skywalker. The flowers are about 2" long.
Orchids are not nearly as hard to grow as people think. I do everything wrong: they are in a south facing window and get a lot of direct sunlight. I water once a week if I remember. I rarely feed (but when I do, I use half the recommended fertilizer, because the recommended amount seems to burn them). I lower the thermostat to 55-60* when I leave on a trip, which is cold for orchids, and in the summer, I have to leave the windows closed when I'm gone, so they broil. Regardless, they've not only survived, they've thrived and reward me with several bloom stalks each year!
I bought 4 orchids at this years show. I hope to have blooms next year. Three of them are blooming right now, and are amazing-I'll try to get some photos on the blog next time.
Plants and gardening are one of my favourite hobbies. I have a nice assortment of plants, some with very sentimental value. I have a clematis, iris, and brown-eyed Susans from my Grandmother's garden in Biwabik, Minnesota. The iris was brought from Italy when my Grandma's family immigrated (they are from Simbrisi). The clematis was planted over 80 years ago, and I took it before we sold my Grandma's house, about 12 years ago. I also have cuttings from my cousin Shirley's violets, which I have shared with a number of friends, including Odette, Stacy and Alice. Those are over 15 years old! I have 4 different Christmas cacti and an Easter cactus, each over 10 years old, bought at estate sales. My most interesting plant is one that no-one has ever been able to identify--I bought it for $1 at an estate sale about 11 years ago and have taken it to several master gardeners, as well as sent photos to arboretums in hopes of identification. No-one knows what it is thus far. I'll take some photos and post them at another time, as well--maybe YOU know what it is!
Bonsai is an art form that I've admired for a long time. This particular tree is over 750 years old. The trunk is actually dead; the reddish stripes are rhizomes of sorts, running down to the roots to nourish the growth at the tips. There is an amazing Bonsai center in Seattle, with an active club of fascinating people. You can also Google to find a club or store near you--just don't buy grocery-store "bonsai," please! You'll appreciate it more and have more fun if you learn about the hobby, then try it yourself. Like orchids, bonsai is not nearly as hard as you might think.
As always, there is a little WHIMSY at the Flower and Garden show! This was one of a pair of Princess frog fountains. I think EVERYONE needs one of these in their water feature, don't you?
Japanese maples are among my favourite trees. I had over 20 different types growing in my yard in Vancouver. This old tree isn't the largest I've seen at the Show (that one was three times as big, approximately 100 years old, and sold to the City of Seattle for an obscene amount of money!), but it's certainly one of the most beautiful, rugged, sculptural trees I've seen. The landscaper said that he's got about $15,000 into it, and that it would cost about $4,000 to move it in the Seattle area, so you can imagine what the sales price might be!
If you missed the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, you can attend the San Francisco Show in March. It is produced by the same company, so you can expect the same quality. I've never been; my friend Sue goes every year with her sister, and I hope to join them one year. I'd also like to go to the Paris Flower and Garden Show--I've heard that you need several days to see everything!
As I said, I got to see Jayme and Susie, and meet little Gunner, who is a month old. Jayme was married two years ago, and I got to meet Marty as well, albeit briefly. He was helping a buddy build a deck, so we left them to their manly endeavours. Susie and I caught up; she's moved to a condo about 4 miles from Jayme & Marty's. When we walked in, she gave me a hug, said hi to Jayme, then said "Give me my grandson!" Now, that's a GRANDMA! Isn't Jayme a beautiful mother?
I reluctantly said goodbye to Dean and Lori on Sunday, and was back in Colorado Springs by 2p...back to regular life..
Kalisha wanted her photo to be included in the blog. She is 17 years of age, and a grand old lady. Her nickname is Kalisha-the-Grump, because she truly doesn't like anyone but me. That's typical for a Siamese. She is a snowflake Siamese, from the Humane Society in Seattle. She's an amazing cat. She looks somewhat stoned in this photo because she had just had some catnip, her favourite treat.
One of the things on my to-do list is something new for me--volunteering for a political campaign! I've always voted, and tried to vote intelligently after doing research on the candidates and issues. However, I've never been interested in being labeled to a party, or in helping a candidate win. This year is different. I'm tired of the George Bush era. I'm ready to see a leader take charge and make a difference. I'm ready for change--change back to the economically stable, world leader that our country once was, and change forward to what our country can become. In eight years, we've seen a muddled war, huge deficits, loss of jobs, good-old-boy politics and favours, and the diminishing respect of other countries. Instead of helping, the US is seen as interfering. Health care quality has plummeted, costs have spiraled out of control. Insurance companies are raking in fortunes while we fight to have basic care reimbursed (ask me about United Health Care (UHC) and my dislocated jaw--it took over a YEAR and the threat of a lawsuit to get them to pay for the MRI!).
With that said, I've decided to campaign for Barack Obama. I was wavering between him and Hillary, but when Hillary let Bill get involved and the mud-slinging and insults started, I realized that it would be politics-as-usual. So, my vote goes to Obama, and I put my money where my mouth is--I made my very first ever political contribution two weeks ago! When I get back from my 6-day work stint, I hope to go down to the Colorado Springs headquarters and volunteer. I'm very excited about being involved for the very first time!
I hope that you are examining the candidates and their positions on the issues about which you care. I hope that you will feel strongly enough about a candidate to take a stand for your beliefs this year. I hope that you plan to vote. If you'd like more information about Barack Obama, or would like to contribute to the campaign, the link is below. http://www.barackobama.com/
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