I see you....

Marvelous Garden

I got a chance to see a great garden this week. I wish it had been a better day for pictures...but in too short a time it started to rain. A retired surgeon lives on 20 acres overlooking Asheville. The house was built by the original owner/builder of the Grove Park Inn in 1906. The home went through a series of owners and then during Prohibition a 100 gallons of whiskey were found in the basement and the land became federal property.

Interestingly, it became the summer White House for Herbert Hoover. There is even a second home by the gate that was built for the Secret Service. The neat thing is that the property seems to have been owned by a series of people who loved gardening in one way or another and the surgeon maybe most of all. He is an artist, woodworker, surgeon, and I must say all around gentleman. A real Renaissance kind of guy.

This sign was hanging in the greenhouse. I promised myself I would Traipse at least once this week :-)

Hmmmm......

They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.

Seamus and the Mechanical Butterfly

Happy Birthday and Thoughts on Gas

First, today was Christine's birthday and Seamus as usual wanted to make sure he got lots of face time. In babyland... if you are going to kiss up...kiss up to the milk truck. I am disappointed that his hair is starting to grow in...we won't look like Dr. Evil and mini-me much longer.

On Saturday I took part in an event we like to call Nanna exchange. Nanna (my mother) has mucho experience with babies and occasionally we are lucky enough to get her to come visit. Christine and I had our first dinner out since the Seamus arrived.

I drove half way to my sisters house in Georgia and my brother-in-law and niece and nephew met me for the drop off.

Anyway on the trip back it was late and rainy and I thought I was dreaming. Could it be that Shell and Texaco had merged? Well, of course not really, but if they do you get a neat logo by hanging a temporary Shell logo over a lit Texaco sign.

Giggles

Seamus laughs at nanna.

Some fun in the cold sun....

Went for a little walk this weekend and saw a couple of things that may amuse someone besides me.This one was a bit of a surprise in North Carolina.

No fishing to your left?

...and finally for avid SF gardeners John and Jeff, something for you west coasters to shoot for :-)

I'm dream'n of a white Easter...just like the ones I ....

Easter weekend....4.5 inches of snow, low of 13 F, tulips toast, dogwoods toast, redbud toast, apple blossoms toast...but it made for some interesting pictures...I thought when I left Vermont this type of April was over.

Do you sleep like this?

Sneaky Mommy took this picture while I was fast asleep dreaming of boobs.

Pre-recorded in low resolution for your viewing pleasure....

We knew he was different...

Even the other children seem to be aware that he is a little bit different. They arrived this day to pay the milk tax in support of a royal crib.

Citrus in North Carolina

I was taking pictures for one of my classes recently. It was an overcast rainy day. I took a shot of these Poncirus trifoliata flowers and I really liked what happened with the background. This is the way it appeared without any Photoshop. Not the best picture, but I like the dappled light.

Part of the same image after switching to a Tritone and adjusting the curves.

30's coming to a close

Happy Birthday to Me!
39 ..... am I getting old or what?

others who share my Birthday:
Emily Cumbea (my niece)
Giovanni Casanova 1725 - Writer, philanderer
Hans Christian Andersen 1805 - Author ("The Ugly Duckling")
Buddy Ebsen 1908 - Actor ("The Beverly Hillbillies", "Barnaby Jones")
Marvin Gaye, Jr. 1939 - Singer ("I Heard It Through The Grapevine")
Ron "Horshack" Palillo 1954
Keren Woodward 1961 - Singer (Bananarama)

on this day in history:
1513 - Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon landed in Florida.

1865 - Confederate President Davis and most of his Cabinet fled the Confederate capital of Richmond, VA.

1889 - Charles Hall patented aluminum. (How do you patent an element?, note to self see if any remain unpatented...I wonder if oxygen is taken...I could charge folks for every breath and be richer than Bill Gates)

1958 - The National Advisory Council on Aeronautics was renamed NASA.

1960 - France signed an agreement with Madagascar that proclaimed the country an independent state within the French community.

1963 - Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King began the first non-violent campaign in Birmingham, AL.

1966 - South Vietnamese troops joined in demonstrations at Hue and Da Nang for an end to military rule.

1967 - In Peking, hundreds of thousands demonstrated against Mao foe Liu Shao-chi.

1972 - Burt Reynolds appeared nude in "Cosmopolitan" magazine.

1978 - The first episode of "Dallas" aired on CBS.

1982 - Argentina invaded the British-owned Falkland Islands. The following June Britain took the islands back.

1987 - The speed limit on U.S. interstate highways was increased to 65 miles per hour in limited areas.

1995 - The costliest strike in professional sports history ended when baseball owners agreed to let players play without a contract.

1996 - Lech Walesa resumed his old job as an electrician at the Gdansk shipyard. He was the former Solidarity union leader who became Poland's first post-war democratic president.

Audi A3....bullbunky take a look at these apples

Well I have resisted for years buying a riding mower. I just thought (still think) that mowing grass is a phenomenal waste of time, but our yard is big here and the hill is steep and I will be 39 very very soon. I mowed it all last year with a walk behind, but we bit the bullet today and purchased it....and now I am ready to ride. The best part...the cup holder.

Bullbunky...just so you know, you can purchase an all weather plastic cab that protects the driver from rain. You may want to consider one of these babies for your commute next time (when you wear out the A3). You could get a trailer for your camera gear.

• 42" twin-blade side discharge mowing deck
• Automatic transmission with foot pedal controls and cruise control - drives like a car!
• Cast iron front axle for durability and strength
• StepThru frame for easy on and off
• Standard cup holder
• Accepts optional FastAttach mulch kit, bagger or bumper with no tools required
• 2-year limited warranty
• 19 HP* Kohler engine
• *as rated by engine manufacturer

I am putting Gatorade in the cup holder and Bon Jovi on the Ipod for the inaugural mow.