garden tour

a hot weekend. but hot like Kansans know it should be, by August. so we don't even always bother to stand in the shade. since, it doesn't help a lot. though we do try to hold a bottle of icy water along with our bottle of beer.

a group of us had our first garden tour. organized by a man with a magical garden of his own. the group was meant to bike around town to visit our own gardens--though not all of us managed the bicycling part.




















Sunday afternoon, we all gathered and traveled from place to place. My yard being #3 spot. I offered Shandy. Or plain lemonade. Or plain beer. My veggie garden was the smallest on the tour.

In my friends' gardens I got to see many examples of good Kansas wildflowers, almond trees, cherry trees and figs. As well as many beautiful sunflowers. And healthy veggies. And rainwater/barrel collection. (I'm inspired)















We ended picking cucumbers for ourselves, and having a potluck at the final destination. Complete with "dirt cake". The afternoon was hot, but it was full of fun. And now we all have next year's to look forward to. Thanks James.

waiting is over

and tomatoes are everywhere. in the bags which mom drops off from the farm. and in my own backyard.
the daily salads of tomatoes & basil have begun. last night, I rolled it all up into a warm tortilla, with a slather of goat cheese and sprinkle of pepper.
















and, pink.

sad to say that I'm fighting off blister beetles in my tomato patch. they hungrily eat away all vegetation. they are bastard things, with long, grey torsos. which secrete a toxin, causing blisters to all humans who touch them. so in gloved hands I find them, drop them in a container. and then take them to the sidewalk. where I take satisfaction in squishing them underfoot.

great things list #14

finding new chocolate chip cookie recipes. or, just reading an article about the wonder of them. and how many ways they can be made. leave it to the New York Times, to make what is really just great when plain & simple, to look possibly decadent & fussily good too.

am not convinced yet to try these, with there two-kinds of flour (cake & bread? hmm, tempting) and long refrigeration period. will definitely substitute my own fancy chocolate. but, haven't ruled it out either. b/c sometimes the power of the cookie, draws you to the fridge. where you pull out the butter, set it on the counter, and know, that in mere hours, it will be time to blend with sugar til light & creamy.

(yes, I skipped great things #13. call me superstitious. go ahead, do it)

summer shows

I've got an abundance of purple coneflower. as do my neighbors on all sides.




















I'd extended my front porch flower bed this year, and added a curve of bachelor's buttons, poppies and red zinnias. am loving the colors. and all the rain we keep getting, along with only kind of hot days, has been great for flowers.















this is a red spider zinnia. they grow on thin stalks, and the bloom is only about the size of a quarter.

a bit different from the large zinnias, about to bloom like crazy, in my back yard.

oh, and look at this green tomato abundance. waiting in anticipation.