We Were "Flocked"!

I used to wonder why old people talked so much about their ailments, their doctor visits, and their medicines. Now I understand it -- when you reach our ages, taking medicines for a variety of conditions becomes a daily routine, and doctor visits often occur weekly. From time to time, our bodies require medical intervention to keep them functioning properly.


Cliff had surgery last Tuesday morning and spent the rest of the week in the hospital. He came through it well but will require a period of recovery. The hospital is in another town, so I drove over every morning and back home every evening.



Thursday evening when I arrived home, I was stunned to see about a dozen pink flamingos in my front yard! I could not imagine what in the world was going on, or who did it, or why.










Then I saw a sheet that was attached to one of the flamingos: It said "You've been flocked by friends" and was signed with the names of the senders. It went on to explain that this is done by a local charity as a fundraiser. The "flocking" is a way for people to send congratulations, happy birthday, get well soon--any occasion where this sort of surprise would be appropriate. The charity receives a donation from the sender, and often also from the recipient.





The flamingos were not ours to keep; they were removed on Sunday but fortunately not until after Cliff got back home, so he got to see them. I do wonder what my neighbors thought when they saw all of those pink plastic flamingos, wearing straw hats no less, in our front yard.








To our friends who sent them, a big "thank you." We enjoyed them and they certainly lifted my spirits when I returned home that evening after a difficult day.

Joanie

I Love a Parade

I have always enjoyed parades, so when the opportunity arose to ride in two parades at the 82nd Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival in Winchester, VA, we were delighted to participate.

We rode in the vehicle shown above, a "deuce and a half" is what the guys call it. I believe it is an old Marine Corps vehicle. The vehicle represented our town's American Legion post.

Below, Cliff and me in the back of the vehicle, awaiting our entry into the Firefighters' parade lineup.

It was fun to see the lovely homes along the parade route and the lawn parties that are a long-standing tradition during the festival.

The drawback of being in a parade is that you don't get to see much of the rest of it. This adorable float was behind us in Grand Feature parade. We had glimpses of other participants but not many.

It was very moving when spectators stood and applauded as the "deuce" passed by, expressing their appreciation for the service of our military and veterans.

The picture at left is the "big apple" that has been a Winchester landmark as long as I can remember.

Winchester, VA is a great place to visit any time of year, and especially in spring during the annual Apple Blossom Festival.

Joanie

Where's Mama Robin?

My sister gave me a basket that hangs on a wall. It now hangs on the wall next to my side porch. Each year I plant it with annuals. The other day I discovered that a bird had made a nest in the basket, and there was a single, robins-egg blue egg in the nest, but no robins hovered nearby. I have looked at the nest every day since, but no sign of any birds near the nest, only the solitary egg. I see plenty of robins elsewhere in the yard, but none seems to pay any attention to this nest. What could have happened to the mama robin? I hate to think of the possibilities.

Joanie

Spring blooms

Last fall, I bought some spring-flowering bulbs to plant. But our family experienced serious illness and an accident requiring surgery and rehabilitation, and planting the bulbs fell off the priority list. The bulbs remained in a cardboard box on my side porch throughout the winter, which was cold -- temperatures dropped as low as zero.






We were in Florida for December and January, and returned home to face more medical tests, treatments, and procedures. In March, I finally got around to opening the box of bulbs, with the intention of discarding them and recycling the box. To my amazement, many of the bulbs had sprouted! I planted many of them in a planter, and you can see in the above photo that they grew and are now beginning to bloom.




Among the blooms currently in our yard are Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica), left. These lovely native perennials return to bloom each year, and then go dormant until the next spring. These were rescued from a site that was under development. If not transplanted, they would have been lost.














The beautiful blooms below are the Kwanzan cherry tree. The blooms last only a week at most, but are spectacular while they last.

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough.
A.E. Housman (1859–1936)

Three of my four dogwood trees (Cornus florida) have pink blooms. They are just beginning to open:

Apple blossoms bring back special memories. My grandmother lived in Winchester, Virginia, and each year we went to her house for the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival. Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins from nearby states would also visit, and it became a family ritual and annual reunion. I have two apple trees, but the deer get all of the apples within reach. Still, the blossoms are lovely to see:

To everything there is a season. . . .

Joanie

Welcome sweet springtime

It has been quite a while--about six weeks -- since I've posted anything. Unfortunately, aging brings a number of challenges, many of them to our health. We've been inundated with medical tests and procedures, and more are expected. But spring reminds us that the long dark days pass eventually. This is my first dogwood blossom of 2009. I don't know if it has a cultivar name; the tree was here when we moved in. It's blooms are predominately white, and it has variegated leaves.

Each fall I try to plant more spring bulbs, such as the ones above and below. I have just about given up on tulips because their foliage and blooms gets eaten by critters--deer? rabbits? Daffodils (Narcissus), on the other hand, are ignored by wildlife and so are a safe bet to return year after year. The one above is called N. 'Decoy.'

This lovely daffodil is aptly named 'Spring Pride.'

I think this one is 'Cum Laude,' although the catalog picture showed a darker colored center.

I love the ones with pinkish centers. I think this one is 'Salome.' I need to do a better job recording where I plant stuff!

This one is actually quite small. It has a delightful fragrance and sometimes blooms in clusters. It is Narcissus 'Hillstar.

I hope spring where you are is just as beautiful.

Joanie

Challenges of Aging

I have not blogged a lot lately. Our lives have been preoccupied with health challenges. This is one of the difficulties of aging -- our bodies begin to decline and we experience a variety of medical conditions. Without going into detail, in recent weeks medical treatments, procedures, and/or tests have occupied three to four days of each week. We are extremely fortunate that this care exists and that we have adequate insurance to pay for it. Still, it is a time that requires major adjustments in our lives.


Last Monday we were putting out ice melt on our walkway and today the temperatures were in the 70s! I spent three hours weeding and cutting down the remnants of last season's garden (I always leave the seed heads of plants such as rudbekia and coneflower to feed migrating birds). Now that the buds are swelling and the shoots of bulbs are pushing up through the ground, it is time to get rid of the leftover materials and get the garden ready for the emerging greenery.

However, after three hours weeding and cleaning up debris, I was so tired that I feared I would not have the energy to put away all of my tools (I did, but it wasn't easy). The reduction in stamina is one of the most troubling things about aging. In my mind, I can still do as much as I ever could. But my body gets weary long before my brain is ready to quit. And everything I do seems to take twice as long as it used to.

My mother once told me that in her mind she didn't feel old, but she was trapped inside an old body. Now I understand completely.

Still, I love working in the garden. It is my therapy, and along with music, the thing that keeps me able to retain my sanity. Sure, I could hire someone to do the work (and I do for some of it), but the hands-on activity of weeding, raking, pruning, and planting satisfies a need so deep inside that I can't put it into words.

The cat's new plaything

We took our cat, "Trouble," to the vet today for his annual checkup. We adopted him a year ago this month. He will be two years old next month. The vet said he is in good health. She gave him his shots and he does not have to go back for another year. He weighs 15.4 pounds. She said he is not overweight for his large frame, but she would not want to see him gain any additional weight.

After we took him home, we went to the pet store and bought him a "cat condo."

He took to it immediately and spent a good portion of the rest of the day on it (you can see my pink stepladder in the background. I will put plants back on it when the weather warms enough).

As you can see from the photo above, our family room is primarily the cat's playroom! In the photo below, he sleeps comfortably in the top level.

We are so glad we adopted him. He had been at the shelter, in a cage, for over two months. It took him a while to feel at home here, but now he rules! He is such a joy to us, and a beloved member of our family.

Joanie