Saturday, May 17, 2008

Seeing Red


Well, this morning's discovery about the flooding really did have me seeing a very frustrated shade of red for a while earlier. I've done about all I can do with the site, short of digging every plant out of there and buying a great truckload of dirt to create a truly raised bed.

That's just not in the cards now, so I have to hope that the sandy soil below helps whatever standing water that may collect to drain off slowly enough to benefit the plants, but fast enough to keep them from harm.

But the garden flooding wasn't the only thing driving my mood. I also find myself annoyed in the wake of yesterday's news that the California Supreme Court has overturned a ban on gay marriages. Not the sort of thing you'd expect would annoy me, and frankly, there's nothing I'd like to do more than celebrate 'til the cows (and the bears) come home.

But suddenly gay marriage may once again be THE big issue distracting voters in these last six months before the fall's election...and the idea of listening to a bunch of self-righteous people say all kinds of foul and untrue things about me and my people as if we weren't human or as deserving of equality as anyone else, as though we weren't even in the room to be offended...that prospect kind of turns my stomach and I'll be trying not to listen to very much of that.

Because I really want to be happy about this step (even as I wonder if we're sidetracking the rights of single gay people by focusing so strongly on the right to marry)...so I'll try having a little more faith in my fellow Americans that they are as fed up with the way things have been going in this country the last eight years...and that they won't let themselves get distracted by the fear-mongering of religious types.

And really, at the heart of all my anger this morning was this whole business of nicotine withdrawal. It really is amazing, even as someone who loves and respects plants and their abilities, how this demon weed gets under your skin and plays with your brain (although I know it's as much a product of all the added chemicals and such).

Anyway, as I slapped on a new nicotine patch and prepared to leave for work, I saw that the morning's flood waters were beginning to recede some.

As the sun came out this afternoon and helped to dry up the rest of it, I got to thinking that I could turn the whole business of seeing red into something positive.


So...as I made my way home from work, I arranged my route to capture some lovely red flowers I've been seeing around lately...like the crab-apple trees above, on the road to Rock Harbor...and this flowering quince along the same stretch of road.

I'm stretching the red portion of the color wheel to include these dark pink dicentrus, another variety of bleeding heart, which I wanted to share with Butch, who's got a much paler shade blooming in his yard.

They're a little red...but moreso if you're wearing my smoke-tinted sunglasses, I confess.

As I returned to Harwich, there were these red azaleas in front of the bank. The late day sun was a little strong on them, but I still think this picture turned out okay.

I hope the same can be said of everyone else's Saturday!

13 comments:

dykewife said...

red is a good colour. i've always liked it even if i tend to look rather florid when i wear it.

tornwordo said...

First of all, no cheat puffs, m'kay. My quit day is July 1st.

This really does suck about the garden. I know you love it so.

Sh@ney said...

LOL @ Torn!

But he is right Greg, a sneaky puff will only loosen your drive to quit! But bravo for giving it your best shot. Your doing far better than I am!

And I have to say that despite the red you may be seeing, the red you have shown on your post is exquisite...Really pretty! Great Photo's!

Greg said...

Red is a wonderful color, Dykewife...but it is not to be clothing for all people!!

Ok, Torn! I'll try to be a better example, then. (But be sure to have one for me while you're in the City of Smoke and Lights, ehh?)

So far, no harm-no foul on the water in the garden, though I have my suspicions about things I haven't seen growing yet. Maybe I'll dig a moat. ; )

Butch said...

Your variety of pink Bleeding Hearts look beautiful and seem to be a closer variety to the ones that just started growing on their own this year in our yard. Very pretty. There aren't as many blooms on ours as compared to yours either. I wonder if that is the nature of the type of Bleeding Heart or that they need a chance to grow in this spot for longer.

Is it possible to dig a very shallow, and tiny trench from the flooded areas where the water can flow to another place? Outside of changing the topography by adding more dirt there may be another way of doing it as well by digging a deeper ditch and place a plastic drain with all the holes in it in the ditch and cover with stones or pebbles. This would drain those areas quickly when it rains.

misselaineous said...

Hey Greg...love your pictures, as always. So sorry to see the flooding in your front garden...can you send me some of that wet stuff from the sky?...I think it's called rain...although we haven't had a drop in close to a month!! Good luck with your quitting...I lasted for 6 months last year, and keep saying I'm gonna do it again...but damn, it's hard...sorry, I'm whining...keep at it!!! Happy Sunday! *elaine*

Greg said...

Sh@ney, you're absolutely right about the puffs dissolving one's will...it's a slippery slope, that.

Elaine, hi there! Hop back on the Oxygen Train with me! I figure every cigarette we *don't* smoke is good for us! Today, I'm trying to distract myself with a bit of digging.

Butch, I'm finishing off the section around the lamppost. Part of this project will ultimately entail shifting the location of some plants around, as I make room for the big veggie planting I hope to coincide with the coming Corn Moon...or thereabouts, anyway.

I AM considering working some trench/canal type things with gravel into the overall garden design.

This may allow me to direct the water to places helpful for garden irrigation, while also keeping me from requiring swimming lessons and lifeboats for my plant friends!

Those darker bleeding hearts aren't amongst our collection, but a roadside plant I've been seeing there for a number of years, so it IS well-established. If yours is just arrived, then you have this to look forward to in a few years!

Patrick said...

Two weeks is an accomplishment to be proud of, so congratulations on the mostly-smoke-free existence. Oh, I don't envy you that, my friend, but it sounds like you're remaining resolved.

With a few exceptions, I can't really wear red either, but it is one of the colors I've come to appreciate more as I grow older for some reason. As a teenager I didn't like any of the warm colors; purple was as close as I got. I still go for burgundy more than tomato or cherry, but I finally seem able to appreciate the charms of red. When you were a kid, did it seem like everyone's favorite color was red? Maybe that is what initially fueled my resistance; I was always a contrary little cuss.

Anonymous said...

Picture #2 on this post looks a lot like quince to me. Picture #3 look like native bleeding hearts; mine are just a shade paler than that.

Good luck with the mini-trenches; it's just started raining again in earnest here, and I'm hoping that my version of the Big Dig will make a difference this time around.

Jess said...

Lovely photos, and I do hope the voters aren't distracted this time. I just don't understand how so many people can be so supportive of bigotry. It makes me sad and angry if I think about it too long!

Oh, and good luck with the nicotine battle! I know it isn't easy, but it's a battle worth fighting!

Greg said...

Red looks good on some people...probably those who tan better than you or I, Patrick. I'm okay with maroon. I have a red shirt I bought for a Christmas party a few years back...and just can't find another occasion when it feels right.

Rhet, your canals might be more effective (and less expensive)if you don't name it after Boston's Big Dig!

Hey Jess, welcome (how was the Rugby yesterday?)! I am certainly hoping that the idea of "Live and Let Live" becomes more popular...listening to all that pointless venom wears thin real quick.

And thanks to all of you, my friends, for your words of support and encouragement with the smoking thing. I really am grateful...and hear your words echoing in my brain at important moments! : )

Anonymous said...

Your photos are absolutely beautiful...all of them, and I enjoy checking in every day or two. Nicotine addiction is a bitch, so stick with it! Every day away from smoking will get you that much closer to succeeding. We have Orioles in our yard,too and I have found that grape jelly works better at attracting them than oranges. Actually, all the birds love it! I have a Cardinal nesting outside my bedroom window and I love to hear their conversations early in the morning. My peas and potatoes are up as well. We have had alot of rain the past few weeks, so maybe your flooding won't be too much of a problem this summer. Good Luck! Jennifer

Greg said...

Hey Jen! Glad to hear your new garden is coming along so nicely--hopefully I'll get across town to come see it sometime!

I have heard good things about grape jelly and the birds--who *doesn't* like it, eh?

There's a pair of cardinals who seem to spent a lot of time around the arbor vitae just outside the computer window...I suspect they might be nesting, too, but for the sake of their privacy, I haven't tried to look too hard in their.

Their songs are delightful, aren't they?