Garden variety

I have managed to waste 78% of this day, and it doesn't look like I'm going to have a sudden burst of productivity in my last 30 minutes in the office (that does happen on occasion). Had a meeting this morning in which about 16 minutes were spent discussing work, and another 52 spent on Fiestaware and gardening. Turns out the data guy in Admissions is an avid collector and gardener. He had all sorts of tips about outlet stores and eBay. "You never know what people are into," he commented. Indeed.

So that leisurely conversation set the pace for the day. At one point I had one of those withering realizations--oh. It's still only Monday. It feels like I've been here for at least three days.

I blame the rain. It's still raining. Supposed to rain tomorrow and then a little less the next day, but basically it's going to rain for at least the next week. This is a dramatic turnaround from the brutal, sunny weeks we've had since May. Perhaps the weather pattern is shifting. Maybe our late summer will be gloriously rainy, the kind of year where everything stays green (instead of burned-out brown) and the trees start to keel over because the wet ground can't hold their giant roots in place.

I was poking around in the poke salad (actual name) plants yesterday, and discovered some unusual flowers--lots of individual petals and long, spindly stamens with leaves that look vaguely like cannabis. I'm still trying to figure out if they're elaborate weeds or something the previous owner planted. I've seen them before, growing near sidewalks. The ones in my yard were near some lillies, so there's no telling. A lot of stuff has migrated or grown together into inseparable clumps. There's gonna be some serious digging and dividing this fall.

I've loved potted plants and container gardening for years, but I can see that this whole yard thing is all-consuming. Every time I go outside, I end up pulling weeds for 30 minutes or more. Sprouting sweat droplets. I may still be dressed in work clothes, or jeans, or other clothes not conducive to gardening. Usually it ends with my accidentally spraying myself in the face with the hose.