No, not dead yet.

I finally purchased a house of my own! It's been a long ordeal (sorry for the long silence) but I sign the papers in a few days and move in this month. This will be a big change for me and the dogs as the house is in the city and we've lived in the country for so long I don't remember what it's like to have neighbors 'close by'.

Happy Memorial Day

It's the end of May and the beginning of the summer season here in the States. I hope everyone is doing well and has great plans for the warm weather. Whether you are at the beach, the lake or in the mountains always remember your sunscreen! The day here is overcast and looks like rain, but maybe we'll get some sun before it's all over and done. Good luck with all of your backyard bar-b-ques and family get togethers!

New Barn Residents

We have new residents in the barn. A mother Red Fox and her 5 kits are living there. They come out to play early in the AM and go back in when it starts getting hot. Another Red Fox sometimes shows up, but doesn't stay long.

Shade Container

This is one of a matched set of shade containers I made for one of my customers. It flanks a doorway and is in mostly shade. The bright yellow really perks up the area and the purple complements the yellow. The red cordyline helps bring the container and the house together by closely matching the stain on the house.

Foxfield Races Parties, Engagements and Soirees, Oh My!

The past two or three weeks have been very hectic. A lot of our customers hosted parties over the last few weeks and wanted not only their gardens, but also their containers cleaned up and planted for the season. We still have a chance of frost for the rest of this month! The container plants aren't hardy and may need additional protection if Mother Nature gets irritable (and she frequently does at this time of year). Oh well, it's all in a days work. It's nice to have a slight breathing period between the initial rush and the rest of the season!

New Container Plants

The first of several orders of plants for my outside containers arrived last week. They are very healthy and should make nice attractive specimens. I'm awaiting two more orders for containers. The outdoor plants also arrived last week. Scarlet Elders, American Cranberry Bush Viburnums and Colorado Blue Spruce seedlings. They are also very healthy and will be planted this afternoon. The landlord planted Pine seedlings last week up on the mountain. I'm really looking forward to warmer weather this year!

Spring, at last!!!

This is a new planting of crocuses at one of the rural properties we tend at work. It's not my property. I did some work there this past week because the Head Gardener for the property is out in Oklahoma getting married. Poor guy. He did a great job at this farm with the crocuses and daffodils. The owners are very happy. I planted bulbs at one of my properties also, but they are running a little behind because they went in late. Hopefully I will have some pictures of them soon!

Mountain Mist

This is the 'Mountain Mist' you may have heard about. The day was sunny and bright, but cool, when the mist came rolling down out of the mountains. With in a few minutes of taking this picture you couldn't see the woods anymore at all. The mist stayed around about 20 minutes or so and then dissapated. In folklore it's believed to be a cleansing mist.

In Like a Lion

This was taken on March 1st. It was the first of two snowfalls this month (so far). It's not unusual for us to get snow in March here in the valley. February and March are probably the two most changeable months for us. I hope we are done with the snow now. The first one lingered for about 4 days and the second one for 2 days. The weather has put us behind at work as we lost about 3-4 work days. We are now playing catch-up with the last of the winter projects and trying to get started with the early spring projects!

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's day to one and all. I hope everyone is with their special other today. If you don't have a special other, then get out there and find one!

The Boys of Summer

The total snowfall Monday ended up at 6". Then we had more temperatures in the teens and single digits and now it was 60* again today. The warm weather this time of year makes me think of Spring and Summer and how distant they seem. They will arrive soon enough, but sometimes the wait seems forever!

Damn Varmint!

That's right. It was 60 degrees here yesterday. Then today ol' Phil had to go and see his shadow this morning and now there's 2" of snow on the ground and it's still coming down. Groundhog Flambe anyone?

Early Riser

Sub-zero Temperatures and a Question of Faith

We have had sub-zero temperatures here for the last couple of days. This is NOT common in this part of the world. I work outside and it has been pretty hard going. The highs this week are supposed to be in the thirties. Whoever would have thought that would seem warm!

I watched a documentary this week called 'Bloodline'. That's right, it's partly what 'The Da Vinci Code' was based on. It questions the divinity of Jesus and suggests that he was merely a flesh and blood man and that his body still exists, possibly buried in France. As far fetched as this may sound to most christians, the people who made the film actually have some pretty good arguments. They have found a tomb with a mummy in it that may be Mary of Bethany (Mary Magdelene). It has long be suggested that she was the wife of Jesus and bore his children. Most interestingly to me was the suggestion that the 'Second Coming' of Jesus may be the revelation that he was mortal and a married man instead of the Son of God. It would make him much more approachable for some and a sham to others. It's hard to say. I would recommend viewing the film as it is way to complicated to discuss here. The thought that there could be a existing bloodline of Jesus and Mary of Bethany is a little much to absorb.

First Full Moon of the New Year

We have been busy as bees at work! Lots of projects to get done before spring. The weather is not cooperating very well with rain, snow and ice.
We have reorganized the space we work out of in the shop to help improve loading the trucks in the morning and getting out on the road in a timely manner. This will help our efficiency. It will also help with inventory. The chemicals are easier to see and reach and we all have a 'cubby' to keep our tools in. This opens up a tremendous amount of space for getting around in the shop without bumping into each other or having to move everyones' tools around to get yours out.
There may be a house available for renting much closer to work. It would be nice to eliminate the 150 miles per day commute! I've been trying to reach the man who owns it, but no luck so far. Perseverance!

Welcome 2009

Well, here it is a brand new year and a chance for us all to start over again! I hope your resolutions are obtainable. Time for me to get back in the rut. Today is the first day back to work. I'll get to see how badly the deer have ravaged the container plantings while we were on hiatus. At least it's friday!