Finally

I can't believe that it's finally raining. We've been watching the development of the newest and latest hurricane, Hurricane Beryl (what kind of a name is that, anyway?) in the event that we might actually get rain. The storm is coming nowhere near Ocala but maybe, just maybe, the outer bands will drop a little moisture our way. 

The garden tolerates watering by artificial means but there is nothing like real rain to make it thrive. And the birds......Right now, it is raining a slow drizzle and the birds are having a ball flying from tree to tree just to get a little wet. This is their favorite kind of day; cloudy, breezy, and drizzly.  

It is a perfect day for humans too, especially since it is a holiday and there is no real reason to go out for anything. I don't like to venture out on rainy days. I never have. I thought I was weird until I went to Cuba and discovered that the Cubans don't go out in the rain at all if they can help it. I felt very vindicated by that fact since I am part Cuban. Now I know where I get it. So today, I will be indoors enjoying the rain from my cozy little chair. Ok, well, maybe on the porch. But that's it. I'm not getting wet.

Meet Harry Potter

You know how in the Harry Potter books, Harry is known as the
"boy who would not die"? Well, meet Harry Potter, the Christmas cactus who would not die. 

I have owned this cactus for about the last ten years. It moved here with me from Brandon, so I have nurtured it along marveling at its beautiful blooms from Thanksgiving through Christmas. Last fall, I took a two month vacation and forgot to tell the house sitter that the cactus needed to be watered.  So, upon my return, the cactus was dead. I turned it upside down, out of its pot, and threw it in the green garbage that goes to the yard waste pick up. That was last November.

I don't take yard waste to the "yard waste place" until I have several cans filled with brush. And so, in February, I decided that, yes, it was time to take brush to the pick up site. I opened the can containing the cactus corpse and, lo and behold, the sucker was alive. Not only was it alive, it had new growth on it. Must have loved the hot, moist environment in the garbage can. So I re-potted my cactus, watered it well, and gave it a Coca Cola, classic not diet. (That's the secret ingredient my hairdresser uses for questionable plants).

I christened my cactus, Harry Potter, the cactus that would not die. Voldemort is nowhere around and neither are Hermoine or Ron. But the cactus is thriving and lives on. And I think I've seen a silver stag around here too.

Chores and Nothing But Chores

There's a lot to do out here all the time. But spring and summer bring a plethora of chores. It's just the season that keeps on giving. First, the gate light needed changing because it was dark as pitch out there last night.

 Then, I noticed that the snowball crepe myrtle was starting to bloom and that certainly was worthy of a comment or two. I talk to my plants all the time, letting them know when they are doing a "good job".  So the crepe myrtle received many compliments this morning.

 And, of course, since the birds are nesting and fledging, the feeders always need filling.

 The new bean plants are full of blooms and should be setting beans very soon.

 Here is the little salad section; the lettuce and the tomatoes with the eggplant trying to catch up.

 The dwarf sunflowers are finally beginning to bloom. Plants get three chances in my yard and then, they hit the compost pile. I think the word is getting around.