Pull Up a Chair XXI

Sounds like a hoot of a picture. Please share if you can scan it.

My dear Mema, who is now 84 or 86, I can't remember, does still drink. Not heavily, just a few here or there. But, you should have seen her in her 70's! Once a month, we used to go clubbing to a little place in an old part of Houston that played the blues. She loved those blues. Talk about adventures. The woman could keep me out way past my bedtime and be ready to go out for breakfast. She's a hoot. Get her playing poker and she'll drink you under the table and steal all your money. And to think, she's a 'society gal'. Gotta love her.

Biv - I'm SURE that rose would grow in your area. Absolutely certain of it. For me, this is a must have.

Lovely, lovely - lovely rooms, lovely flowers, lovely ladies, lovely creatures.

Well, I just got back from my daughter's. She called me, scared stiff.
Somebody was ringing her doorbell, at this hour, and then her dog
ran barking to the other side of the house. She hadn't turned on the
outside lights and only her bathroom light was on, so it looked like
no one was home. I jumped in the car, took Angus with me - he hates
strange men - and when I pulled around the corner, there was a
pickup truck with it's lights on, parked in the middle of her driveway.
I cut them off and wrote down their license, while Angus barked his
head off, then I pulled back and got out of their way and they left
right away. Couldn't see who was in the truck, but they know I've got
their license plate number and they think a huge crazy dog lives there.

Oh, there's hope for me yet ! I can still have my Mogen David
at 87 and be immune from criticism. Oh, goody !

I've never grown roses. They scare me, and I can't have anything that takes very much attention. At the corner of our house, there's an heirloom rose that was probably planted when the house was built in 1948. I've forgotten the name of it now, but they're small and pale pink and need absolutely nothing but pruning...and they grow in sand!

Oh, Mahnot, that sounds really frightening! I think I'd call the police and see if they can send a car around to your daughter's house on a regular basis.

It might have been perfectly innocent, but I'm gonna stop in at the
police station tomorrow and have a little chat and give them the
plate number, just so it's on record. I pooh-poohed it to her, just to
calm her down, because she's scared that she can't run. She didn't
want to call the police, but she's nervous, so I will go see them tomorrow.
I made her a cup of hot cocoa and waited until she had calmed down.

No kidding! That's scary as hexx! Creeps!

Yes, Mahnot, you can party on down and we'll never be critical. You can have all the Mogen David your heart desires. If you need me to chaperone, I'm an expert. Hooo! Hoo!

Biv - these roses need no special care. If they did, I wouldn't be interested. No teas for me. And no diseases. That's what is so wonderful about this particular rose. Plant it...let it grow.

A wise move.

Now you've made me want cocoa, and there's none in the house. In fact, I haven't had any for probably 20 years! But I think I'm going to have to get some; I can just taste it! :)

Yippeeeee! It's raining again! It rained earlier this evening, and we really, really, really need it!

Thank you, Knolan, but if you chaperone me, I won't have
any fun - you'll cramp my style, LOL, what little there is left of it.

That's a great rose. I'd love to get one for my daughter - pink roses
are her favorite - and there's little enough time for gardening.
How does one go about getting one?

I love the sound of rain on the roof, and it feels so refreshing when
you open the window or step outside under cover. Love the smell of it.
Congratulations.

I didn't read all the text with the photo. I guess I need to go back and find out more about the roses. Btw, my bougainvillea which is now about 3 years old is gradually blooming more and more. It didn't have a single flower until a few months ago, and I had envisioned my arbor groaning under the weight of bougainvilleas. Not only was that disappointing; but when they finally bloomed, my DH can't see them! He's color blind, and the fuchsia ones just blend into the leaves for him. Had I known that, I would have chosen another color. Although I always knew he had a problem, I didn't realize they'd completely disappear for him. He says that once he knows what a color is, he can actually see it; but it doesn't seem to be working with these flowers. His mother always hated that he couldn't really enjoy her flower garden, and I know how she felt.

Yes, tonight when it started raining I could almost have swooned from the fragrance. It was absolutely delicious.

Gee, that's too bad, Biv, as I'm sure he would love them if he could
see them better. My daughter's husband planted bougainvilea here
years ago, but it only survived one year - it just happened to snow that
year and be extra cold, but it was beautiful while it lasted.

My old doctor was color blind and could only see the color blue just a bit,
which always made me wonder how he could judge a patient's looks if
he couldn't see if their skin color was good or not. hmmmm.

I think I'm going to try to get some sleep soon. It took a Bendryl last night to get me to dreamland, and then I had to get up too early to take care of business on the phone and then go to my client's. After her house, I intended to go to the bank to deposit the check I got from her; but I was so sleepy I had to come home to nap instead. I was still half asleep when DH got home. I think tonight can be a no-pill night.

Btw, speaking of business...I got three bids for laying my client's tile. I would have used the same guy I did before, but he's so undependable. He was soooo happy when I called him, but then I never heard from him again. OK. He lost his chance. Anyway, I called a company I'd also used before and sheeeeeeeesh! If we use 20" tiles, they wanted over $2,800 to remove the indoor-outdoor carpet, lay down a moisture barrier and lay the tile. If we use 12" tiles, they wanted over $1,800. Another guy was highly recommended, and his price was $900 to lay the tile no matter the size...and $250 for the moisture barrier. He said if he got the job, he'd throw in the carpet removal for free. So....guess who got the job? Heck, I really couldn't let my client pay more for installation that she's paying for the tile! Of course, if I had my way, her tile would be costing considerably more because she'd be getting travertine. Oh well. I'm sure she'll do that next year in her kitchen. Btw, it's more logical to me that smaller tiles would cost more to lay than the larger ones because it's really more work, but that's not the way they charge.

The world is not supposed to make any sense, MsBiv. That would
make life so much more pleasant and easy, wouldn't it? Good luck
with this new guy - hope he does a very nice job for you.

Sweet dreams. Have a good night's rest and a lovely day tomorrow.

Alas...I think I have lost my bougainvellas to the freeze we had in February. They are one of my favorite plants but there is no renewed greening on mine. That's sad about your DH and the color....bougainvellas are so spectacular to see. It's a southern garden staple for sure. Mixed with Jasmine....mmmmm....mmmm....mmmmm

I have to say that the rain brought all of the fresh smells that I so love every year at this time. My jasmine is going nuts, the freesias are all in bloom and reminding me to divide after the blooms fade, the Lady Banksia is budding, the azaleas have popped their glorious blossoms, the mountain laurel is blooming like MAD and the scent is DIVINE! Biv, that mountain laurel is a Texas native that I would bet would do wonders in your zone too. It can withstand humid and dry conditions:

http://davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/15246/

If only you could smell it! I had a neighbor who works at Nasa come by the other night with a sprig and said, "these are blooming all over the grounds at the office. What is it?" I took one sniff withouut even looking at the plant and told him. Pointed him to my baby in the yard.

OK, Biv. I have a lot more yard work to do but afterwards, I'd like to take you up on the offer to lay on the cleopatra lounge and have peeled grapes. Will there be eunuchs fanning me with palms?

Knolan, you are soooo decadent ! By the way, just how would
eunuchs look in business suits? Or do you prefer the movie costume
version?

Let them wear fig leaves!

I've seen this before but if you have not, it's worth the read. Hilarious:

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/701340/

Fig leaves? Just how large are fig leaves?

Well, dahling, you're more than welcome to recline on my chaises, and I'll be more than happy to peel you a grape (the least I can do in return for that marmalade!). However, we're fresh out of eunuchs, but if you can catch a potential candidate, I'll see if my crazy neighbor can do the rest. My snowbird neighbors say they've seen him skinning some unidentified animal out in his driveway...so it seems he might be the one I should consult for the eunuch..uh..conversion.

It just so happens that I have a fig tree in my back yard. The leaves aren't all that big, so we'll have to find some diminutive eunuchs.

I don't think she's interested in "diminutive" anything.

Oh...please...no....not him!

I gotta tell ya....I'm pig snort laughing right now. I just don't even have a nice way to say that I don't want my eunuch to be an assistant to a taxidermist. And even just saying that, "my eunuch"......I feel like a monster. But, still, I'll take the peeled graped and fanning of the palms. Just for a short while, thank you.

Mahnot, oh let me laugh for a bit.........fig leaves get pretty big.

I'm rolling on the floor. Pardon me while I 'powder my nose'.

Oh, dear me. Hope you get "there " in time !

My eyelids are getting heavy, I'm getting a headache, and my back is hurting because I'm sitting at the computer which I can only take for so long..so I'm off to bed, ladies. When threads get long, I revert to the computer instead of the webtv which is waaaaay slow....but comfy for my back.

I think I'm a gonna go out tomorrow and look fer some eunuchs!

G'night............Sleep well, my friends.

Well, now I'm laughing, too...and still not toddling off to bed. :O

Whew...close call.

Okay...I gotta take a bath. You ladies have killed me tonight.

I'll be back if you're still around, Mahnot.

I'm going to laugh my hiny off for a little bit.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

I think I may turn in too. Goodnight, ladies. Sweet dreams.

Yes, good night. This time I'm really on my way. Take care of that heinie, KN. You'd look pretty funny without one!

Biv....if it could just be a tad smaller I'd be a happy camper.

Good night. You guys are the best.

I'm off to play Mahjonng with R. We're going to make some popcorn balls and hot cocoa (thank you very much, Mahnot). We've got the pedicure vat out and it's a girls night.

This child is going to keep me up until 4:00 am. Let the fun begin!

That was a great link up there , Mahnot.


Squirrels are out buddies....see Walter.

It didn't work. Sorry...you can't see Walter....he's the greatest squirrel ever but I can't figure out how to post a video. Apprently, it's coming soon. Then you can see Walter. He's a super duper squirrel babe!

Good news....just a short update I forgot to tell ya'll about......

Talked to the strawberry patch this morning and everything is ripe for the picking. We're going on Saturday. The end of spring break is coming together nicely. We're having lunch with my mom, bro, SIL and the kids tomorrow and heading off for a group bowling adventure. On Sat. we will pick strawberries to our hearts content and wind the week down. Finally, it's all pulling together.

I would love one of those roses. How can I get one?

Biv I love your house... You can come do mine anytime.

I have a baby fig tree with baby leaves... I don't think they will cover much. *g

Thanks, Nata.

Our fig tree is over 20 years old but has never gotten very big. It does, however, produce a lot of figs. The birds always have them eaten before we know it.

not fair... I LOVE figs... the birds would have to fight me for them.

Nada - they'll ship to you. Here's the # to get on the list:

800-256-ROSE

It's Chamblees Nurserry.