Just came back from the Coast, where it was foggy and overcast and felt downright good after the 100º+ temps we have been having. The Rhododendrons are breath-taking, the many colors and varieties creating fantastic vistas from every path. Joann took a lot of pictures, we hope to be able to have enough good ones to post. The food-bank got a lot of food, a very nice selection. For our lunch purchased items at the Harvest Market, they have a truly large selection of food to take out, from salad to deli items to hot dishes, so we had a gourmet picnic. I brought some sushi and some excellent cheese home for tomorrow. We ran into a friend not seen for a long time, since she moved to the coast and we met up with a woman from our town who walked a little terrier, turned out to be a cousin of Taschis. A very nice day indeed. Came home to 90º, turned the cooler on, stripped the warm clothing off, put cool clothing on, fed dogs, cats, chickens and goats, watered what needed water and now I can coast.

Greg - as always your photos are gorgeous! I am particularly taken by Hawaiian Coral. Those soft sweet colors get me every time! Now, I am not a long-time plumeria grower but I have grown a plant or two in my time, and I work at a plant farm. :) In my experience with annual and perennials, the juvenile growing phase is the fastest growth period that plants go through. The space between internodes is longest in the springtime when the plants are growing at a fast pace... during their juvenile phase. With many different perennials and shrubs, in the fall when growth rates slow, the internode spacing is shorter making for tighter branches. Again in the spring they take off, growing at a fast rate again, and internode spacing is longer. As they mature, their growth rate is slower, internode spacing closer together. My question would be can you relate a cuttings growth from a mature tree to that of juvenile plant material of such as a seedling? If so, then yes, after 3 years and now modest growth, it absolutely would make sense to me. :) Now, please excuse me while I continue to cry for my Charlotte Ebert. *sniffles*

oh I was so exited and forgot to say...luvs... I am sorry your Tuesdays had nothing you liked...:( There is many times that I find absolutly nothing there...which usually is a good thing for my wallet...lol Sandi...yes!!!! I will 'play' over the weekend with some other table settings...I have some spring looks in mind and an all green cabbage table...not sure if I'll like it when it is all green but I want to see...lol Kathleen...you are right...it is enough for me for a while...I had also recently bought some artwork for the diningroom which will be different for me - who is afraid of color...lol...it is hard to get out of the 'matchy' mold and even the art work I bought is matchy...scenic all in red gold and green...:( So after I am done playing with all the spring tables it'll be time for me to get out of my comfortzone and try this wall arrangement thing I am no good at....:: kathleen...I know I have been trying your patience...I am sorry...I hope you won't be disappointed when I finally post the pictures...because the things I got at the C Tree shop were not plates...lol...I got 6 pink sunday dessert glasses, 2 mugs I liked, a round ivory covered bowl and ivory raised bowl, a little nest with eggs, 2 little red lampshades and 2 green little lampshades...oh I lied...I did get one plate with butterflies on it...the camera battery is tonight on the charger...tomorrow I'll have to participate in some family activities...and it'll be evening before I'll get time to 'play' with my treasures...don't be mad at me...I promise you pictures sooooooooooon...:)

My dad was a barber, and Sunday and Monday were his days off. On Mondays a fish monger would travel through our neighborhood selling his catch. He had a refrigerated truck similar to an ice cream truck. So every Monday was fish night. Many times my dad would purchase extra to cook a fish stew for his lunches. Every Monday he'd make some sort of soup or stew, fill jars, and keep them in the refrigerator all week long. He'd take one jar each day to heat up at his barbershop for lunch. He made bean soups, spaghetti, and fish/calamari stew. The calamari stunk horribly. I'd close the kitchen doors and my bedroom door and open my windows. But to no avail. The memories of the stewing squid kept me from eating calamari until I was in my 40s.