Looking at Clousseau's crate I was thinking to myself how interesting it would be to get inside his pea brain to find out what the motivation behind the stash was. Animals never cease to fascinate and amaze me. And Drema, a baby is a baby is a baby, huh? If there is trouble within a mile and you give them a second they'll find it! I was hoping Miss Nagasu would take the title, too, Cyn.. But I was also left wondering how much physical conformation has to do with the finer points of posture. While there is no doubt that it requires practice and attention to detail to put the final "polish" on posture certain body proportions lend themselves more easily to an elegant tableau. Few ballerinas are built like Mary Lou Retton! On the subject of compulsory figures; I also feel that the mastery of them probably contributes to graceful carriage and permits time to perfect a pleasing presentation of arms and hands, though I may be off the mark on this supposition. I feel the emphasis on jumps has greatly taken attention away from intricate footwork and SPINNING. I love fast, tight spins that don't "travel" very far from their centre point. I don't really like the spin that involves holding the leg in front of the body, either. While it certainly demonstates flexibility I find the overall line unattractively awkward. Nor am I particularly fond of the Bielmann spin. The emphasis on jumps has also weighted competitions in favor of the very young athletes. And I think the sport has suffered because of it. Wouldn't it be fun if they had a division for an older age bracket, where maturity and practice put more attention on the fundamentals from which "figure" skating derived its name? What fun to have someone in our midst who has skated and can give us a skater's perspective. And I am saddned that your sister no longer skates; for those who struggle an outlet that demands attention and practice can be a refuge and losing it can leave a void not easily filled. :( Almost time to empty the washing machine. Your DD is in a horrible position, 'bug. She has to deal with a spoiled brat and all the attendant tantrums yet has less than 50% of the "control" over changing any of it. But I have to wonder at what point Skyler's tough start in life becomes "the hand he's been dealt" and ceases to become the excuse/reason for being an obnoxious, selfish child that is a pain in everyone else's ass. NO kid has a perfect life. If anyone can get this message across to him it will be your daughter. And I'll bet it will be with a zero tolerance policy, too. This must suck so much energy out of their lives on a daily basis. So sad. But they have to keep on trying because: 1.) it's their "job" as parents. 2.) they love him and he deserves to be loved by them. 3.) and if they don't he'll surely fail. Good thing we have dogs to kick, and flowers to make us smile, huh?

Yankees!!!!!!!!......Yankees here?......Oh my Gawd I didn't know they was Yankees here!!!!!!........:) Oh, relax, Paul! I can't speak for the others (you'll just have to watch those people! LOL), but all my people are Southern and I was born in the South, and though by circumstances was transplanted North, I was raised on Southern home training and sweet tea (didn't even know there was any other kind until college, when I started dating a real Yankee). Jim, about the Austins' prevalence: As Jeri and others have so astutely pointed out, that's just marketing. People seem to be obsessed with the Brits and their lifestyles, their names (look at the baby name trends, especially for girls), their TV shows, their movie stars, their accents... somehow, people seem to think, all things British are somehow better and of a higher, more refined and educated stature. So of course they eat up the Austin propaganda. Maybe the Germans need better press. And also, sorry to say, but some folks are just ignorant. Watching QVC the other night (oh the shame!), I saw this female host on a gardening show with this guy peddling an Austin collection. "Oh, I've never SEEN blooms like this; this is a truly EXTRAORDINARY rose." And she meant every single word. Now, we who are acquainted with the antique world know this is nothing rare or super-special, but for those who have only ever seen a hybrid tea... That's why it's up to us to educate. So maybe disdain isn't the answer, just education...

Wow, such eye-candy! David, I especially like the "Borneo" and the Cooper's Creek.... the latter reminds me of butterscotch pudding. This month, my vanuatuensis is putting out some late, sparse blooms. The plant was covered in aphids over the winter and needed a soap treatment and a heavy pruning. Now it's back out hanging under a maple tree, backbudding and putting on exuberant growth. Josh

My purpureo-fusca is growing like crazy, I just up potted it from its tiny VB pot into a I think 4" square pot. Maybe it'll be a fast to mature and give me something this winter, lol. thank you for the pictures, they are amazing! The verticillata is so adorable, maybe one day I'll have the pleasure of having the fragrance dance through my olfactories. and your red buttons just makes me want to go sing "the Growing Song" to mine! Oh, "the Growing Song"? Well, I haven't written it yet, but I figure we can do something similar to what they did for dogs. Like: "You're a good dog" http://youtu.be/Ak538bdZij0 or "squeaky deaky" http://youtu.be/j5WszpDbbqk