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A Cottage Garden: 2005
June, July & August - Spent Part of May, all of June, and part of July in Southeast Asia. Came home to overgrown and in some cases pretty leggy garden. Nothing lost though. Thank you Leslie! Will get back to this page in a few weeks.
May
- This afternoon, the 7th, I saw my first mosquito. Evenings of peace in the
garden. Oh lost! I don't think so. I'm already full of cuts, scratches, &
rashes - a few bites won't make much difference. And there is always repellent.
Speaking of which, catch this latest (5/2/2005) from CDC: Other effective
repellents (in addition to DEET-based) are those containing picaridin, also
known as KBR 3023, which may be comparable with DEET products of similar concentration.
Repellents containing picardin are widely available in Europe, Australia,
Latin America and Asia. Oil of lemon eucalyptus, also known as p-menthane
3,8-diol or PMD, may provide protection time similar to low concentration
DEET products. Pardon the change in writing style - it's from infectious
diseases book - which, I should add is so close. Last week rec'd 1st 25%
page proofs. After a little work on HIV/AIDS chapter my part will be finished
as it is less than two weeks before (Photo:
Buddy in the garden in the evening) ... before ...
¡David, my friend Jeff, & I depart for SE Asia for two months! To Hong Kong - Bangkok - Hue & into the countryside to go where we were before - Hoi An - Saigon - Phnom Penh - Battambang - Siem Reap (Angkor Wat) - Bangkok - and until today, Burma - but 11 people killed in bombing in Yangon so the country likely closed to outsiders for the horror show - we'll see what next. In some places like Saigon & Phnom Penh we'll stay for about 2 days & in others, Hue & Battambang, for example, longer. In part, it's an integration trip: Jeff & I back to the battlefields & David to Cambodia for 1st time. And in part, a trip to see what unfolds - and in Asia, something always does.
This is my 5th trip to SE Asia. I remember as a child wanting to be there - wanting to be in Mandalay. And when I finally was, with Leslie, it was as magical as I had imagined. It's also a very tough environment - lots of suffering - everything manifest, now. My friend & colleague, Lance was over yesterday & told me a lot about his recent journeys inside Cambodia & about Saboras, a Cambodian NGO that he works with. Really helpful. A good guy.
Last night the fireflies were in full light. The roses are magnificant & it is pretty magical here, too. Oh man, I'm going to miss Leslie. She is the best traveling companion. David is a good traveling companion, too. Mother's Day is tomorrow. We're giving Leslie a photograph of herself from an article in the Baylor Magazine. Unusual to give someone a picture of themselves, but this one so perfectly captures the essence of Leslie that giving it to her is a way of giving her herself & it is, I think, a very powerful affirmation. Caption reads, "TENDER MERCIES." True.
April - Billy Gray came over today (4/6) and installed a fan on the front porch and a switch to turn the dark-activated security light off and on. This means we'll be able to sit in comfort on the front porch & watch the world go by in the dark, if we choose. Cindy & her sweetheart up the street have what amounts to a living room on their front porch & it looks pretty good to be out there so much. Stoop life in Old East Dallas!
Mid-April
& the fragrance of nicotiana fills the air around the front porch after
dark. Don Juan, Cécile Brunner, & Old Blush combine at the corner
of the house for a rich display. Thrips starting to take a toll on some of
the blooms of Madam Jos. Schwartz & Duchese de Brabant in front. The back
garden is beautiful & peaceful. Leslie wore a red rose in her hair today.
Photo:
Front early April/late March before Cécile Brunner adds its small pink
blooms to the corner of the house. First firefly seen 4/19. There is a cottonwood
tree around the corner - a tree few people plant anymore because of the "cotton"
that drifts down for maybe about a month. But the tree is an elegant one,
tall-trunked & shapely - and, when a breeze is blowing, the heart-shaped
leaves rustle like the leaves of no other tree.
End of April & New Dawn is in full bloom on the arbor in front. Every year, more beautiful. We (Tao, Carrie, & I) are in the final stages (>95% final edit done) of infectious diseases book. No más for me. The two books, one after the other, pretty much did me in.
March - Here we go. Weather warm most days. Heidi up the street is moving. She is a good neighbor and nobody wants to see her leave. She'll live nearby, but, you know, this is a real loss for her & us. Truly, life is what happens when you have other plans.
3/11 - Planted jalepeños today. Heidi gave me some mourning brides (scabiosa), daisies, and a start on the kind of red-flowered woody salvia that grows so well around here. It's good to have so many plants from so many people (Mary & Jay Gorman, Heidi, Don Lambert, Hong Nguyen, Filomena, Laura, the people who live near Shirin, Mitta Angell, Chuck Maxey, others). Old Blush blooming strong & here comes Lady Banks (in the alley).
End of the month & Don Juan in full bloom; Madam Jos. Schwartz, Zepherine Drouhin, Duchese de Brabant close to full bloom. Felicia and Marie Pavié starting. Each year it seems the blooms a little larger. I'm completely out of room for roses (50+ in front & back), so of course I bought a couple more: Another Cécile Brunner ("sweetheart rose") & Ducher, a white China rose - planted in pots so I can keep between the rows in the garden. Autumn Damask bloomed for the first time on 3/30. Wonderful strong fragrance from a soft, pink flower with the shortest of stems ... floating on water in a crystal bowl. Some references say this rose is "before 1819" and some say it dates from Roman Empire. I'm going with the latter, of course.
February - At about mid-month began hearing the mockingbirds in the morning around 6 when walking Buddy. Jolly, Rob, Robbie, & Sophia from across the street moved. This is a loss! End of month & Old Blush starting to bloom.
January - Nothing happening gardening-wise except Stephanie Allen told me she had already pruned & of course she was right. Spring is balmy & new leaves starting to grow on roses, so yes, I also pruned.