Jack’s Walk

©voyager, all rights reserved

Yesterday was a perfect spring day with sunshine and warmth and all things good. Today is also a perfect spring day, but of the drizzly, rainy kind that feeds all the growing things. I’m not sure the little growing things really need the rain because the ground is still pretty wet from the last rain we had plus the winter melt, but the trees are doing thirsty work making leaves so they’ll use up any extra left over water. I know that there are parts of the world who are struggling with a too dry spring season and I wish I could share. Here it’s been snow and rain and rain and rain for many weeks. It should settle down eventually and I can only hope the trees get enough wet now to protect them from the blistering heat to come. The weather has changed so drastically over the course of my lifetime that I just don’t know what to expect anymore. I do love the trees, though, and I hate to see them suffer so let it rain on my beauties while they grow their summer suits. I can wait  for the sunshine.

Tree Tuesday

This week we have gorgeous spring blossoms from Avalus. This is a Mirabelle Plum tree and it’s magnificent. The critter in the last photo seems to agree, although it is likely not enjoying the blossoms as much as it will the fruit to come.

Mirabelle ©Avalus, all rights reserved

Mirabelle (2) ©Avalus, all rights reserved

Plums ©Avalus, all rights reserved

Squirrel ©Avalus, all rights reserved

Jack’s Walk

A new leaf among the old. ©voyager, all rights reserved

After many weeks of hitting the snooze button our little forest has finally decided to wake up. Everywhere you look things are growing.  The trout lilies are putting up leaves all over the place and I saw one or two trilliums from afar. I wanted to get closer, but the ground was a bit too muddy to wander off the path. I also didn’t want to trample any young, tender shoots still hidden in the leaf litter. The trilliums looked to be a few days away from blooming so I’ll go back on Wednesday or Thursday to see what’s what. Usually the first trilliums to appear are the red ones and they’re my favorite variety. I’ve been chasing the perfect  red trillium photo for years, but the so far it’s eluded me. The red trilliums are wickedly difficult to photograph because the plant is short and the flowers point downwards so you need to get underneath the plant and shoot up. Not such an easy trick for an old dog like me. Someone suggested I use a mirror and I’m going to try that, but if it doesn’t work I’ll do the belly crawl a few times. I have a good feeling that this is the year I’ll finally get that photo.

Mystery plants. ©voyager, all rights reserved

The Art of Book Design: Beauty in Common Things

Beauty in Common Things by Chambers, A. C; Whymper, Emily Hepburn, 1833-1886, illustrator; Dickes, William, 1815-1892 (printer); Stanford, Edward, 1827-1904 engraver; Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (Great Britain). General Literature Committee. 1874. London

The gilded cover is an engraving of all the plants displayed in the book. I’ve added 2 of the interior plates below the fold for anyone interested. [Read more…]

A Year Long Journey

Thanks for everyone’s kind thoughts, the antibiotics seem to be doing something, though everything I’ve read about pertussis includes the warning that the coughing fits can last up to 3 months (depending on the source – shortest I’ve heard is 10 weeks, in China apparently they call it the “100-day cough”). So I’m not looking forward to that, because in about 3 weeks I have a big conference (in Madrid!) where I have presenting responsibilities and I was hoping the “long cough” (as it is called in Latvian) wouldn’t be quite so long…

However, I am looking forward to discovering more art like A Year Long Journey by Ryo Takemasa. Only one example, you must visit the site to see more:

The Art of Book Design: Kate Greenaway’s Almanack

Cover for Kate Greenaway’s Almanack for 1893, London, [1892].
(Source: archive.org) 

A book of weekly dates for religious services in 1893. Each page has a sweet watercolour drawing depicting family activities of the time.

 

From archive.org, where you can view the entire book. I warn you this site can be a bit of a rabbithole.

Jack’s Walk

The Palomino Tree, ©voyager, all rights reserved

Our walk today was slow and short. To begin with it’s raining. There’s been a constant light rain since yesterday and every now and then it unexpectedly morphs into a heavy downpour that eats up the light and has you soaked in seconds. That’s what accounts for the shortness of our walk. The slowness is another matter, though. On rainy days I move like a sloth. The best way that I can explain it is that I feel like I’m moving through thick porridge. Even my hands give me trouble and simple things like doing up buttons and keyboarding seem to take forever. Today it’s worse than usual and I’ve got quite a bit of brain fog to go along with it. Let me tell you why.

Yesterday Mr. Voyager had sleep dentistry done. This is becoming a thing around my area. You’re given a light general anesthetic while they do fillings, etc. and it’s commonly used for children. Mr. V needed 2 root canals done plus several fillings so being asleep seemed like the best option. He’s had sleep dentistry done in the past and it went well so we weren’t expecting any problems. Ha, silly us. This time the Mr. wouldn’t wake up. He went under at 11 o’clock with about 2 hours worth of work to be done. At about 1:30 the nurse came to tell me everything went well, but they couldn’t rouse the big guy. Nothing to worry about they said, he’s just sleeping. OK, I thought, he didn’t sleep well the night before so let him snooze for a bit. Then 3 o’clock came and went. Then 4, then 5 and by the time 6 o’clock rolled around the office was closing up for the night and the nurse is still telling me not to worry, he’s just sleeping and they’ll stay with him as long as needed. Finally at 8 pm the Dr. himself walked my sweet, groggy husband out to the car and we made the 45 minute trip home. My sleeping beauty drowsed the whole way home, went to bed as soon as we got in the door and didn’t get up until 11 o’clock this morning. He says he’s feeling quite refreshed. Me, not so much.

I do most things standing up resting on my arms because sitting is uncomfortable. My desk is at standing height and so is my work table. Some days even lying down isn’t comfortable so I’ve learned how to sleep standing up. It’s because of the fibro plus an advancing  scoliosis. Sitting causes nerve compression which sets off sciatica which sets of the fibro which makes voyager a tad cranky. Yesterday, I sat for hours. It was pouring rain outside so going for a walk wasn’t appealing and there was nowhere I could stand and rest my arms. I also kept thinking he’ll be awake soon and we can go home.

Jack’s day wasn’t much better. We left him with my brother-in-law who has a dog about the same size as Jack named Angus. Angus is a dick. He’s part German shepherd, part border collie and part Australian cattle dog and he’s smart as a whip, as fast as the wind and a bully. He taunts Jack and teases him with toys that he never shares. Yesterday was the longest that Jack has had to stay with Angus, almost 12 hours, and he was absolutely overjoyed to see us. I can see today that he’s exhausted so I don’t think Angus let him rest yesterday.

So, both of us slow today. Sorry about the prattling on, but I can’t find the brevity button in my brain. I hope you find some joy in whatever you do and have a good weekend.

 

Get the Party Started!

It’s Good Friday, which means that in Germany you are officially forbidden to have fun. I’m not joking (that would be illegal), there is a “ban on dancing”: No public dancing (clubs must be closed), no frivolous movies.

Coincidentally, it’s also my grandpa’s birthday today, he would be 98! So instead of mourning a fictional character, let’s celebrate a wonderful man who was a humanist and socialist, always fighting for justice. And the best grandpa of all as he gave us the most precious gift a grandpa can give: time.

Taken in 1993. By the look of the garden and the fact that he’s wearing a dress shirt it could even have been his birthday.
©Giliell, all rights reserved.

The smile you see usually spelled mischief. He never lost that boyish joy. I swear he even cheated at chess and that’s a whole other level.

So, here’s to you, grandpa!

It’s also my uncle’s 60th birthday tomorrow and to celebrate with the solemn seriousness the occasion deserves, we made him a piñata:

©Giliell, all rights reserved.

He wants money for a new motorcycle helmet and we’ll make him work for it.

So, get the party started!