March 21, 2011

Hooray! It's Spring!



The weeping willow across the street.











Catkins on the Harry Lauter's Walking Stick.











The camellia is about to shed her last blossoms, but she is still a sight!










A vinca minor that is purple and not "periwinkle blue".

I know. It can be a bully and is not a native plant here. Many will not grow it, but I can't resist. It makes such a lovely ground cover for the spring flowers and brings color to the shade garden.






Our Thunder Cloud plum tree. It didn't bloom last year at all, so was delighted that it came out fully this year. The rain last night and all the wind have stripped way too many petals already.

Saturday's Child Worked Hard

Saturday I went shopping. Not so odd for most people, but I loath shopping.

My wonderful Mitchell does 75% of the food shopping, only dragging me along every couple of weeks to do a restocking of the pantry. He does the week in-week out drudgery and most of the quick pick ups. It's one of his most wonderful gifts to me.

I can manage a couple of hours of wondering thru cute little shops when we are traveling and the occasional trip to a mall - which I see a lot like going to a museum. "Oh, isn't that interesting. Wonder what "they" did/do with that?" When I need something specific, I'm a run-in-the-door, grab it and go kinda girl. [I do pay, too.]

But especially, I hate shopping for clothes. Too many choices, too many decisions, hovering clerks, and did I mention those telephone booth-sized changing rooms, with not one, but three mirrors. What sadist invented that?

For clothes I turn to catalogs. I can leaf thru half a dozen in an evening; order what I want (usually in two sizes); ship three quarters of it back two weeks later and be perfectly happy. But the combination of three years working at home, losing 17.5 pounds [oh, did I forget the mention that!] and a change of seasons has left me badly in need of some transitional basics. As the pile of things to go to Goodwill has grown, the number of choices in my closet has shrunk and I am not quite ready to pull out the summer clothes in the next smaller size.

So, off I ran yesterday to shop. [The last time I did this was about five years ago. Elizabeth took me to a Liz Claiborne outlet and acted as my "stylist" carrying things back and forth until she found me several very nice things - which I may be able to wear again in a few more pounds!] This time I went all by myself!

Had my heart set on a skirt I had seen on TV. [I know. That was really stupid. The chances of actually finding it and in a size that fit, were - well tiny. But they were also having a sale.] Two hours and many trips to the mirrored telephone booth later, and home I came laden with.... [drumroll, please] ... clothes!

I did find the skirt and it only needs a little altering in the waist. And, tee shirts to match (three), and black pants, and a white shrug and a black and white blouse, and a black and gray tweed jacket. [Ok. That one's a winter piece, but it's a classic that I can wear for years - and I promise I will.]

Now I still want a white jacket, but I have plenty of catalogs to look at, or maybe I can run in somewhere, grab and go.

How to Help?

Like so many of you, I have spent much of the last week going about my life with one ear tuned to the ever-present TV, listening to coverage of Japan and feeling sick at their plight. Earthquakes are terrifying enough, without a tsunami and the threat of exposure to nuclear radiation.

The obvious question is, "How to most effectively help?" I am not 100% sure that the following is the best answer, but will throw it out there and let you decide for yourselves.

For Japan with Love


Lydia at Ever Ours and many others are proposing and participating in a fund raising effort to support the recovery efforts in Japan. They are raising funds for ShelterBox. This is an international organization headquartered in the UK that provides tents and (basically) camping equipment for families without shelter. Their web site says that they are already delivering these boxes in Japan and that they have helped all over the world in recent crises like this. Each box costs $1,000 (American) and holds a tent large enough for a family or group of ten people. It also includes a stove, cookware, blankets, ground covers, and a tool kit - no food in this.

All of the necessary links are on Lydia's site.

A Caveat

This sounds like a great idea to me. What I understand about the Japanese people is that they are incredibly hard-working and enterprising. That leads me to believe that once their immediate needs for shelter and food are met, they will dive into cleaning up and rebuilding their country in an incredible manner. But, clearly today's need is food and shelter. ShelterBox seems like a great solution. And, honestly, I love the "concreteness" of this as a way to help.

But. There is always a "but".

The U.S. website www.CharityNavigator.com evaluates charities and rates them - based largely on how they spend the money they raise. They give ShelterBoxUSA (the US branch) a 3-star rating - 3 out of 4. According to their scale, ShelterBox spends roughly 20% of the funds they raise on fund-raising and administration. The charities that are 4-star rated spend about 5% on fund-raising and administration. I'm not saying that 20% is necessarily bad, but you need to take it into consideration before you send your money to them.

The question is, "Is what they do important enough to me to spend the 20% on administration?"

I don't have that answer yet for myself, but wanted you to know about this opportunity if - like me - you are still trying to decide what agency can best translate your dollars (pounds, Euros, drachma, rubles,etc.) into meaningful assistance to the people of Japan.

March Bloom Day!

Today's the Day! Here's what's blooming in my garden in Central Virginia today.

After you've visited a while, hop on over to May Dream Garden and see all the others who are sharing their bounty today. It's a great way to spend a little time.

Had to include this one to share the bee!

There was a time when I had banks of this pretty blue phlox, but hot summers and harsh winters have finally worn it down to a fairly small patch. It's still pretty, tho, and always one of the first things to bloom.

Not technically in "bloom" yet, this is a flowering almond shrub that will be gorgeous in a few more days. That very top bud will surely open before the day is out!


The camellia is still the star of the yard. It is covered in blooms - probably 500 by now. Each one is prettier than the last one.