Tuesday, 24 March 2020
Skooter in the morning, next to my sleepy head:
I made a statement on our Facebook business page and felt relieved to have the decision done with. I was probably just making it so no one else would make it for us, because one of my many flaws is that I do not excel at being told what to do or not do.
I got the rainy day I had been waiting for to read my new and quite rare book by Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy, a birthday present from Allan. Only 3000 copies were printed, as far as I can tell. Just 85 large pages long, with Don’s full page illustrations of Christopher and of their friends, it is a month of a Christopher diary.
As I neared the end, the sun came out. I ignored it and finished reading.
I found out where Skooter was when our neighbor, Jessika, texted me this photo.
Allan had observed the visit from his desk window:
Because of an insomniac late start and news reading and the book, it was four o’clock before I got out into the front garden to work further on the east side weeding.
We’d had this much rain:

Allan’s photo
Onyx from next door leapt from our garden over the fence to his own, with Skooter following.
My project before:
and after:
Casualties: One lily bud and one rhododendron bud.
The soil looks quite battered and uneven. I hope to have enough compost to mulch it. Or…I could use leaves that are not yet leaf mold, I suppose, since is this is pretty much a semi-shady shrub border.
Here is blurry proof that my young and shockingly pricey Stachyurus praecox is blooming. I had ordered it through Plant Lust without paying attention to how high the shipping charge was.
It actually originated at Gossler Farms and I should have ordered it direct. I was just so excited to find one after years of questing to have it again. Here is the one from my old house, that was too big to move:

Stachyurus praecox
If I am mostly going to be home for weeks, I really must start using a better camera than my old iPhone.
My large willow leaved stachyurus is not nearly as floriferous.
When I get all the weeding done, I will do some pruning and shaping up.
I love the pink and lavender of this primrose and hebe in Allan’s garden:

The water canoe (Allan’s photos)
Meanwhile, with his boat project on hiatus due to lack of an instruction booklet, Allan worked on the south fence where a branch had pushed down the top board.
Allan’s photos:
That ivy will be dealt with if I get the more important weeding done.
With no work on the immediate horizon, I made an at home gardening list.
You would think I would get that list of indoor jobs done, but I still have not, as I’d rather read a book.
The garden jobs won’t get erased in an orderly fashion because I choose to work in whichever part of the garden is quietest or least windy. I am so grateful that we have a garden to goof around in.
After dinner and some telly, just after midnight, I was catching up on the local newsgroups and saw this.
My heart raced and my nerves jangled until, about fifteen minutes, later an update said no tsunami danger. It’s been on my mind that our worst case scenario here is a tsunami now. Please—Just. Not. Now.
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news from the beach and beyond
Campgrounds closing, public asked to stay off the beaches
…in an attempt to keep visitors away, usually the opposite of what we want.
An article with some brilliant tweets about the value of old folks
Just. Not. Now. Is. Right. What the heck! That’s the last thing you need. Ditto for tornadoes, floods, or any other kind of natural disaster. The pandemic is enough. The Isherwood book looks very interesting. What a wonderful birthday present.
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Thank you
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May the tsunami stay far from your door. My own worry is the power grid and communications staying up and stable.
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100 percent share your worry.
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What an alarming warning to have. Your business decision seems to me to be very sound.
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Thank you, Mr T!
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What a fabulous picture of you kitty in the neighbors window. Frame worthy I think.
I’ve made a point of turning off all news etc right after dinner because like you I can’t sleep if I’m stressed.
Take good care and enjoy your lay off like it was YOUR idea. ;—)
I’m trying hard to do the same.
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My idea indeed! Just found out today that while just across the river in Oregon, landscape maintenance of all sorts is considered essential, in Washington state it is now officially NOT. But it was my idea. :-\
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Smart decision. We have been on lockdown for about 2 weeks. It’s not so bad, gets easier everyday. Us gardeners are so very fortunate, and us bookworms!
Been reading for the 3rd time Old Time Gardens by Alice Morse Earle. Amazing how much more you get out of a good book when you can read at your leisure and not be interrupted or feel guilty.
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Will put it on my list.
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The solar fountains are a great addition to the canoe pond.
Up here some areas are worried about late spring floods. Just. Not. Now. Indeed.
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Definitely no, not now. I pictured us all gathered up at the school. All the peninsula together. It would have been the kind of tsunami you’d have some warning for. I used to think we would drive to Denny and Mary’s house inland but couldn’t do that now with social distancing. 😦 Although we have been human contact free except for post office for ten days now.
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I had a specialist appt and some diagnostics that I was told not to cancel two weeks ago, and believe me I counted every one of those 14 days off after the appt.
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We have four days to go for it to be 14 days since our last trip to the grocery store. I hope your tests turned out ok. Email me about it if anything going on with that, please.
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I was just thinking this morning “we better not have an earthquake!” You got a lot of weeding done. It looks nice. Your Stachyurus praecox is off to a good start. The blossoms are stunning. Skooter in the window is funny–his expression looks like “I know you are in there.”
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He was probably looking for his nemesis, Onyx. He must have got tired of chasing poor Jazmin around.
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That is such an excellent picture of Skooter. I just posted a bunch of plain pictures of Rhody recently. They had no relevance to horticulture, but everyone loves them.
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Hi Skyler. I’m sorry shipping on that Stachyurus was so expensive, but the people at Plant Lust do their best to match shipping charges from the nursery as closely as possible. In the case of Gossler Farms and Cistus Nursery, for example, both nurseries use standard, flat rate shipping fees that Plant Lust matches exactly. Shipping would have been the same if you had ordered it from the nursery directly. If you ever feel like the shipping fee is higher than it should be, feel free to contact Plant Lust directly with your concerns. They really try their best to address customer concerns. For example, if someone places an order including plants from several nurseries, which each have their own shipping fees, Plant Lust will try to consolidate shipping on the order so you pay less.
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Thanks. It definitely has not stopped me from ordering from PL which is a great resource. I just will look at the shipping charges next time. I was so excited to find the plant that did not even look at the cost.
Sent from my iPad
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