MERRY CHRISTMAS

harry lauder's walking stick decorated for the season...

we had such warm weather on solstice that one camellia bloomed...

jasminium nudiflorum is blooming...

peace on earth

WINTER BIRDS

i'm trying to keep the bird bath ice-free for shy visitors...

house finch...

mocking bird...

cardinal, eating tulip tree seeds on the deck...

POTAGER LIT FOR HOLIDAYS

happy thanksgiving.... we have so much to be thankful for....

here's the lit potager at dusk, so that colors can still be seen

we had a fantastic sunset yesterday, and beautiful un-november-like weather all holiday

FALL COLORS 2011

leaf peeping time... i took the dogs to the pond early...

the water was still...

like a leafy ink blot...

joe joe played at the pond edge...

the snowtober storm bent this tree over another...

luna under the forest cathedral...

butt of all evil...

sparrow libation in the bird bath...

tree men finally did the pruning... foggy morning before:

and after... you can see the little japanese white pine again... it's sad, but it will look better next year.

the potager, almost ready for lights...

ROOTS

marigold roots, flat because they grew in a crack...

last carrots...

we had a frost this morning. looking south from the deck...

the potager, which i'm clearing in prep for holiday lights...

SNOWTOBER TREE CARNAGE

historically early snowstorm hit yesterday, while the leaves are still on the trees...

we got about 5 inches of snow... after i took this photo, i shook the old dogwood and it was saved.

the bald cypress remains a potential casualty... this was yesterday afternoon, after i shook the snow from the tree...

luna managed to cut her foot two days ago, it got infected, and we had to take her to the emergency vet in the storm... i think we risked our lives for that cute purple dressing... but they took a piece of wood out of her foot...

this morning, before i released the bald cypress from its snowy bonds...

more broken tree mess, but pretty colors...

the bald cypress is recovering a bit by mid afternoon, after hubs went out and pushed it up with a tree-pole.

by late afternoon, the bald cypress is still rising up. will it recover? i called out tree guy, hoping he would hoist it up, but he's too busy cleaning up emergencies...

the cypress fell on magnolia 'ruby.' i hope she will recover. one storm has maimed my two favorite trees.

ruby was still flowering...

some halloween! however, we are lucky, as we only lost our phone lines and many are without power...

SNOWTOBER

it's just starting to snow here. we are having a record snowfall, since it almost never snows here now...

flattened potager...

encrusted buddleia...

dangling cleome 'violet queen'

bowed, snowy sunflower...

splattered amsonia...

festooned marigold...

portrait of evil... (how'd he get in here?)

wilted willow...

rescued green tomatoes...  ;-)

much more snow is coming...

9/11 MEMORIAL VISIT

yesterday a friend and i visited the 9/11 memorial in downtown manhattan, new york city

on the way there we passed reflections of the growing one world trade center

and previewed how the skyline is shaping up: hopeful and modern, but austere

after presenting our tickets (ticket info below) and passing through an amazing labyrinth of security measures, we arrived at the memorial. you see the landscaping first, and it is underwhelming. i suppose the purpose of the landscaping is to provide shelter from the sun, a flat walking surface, places to sit and no detraction from the dramatic pools or surrounding architecture. the design accomplishes all that and.... yawn. 

however, the memorial is as solemn, poignant and heartbreaking as it should be...

these photos are from the south pool...

this is the north side of the museum (not yet opened.) the multiple mirrored surfaces can be disorienting.

the north pool and foot of 1 wtc...

the unopened museum...

a sad tribute...

daylight was fading. this shot looks south across both pools.

the middle pit of the pools is so deep that you cannot see the bottom, evoking feelings of unfathomable loss.  

the fountains up close. they are not as noisy as you might expect, but you can get wet when the wind blows.

as it drew into evening, the lights came on and reflected in the pool corners.

as we left, construction lights glowed from the nascent buildings...

FREE TICKETS: you must reserve tickets to the 9/11 memorial which you can do here.  it was sad to see so many people turned away at the gates of the memorial.