Shannon & I agreed to finish our matching quilts by Christmas. I'm making slow (but I fear not fast-enough) progress.

Yesterday at the pond next door. Those trees may be down by now.

Must make a decision about these old tee shirts.

So I'm trying, really really hard, to get rid of stuff and I've got a big pile of old, and some not-so-old, tee shirts. I never wear them (except occasionally that light blue, really old Hunter S. Thompson tee shirt) so I'm thinking of cutting them up and making a tee shirt quilt. I guess that's not really "getting rid of stuff" but at least it would be turning unused stuff into potentially used stuff.

Not sure what this is, but I do love it.

As you drive down one of the major roads near my house you come across this odd sculpture. A red elephant, on a trailer, with its back to the street. Its owner has embellished the elephant over the years. The wings are fairly new. The house whose yard it graces appears to be boarded up these days, but the red elephant stays and continues to evolve. Note huge ball and chain to the right.

I, optimistically, bought plants today: hellebore, lettuce/kale/cabbage, thyme, and something called caramel heuchera.

Eagle pose in yoga.

I was able to do this for about 2 seconds today. I love my yoga class.

Tiny new sedum. Seems odd that some plants start new growth at this time of year.

This is one sun salute, or salutation.

My yoga teacher, whose name is (I think) Laura, did 108 of these in one session. It was part of a fund-raising event. She looks like she's in great shape but she said 108 of these is a real workout.

Flotsam and Dross Boutique

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5779328

The Internet can be perfect for people who love data.

http://www.celebrityprepschools.com/

I have a friend who is just a little bit odd. She started this list (see link above) years ago and is very dutiful about keeping it up to date. I was reminded of it because of a little back and forth on Garden Rant about the Obamas' decision to send their little girls to Sidwell Friends School.
See this link (I can't seem to master hyperlinks on this blog; I've done it before but I don't like hunting for the instructions, and I won't keep notes; such stupid laziness): http://www.gardenrant.com/my_weblog/2008/11/dcs-greenest-sc.html

My worm composting.

I started my worm composting in March. These pictures were taken at various times, including last night, since then. My only complaint is that they are basically pretty slow producers of castings. Reliable, but slow. Most people don't even notice the bins in my cluttered kitchen, right next to the computer. Oliver pays them no mind.

When you live on a corner you have the whole side yard thing to think about.

While raking (with a rake, not one of those infernal machines I hear in the background) I think about making new flower beds on this hidden side of my house. You can't see most of this from any place in or around the house, so I don't give it much serious thought except when I'm raking. No one else sees this side yard much either because it faces parkland. Neighbor cars zip by but there's no stop sign (it's a rolling corner, not a hard corner) so the only people who stop here are those who've discovered that it's a good place to drink and make out late at night.

Hardy cactus.

These are in central Maryland, not exactly a desert-like place. I guess that means cactuses don't necessary need a desert-like climate to thrive.

Indulge me. George and Anabelle, children of Sarah and Kevin. (Sarah is my niece.)

The lavender flowers look like they're tucking in their heads to ward off the cold. Very cold tonight and all weekend.

I'm still sort of giddy about the election.

I commented recently that I might go to the inauguration, since the White House is just 12 miles or so from my house. But local reports say that the city expects 4 million attendees. When I went to the first Clinton inauguration there were under 2 million. Ummmm, never mind. I think I'll just stay home and watch on TV.

Citrus trees, grown from seeds. They have to come inside for the winter and they're getting a little too big to fit.

Not much blooming at the local nursery but what's there is cherce.

Snow in Gormania, WV!

Yesterday afternoon from my sister's front porch.

B & T ????

I'm reading this book (light as a feather; it's so light that I can read it and think about the economy at the same time). When I asked the librarian what the "B&T" on the spine stood for she said what sounded like "Bacon Taylor," or "Bake and Tailor." I repeated it back to her: "Bake and Taylor? What does that mean?" She said "it's a new collection of books we're carrying." I was bewildered. Decided not to ask more questions. Any ideas?

More berries from the park. They seem to be from a hardy vine.

Enough with the depressing photos. A view in the park next door.

An Olympic team of leaf-blowers just 2 doors away.

There were four guys with blowers and one guy with a big machine that seemed more elaborate than just a lawn mower. Maybe one of those punch-holes-in-the-ground machines.

It was a nightmare. I will admit that they were done very quickly.

I took this bad picture a wk ago while driving. It's an ICC construction site on Old Columbia Pike, NE Silver Spring, near Burtonsville.

I was listening to NPR just now and heard about a new effort, petition I believe, to stop construction of the ICC. I'm generally against the ICC, but not because I've studied the issue. I'll have to drive over there soon and see if the construction has stopped. I'm betting on no.

New and old veggie garden.

Look at that hideous wall behind the gardens! I never noticed it until I took this picture, even though I've obviously looked at it thousands of times. May paint it. Not sure what. Would have to be subtle. Hideous. When I finish digging up the new garden (in the foreground) I'll top it off with Gormania worm castings and my own compost. Yum. I'm leaving a little narrow grass pathway through the new half for walking. I'll cut it with scissors I guess. (Sure wish I could have a couple of goats. I guess they'd eat grass.) Combined gardens will be roughly 5 x 10 when I'm done.

Mr. Canada Goose.

Unusual fallen leaves make a nice carpet. (Next door to the beaver lodge.)

Rainy day at the pond next door.

The beavers have been actively remodeling.

Garden bloggers have a tradition called Bloom Day. The 15th of every month is the day to post pictures of what's blooming in your garden. Lavender!

Where my mom's ashes were scattered. Far western Maryland. So pretty. Hi mom.