This morning I thought it was really just beautiful. By afternoon it was too hot and the thrill was gone, but now it's going to be a great evening. Perhaps the two Margaritas helped. Maybe I'll celebrate the day and have another...lol...
I'm not happy about the fact that I had to start doing some selective hand watering, though. I need to figure out the 'watering minutes' to 'water bill dollars' ratio, I think.
Poor timing, huh? Don't know how hot it was here, but I've been watering for two days straight and contemplating the idea that if I take everything out but the trees, I may once again be able to afford to get in my car and go somewhere...anywhere....and have time to do it.
Ah, now this is more like it! 60 some degrees, breezy, overcast, maybe some drizzle coming tomorrow. I'm taking great joy in my sweats and making soup and reading / napping on the sofa...not even going outside. All the more appreciated for having been 100 degrees already in May....
This is just the best year I can remember here in 28 years! More rain coming! In May! 1/4 to 1 inch of rain and snow in the mountains...incredible. My gardens will be very happy to get some more water...
DH and his son took a road trip week before last and the snow at Mammoth was incredible. Death Valley was in the 80s, so they had a good trip. Fortunately, the rain didn't start again here until after Phil left to go home to England!
I have to keep reminding myself that it's still snowy in the mts. Tioga Pass typically doesn't open until sometime in May. Last time I went to Yosemite,it was just after Memorial Day...wish I could go now...Nice that the guys got to take off for awhile.
I don't have zone denial...not a whole lot of need for that here...but I do have rain/water denial. We've had such a good year down here for rain and we have, mostly, our May overcast, cool weather. So I've just kept planting. I'd already decided that I'll most likely be mowing stuff down rather than continue to pay the high water bills, but in the meantime, I've already got the plants and the weather is cool, so....still, there is that little thought worming its way through my brain saying, "This is stupid."
Just incredible...actual rain again this a.m. Light, but still rain, I'll take it in most any form. I imagine some of the plants new to my yard looking around and asking the older guys..."Hey, is it like this here all the time?"...."Nope"
I'm having fun this year with finding surprises.....one of the great things about re-using my potting soil, and also, so many varied plants sitting next to each other on the nursery tables, is that I have surprise seedlings in pots.....the apple scented geranium and the erodium seed into surrounding pots, seeds that didn't seem to have made it before are showing up as having germinated a year later (mirabilis longiflora), showing up in pots w/ something else. I'd not had luck with some of the native asclepias and now there are a couple of plants that have shown up that I have a feeling may be them. A bunch of my hesperaloe parvifloras have asclepias tuberosa seedlings in the pots with them. It also looks like I have asclepias physocarpa that are going to make it this year.....it's all good.
This just beats anything I've ever seen! It's raining here! I knew No Cal was getting some, but never in a million years thought we would get any here....and just when I was thinking I'd have to start with the sprinklers!
Had some here last night, just enough to dampen, not wet, the ground. Saw it on the 11 PM new and went out back where I had put my new solar oven (never even considering rain in summer) to bring it into the house.
It woke me up! Sounded like a very soft rain and there was 1/4" in our rain gauge (I think some of that was from the damp mornings we've been having, though). Of course, I watered some of ours yesterday!
This year has been such a revelation to me. It's official: I'm never satisfied. I complained bitterly about the cold in that first week and as soon as it warmed up, I complained just as bitterly about the heat.
Ah..I never complain about the cold. This entire last year has been wonderful for me. If we do indeed have another cooler summer down here, I'll be thrilled.
Sunday, getting ready for church, I chose a short sleeved sweater with slacks as it was still chilly at 10AM. I was comfortable all day in that. One day later, doing the laundry, I could hardly stand to touch that sweater from the dryer as it was 98 outside... go figure.
I think the last time we hit triple-digits here was in April (wierd). But it got to 98 yesterday, so it's finally summer. I haven't been longing for it!
Nor I. I sure appreciated that below normal weather, but they say it will be cooling a bit. Since our 'averages' are in the high 90's it will still be cooler than normal this weekend and next week.
