You may know some of these kinds of people. They have yards that other, less focused and less diligent people (like us) will actually pay to walk through, they're so beautiful. You don't see these folks around town because they are always--what?-- working in their gardens. Somehow, the Soroptimists find them, though. And organize a little tour for which they sell tickets--to people who have time because they are not working in their gardens (again, like us). Last weekend, we trekked all over Nevada County to gawk at eight such time-sink marvels of horticulture. It was a lovely day, complete with a picnic in the park, and only a tiny bit of guilt. Here, garnished with a few Blotter Bits (thanks to other locals who find creative ways to spend their time), are some pictures of our Garden Tour Day:
"9:41 p.m.--A woman from the 19000 block of Deer Hollow Way reported her husband's leg was stuck in the railing of the banister and was starting to swell. Alcohol was involved. Calfire responded. [Wonder if they tried the ol' Vaseline trick, first]
"9:17 p.m.--A man from McKnight Way reported a tall person wearing a hat who approached his wife and wanted to spray perfume on her. The wife jumped in her car and fled. Police told the subjects that they could not sell perfume without a permit." [Who knew? And what kind of perfume gets that kind of reaction? Essence of Spitting Cobra?]
"9:31. p.m.--A man called police from a pay phone on 300 Broad St. to report the older Russian woman he was out with needed a ride to Banner Mountain." [classy dating maneuver]
"8:14 a.m.--A woman from the 11000 block of Lime Kiln Road reported her daughter was in "one of her moods," but was now laying down." [and I'm sure everything will be just fine when she gets up and finds out that her mom called the cops on her...]
"8:34 p.m.--A caller from West Main Street reported a jackhammer. It was PG&E fixing a gas line break." [uh, well, maybe the guy'd been assaulted by a, um, jackhammer once upon a time...]
"7:23 p.m.--A caller from the 600 block of South Auburn Street reported a 3 1/2' [yes, "foot"] iguana had gotten loose." [so, whether or not to tell the neighbors...]
"7:46 a.m.--A man from the 300 block of Mill Street reported an argument over where to place a computer and hutch. He was warned not to call again." [after the cops told him where to place it--all part of the service]
"7:30 p.m.--A woman from Ophir and Bennett Streets reported a man was following her and saying, 'Jennifer, I'm still in love with you.' The woman said her name isn't Jennifer and she doesn't know the man. He was advised to stay away." [if Jennifer's got half a brain, she's moved to Wisconsin, by now]
"8:18 p.m.--A man from the 10000 block of Pheasant Lane reported his friend had been in the hospital with stomach pain two days ago, and how wanted to make hot dogs and chili. He didn't think she should, and wanted to know how he could prevent her from doing so. He was advised to let her do what she wanted and call if she had more stomach pain. At 1:57 a.m., a caller reported a woman at that address passed out in a vehicle. It was found to not be a medical issue, but due to a verbal dispute." [provide your own snarky comment here-this one makes me tired: ]
"11:51 a.m.--A caller from Yah Way and Perimeter Road reported a man yelling at the top of his lungs, threatening to kill all the neighbors." [A legit call, I guess, but I was amused by the street name]
[and here's one for the books:]
"4:11 p.m.--A man came to the police station to apologize to the Grass Valley Police Department 'for all of his inconveniences' and thanked the P.D. for arresting him and helping him (turn) his life around." [struck dumb, I'm guessing they were]
Continuing from the previous post about spring colors, I thought I'd put up a few photos of the quilt show I went to 10 days or so ago.
I have only dabbled in quilting. My friend and neighbor, Lorri, takes classes and has made many beautiful pieces--one of which she generously made for me, which I will post as soon as I get it hung properly.
Lorri and her friend from quilting class, Peggy, met me at this year's Pine Tree Guild quilt show over at My Favorite Fairgrounds to walk amongst 350 or so of this area's finest work. Such beautiful colors and some very creative pieces!
I have no real commentary. Some of the handwork, especially the stitching, can make one wonder how these craftspeople have time for anything else in life. Yes, I've seen (and driven!) some of the newer quilting machines. They're faster. Still.
A couple of beautiful Hawaiian-style designs caught my eye. One, not shown, has a black background, which was stunning. Next you see a quilt that wakes you up in the morning (though one wonders how one gets to sleep in the first place). 
I loved this little nautilus wall quilt where the maker had dyed the fabric herself. 
And there's Lorri (blondie) and Peggy.
That's it! Soon, I hope to figure out the attachment to the telescoope that will allow me to take pictures of the new hawk chicks that were born last week. Cuter than cute! Stay tuned!
Who doesn't get a little happier this time of year? So many colors! Pink , white, bright green trees everywhere, yellow, purple, white wildflowers--we're having a bit of a late spring, but it's trying to make up for lost time, I think. The one exception is that, at our elevation, the redbuds--native and the color of raspberry sherbet--are not quite as spectacular as other years, the buds having been mostly frozen off a couple of weeks ago.
We have a spindly, two-year-old that has some buds for the first time, though, so that makes up for it, somewhat. Future eye candy! Most of the tulip magnolias in the area suffered, as well, but the dogwoods and flowering cherries are are spectacular! 
Our own little dogwood, however, was broken in half by heavy the snow this year. Even so, it valiantly produced two flowers. Gotta love the spunk! It stays.
I went to two plant sales this weekend. The local chapter of the Master Gardeners hold one a year at their demo garden in Grass Valley.
There was one other at the Miner's Foundry--a historic venue--in Nevada City, which raises money for it's upkeep. I was able to, among other small treasures, score a double-file viburnum--a replacement for one that the deer ate a week after I planted it a couple of years ago. Yeah, that's what I do, now--throw around obscure plant names like I know what I'm talking about. Dicentra, heuchera, astilbe. And, yes, just one more Japanese Maple. Up to seven, now, but I'll never have enough.
After one of the plant sales, I also cruised over to the Growers' Market that is held at another historic location near the Fairgrounds--Northstar House. The market "happens" on Saturday mornings, May through October. The house was built for the owners of the Northstar Mine in 1906 by Julia Morgan, an iconic California architect (a rare woman in the field at the time) who also designed Hearst's Castle buildings and Asilomar Conference grounds, among about 700 other commissions. The Northstar House is in disrepair, unfortunately, and gradually being renovated. I bought snow peas and goat cheese.Garden-wise, I finally set out the peas and broccoli and threw some lettuce seeds in--oh, two months late, or thereabouts. I can't explain my priorities, exactly. The weather was funny and I was also busy making more room for strawberries by filling a giant round metal container with soil and setting it next to the two half-barrels that hold the others. Behind them I also built a new terraced area for corn and something else to be figured out later. I've been ruthlessly yanking all the lupine, clover and vetch that don't belong inside the fence. It used to be downright difficult to rip up gorgeous lupine. Not so much anymore. Besides, there's plenty more outside.
Oddly, this post started out to be about a quilt show--you know, cleverly dovetailing with the spring colors, and all. So, tomorrow...
[Photos: pink dogwood in Grass Valley on Saturday, our little redbud, valiant little broken dogwood, Miner's Foundry, Northstar House.]
You may know some of these kinds of people. They have yards that other, less focused and less diligent people (like us) will actually pay to walk through, they're so beautiful. You don't see these folks around town because they are always--what?-- working in their gardens. Somehow, the Soroptimists find them, though. And organize a little tour for which they sell tickets--to people who have time because they are not working in their gardens (again, like us). Last weekend, we trekked all over Nevada County to gawk at eight such time-sink marvels of horticulture. It was a lovely day, complete with a picnic in the park, and only a tiny bit of guilt. Here, garnished with a few Blotter Bits (thanks to other locals who find creative ways to spend their time), are some pictures of our Garden Tour Day:
