Slight Detour: Coming Up Roses, Etc.

I've had this climbing rose, given to me by my sisters more than 20 years ago at two different residences.

Happily, it still thrives

The roses are just starting to bloom but already adding a nice touch to wherever they happen to grow.

This is the wild rose Bill gave me a few years ago. He brought it home in a pot.

Now it thrives in a much bigger planter about ten feet long and three feet wide.

The blossoms just started opening this week.

BTW: I did take some starts from this rose and planted them along the road south of the house.

They are far from showy, but they're alive and well, proving that you can transplant wild roses.

Cotton, anyone?

We had a cottonwood storm throughout most of the day yesterday. It landed everywhere, including the horse tank. Plus, it left a soft white layer of carpeting across the lawn.

~~~~~

The lady below stuck her head out the window of her house last night and posed for a picture.

She was so calm as she looked at me that I almost thought I could reach over and pet her.

I love having Mr. and Mrs. Swallow living in their house in the garden.

While I pick weeds or water, they twitter away or sometimes flutter away only to come back and sit on the fence.

I discovered some helpful convenience yesterday.

As one who has dry skin, I cannot go without socks in the summer time. If I do, within minutes or hours, my heels begin to break open with cracks. They even do so sometimes when I am wearing socks or especially in the winter.

So, applying some bag balm has always been the answer but not always convenient.

Sometimes the painful cracks occur when I'm away from home and the bag balm.

Yesterday, while shopping at Yoke's, I brought my cart to an abrupt stop in a pharmacy aisle.

There on the shelf sat mini cans of bag balm---the kind you can throw in your purse and take with you.

In the past, when I know I'll be traveling, I've scooped the bag balm into a zip-lock bag just in case the painful cracking begins.

It's kind of messy in those baggies but necessary for when it feels like knives are poking every time you take a step.

This will be great and very convenient.

Plus, I've always loved the design and color of bag balm cans.

Below: I saw this illustration in this morning's New York Times newsletter.

It's a reminder that tomorrow is the Belmont. Usually, the Belmont is not that interesting if there's no Triple Crown candidate remaining.

This year, however, the Belmont pits Journalism against Sovereignty.

The latter won the Kentucky Derby while Journalism raced a thriller to win The Preakness.

Though there are not too many horses in tomorrow's race, it should be exciting to truly see which is the better horse.

----New York Times Illustration

Well, I'm older than whoever posted the meme above.

Our phone was on the wall, but it was a crank-up, not a dial up, and you announced what number you were calling.

We had no TV until I was about 6. And, it was black and white.

Our single bathroom did not offer a great floor plan. Its door was right next to our kitchen table. So, if someone had to go during dinner, someone had an audience.

Twas maybe entertaining for the audience but definitely not for the one seeking relief.

All this said, I guess I'm really old.

The life you imagined might be gone, but the life you’re building can still be beautiful.

Sometimes the most fulfilling chapters are the ones we never saw coming.

----Saint Mother Teresa

The annual ride above is coming up this weekend, with one change. Instead of Western Pleasure, it starts from the Fitchett place on Upper Gold Creek Road.

My mother was a big supporter of the St. Jude's Trail Ride, often promoting and doing the clerical work.

So, it's always neat to see how much the ride brings in.

Monies come from donations supporting individual riders.

If you would like to sponsor a participant on Sunday's ride, you can call the following St. Jude's volunteers: Cari 208-290-7084 or Janice 208-263-9066.

Thanks for your generosity.