Tagging a Little Free Library? Really?!?

Tagging under any circumstances is awful, but tagging a neighborhood library box is the worst sort of disrespect. Both the back and front sides of the box are tagged. The bench to the side is in honor of our well respected neighbor who died a few years ago. Parents sit with their kids to go through the books; the bench also provides respite for the multiple dog walkers in the area. To see something like this defaced is disheartening, especially in the aftermath of the fire tragedy we have just been through. 

A pensive dog with an interesting headdress

Today Nellie and I decided to tread where we have feared to because it is so sad to see burned out homes. While progress is being made in debris removal, it will be a long time before the neighborhood is back in full force. Therefore, one must take every opportunity to look for joy. I think this fits the bill. This beautiful dog, resting her head on her ball, has an addition that makes her look somewhat regal. I suspect a child decided to add the sparkly touch. It suits this pensive pup nicely.

 

What is it with critters and binoculars?

First the dogs with binoculars guarding their house with great alacrity. Now a chimpanzee hanging in a tree with binoculars?!? What is going on? Whatever it is, this is so delightful, it had to be shared. Enjoy.

 

Slowly but surely - maybe it'll get done

Progress, of a sort. More rocks added. ✅ Marble sink planted with aloe. ✅ Huge pot moved from wind damage area to the new spot (courtesy of K who is amazingly strong). ✅ Back sore from all the stooping and bending. ✅ Plans to keep the rocks free of pine needles. ✅ Great ideas for the back side of this area. Well....

Progress in the Bermuda Triangle of gardens

Some of my projects, especially in the yard, seem like black holes of effort with tenuous results. Dithering about what to do next, or how to proceed is my modus operandi. This time though, it may actually be coming together. The overgrown front triangle is being revamped to have what I hope is an artier flair. That means dismantling almost everything that was there for the new look. What couldn't be seen before was the wonderful marble sink. That issue will be solved this time around. It's been a bit of a slog, but I have hopes that in short order it'll be curated in such a fashion to attract positive attention. Right now, though, it's a hot mess. Progress is slow, but progress is happening. The dismantling is almost done. Rocks that used to provide a border but were so filled with pine needles and other debris are now torn out and ready to be repositioned. 

The front of the triangle is cleared enough so rocks that were hidden are now in view, along with the marble sink as the focal point. The red barrel rings will have plants placed in them, both to add life, and to stabilize them. Someday....

And last but not least, a pebble border for the sink was added to give it a neater look. Which will look a whole lot better once the pebbles and other rocks are artistically placed for maximum impact. At least, that's the hope.

Cleaning out and unexpected finds

 Yes, cleaning out closets is mind-numbing, but necessary. While doing so, I came across my insane collection of three ring binders (does anybody use those anymore?) and found one from a business I formed with a remarkable partner. It was called Kneaded Time and offered chair massage in a large mall. Mind you, we had many hoops to jump through because naturally local governments equated massage with naughty things. We had to convince the powers that be that having people sitting in a massage chair, fully clothed, in the middle of a busy mall was hardly conducive to hanky-panky. Fortunately, we were very persuasive and were allowed to operate one of the first chair massage businesses in the State. What does that have to do with notebooks you ask? Well, one had the logo we used on T-shirts and other items while we had the business. It brings back many good memories from times long ago.

Spring snow

It's been quite the year. 80º heat in what would be the dead of winter, but then snow on the mountains in what should be spring. Southern California is full of surprises. Just a dusting mind you, but we're supposed to get more this week, so we'll see. Considering these very mountains were on fire just two months ago, this is quite the turnaround.