oh so many lessons........

Since last posting I have attempted to pick up pots, deliver pots, sell equipment, start seeds, contemplate the constellations and astrology charts because I have no idea what is going on..... yes, Mercury has hit your chicken coop causing eggs to be laid in retrograde.  

March 30 we were walloped with another snow storm.  I went to the studio, cleared the table and started seeds; just in case the soil ever warmed enough to get a shovel in the ground.  There was much grumbling on the cyber garden waves.  Maggie emailed the woes of getting seeds to break dormancy on heat mats and grow lights.  Gardening has taught me many things over the years, the best is patience.  Even in the snow there is pruning to do and happy to say all the panticulata hydrangeas were cut back, dead wood trimmed off the roses, three lovely river birches cut down due to disease and a general clean up was in order..... well until it started raining.  The branches were too big for the compost so they were bundled and filled the tree lawn.  My poor trash guy must grimace when he turns down this street!  Most stuff goes back to the land but some things are too big and would take too long to breakdown here.  I wish I had a back 40 brush pile but alas I don't.   Common Sense plays a big role in this garden thing. 

April 5th I left for Boston, time to break down DeCordova ......or just break down.  I am leaving 7 or 8 pots on display at the gallery shop.  Happy to have representation in such a beautiful place and with qualified staff.  

The alarm went off at 3 a.m. and I was out the door by 3:20 a.m. hot coffee in hand.  Rolled through Erie, Pa and the low tire warning went off on dash board....... here we go!  I stopped at the Angola rest stop around 5:30 a.m. dug the pressure gage out of the glove box and found the air pump attached to a brick wall at the back of a very dark Sunoco gas station.  I gripped the flashlight between my teeth, unscrewed valve caps, promptly lost the valve caps and discovered the rear driver tire had 17 lbs pressure.  Fed a handful of quarters into the compressor and pumped away while waiting for the Angola axe murder to pop out from the shadows. Tire filled with fresh clean air, seat belt fastened, idiot light out, coffee in hand and back on the road.  Made Buffalo before rush hour and headed to Rochester.  The other side of Rochester..... low tire idiot light blared again.  Nuts!  Found another service oasis as they like to call these money sucking rest areas where gas is 20 cents a gallon higher and 3 minutes of air will cost you $1.00 in quarters.  The tire was back down to 17 lbs. pressure.  I mulled this over, called the Nissan Dealer in Rochester at 7:30 in the morning. They could not squeeze me in until 1 p.m; add an hour to fix it, add 7 hours to complete my drive ..... Nope I would never make it by the time the gallery closed.  I had not made enough to pay for a hotel so I headed back to the barn, a mere 3 hours home and $15 in gas.  I filled the tire two more times and happy it was not the gas tank. Pulling in the driveway around 1 p.m; jumped out to make the mad dash to the bathroom, a thermos of coffee will do that....... all doors locked.  We never lock our house!  Grabbed my keys from the car and realized I never got my key back from Abby when we returned from Florida.  Called Butch and asked him if he could meet me in the Bob Evans parking lot 15 miles up the road and hand off a key?  He did, I drove back home, opened the door and used the bathroom.  Anyone who has ever traveled with me knows I have a magic bladder, I don't know how it works but I think it was training after all those years of estate gardening. We never had a bathroom and woodland powder room wasn't always available....... and so it goes.  By mid afternoon I had emailed the gallery to tell them I would not be coming.  Friday morning the "smart valve" was fixed to the tune of $150 and all the others were checked for defects and declared tip top!  Awesome..... 

Morning breaks the other side of Buffalo..... notice the white stuff? 

These last few weeks have proven to be a bit challenging, along with the daily debris of life, daughter #2 lost her super fabulous job and much walking began....... 

Where else but the cemetery of course!  

I sort out and solve many challenges while walking.  The longer the walk the more epiphanies I tend to have.... oxygen starvation will do that for you.  My second lap I noticed a goose nesting on the old holding house.  I love geese and yes they make a mess but they are an indomitable spirit that pollute the skies and lawns of northeastern Ohio about this time every year....... or are just plain dumb. I love them all!   As I am dealing with some of these issues myself I mulled over the goose, sitting on her eggs on top of the roof and compared my indomitable spirt to pollute and sprinkle pots across the United States.  Yeah, make the leap......

Why would a goose choose to nest on the roof of a stone building?  Well we have packs of coyotes that roam freely, an occasional fox, pit bull and other predators too.  Did a spark go off in her brain and she said;  I HAVE HAD IT!  I CAN FIX THIS!  Flew to the roof and laid her eggs?  Was it like the spark that let homo sapiens walk erect?  Was I viewing something incredible for the first time?  On I walked... but wait, the eggs will hatch and goslings will be plunging to their certain death...... OMG!  She thought she solved the problem but indeed had created another.  This is why I love nature...... it's like little gifts, presents just for me!  After all I ran into two of my neighbors on the walk and asked if they had seen the goose nesting on the holding house, they had not!  Yup, clearly a sign, just for me!  Watch where you poop out eggs! 

The distressed male, diligently leading me away from his mate.  Noticed he had a leg band too.  

Saturday taxes were done and handed over to the accountant.  

Sunday morning we attended a program by Leedco ; 6 wind turbines they will be building on Lake Erie in the next several years.  I will save those epiphanies for another blog......  

nice shot of the lake, no boats yet but the ice is gone from Cleveland.  Fairport Harbor is still iced in as is Ashtabula. 

Today I head to Columbus, I sold my pro panels and am delivering them.  The trailer is cleaned out and going on craigslist tomorrow.  The studio and shed have been cleaned out to hold the contents of the trailer.  For every box and piece of booth I unloaded from the trailer I realized I hate this part of what I do.  I realize this is the best thing I could be doing for my sanity.  Daughter #2 has a job interview but in the interim is sending me updates of her cat....... 

Titled;  Neil and the screen door...... 

I am sure Warren Buffet sends pictures like this to his mother....... are Neil's taxes done? 

 Thursday I attempt my trip back to Boston and DeCordova,  with a stop at Worcester Center for Craft to drop off work for their gallery shop...... it's gonna be a week.  

Peace out for now........