Peonies popping, construction at home and work signalling a new era, torching the old pampas grass to make way for new growth, stocking the freezer with six months of Sunday cutlets, horses, flowers, frogs, mulch, and lunch out on the town. April was seething with optimism; a perfect example of spring!
R.I.P. TAMI TANK
One more tank on the B100 trail bites the dust. Our friend Trip and his bobcat demolished the old straw bale structure and buried it in our brush pile.
RISING STARR
Meanwhile down on Lorax Lane, construction on Starrlight Mead’s tasting room moves skyward with the addition of roof trusses. What began as a biodiesel plant is morphing into a beverage district.
AERIALIST
Our hats are off to men like this who can balance on a ladder while nail gunning big infrastructure together.
BIG SPRING COLOR AT WORK AND AT HOME
Columbines to match The Plant’s solar office, and bright azalea’s in front of our house.
THE GOOD LIFE
Lots to smile about. We went out for lunch at The Remedy Diner in Raleigh and ordered a vegetarian meatball sub and a “bacon” tempeh burger with avocado. Judy and her horse Yogi smile after Judy’s first ride since his return from basic training.
MORE MORPHING
“Bio Joe” brought in a crane and flatbed to cart off big grease collection tanks which used to belong to Piedmont Biofuels.
FREEZER FODDER
We had a clear calendar one weekend, so made a batch of breaded seitan cutlets and froze a dozen bags for easy Sunday dinners. We still like our Kentucky Fried Tofu, so one week we’ll make those and the next we’ll have seitan. What we made here will last nearly six months. Money in the bank.
BLAZING PAMPAS
Bob secured an online permit from the fire department and placed a bucket of water, a shovel, and the hose nearby in case things got out of hand. We moved Spot out of the way, lit the fire, and stood back to watch fire consume last year’s dead growth.
HOT STUFF
Mezmerizing! Scary, yet so beautiful you can’t look away.
ROUND TWO
First pile doused and smoldering, Camille sets fire to the second stand. Looking quite alarmed, Spot nevertheless stood his ground.
STICKY FEET
We had a couple of wet days and started finding frogs everywhere, including attached to the outside of our office window.
MRS. FDR
First out of the gate, once again, Mrs. FDR thrilled us with her enormous, rounded petals and delicate scent. Camille made an indoor arrangement with azalea, chives, iris (another heavenly smell – sweet, like vanilla), and a silvery plant that grows in the phlox garden.
GARDENER’S DELIGHT
Mulch dresses up the garden while keeping the weeds at bay. We received eight yards of this black magic from our neighbor, David Harris. Camille wrote Christmas in April about mulch and other spring delights.
STILL WINTER IN COLORADO
Winter is made for the well-bundled and young of bone like Mr. Nolan here.
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THIS MONTH’S QUOTES:
“Yes, Don Fabrizio had certainly had his worries those last two months; they had come from all directions, like ants making for a dead lizard.” – Guiseppe Di Lampedusa “The Leopard”
“Optimism is a political act. Those who benefit from the status quo are perfectly happy for us to think nothing is going to get any better. In fact, these days, cynicism is obedience. What’s really radical is being willing to look right at the problems we face and still insist that we can solve them. A stubborn commitment to solving problems and a faith in our ability to do so doesn’t need to be naive.” – Alex Steffen
“You can’t change the world; you can’t fix the whole environment. But you can recycle. You can turn the water off when you’re brushing your teeth. You can do small things.” – Patti Smith
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