Rainy Afternoon in D.C.

Bakery Paul

W and I went in to D.C. yesterday and visited the National Portrait Gallery, which is one of my favorite museums in D.C. There no crowds and the galleries are not huge, with many small intimate rooms of photographs and paintings. One of the permanent exhibits is The Presidents, all the famous portraits of the American Presidents. It is a very tranquil place and a good way to spend a rainy afternoon. Among other things,  we saw an exhibit called Capital Portraits and a small group of Reagan portraits and photos. I was especially happy to see this new acquisition of a poet and gardener that I like, Stanley Kunitz. He was a poet laureate of the U.S. and in his 90s wrote a sweet little book called The Wild Braid: A Poet Reflects on a Century in the Garden, about his seaside garden in Provincetown, MA.

"All I want to do is write poems and be in the garden." Stanley Kunitz

 A huge rain storm came through while we were there, making our visit to the new Bakery Paul (from Paris!) a little difficult, but we did eventually make it there (chocolate eclair, apple tarte, chocolate macarons!).

A few random shots of our rainy afternoon in D.C.

Chinatown

Storm approaching over old convention center site (Walt's office is across the street)

National Archives

Puddles on The Mall

My favorite pocket of a garden by the old Smithsonian Castle

Driving by the Jefferson Memorial

Summer Pudding

Last night we had the Bensons, Rubards, Lappans, and Betsy over for dinner and I made a new dessert. It was an English summer pudding, something I have always wanted to try after hearing Liz talk about making it in the summer and how delicious it was. Here are some pix of the prep:

Sliced challah bread

Simmering strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries with a little sugar until syrupy

Starting to layer bread and berries

Plate on top and weighed down with heavy can for 24 hours

Et voila, perfect summer pudding! Serve with whipped cream

It was great to see everyone. All our kids grew up together, so we have been friends for a long time. The talk of the night was that Herndon was just named #34 in CNN's best places to live. Who  knew?

CNN Money says the town "provides a great base to explore the many jobs in the area. Herndon sits right near the so-called Dulles Technology Corridor, where companies such as AOL, Microsoft, and Verizon are big employers."

"Alternatively, residents can make the commute to Washington D.C., 22 miles away. The public schools here are a big draw for many: Newsweek consistently ranks Herndon High in the top 5% of the country."

Over the course of the night, we decided to resurrect our old Progressive Dinner that we used to do at Christmas time. (I got the idea from Mom and Dad, who used to do this at Christmas time with their friends.) This time we're going to do it in October.

Benny, Gillian, Mark

Mary, me, Gillian, Betsy

Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

One of these days my garden is going to be solid sedums. I always avoided planting them in the past, thinking they were somewhat "common" and not special enough for my garden. But a few years ago I bought two up in Pennsylvania, and they have become one of my favorite plants. They are pretty from the very first rosettes that appear in the spring and I especially love them now, when they are all different shades of green, before they eventually turn pinkish in the early fall and then rusty in the late fall. They stand up tall, don't need any staking and pretty much always look good. They thrive in our climate and seem to be pest and disease free. I have bought several others, and I can see why people plant whole beds of them.

After the storms last night, it is beautiful today. I am  off to work today, and then am meeting Liz for dinner tonight.

Thursday

It's hard to believe it's already the middle of August. It really is starting to feel like the end of summer, I notice leaves falling from the trees, and when I leave work at 9 pm, it's already dark. How does summer go so fast? I talked to Linda last night and the kids in Euclid start back to school next week--crazy.

We have been watching a really funny tv show, Friday Night Dinner, on the BBC channel. It is about a British family, and the Friday nights when their 2 grown sons come home for dinner.  Let me just say that it is hilarious.  I mean laughing out loud funny. We finished all the seasons of Blue Murder, so it's fun to have another British show to watch. No work today, so I am running around, getting ready for company on Saturday night--a trip to the farmer's market, Weggies, and Costco. Fun stuff.

STORM ALERT, 5 pm: We are having a major storm, it is hailing like crazy. Yikes.

Books On My Nightstand

JoAnn and I talk about books alot, and awhile ago we started sending each other a list of the books we have on our nightstands--there are too many to discuss in detail, so we just send a list. Then we talk about them later, after we have read them. Then we do it again, a few months later.  I like that idea, of getting a glimpse into what someone is reading. So as of today, here are the books on my nightstand.

Maine, by J. Courtney Sullivan (reading now)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot (book group next month)
Bird By Bird, by Anne Lamott (love her)
Caleb's Crossing, by Geraldine Brooks
State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett (JoAnn loved it)
Silver Girl, by Elin Hilderbrand (chick lit)
The Privileges, by Jonathan Dee
Summer Without Men, by Siri Hustvedt
Imperfect Birds, by Anne Lamott
Nothing To Be Frightened Of, by Julian Barnes (an oldie that I like to re-read sometimes)
Our Life in Gardens, by Joe Eck and Wayne Winterrowd (garden essays, good for when I can't sleep)

First Anemone

Anemone, August 16

Vacation Plans

W and I finally made a decison about our vacation and we are going to Arizona and the Grand Canyon! I have never been there, and it is one of those places that is on my "Must See" list. I keep thinking I am going to make that list of all the places we need to see, but haven't actually made the list yet. I see people that do "30 Things I Want To Do Before 30," but I don't know about "60 Things I Want To Do Before 60"!! That's a lot of things to do.

 Last year we went to Maine (also on The List), and we loved it so much there and thought of going back this year, but in the end we decided to try something new. So this weekend we mapped out a rough itinerary, and made our plane and rental car reservations. We will go straight from Phoenix to Sedona and spend a few days there, then head north to the Grand Canyon, and hopefully spend a few days there if we can get a room at one of the places near the Canyon.  After that, we are still thinking...Zion National Park (one of Brooks's favorite places on his trip), Monument Valley, Lake Powell?  I guess I have to do some more research. We only have a week. I'm so excited! Any recommendations are welcome!

Sunday Drive in Virginia

Beautiful stone wall in Middleburg

We woke up to a nice steady rain this morning, but it cleared up by mid-morning. We were going to clean our deck, but decided to leave it for another day. This afternoon we took a drive out towards Middleburg and The Plains. I just felt like seeing some Virginia countryside. I could take pictures all day of those stone walls that go on and on forever. When I think of Virginia, I think of those stone walls and how long they have been there.

There were a lot of empty storefronts in Middleburg. I guess the bad economy has hit even there.

The Plains countryside

Middleburg

Cute garden shop in The Plains

Stone wall goes on for miles

Emily, Alone

I loved this book by Stewart O'Nan, and I find myself thinking about it alot and wondering just why I like it so much.  I have read a few of his others, Wish You Were Here, and Last Night at the Lobster, but I think this is my favorite. It is about 80-year-old Emily Maxwell (first met her in Wish You Were Here), living alone in Pittsburgh in the same house in which she raised her family. Her husband Henry is gone, her best friend Louise has just died, her dog Rufus is getting old, and the last of the "old" neighbors has just moved away. Her grown children live out of state and while they care about her, they are busy with their own lives and problems and have little time for her. Emily dearly loves her grandchildren (especially granddaughter Ella who has just announced she is a lesbian) and frets about them. She makes lists and makes plans for their too-few visits, which when they happen, leave her oddly unsatisfied. This is a book about the small details of a narrowing life, and while sad, and spare, it is not depressing. There are so many little incidents throughout--a trip to a flower show in the winter, conversations with a neighbor, the pleasure in viewing a painting at a Van Gogh exhibit, a visit to her parents' graves--that feel so true. You want to cheer when Emily buys a new car, and when spring comes and she can finally get back to where she is happiest, on her knees in her garden. The book is told over the period of a year--beginning with Emily's disappointment when her family cannot come at Thanksgiving, the anticipation and tension of her daughter's family visit at Christmas, the snow and enforced isolation of winter in Pittsburgh, the joy of the first days of spring, and finally the summer vacation at Lake Chautauqua, where she and her husband Henry once owned a summer cottage (it was sold in Wish You Were Here) and where she now rents a house for one week every summer.

This is a quiet book about an aging woman's thoughts, and her solitude. It is about Emily, alone. She reflects often on the past, and while she has regrets, she is not sentimental or self-pitying. In the end, she has her dog, her music, her new Subaru, and her garden.  A good enough life.

A Perfect Flower for Friday

Zinnia, August 12

I think zinnias are my favorite flower. Have I mentioned this before? Hehe.

Early Morning Walk in August

Here are a few gardens I saw on my early morning walk around Herndon today.

The china plates edging is in a yard in my neighborhood. She has it around all the garden beds in her front yard. That's a lot of plates. Almost everyone I know hates it, but I kind of like it. At least she tries.  The woman who lives there probably has more garden ornaments/junk in her yard than me, so that must be why I like it! She makes my yard look tasteful. This edging made me think about another edging I saw at Chautauqua last summer, and I just happen to have the picture. Now this one I really love. Isn't that a great use for old wine bottles?

Lunch with Hadley and Zach

Zach and Abby

Eileen had Prudy and I over for lunch today with Abby and Hadley and to meet new baby Zach. We had a delicious lunch of asparagus and melon salad, curried chicken salad, sliced tomatoes and an assortment of patisseries from the new Patisserie Paul in DC.  Zach is such a good baby, sleeps and eats well, and hardly cries at all. Hadley is a little sweetheart, so cute and personable. She was obsessed with Eileen's step stools and had her lunch at the top of a stool. She had fun playing with Eileen's screwdrivers and pink pin cushion!  We sat and talked all afternoon, held Zach, munched on patisserie,  and admired Eileen's gardens. It was a great way to spend a Wednesday afternoon. Thanks Eileen!

Hadley and Abby

Prudy with Hadley and Zach

Asparagus and Melon Salad

Patisserie

Garden Ornaments

There's more to a garden than plants, and I love garden ornaments. However, there is a fine line before you go over the edge, and I may be close. I started with a gazing globe many years ago-- I was obsessed with them after seeing an article in an old Fine Gardening showing how flowers reflected in the glass. Then came a whirlygig on the fence. Over the years I've added a hedgehog (thanks Nitsa), a bunny, several frogs, a garden variety of metal flower ornaments,  a sign from Dad's garden, gourd birdhouses, steppingstones,  and of course my metal girl with a watering can. Here are a few of my favorites: