Our orange dahlia is blooming...
...as are our stargazer lilies.
But the big news in our garden yesterday was this:
See that limb lying on the ground behind Olga? Well, Mrs. Kravitz and I actually cooperated on a garden project! That limb is from her pyracantha bush, which she had sculpted into a fairly neat oval ball next to her fence, except for one renegade branch that was growing up from the back and into our walnut tree. Yesterday I asked if I could cut it off. She enthusiastically said yes (she loves cutting anything down) and said her own gardener had been unable to reach it, which is why it had grown to such ridiculous lengths.
I got out the saw and removed it. You can't really appreciate its size -- it's easily six feet tall and it almost filled two yard waste bags by itself.
(Oh, and yes, that is my lunch lying next to Olga, or the remains of it, anyway. I'd been sitting next to her reading when I heard Mrs. K in the garden and got started on this project. I did eventually eat the carrot. I set my glasses on the plate so I wouldn't step on them.)
So, yes, I trimmed Mrs. Kravitz's bush. (The joke had to be made.) Then I trimmed the shrubbery beside our front steps and tied back all the valerian, because Mrs. Russia has been grousing about how the plants are overgrowing the steps. That landscaping is a bit out of control, I admit, but technically the front garden is the landlord's responsibility so we don't really mess with it.
Afterwards, Dave and I took Olga to the cemetery, where we saw:
...a six-spot burnet! I've been watching for them all summer. They usually come out in late June or early July, so I was glad to finally see one.
Now Dave is off to Seattle for a music educators' conference -- he left this morning. (And he just texted me to say he accidentally departed wearing the dog-walking shoes. Fortunately he has other footwear in his suitcase.) It's me and Olga on our own until next weekend. I'm actually looking forward to some alone time, and a chance to eat simply and watch the TV shows that Dave doesn't like ("Bosch: Legacy").
Did you see that Jane Birkin died? I watched her just a few days ago in "Blow-Up." When I lived in Florida, back in the late '90s, I often listened to a community radio station in the car when I drove home for lunch. A deejay on that station always concluded his lunchtime show by playing "Je T'aime...Moi Non Plus," the record Birkin made with Serge Gainsbourg in 1969 in which she moans breathily and pre-orgasmically. I will always associate that song with driving in sunny Florida, the air conditioner blasting.
27 comments:
Collaborating with the Russians now? At least it's only over the garden trimmings. Olga looks nicely relaxed.
I take it that Olga doesn't like carrot? Or, she is very well trained!!
Lexi would have had that in a moment!
That 6-spot burnet would have stopped in my tracks and I would have had no idea what it was. Wow. That looks like Olga's picnic lunch. Now I have to get the thought of Mrs. Kravitz's bush out of my head.
Mrs K's bush and Jane Birkin's pre-orgasmic breathing. Quite the racy post today, sir.
You had a carrot for your lunch? I thought Americans had fast food like burgers and pizza. Mind you, I suppose that a carrot is a form of fast food - you just grab one and chomp on it -like Bugs Bunny.
Xrated gardening rules!
I am about to go to bed and I am sure I will have nightmares about trimming Mrs Kravitz's bush.
You left the carrot in front of Olga, knowing that she would not be interested. I don't blame her.
The insect has the most amazing colouring.
I hope eating simply doesn't mean what I think it might mean.
I'm glad the post title wasn't what I thought; I was scared to read further.
Ha! My mind had already gone there when I read the title. Also, I would like to sit in the grass beside Olga....
Bob and I had the same thoughts!
I had no idea you and Mrs Kravitz had become that neighborly.
I love that video of the six-spot burnet. What a truly beautiful moth.
Enjoy your week there, and I hope Dave has a great journey to the pacific northwest.
My daughter's dog would have eaten your carrot! She loves them.
I could use a week of alone time, something that never happens.
What a colorful insect that is. The garden has been keeping you busy lately. You and Mrs. Kravitz are getting pretty friendly.
Neighbors can be difficult when it comes to plants that get out of control and leap the fence.
Time alone is especially delicious when you know the one you love will be returning after a while. Enjoy, enjoy. And yes, that joke about Mrs. Kravitz's bush is quite ... suggestive.
I did a respectable "gasp" at thought of you trimming Mrs. K's bush! LOL
That bug looks like something out of a cartoon ... that's a new one for me!
Olga looks like she is doing her frog imitation, lying like that on the towel.
Here's hoping Dave has a great time in Seattle ... I think they are having good weather right now!!
I first heard that song the other day but only a short clip of it. I listened to it again today, with english translation, quite racey indeed. I hope Mrs. Kravitz is happy with her neatly trimmed bush:) Not something I expected a gay man to be writing about, or doing, for that matter:)
your lunch plate looks like an ad for an optician.Good to know that the Mrs. K is sporting a trimmed, neat and tidy, bush, with your generous help!
Humming Je't'aime as you go.
Dave is in Seattle??? So close!
If Dave needs anything while in Seattle, I'm only an hour away! And in Seattle frequently these days to visit my newest grandson in the NICU. Love dahlias and stargazer lilies, although mine won't bloom for another few weeks.
I had never heard that song before but after listening to it, I can certainly see how it might stick in your mind.
I enjoyed the video AND the music you set it to. Olga looks comfy. Froglegs in repose.
It's windy here, and fairly hot. There are red flag warnings until 11:00 tonight, indicating high fire danger due to wind and dry conditions. It's the first place I've ever lived that we actually had to think about an evacuation plan, not that we've done anything about it.
I was *wondering* about the title of your post. Glad it wasn't . . more . . s-s-s-s-serious. That butterfly (flutterby) is truly a work of art.
I did not think that you knew Mrs. Kravitz that well. The song? I found it funny after I translated it.
River: Ha! Maybe they're secret agents?!
Frances: Olga has never taken to carrots. I've given her a few here and there but she treats them with suspicion.
Mitchell: One of my favorite insects!
Caro: Well, sex is part of life, right?
YP: Well, the carrot was only PART of the lunch, but yes, I did chomp on it like Bugs!
Boud: It's all about the birds and the bees!
Andrew: It means lots of peanut butter!
Bob: Don't worry -- I'll never get DANGEROUSLY racy. :)
Bug: I wrote the post before I titled it, so my mind had already gone there as well!
Michael: Ha! I don't want to traumatize my readers.
Robin: Aren't they amazing? Usually I see groups of them but this time I only saw the one.
Ellen D: Yeah, some dogs really go for them. Olga never has. (She's also very good about not taking food off our plates.)
Ellen: It rarely happens here, which is why I savor it when it does!
Sharon: I sure never expected this level of intimacy! LOL
Red: Well, that's why I asked her before I trimmed it. I didn't want her to get upset. But she was fine with it.
37P: Exactly! We all need a little alone time, but it doesn't mean we don't love being with our spouses.
Marcia: Olga has always lain that way. It's a position called "splooting" and apparently it's common with bulldog breeds. (And many others.)
Pixie: I don't think I've ever seen it translated, actually. I should watch that myself!
Linda Sue: Yes, he's in your corner of the world! I laughed at the "ad for an optician." Did I miss my calling? Commercial photography? LOL
Margaret: Well thanks for the offer! I imagine you've got plenty to handle already without taking on any crisis of Dave's.
Ed: It's quite...hypnotic?
Kelly: She loves that bed. We've tried to give her a new one and she won't touch it.
Allison: Yikes! I see those Canadian fires are still burning, too.
Catalyst: It is my job to make you wonder, and thus read my post! Hope you didn't feel let down.
Debby: I've actually never listened in translation, but it wouldn't surprise me to know it might be tongue-in-cheek.
Well done, you and Mrs. K! That's a huge project. And better for everyone.
Have fun "home alone." A few days like that is always a good thing!
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