Friday Follow-Up: HERE'S THE BUZZ

As you may have noticed, dear reader, this past week, I have included two "extra" postings (Monday Musings on the 17th and Wednesday's Wisdom on the 19th), today (Follow Up Friday) will make it three extra postings outside of my Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday (an occasional special event posting) schedule — a "plan" which I laid out in a blog entry that I made this past January that you may refer to by clicking here.


Because the next several weeks will involve an array of Holidays and special events, and because gardening takes interesting turns at this time of year, and because these topics are often what I discuss in blog entries, I've been asked to include more postings at least until the end of the calendar year.
I am pleased to say that I feel honored and up to the task. Therefore my posting schedule until the end of the year will be as follows:


MONDAY MORNING:
Monday's Musings
TUESDAY MORNING:
If It's Tuesday it must be tumblr.(This was introduced in a blog entry that I made this past September which you may refer to it by clicking here.)
WEDNESDAY MORNING:
WEDNESDAY'S WISDOM
THURSDAY MORNING:
THURSDAY'S THOUGHTS
FRIDAY MORNING:
FOLLOW-UP FRIDAY
SATURDAY MORNING:
SURPRISE


Since today is my first follow-up Friday, I have had to include my new schedule, but, without further ado, here are some follow-ups, and they have to do with the newbie (ahem, new bee), whose image you see at the top of today's blog entry. As you have most likely surmised, from a number of my previous blog posts on bees, which you may refer to by clicking here  as well as here and here and here and here, I seem to have a "bee in my bonnet" when it comes to "using them" as blog topics! It may even seem to you, dear reader, that they have taken over my blog, in the same way as I describe them "taking over" my Hyssop Plants. My visiting bees have (through the efforts of yours truly) even appeared on tumblr, and, if you'd like, you may visit them by clicking here. Additionally, their images have earned them a place in two sets within my Flickr Gallery. One set is called the HYSSOP and the BEE , the other set is called Echinacea; and you may view either of them by clicking here.


The newbie, seen at the top of today's blog post, has her own story for today's blog post. The image of her that you see shows her with some of the succulents in my indoor garden. She is one of the figurines (OK she's a "fake" bee — the non-stinging kind) that have been added to the Halloween decor which I have added to indoor succulent garden, a decorating scheme, that I discussed this past Wednesday, and, if you'd like, you may refer to it by clicking here.


While it's true that my "visiting bees" are still busy in my urban (New York City) terrace garden, indulging in my Hyssop plants, and I have not tired of their presence, I don't want the succulents to feel left out, so I let them have their own version of bees, and, so far, there are four of them, clinging to a few of the assorted succulents which I have in my indoor garden as evidenced in the image posted below (which you may recognize from this past Wednesday's blog entry).

Like the whimsical figurines of the birds (seen to the left and below this passage), which have been placed amongst my succulents and Halloween figurines,

the bee figurines create an ambiance for my succulents, because they are "forced" to live indoors, instead of being able to enjoy being outside.

And, since I have decorated a portion of my terrace garden for Halloween, as evidenced in the images within my Flickr Gallery Set called "trick or treat?" which you may view by clicking here, and have discussed in previous blog posts which you may refer to by clicking here and here, as well as posts on tumblr which you may refer to by clicking here), it was inevitable that my succulents would want Halloween-specific decorations too! Not one to play favorites, I've let both gardens have a bit of Halloween cheer, as seen below in images of both gardens (indoor and outdoor respectively).

It is my hope in sharing a few of my decorating ideas with you, dear reader — although I am no Martha Stewart —  that you will be inspired to decorate for Halloween, AND you still have eleven days  (including today ) to do it; and  whether or not you are inclined to spruce up your outdoor space or living quarters in honor of Halloween, you still have time to send a greeting card to those near and dear to you. I have designed unique greeting cards for such purposes. They are truly special because they fold out into a picture which is suitable for framing! These cards are available via the Card Shoppe Pages of my web-site, Patricia Youngquist Photo-Art, and you may click here for a link to the specific page featuring them!


THAT'S IT FOR TODAY , BUT, IF YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE YOUR HALLOWEEN DECOR SCHEMES, PLEASE POST THEM IN A COMMENT, OTHERWISE REMEMBER, as always, dear reader, I appreciate it when you weigh in with your thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions.

OK, Where's the hive?

Even at this time of year — mid October — I still have bees visiting my urban terrace garden! This past July, as you may recall, dear reader, prior to my planting the Hyssop plants, some bees were feasting on my Echinacea plants, and if you'd like to refer to my blog entry on this "event", please click here. 


I am not sure if the bees that were here in July are the same ones that have been indulging in my Hyssop plants for the past month, or if this "current group of bees" just heard the buzz from their "comrades" on good places to "graze".


In any event, I have mentioned the visiting of these bees in previous blog entries which you may refer to by clicking here  as well as here and here and here, where you can read about them and where you may also see photographs of how much they enjoy my Hyssop plants! They still to continue to bring me joy and to amaze me, but I am bit surprised about their "addiction" to Hyssop, given that I have so many other "taste treats" in my garden including Lavandula angustifolia (English Lavender), Lavandula dentata (French Lavender) and a number of other herbs such as Echinacea as well as three types of roses, but the Hyssop seems to win every time, as evidenced by the image posted below, where one of the bees is indulging in the Hyssop, neglecting the rose which is right next to it.

Not sure what Hyssop is, dear reader? You are not alone, but what I can tell you is this, according to an article (about Hyssop) that I happened upon by Barbara Lardinais, "In 'the old days' before grocery store shelves were lined with cleaning products for every conceivable need, people used nature's products. Hyssop was readily available especially in the Middle East. Because it had detergent properties, it was widely used to clean sacred places such as temples."
(To read full article, please click here.)

The Hyssop plant doesn't sound like the most appetizing thing to me, but I would like to try the honey which my "visiting bees"  are most likely creating from it, unless "my bees" are making a cleaning product? (-;


All kidding aside, whatever they are doing, my visiting bees are mesmerizing, and I wish I could get one of them to "carry" a handwritten note by yours truly to their beekeeper, whoever he or she is, so I could meet him or her. Any ideas, dear reader, on how I might find out where their beekeeper is located? As precious as my visiting bees are, I doubt that they will play carrier pigeon as its probably not in their contract.


SO IF  YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON HOW I COULD FIND MY BEES' KEEPER, PLEASE POST THEM IN A COMMENT, OTHERWISE REMEMBER, as always, dear reader, I appreciate it when you weigh in with your thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions. ALSO (apropos of nothing in today's blog entry), if you have been busy as a bee and still have not had a chance to get Halloween cards — you only have eleven days to go — including today — please click here to view my selections of delightful greeting cards to honor the festivities.

On the Advice of Bobby McFerrin: "BEE Happy!"

I still continue to be mesmerized by the bees that have been enjoying the Hyssop which is planted in my urban terrace garden. While this image shows a single bee, I have many bees, busy at doing what they do, and they are a thrill to behold. However, I must confess that sometimes I feel like a voyeur when I am watching them, even if it is from behind the barrier of a view-finder.


I have joked with friends that I have "religious bees" because their primary focus seems to be my Hyssop plants as evidenced in the photograph posted in the right-hand corner, and I have posted some images of them in my Flickr Gallery within a set called the HYSSOP and the BEE.



Hyssop is referred to in both the old and new testament of the Bible. There are many articles about this fact already out there in cyber-space, and so I won't go into that within this blog entry — if you find this fact interesting, you may refer (for starters) to a link by clicking here.


As for "my visiting bees" and their relationship to my urban terrace garden, they, on rare occasion, stray from the Hyssop to "mix ingredients" with the other things which I grow in my garden such as my roses (as seen below). 

Plus from time to time, as if they were fine chefs, they dabble in the tiniest bit of "ingredients" from my Lavandula angustifolia (English Lavender), as well as Echinacea (which you may recall from a previous post that can be referred to by clicking here), and they have even been seen "indulging in" my Japanese Larch  AKA Larix Kaempferi: such gluttons my visiting bees!

I can't help but wonder where they are going with all the "stuff" that they are gathering from my garden. I assume that someone in my "hood" is a beekeeper, and I think it would be nice if "my visiting" bees, when transporting "ingredients " from the garden of yours truly, would take a note with them to let the beekeeper know where all the "goods" are coming from! It would be great if if beekeepers could put a chip on them such as owners of cats and dogs do with their respective pets . . . 

Hmmm, maybe I can think of a way to send a "signal" with the "goods" to the beekeeper, but, for now, I'll just enjoy them, and be reminded of the songster Bobby Mcferrin and his song, Don't Worry Be Happy.


Or was that "bee" happy? Click here to find out. (Hint it was just named one of the worst songs of the 1980's by yet another group who takes themselves way too seriously . . . )


P.S. As always, dear reader, I appreciate it when you weigh in with your comments, thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions.

Happy October!

Happy October! It's the month when the leaves on the trees will be changing colors (at least in the northeastern part of the United States where I live), the month featuring Oktoberfests, and the month that ends with Halloween, a holiday for which I have a designed unusual greeting cards. My cards for this occasion are very unique as they are a petite wraparound variety, which means that they fold out into a picture which is suitable for framing. 

These cards can be viewed on my web-site, Patricia Youngquist Photo Art. They are located within the card-shoppe pages that are a part of the storefront , and a link to take you there  directly, may be found by clicking here.

Another "holiday" which occurs in October is the feast day of  St. Thérèse de Lisieux, the saint who is often referred to as "The Little Flower", and "her day" is today, so I thought of her this morning, as I was in my urban terrace garden, where I was reflecting on the fact that I had moved into my apartment eighteen years ago today, and what a blessing it is for me to have a garden! (Although, as I have mentioned in a number of posts, including one which you may refer to by clicking here) I did not actually do much of anything with my outdoor space until the spring of 1999).

Standing outside in my garden, in the wee hours of this Saturday morning, when most of New York City is sleeping (even though it claims to be a city where no one sleeps), I noticed one of my Helichrysum bracteatum (Strawflowers), striking an odd pose —  just as it was beginning to awaken for the day — and it was an almost prayerful "pose" at that, as evidenced in the photograph which I took of it and posted below.

This prompted me to think of one of St. Thérèse de Lisieux's quotes which is “I understood that every flower created by Him is beautiful, that the brilliance of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not lessen the perfume of the violet or the sweet simplicity of the daisy. I understood that if all the lowly flowers wished to be roses, nature would no longer be enamelled with lovely hues. And so it is in the world of souls, Our lord's living garden.” 


I am sorry to say that I barely have even a fraction of the faith that St. Thérèse de Lisieux was known to possess; however, I am like her in that I appreciate and live by the sentiment expressed in her aforementioned quote. Her picture (seen at the right) hangs above my desk as a reminder to me of her quote. I have it positioned above a framed cartoon from the New Yorker (which I referred to in a blog entry this past January that you may refer to by clicking here) that has the caption, "I try to write a little everyday"  — yet another thing that I constantly need to be reminded to continue to do.


Of the two, St. Thérèse de Lisieux's quote is far more important, and when I find myself straying from it, I have the things that I grow in my terrace garden to remind me, including
my Cardinal Climber (which I have written about in a number of posts, including ones which you may refer to by clicking here as well as here and here and here) and who "weighed" in this morning as seen in the image posted below.

The Echinacea that I have in my garden can be seen in images which are featured in a set in my Flickr gallery by clicking here, also weighed in this morning as seen in the image below.

My Echinacea, has been featured in a number of my blog entries, as you may recall, including ones that you may refer to by clicking here as well as here and here; its shape is exquisite to me and after its petals are gone, its "pods" add a unique touch to floral arrangements — a fact I have mentioned on a number of occasions. The things which I grow in my garden bring to mind another quote from St. Thérèse de Lisieux, which is this: "May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith."   —  A nice way to start October! 


And, as always, dear reader, I appreciate when you weigh in with your comments, thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions.

A Sweet New Year

Here's wishing a happy and blessed Rosh Hashanah to those who celebrate the holiday. I was not raised in the faith associated with this day, so I confess that I do not even know if this is a proper salutation for whose who do honor it. While I have friends and colleagues who celebrate it, and who have shared a lot of information about Rosh Hashanah with me, most of my knowledge regarding its meaning, its religious significance, traditions and foods associated with it have come from, odd as it may seem, my parish priest, and, of course, the Internet. This is somewhat sad since I have "prominent" Jewish ancestors, from which I was taught nothing about observances or customs, because I did not even know of any of my Jewish roots until I was in my mid to late thirties. As a matter of fact, this aspect of my family history was only brought to my attention because of my keen interest in reading and writing.



It was my paternal aunt (who was my father's sister) Evelyn, that knew how much I wanted to work as a writer for a living, who finally told me about a couple of my ancestors' endeavors as writers. I use the word "finally" because, even though I had had correspondence with Evelyn since I was a young child, it was not until I was in my mid-thirties that she told me about one of the writers in "the family", her uncle and my great uncle David Loth, an author of books and a well respected news reporter, and someone that I referred to in a post at the onset of this blog which you may refer to by clicking here.


David was in his eighties when I met him, and, unfortunately, I was put in a compromising position by his nephew as well as David himself so, needless to say, I did not explore my family history with him. I never spoke to Evelyn about what happened with both David or Nicholas his nephew, but, some years later, she told me about her great grandmother, Rosa Fassel Sonnenschein (who would have been David's grandmother, making Rosa Fassel Sonnenschein my great great grandmother).


Rosa's role in history is that she is famous for starting the first Jewish newspaper for women and was known as the "flamboyant editor and publisher of The American Jewess, the first (1895) independent American Jewish magazine, published by a woman" and dedicated to issues concerning women. This is a fact that I mentioned in a previous post at the onset of this blog in an entry which you may refer to by clicking here. The aforementioned post does not concern itself with how my ancestors celebrated any of the Jewish holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, or any family rituals because I have no idea how they observed them, or if they observed them, which I assume they did since Rosa's father was a rabbi, and she ultimately married (and later divorced) one.


In any event, I know nothing about these roots other than what I have stated here; however, I do have some letters, journals and photographs that I was given when Evelyn died in 2009, and I had hoped to go through them at some point. Going through letters and photographs of course is not the same as having been told stories while being in the company of your parents or grandparents; however, anybody who could tell me about my ancestors has died, with the exception of my father's brother, who most certainly would have some memory of them, but I have only met him on two occasions, once when I was ten, and once when I was in my thirties, and on both occasions he probably said five or six words — at the most — to me.


In my family, children were seen and not heard and nor allowed to question anything so I am not so sure if I had any inkling that I would have been permitted to ask anything when I grew up. Why this history was kept from my family is something I always thought that I'd have to live with, but, thanks to an incident which occurred a little over a year ago, I may not have to go the deciphering family history route alone.


Here's is what happened, a little over a year ago, in the spring of 2010, when I was searching around for information about Rosa Fassel Sonnenschein: I came across a comment that someone had made on a web-site, Jewish Women's Archive, which read:

"I am proud to be a

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on September 20, 2009 - 1:59am.

I am proud to be a great-granddaughter of that great American Jewess, Rosa Fassel Sonneschein. Though I knew almost nothing about her from my father, he (who was remarkably taciturn about his early life) did mention a few things about her. The bulk of what I know are from sources to which we all are privy. She was truly intellectual, beautiful, wily and feisty. What I knew from the man who was her grandson was that she smoked cigars, drank tea from a saucer, and told him that "It is just as easy to fall in love with a million dollars, as it is to fall in love with nothing." She was an early proponent of a woman's right to choose, as we say today. Though not a fit mother in many ways, which I shall keep private, I presume she was well loved by my father, for she was one of the few relatives he mentioned. He traveled with his first fiancee to introduce them toward the end of Rosa's life and she kept them waiting for over an hour, but was perfectly put together when brought out to visit (red nails and all)! She was such an admirable woman and her attributes lend themselves justifiably to idealization. But she was complex, complicated, and conflicted -- which is to say that she was human -- with a richness and texture so compelling. Yes, her great-granddaughter is very happy to be a Jewess.  And SO thankful to be learning more about her and in her own words, through the efforts of the Jewish Women's Archive."

The moment I read "Anonymous's" words, "Though I knew almost nothing about her from my father, he (who was remarkably taciturn about his early life)", I knew I had found someone in my family history, for being "remarkably taciturn"  was more of a family trait than any reverence to tradition associated with holidays such as Rosh Hashanah.

I am happy to say that I was able to find the author of this post, not through the Jewish Women's Archives, but by looking through loads of materials on web-sites associated with helping one find information about their family tree. Not only did I find "Anonymous",  but she introduced me to another member of the extended family, and, though none of us live in the same state, I have met them both on separate occasions when they traveled to New York City and we already have a close bond. It is the hope of all of us that we will find out information about our ancestors and why they felt the need to keep everything secret,  although we  suspect survival in times of prejudice was a motivator and whether they observed holidays or not may remain a mystery.

Meanwhile, I was informed that apples, with honey, are consumed during the celebration of  Rosh Hashanah, symbolizing a sweet year. Hence, I took the opportunity to learn some more things about the role of bees (since they are the ones that make honey, and since they have recently been "visiting" me in my terrace garden indicated in the images of them enjoying my Hyssop in  the images included in today's entry and ones that can be found on Flickr, in a set titled "the HYSSOP and the BEE",  as well as in a recent post which you may refer to by clicking here. Additionally bees were included in another entry that I made this past summer where they can be seen enjoying my Echinacea, and this entry may be found by clicking here.

As for the  bees' role in Rosh Hashanah, what I have discovered from Hands on Jewish Holidays, is this: "Even though honeybees are non-kosher insects, the honey they produce was judged to be kosher. The Mishna in Tractate Bechorot states: 'That which comes from something which is Tameh [non-Kosher or ritually impure] is Tameh, and that which comes of that which is Tahor [Kosher or ritually pure] is Tahor.' Thus, the general rule is that the product of a non-Kosher animal is not kosher. However honey is kosher because bees merely process the nectar; it is not an excretion that originates from them. According to “Ask the Rabbi”, the Mishna in tractate Bechoot states: 'Why did they say that bee-honey is permitted? Because even though they bring it into their bodies, it is not a ‘product’ of their bodies [it is stored there but not produced there].'  If you'd like to read more about this, please click here. 


However, in the interim, dear reader, I wish you a sweet year, as well as the opportunity to learn "first hand" the stories of your ancestors, if this is indeed the desire of your heart.

P.S. As always, dear reader, I appreciate it when you weigh in with your comments, thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions.

  

. . . and so now we've got to say goodbye TO the summer . . .

The title ". . .  and so we've got to say goodbye TO the summer", for today's blog post, is not a misprint, for I am well aware of the Brian Hyland lyrics, to the "Bobby Vinton classic", Sealed With A Kiss, are, " . . . and so we've got to say goodbye FOR the summer"; however, since today is the second day of autumn and the last Saturday of September, it seems appropriate to put a spin on the lyrics.


Perhaps, my tendency to put a spin on lyrics comes from my departed father who often did this with a number of songs as discussed in a previous post which you may refer to by clicking here. His "spin" on Hyland's song was, ". . . and so we've got to say goodbye to the plumber."
In any event, we are at that time of year when summer has "officially" passed and autumn reigns. During the early days of autumn, summer attempts to still rule, at least in my urban terrace garden, as well as for other creatures such as those that "star" in Mutts. As many of my readers know I am a Mutts (the name of the comic strips included in today's blog entry) fan. This can be seen in previous posts by clicking here as well as here; and so, for me, it is only natural to include them, as I express a few thoughts on the transition from summer to fall on this second day of 2011's autumn. I see a relationship between the comic strip character posted directly above (the one wearing the inner tube) expressing that he feels "ridiculous" and the things' (which I grow in my terrace garden) attitude towards the seasonal transition. They seem — for the most part — to take life as it comes and are uninhibited by any "rules" of  the passing seasons. I don't think that they'd feel badly if they got caught wearing an inner tube after the autumn equinox , which occurred yesterday a little after five o'clock in the morning.

For example, my White Swan Echinacea, like CoCo Chanel, is not one to be dictated by the longstanding fashion rule of not wearing white after labor day (as mentioned in a previous post which you may refer to by clicking here). Even now, though summer is "officially over", my White Swan Echinacea still continues to thrive in its container, enjoying life, wearing white as it pleases. This can be seen in the photograph posted below:

However, as you can see, dear reader, one of the members of the White Swan Echinacea family members has succumbed to the pressures of fall and has turned an amber and brown color as seen in the image posted above and below. I hope it did not feel "ridiculous" as my "friend" in the Mutts comic strip did when caught with a beach ball after autumn began!

The pressure to give up the inner-tube-phenomenon is not only with my White Swan Echinacea, but it is happening with some of the other things which I grow in my terrace garden. My Salvia offcinalis (Tri-Colour Sage), and Cardinal Climber pictured respectively below are slowly beginning to change their summer colors for autumn hues,and my mentioning the latter reminds me that I should harvest it soon, since its culinary use is prime at this moment.

The leaves of my Continus Coggygria (Smokey Bush), pictured below

are changing from pale pink tips to golden. It is fascinating to behold, the Continus Coggygria (Smokey Bush)'s response to the seasons. You may recall, dear reader, that this magnificent shrub is the subject for one of my unique single-sided petite greeting cards titled Grace (Smoke Bush) which is included in the store-front of my web-site, Patricia Youngquist Photo Art.


You may also recall that I am currently offering complimentary boxed sets of my greeting cards for any referral that brings me a booking of virtual stories or visual presentations, a new service offered by yours truly which you may refer to in my on-line brochure. The aforementioned complimentary offer was mentioned in previous posts which you may refer to by clicking here and here.


In the meantime, please keep in mind, that today's blog title stating, " . . . and so we've got to say goodbye TO the  summer" is by no means intended as a rule; but rather a "resolution" which happens at the changing of seasons whether you are an herb, flower, plant, vine, shrub, tree, a human being, or a cartoon character. Then again, not everyone, especially yours truly can accept the inevitable; even Mutts finds it difficult to do as seen in the comic strip posted below.

That's it for now, but, as always, dear reader, I appreciate it when you weigh in with your comments, thoughts, ideas and reactions. If you are new to posting this type of thing, you may click here for directions.

My Echinacea Plant Agrees With Coco Chanel! "Vous pouvez porter blanc toute l' année!"

Yesterday, which was Labor Day, one of my Echinacea plants got into a heated discussion with the other herbs, plants, flowers, vines, shrubs and trees, all of which I grow in my terrace garden. The topic of their controversy? The issue of wearing white after Labor Day. Their discussion was apparently brought on by all of them recalling an old news broadcast, which centered around the image posted below: if you would like to refer to this story please click here.

I have three varieties of Echinacea in my urban terrace garden: Harvest Moon, White Swan,and Purpea, all of which they are pictured (respectively) below. It probably does not take too much guess work to figure out which one of these three varieties had the most vested interest in the subject.

If you surmised that it was my White Swan, dear reader, you are correct. It even compared itself to Coco Chanel, by reiterating her quote, "Vous pouvez porter blanc toute l' année!"
Ms. Chanel can be seen in the photograph below in one of her signature white suits. Further information regarding Ms. Chanel, and this "wearing white issue", as well as information on the image included in this post, can be found at this link as well as this link.

In any event, as for the "wearing-of-white-after-labor-day" controversy amongst the things which I grow in my terrace garden, it continues.


One of my vines, my Autumn Clematis, like my White Swan Echinacea, wears white after Labor Day. In fact its little white flowers are just beginning to bud (which you may recall from my blog entry this past Saturday and that you may refer to by clicking here).


My Autumn Clematis, (which as you may remember from my previous posts) is planted in a large container on the "floor" of my terrace; from there it climbs up a small trellis; then it "hops" up on to more than a dozen trivets, which are adhered to the brick wall on the north side of my garden.


These trivets were installed by Juan V in spring of 2010 as seen in the image below taken at that time,

and subsequently, the Autumn Clematis throughly enjoyed hopping on them as seen in the image below, taken at the end of last September — and, as you can see, the wearing of white was not one of their concerns.

If these images look familiar to you, dear reader, you are very observant! They appeared in 2010 blog posts where I wrote about both of these occurrences last year; and if you would like to refer to either one of them, you may click here  for the May 2010 "installation" post and here for the entry regarding the blooming Autumn Clematis last September.


Additionally, the growth cycle of my Autumn Clematis is discussed in my first garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame .  .  . almost. (For details regarding this movie, please click on this link).


As for this 2011 September, my Autumn Clematis is still no slave to fashion protocol; it is already Labor Day, and she is only just now about to give birth to hundreds and hundreds of little white flowers, as evidenced by the photographs (taken in the wee hours of the morning, yesterday, Labor Day) posted below.

The bulbs from the newly installed string lights are included in the image to give you a sense of scale in your imanging the Autumn Clematis's flower's size, and the following image is what the portion of the vine featured in the four images posted above are looking at.

Unfortunately, their view is mostly of air-conditioners within the windows of the building across the court-yard. However, I am certain that the folks whose windows face my Autumn Clematis will appreciate its flowers — even if they are "wearing white" after Labor Day.