Passage of Time. . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . time flies, time heals, there's never enough of it, and it passes far too quickly. 

Recent brief stop at IKEA during a trip to Charlotte, NC was just to look around.

 I like to see what's new in the modern design world, find perhaps a few items to put

 away for gifts later - I like their kitchen/storage items - and grab a couple of 
bars of dark chocolate (IKEA's is good, inexpensive, and hopefully good for 

you . . . . . in small doses).

Made time for all that and discovered this, the modern take on the hourglass.

It came in two sizes with different color sand - I chose the larger

with 'sand' more like very minute creamy colored pearls, fascinating as they pour

steadily, silently, calmly through the neck.

Sometimes one just needs to sit, clear one's mind and let time take its time.

How much precious time passes as the sand trickles?

3 minutes & 8 seconds.

An hourglass (or sandglass, sand timer, sand clock or egg timer) is a device

 used to measure the passage of time. It comprises two glass bulbs connected vertically 

by a narrow neck that allows a regulated trickle of material (historically sand) from

 the upper bulb to the lower one. 

Factors affecting the time it measured include sand quantity, sand coarseness,

 bulb size, and neck width. 

Hourglasses may be reused indefinitely by inverting the bulbs once the

 upper bulb is empty. Depictions of hourglasses in art survive in large numbers

 from antiquity to the present day, as a symbol for the passage of time. 

These were especially common sculpted as epitaphs on tombstones or other

 monuments, also in the form of the winged hourglass, a literal depiction of the

 well-known Latin epitaph tempus fugit ("time flies").        

~  via Wikipedia  ~

"If I could save time in a bottle. . . . ."

Jim Croce ~ 1973

This morning and another week -

I know I should be doing 'stuff' - such as cleaning, perhaps baking, throw in

 some gardening. . . . . .and writing more posts about Ireland as promised. 

Eventually I'll get around to those things, but meanwhile I'm having a 

lazy start to another summer week of predicted heat with storms and rain, 

usually late in the day, and the outdoors totally inhospitable to me with swarms

 of mosquitoes and other biting little buggers (yes, I swore because they turn

 me into a not nice person). I will not apologize.

I've tried the latest home remedy on dealing with mosquito bites, the hot

spoon! Guess what, it really does seem to work. Immediately after being

bitten (this is if at home close to your kitchen or a bathroom), and the itch

 is felt, you run a spoon under hot water and carefully hold the back of it on

 the bite for a few seconds.

 Be cautious, especially if using on a child, don't want to burn the skin.  

I used this method over the weekend when bitten several times as soon as

I ventured outside. I noticed instant itch relief and the bites didn't swell up into 

the usual red welts. 

As for the garden, it's fast losing the fresh green lustre of spring/early summer. 

The somewhat overgrown plantings, now displaying brown leaf tips, 

dried or shriveled blooms, are melding into masses of fading leaves.

Deer have nibbled, squirrels have gnawed.  It just seems much too soon

for a glorious garden to be changed so drastically, and all mostly due to the

 climate here in the southeast. Perhaps the WELCOME flag should be 

stored - seems all it brings is more biting bugs and hungry animals.

 Sitting here in the dining room I'm surrounded by vases of hydrangeas and yes, 

they are drying up too but, as mentioned in earlier posts, this is on purpose! 

 Some plucked blooms are already 'crisping up' so hopefully I'll have some for

decorating in the autumn/winter months ahead.

My thoughts are with people in California where the earthquakes have occurred

 over the past several days.  Here is an eyewitness description from blog friend 

 Kim at MY FIELD OF DREAMS . Kim tells it like it was sitting in her pasture when

 the larger quake occurred on July 5. How frightening!

My very dear friend Gina in Utah, of the gorgeous blog ART AND ALFALFA , 

who welcomed us to the most beautiful home I've ever visited last summer, is, 

after waiting 25 years, picking the first apricots from her tree. 

Patience has paid off!

I love apricots and actually found a recipe today on another of the

 most beautiful food/photography blogs, Linda Lomelino's CALL ME CUPCAKE ,

for an Apricot Blueberry Galette. Personally, galettes are my favorite pies to 

make - easy, attractive in their rustic beauty, and the fruits are always so tasty.

With plenty to keep one busy at this time of year I will sign off now.

Watering the pots - just in case the rains don't show later today - is needed.

Of course as you well know, it just about always rains after you water!

I'll smother myself in bug repellent and head out into the garden for a brief

time. . . . . . then who knows, bake a galette perhaps?

Dear friends, do have a wonderful week wherever you are.

Out of the blue. . . . . . .

Here it is almost November. 

Can you believe I'm actually cutting hydrangeas at this late date! 

I didn't have a single bloom all summer for two reasons -

cutting the shrubs down to the ground last autumn when the house was re-sided 

and painted, and the incredibly disappointing unseasonal weather we've

 experienced these past months.

Yesterday we worked in the garden for several hours. Weather was perfect, first 

really sunny day after what seemed a week of rain, dreary skies and quite chilly days.

The flowers are in water that will gradually dry up. I'll remove the remaining

 leaves - then hopefully have a nice bouquet of dried, faded blooms to use for

 decorating. I recently tossed out my old ones as they were disintegrating into

confetti and no longer pretty!

Happy week everyone. 

Hope this autumn week will be beautiful wherever you are.

Early morning in Summertime . . . . . . . . . .

Early sunless Summer mornings, following the thunderstorms and rain

of evening and through the nighttime hours, bring heavy clinging

air and windows blurred by outdoor condensation. The porch was

almost invisible today when I raised the blinds just after dawn.

The dining room stayed dark and dreary for quite a while. 

Now living without my thyroid I have to take a new lifetime medicine

on arising, with no food for two hours, which for me is OK. . . . . . but

 worst of all, no coffee either.  Let me tell you, that is hard!

Note I'm already drying some of the hydrangeas which are fading fast in the 

hot, humid garden. I also cut a few hosta seed pods and a tall gone to seed 

stem of parsley to add some height, and because it's pretty.

That's it for today dear readers. I have to take the car to my great repair guys

 and see if they can fix my high beams which seem to have died.

Then we are heading out to do a little necessary shopping in those always

 over-cooled stores.  I'll definitely be throwing on a light sweater once I leave the

 almost heart-stopping heat of the parking lots. This is just not a healthy way to 

spend the Summer, grrrrrrr!!!

Gathering in the Hydrangeas. . . . . .

This has been such a disappointing Summer regarding the hydrangea blooms.The exceptionally cold Winter here in the southeast, followed by a torrid, parched Summer which seems endless, has everything and everyone suffering a malaise. Even as I write, afternoon temperatures are still reaching the mid-90's in central North Carolina - this has meant fewer blooms of a much smaller size, and the colors fading earlier than usual.

A couple of weeks ago -

All my hydrangeas are blue, either Nikko Blue or Endless Summer. 

They are old bushes and were cut almost to the ground when house painting took place several years back. 

They soon rebounded and the past couple of years did well. I was able to cut huge bunches for drying and sharing with friends.

This past weekend they were starting to fade fast to beautiful shades of chartreuse and pink, so I decided to start cutting in hopes they will dry and remain pretty for the Winter months. Some are already too far gone, turning to brown and looking wrinkled and old. . . . . rather like the gardener, yours truly! These, facing inwards towards the front porch have been saved from sunburn and they are now here. . . . . . 

. . . . . . . . on the dining room table and hopefully will dry gently and hold their petals without curling and crinkling.

How about you? 

Are you in an area where your hydrangeas have fared well through the Summer months?  

Will you be cutting and drying to make Autumn and Winter displays for your home?

I strip all leaves and put mine in just a little water, 
leaving them until it evaporates, then letting them 
dry naturally, this usually works well.

Any tips on saving lovely hydrangeas are always appreciated.

Almost dry!

A quick update on my recent post HERE about drying beautiful hydrangeas 

naturally, easily.

They rustle softly. . . . .their flexible stems now stiffened, waiting to be trimmed 

as each delightful bloom is tucked into a vase, a pot, perhaps a table centerpiece, 

or even a holiday wreath for a door or window. 

I love these crusty painted pots with matching saucers - purchased at the 

Holiday Open House last week from Two Old Birds located at The Vintage Village. 

I'll be using them in my Christmas decorating.

Anyway, just ten days out and already the cut blooms have almost finished 

soaking up the water in the vase. Petals are now mostly crisp and somewhat 

shriveled, colors more muted but still very pretty.

The day after cutting these we were hit with an entire week of below freezing nights,

 unusual for this area in November. Several remaining blooms I'd planned to cut later

 for drying were completely zapped the first night. So this is it for the year - just enough

 to tuck into winter and Christmas decor along with some others from last year which 

actually still look good. . . .you can see them in the olive basket in my current header.

If you've been drying your hydrangeas, I hope you've a big bunch of really pretty

ones to enjoy around the home through the winter months.

Drying my hydrangeas the natural way. . . . .

My hydrangeas, though late blooming this year, are now ready for drying.

I was crying over them this summer when there was nary a flower.  

But then they surprised me with some late, good sized heads, and 

I've been waiting to cut them for the process which will give me some 

lovely muted color for inside the house during the winter months.

Yesterday there were still a few sleepy bees around. . . . but they didn't seem concerned when I starting cutting other blooms around them.

Drying naturally is so easy, no tricks required other than cutting at the right time. 

My hydrangeas are all blue - I think they are the best color for preserving as they 

change to many different shades, each one so beautiful.

Once the soft-to-touch, hydrated and flexible flowers begin to change both in color 

and texture on the plant, it's time to harvest. Here in the southeast this has been the 

perfect week prior to below freezing temperatures due tonight.

If you live in more northern climes you may have already cut your 

beautiful hydrangeas and have them dried and part of your decor by now.

What you will require:

Ready-to-harvest blooms

Garden Shears/Pruners

Fresh water

A tall heavy glass vase

Best time to cut flowers is late morning after any dew has evaporated.

Choose full well-shaped blooms.

Cut stems at an angle, 12-18 inches in length, and carefully remove all leaves.

Place in a clear container, heavy glass is best, filled halfway with fresh water.

All stems should be submerged several inches, and try not to have too many

heads crushed tightly together.  This bunch, harvested earlier in the week, seemed 

to gulp up the water almost immediately so I did replenish it.

Place your flowers in a cool dry area out of direct sun, but in a 

spot where you can enjoy them as they dry out.

The process should take a couple of weeks. Once the water 

has completely gone, your flowers should be ready to use for

winter, Christmas and decorative projects such as wreaths and table 

centerpieces - or just massed in a lovely container such as a basket.  

Some people spray them with hairspray when dry - I've never done that.  

The best way is to dry new ones each year so they don't have a chance to 

get dusty, faded, and start disintegrating all over your furniture.

Hope you have some lovely hydrangeas to dry and enjoy over the winter months.