NWR: A lovely day (so far)

M

maureen

maureen nelson
It is 73 degrees (F) here in Washington, DC, this afternoon, with very low humidity and a blazing blue sky. After spending the morning at the gym (where I met and chatted with one of my favorite Washington Post columnists, Dana Milbank) and then making myself a fabulous salad in my just-cleaned-by-someone-else house, I spent part of the afternoon tidying my yard (not much to do other than deadhead roses and peonies as my yard guy spent all day here saturday trimming, weeding, and mulching). Then, because it's just so damn nice out here, I retrieved the wonderful book I'm in the middle of ("The Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Barbery) and retired to the grass in my back yard to read until the bugs (not that there are many yet) convinced me to get up.

A few minutes reading this board (greatly enjoying that Billionaire Vinegar thread - Jonathan, you have a more lucrative career ahead of you, I think), and then I'm heading back to my book and my front porch. Guess I should open a bottle of riesling first and pour myself a glass.

What a nice day!

PS - If you've not read this book, you must! Sharon, I'd be interested in your views on the translation if you've read it in both languages.
 
It's a gorgeous day here, too, made even better by the arrival of some '09 Joguet- Dioterie.

What's in a "fabulous" salad?
 
originally posted by Brad Kane:
It's a gorgeous day here, too, made even better by the arrival of some '09 Joguet- Dioterie.

What's in a "fabulous" salad?
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Well, baby lettuce from the farmers' market, plus some from my yard, chives, lovage and perilla (shiso) from my yard, fennel, various radishes, roasted beets, preserved (by me) lemon, parmesan, lemon and olive oil - and salt and pepper.
 
originally posted by maureen:
("The Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Barbery)
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I'm not Sharon but I found this at a bookstore at Dulles a few years ago (in my preKindle days) and read it on the plane/on the road. A pleasant diversion but maybe I haven't read enough Barthes to have fully appreciated it.
 
I am Sharon and I haven't read it.

But I'll try to get my hands on a copy.

That sounds like a great, great day.

I have been distracted from my work these past two days by blue skies and green leafy trees.
 
87 here and still a light breeze.
When the breeze dies, summer will be here and I will be gone.
A house and yard done by someone else; I envy you that.
Just finished "In the garden of beasts" by Erik Larson; talked with my Mom about it as she lived thru those times (the several years before WWII); she got the shivers.
Bubbles tonight.
Best, Jim
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
I am Sharon and I haven't read it.

But I'll try to get my hands on a copy.
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Will you read it in French and then in English?

(Not asking for much, am I?)
 
originally posted by maureen:
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
I am Sharon and I haven't read it.

But I'll try to get my hands on a copy.
Click to expand...

Will you read it in French and then in English?

(Not asking for much, am I?)
Click to expand...

In Albert Camus's play, Caligula asks for the moon.

This is less. I'll do it!

Very interested in these issues, as you probably know.

:)
 
Beautiful day here as well, perfect for outdoor work and for the walk to the nearest tire place to deal with the aftermath of a nail in a sidewall, and a little too nice for the weather to carry the sounds of my next door neighbor's thrash metal band...yes, a fiiiine friday afternoon!
 
It really was beautiful today. Although still a work day, every meeting seemed to take us out of doors: lunch from the food trucks on Virginia Ave., iced coffee sitting on a retaining wall, a discussion on a park bench. Later: Mexican food with the kids and margaritas for the big people at H Street Country Club, where the food was much better than expected and you can play miniature golf.

If tomorrow's half as nice, I'll be putting in tomato and pepper plants and weeding for half the day.
 
66 degrees, blue sky, north wind blowing (pretty much a correlation between blue and north around here). Rode my old Gitane Tour de France home and on the way home stopped to hear Grant Peterson (Rivendell) talk about his new book. Sitting here with a Bize Bourgogne blanc. My lovely wife just called to check up on me on her drive home. A flicker is calling outside. Lovely Philips Debussy album on the Thorens. It's all just too much!
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
How are the boxwoods faring?
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That most recent spraying with the organic oil stuff seems to have done the trick - no signs of little bug larvae at present and lots of new growth.

Now if I could only keep that damn black spot off my roses!
 
Well, I spent yesterday in front of a computer (but did manage to score some 2002 de Montille at HDH for a song).

Today will be different. Heading for mid-70s and sunny, low humidity and a nice, light breeze.

I'm reading Middlemarch for the first time, well trying to anyway.
 
originally posted by VLM:
Well, I spent yesterday in front of a computer (but did manage to score some 2002 de Montille at HDH for a song).

Today will be different. Heading for mid-70s and sunny, low humidity and a nice, light breeze.

I'm reading Middlemarch for the first time, well trying to anyway.
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Middlemarch, for the first time. I envy you. I reread it for the umpteenth time last summer for an article and still loved every word.
 
originally posted by Yixin:
Perilla is not always shiso, of course.
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Yes, I know - I went to great lengths to ensure that I was getting shiso, which I grew once years ago and have been looking for ever since. The person I bought it from sold me something a couple of years ago that turned out to be the "wrong" perilla (the pickling kind), which was useless for salad and also seeded my herb garden heavily with its offspring. I spent last year plucking out the seedlings.

This time I got the right stuff. I love it.
 
I spent yesterday's glorious Washington day providing my daughter's version of a "house done by others" aka transport of boxes of possessions from dorm to storage. It seemed only right to end the day with others sharing my occupation and our landlords over frozen margheritas.
 
originally posted by maureen:
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
How are the boxwoods faring?
Click to expand...

That most recent spraying with the organic oil stuff seems to have done the trick - no signs of little bug larvae at present and lots of new growth.

Now if I could only keep that damn black spot off my roses!
Click to expand...

...damned aphids just descended in tiny multitudes upon my fragrant baby herb garden in pots! Parsley, cilantro, sorrel infected by teensy green goo insects that get fluffy as they grow and destroy the leaves (curling).
I've been crushing them by hand but it isn't going to be enough....
Help!
 
yeah, the stuff I sprayed on my boxwoods is organic and would work - I have to get the name though.

ok, it's called Organicide - I bought the undiluted version and a gallon sprayer because I have more than 40 boxwoods I had to spray. It also comes diluted in spray bottles. Here's a link to a website that explains the product:

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www.arborgrow.com
 
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