Monday, June 13, 2011

Far From You Review

Far from YouFar from You by Lisa Schroeder

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is my third.
I've read reviews
I've heard people talk.
Some good.
Some bad.

But honestly,
I think this is by far
her best
of the three.

She said,
this is her least known.
I don't know why.

It's not really
about the story
as much as it is
about evoking
great emotion.
The characters aren't
deep
but they do
grow.
The plot isn't
thick
but keeps you
riveted.

I sat on my couch
reading the last of it,
tears streaming down my face,
emotion overflowed.

Her books are journeys
from negative
to positive.
A common thread
in all her works
is
Death is not
the end.

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Friday, June 10, 2011

New Additions To Our "Garden"

Our builder seemed to have a notion to jam as many plants in a small space as possible. Our project is to thin it out and replant with plants we WANT not what the builder decided to put in. It's a slow process, and when money allows, we add what we can.

This past weekend's work involved Bee Balm. We wanted something that would attract hummingbirds and butterflies. I first thought I would get a Butterfly Bush, but I know that hummingbirds love the color red. The Butterfly Bushes I found were only purple or white. We may go back and get these later but we decided to on the Bee Balm since the flowers were red. Getting them out of the area with the rest of them was very difficult. Many of the stalks were bent and broke on  the pots in the group. I picked out the best looking pots and only lost one stalk in the tangles. We brought them home and waited until early evening to plant since it was just so hot.

We had to remove the dying bushes that hardly got any water from the side of the porch.










We dug down deep and wide, filled the holes with good soil, fertilizer and planted the Bee Balm. Everything looked nice. :)

I checked on them the next morning and all seemed well. But sometime in the afternoon, when I went to go water them, several of the stalks were laying on the ground, half broken off. It was like something trampled them. This happened for the next couple of days until we decided that it may just be the wind cutting around the corner of the house. With no support and the stalks being top heavy, they were just falling over and breaking.



So we decided to build them a support structure. Here you can see it is similar to the Tomato cages. So far this has supported them rather nicely. Here's hoping it stays that way and the butterflies and hummingbirds are not afraid of it.
And we have bloomage! :D 

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Martini and More... Review

Martini and More . . .Martini and More . . . by Randy Register

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a collection of short stories in the everyday setting that anyone could appreciate. Ever wonder what a male thinks? Register gives delightful insight on the male perspective of love and loss in his collection. Definitely a nice read, especially on those lazy days during the summer months with a glass of tea in your other hand (or a Martini if you are so inclined).



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