Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Escaping The Flood




Tired of squishing around a soggy Iowa, we escaped this last week to California; to the idyllic ridgetop home of my sister-in-law and her husband, a home which is surrounded by a beautiful, dreamy garden, and which has a panoramic view of Tomales Bay in Marin County. When not eating (for Mary is a gourmet cook), I wandered about her garden, which is rather like the flip side of my own garden; hers is sunny and bright, while mine is shady and cool; both are so chocked full of plants, they seem in danger of exploding.
At top is one of her Monet-like beds, the second picture shows Tomales Bay as seen from their garden, the third picture is one of her hydrangeas, and finally a clump of Mantilla poppies.
Northern California was vibrant and sunny, but they are suffering from what may be the worst drought in history, and the skies were hazy with smoke from hundreds of wildfires.
As we flew back into Iowa in the deepening dusk, water lay everywhere in the fields, looking from the air more like northern Canada than Iowa. Another three inches of rain was in the rain gauge, the lawn looks like it would support a dairy herd, and small branches lay everywhere in the garden from the storm that passed through while we were gone; still it is nice to be home.
My computer has been dutifully churning out stored blog entries while I was gone, but I must now catch up on answering comments... the computer has not figured out how to do that. I also need to get the lawn mowed today, for tomorrow we are to have more rain.

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Comments:
Thank goodness the computer can't answer comments, or we'd be completely superfluous. Anyway, if I could teach mine a new trick, it would be how to weed.
--Kate
 
What a nice interlude. That California garden looks delicious.

Jenn/Djinn
 
As a native Iowan now long ago transplanted to California, I love your blog. But I think those are Mantilla poppies. Loved the exploding whale!

Jean L.
 
Kate... or mow the lawn.

Jenn... it was a very pleasant break.

Jean... you're right (I corrected it). I should never post anything on four hours of sleep in the last 36 hours... thanks :o)

Don
 
It sure is nice to get a break, isn't it? I hope some of the rains avoid your area, I know MN needs some rain. Maybe you could send it over there. Wouldn't THAT be a neat trick?
 
oh, how we love marin county, especially the area along tomales bay. we have seen the tulle elk grazing on those hills, a breath-taking experience each time we see them.

i suspect the wildfires have changed the pristine atmosphere for the time being. here's to hoping the rains stop, the land dries, and the wildfires are quieted and cease.

it is always a delight to see the garden pics you post.
 
cinj... Mn needs rain? Tell them to back up the truck; we're supposed to get heavy rain again this afternoon.

sky... we hiked the Pierce Point trail and saw probably a hundred elk, as well as both white tail and fallow deer. what a dreamland.

Don
 
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