More Spring Wildflowers...

Hite Cove Trail, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

...next to the Hite Cove Trail near Yosemite. It's spectacular there right now!

COME AND HAVE A LOOK ROUND... TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK

This church dates from the 11th century, the tower being the oldest part. The churchyard is woefully neglected - but still wonderful. The setting is just off the A16, in the tiniest of hamlets, Waithe.









This monument dates from the 14th century, although it was restored in 1861.

The setting is lovely, the churchyard is atmospheric and interesting with huge, ancient trees, the building is very attractive externally with nice stonework



Nothing to dislike so far?





So, why do I really dislike it? Well, step inside.

Ah, that's nice. According to the plaque it was 'restored' in 1861 by a loving son, in memory of his parents.





See what you think, and then I'll tell you what I think, and how this church building makes me feel.



Doesn't look too bad so far, does it?



Except that the 'restoration' removed all the medieval charm and replaced it with red bricks and Minton tiles. Beautifully done, but it looks like a very swish public lavatory.







Even the beautiful, original arches have been restored to within an inch of their history. Red bricks. Minton tiles. Sterile atmosphere.





I love old church buildings; places which have great atmosphere because they have been used by countless people.





Every now and again I have come across a church which has a bad atmosphere, a building which you really wouldn't want to be left in on your own. This building is not like that.





This poor building has no atmosphere. It feels bleached, free from 'germs', free from history.





Step outside and the churchyard engulfs you in gentleness, atmosphere, and history, it is unkempt but not scary.





I won't bore you with another church building for a week or two, don't worry! I just happen to find them fascinating.





Like any building, some are good to be in, others make you want to leave asap, or have areas that just don't feel right.





More of these things at a later date.

A Prayer Request and a Prayer

Look closely at the lower left corner of window.  Do you see a woman's face?  I took this photo the last time we were in  Williamsburg.
Please pray for the family of the surgeon who performed Darcie's appendectomy.  He died this morning leaving a wife and two young daughters.  He was found in a coma by his fishing buddies.  He was put on life support but had no brain activity.  The decision was made to take him off late this morning, and he died shortly thereafter. 
I don't know if he was a Christian or not.  I pray for the comfort of the Holy Spirit to cover his poor wife and daughters.  He was only in his 30's.  He had a reputation as a very good surgeon.  It seems like such a waste, doesn't it?  
But God has his plans which we know nothing about.  I do know that everything he does is good, so I have to be content with that.
Here's a prayer we prayed in unison yesterday at church:  Heavenly Father, we know that we live in a world that is full of corruption.  Grant us the power to live in this world without being corrupted by it; that we may enter Your kingdom with great joy.  This we ask through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your  Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever.  Amen.

When the Garden Is In Heat

This post was written by Annie in Austin for her Transplantable Rose blog.

The plants aren't howling and writhing like cats in heat, but gardeners in Austin would probably like to howl today...



Even though my garden has a lot of shifting, filtered shade, the combination of sun and heat makes the blossoms on some plants change color. Here's 'Vi's Apricot' daylily on May 1st - there is a rosy blush over the petals



The first flush of blooms finished weeks ago, but the daylily sent up more stalks and is now reblooming. The flowers have lost the rosy blush, but the diamond-dusting shows up even more strongly.

One of the 'Fred Howard' Amarcrinum bulbs bloomed a few days ago. Yesterday it had faded to this



while another bulb - just opened - showed the true color



Today that second bulb is fading fast



I bought a new little crinum from the Travis County Master Gardeners tent at the Zilker Park Garden Festival a couple of months ago. This is Crinum oliganthum, a dwarf Caribbean variety. The beautiful flower lasted one day.



Passalong Crocosmia came from Austin friend Martha in .. and were planted in front of one of the 'Acoma' crepe myrtles. They've declined in that spot so I moved a few bulbs nearer the patio arch and watched them thrive. I'm not sure what makes this spot better, but I love the orange Crocosmia with the violet Calibrachoa!



The sweet name fooled me into planting Angelonia in a sheltered spot when I last bought it. That plant bloomed a wishy-washy pink but this gleaming Angel can take very strong sun & heat. I took a photo with the thermometer at 107°F and the sun still blazing on the container.



The blue plumbago does not like prolonged cold spells - they can knock it down to the ground - but these last days of 100°F, 105°F and 107°F haven't discouraged it one bit. The color hasn't faded, either.



Has the heat changed the color of my newest crepe myrtle? Is it really the 'Muskogee' that the label promised or do I have an imposter? I've wanted that variety for years after seeing it bloom around Austin, especially after Pam/Digging planted one in her front garden and the flowers looked a lot like the lilacs I grew in Illinois. I bought a 'Muskogee' in .. but it didn't do much last year. This June it is finally in bloom, but the flowers don't look like lilacs to me - they look almost exactly the color of Mexican Oregano.



Planting at this time of year may not be wise, but I did it anyway... we'll see if I get away with it. One of the hypertufa troughs was planted with snapdragons. They looked good for months but last week did them in so they needed to be replaced. Maybe this portulaca from Barton Springs Nursery will do OK, and if the Dicliptera suberecta lives the hummingbirds will be happy. Jewels of Opar is a new plant for me - it has a reputation as an opportunistic reseeder so I've been hesitant so far, but the variegated kind was irresistible.



This post was written by Annie in Austin for her Transplantable Rose blog.

Icing-On-The-Cake from Coco!

A huge thanks to Coco for this bootiful award is waaay overdue. Coco: you are unbelievable patient and there is definitely a need in this house for a "patience" award! "You're the Sweetest" comes originally from Kathie of her Net Finds blog and you should go over there and check it out, because Kathie's a whiz at finding some super cool deals out there in cyberspace!
I'd love for all of you to pick up this super award, but as I know myself with regard to these things, I'd like to pass this on to Marge, Sam, please go wish him well, Scout and Freyja, Luke , Honey, Augie and Ti, Joey and Kealani, Norwood, Fern, Milo, Laverne and Shirley, and Martha and Bailey.
Thanks again, dear Cocorue!

Baton Rouge, LA

Baton Rouge, LA

Capital Building

Views from 21st Floor:

Museum of Natural History at University:

Manawa Ride

Yesterday was a beautiful day for a ride in the woods mid 70s, sunny, a bit windy. There were several others riders at Manawa. I stopped two to chat. They are new mountain bikers - starting this season. Talked them about THOR membership.
Anyway, I continued making my laps. The trail conditions are pretty good, except for 2 dead falls on East Sidewinder. One had been there some time, the other is new. Both were trees damaged in the June wind storm, just decided to come down in October.
One reason for riding at Manawa yesterday was to check out the fork re-build of my trail bike. No problem with the fork on this ride. I had a leisurely ride - 7.7 mph. Just what I was looking for. Even had a good conversation with 2 potential THOR members.

Hoping to ride again today, before the weather turns colder and wet over the next couple days.

Happy Sabbath

Church sign in Ducktown, Tennessee. I had to stop and take a photo and laugh. Best one I've seen in a long time. Click on it to be able to read the sign. Funny!

Now the real story...

It's fair to say that I've had better weekends. The last two days I've been down with a minor chest infection which have prevented any riding apart from a rather uninteresting commute to work today. Since the "400" ride on Saturday, I've done nothing else. It seems the gear cable problem on my bike isn't as clear cut as I'd thought either. The screws holding it all in place are, basically, screwed. They will have to be drilled out. It's booked into my bike shop to be done on Thursday (meaning I have to do something with the MTB by then).
The practical upshot of all of this is that the long, hard ride I was intending last weekend in preparation for the ASH Dash just didn't happen. For those who aren't familiar with it, the ASH Dash is a 200km Audax ride that I'll be doing on December 3, in the southern vicinity of Hobart (as viewed from Mt Wellington above). It is, of course, brutally hilly. Right now I'm torn between wanting to get on the bike and hammer, or trying to be mindful of my recovery from this stupid illness. The other fact to consider here is that I haven't really had a decent break from suburbia since Duck Creek Road a couple weeks ago. Needless to say, I am desperate to do something this Saturday.
One thing that my idle weekend did manage to accomplish was the opportunity to dig out some of the old maps I used last time I was in Tasmania. That, in turn, served to remind me just how badly I want to get back to the place. It's just a shame that I'll only be there for a weekend this time. The tour I rode down there in 2003 was unforgettable. The scenery, uncrowded roads and the clean, cool air... I've even thought once or twice about moving there permanently. It will be good to get back, even if only for a few days. I may end up riding the ASH Dash on nerve alone unless I can get some decent rides in soon. I can live with that. The time limit on Audax rides is generous, and may even allow me another detour up Mt Wellington at the end, if I just hang in there.

Poetry

What a delightful surprise to encounter a shop window where poetry rather than selling is to the fore. And have you ever seen such beautiful flower names?





Well done to John Lewis for another artistic window. If you haven't seen it already, have a look at the Christmas card to Edinburgh.