This time of year, our back yard is a wildflower field - henbit, chickweed, dead nettle, wild violets, dandelions, and some unidentified tall yellow things. We let them grow for a while to feed the bees, until the yard gets too shaggy to stand. We're almost there. The blooms are beginning to fade. Saturday morning, I dragged the wagon around the yard, picking up sticks so we could mow. We never got to the mowing.
The front yard is a minefield of sweet gum balls. We'd already raked them up earlier in the spring, but recent storms have littered them again. After hauling a few loads to the gulley, I gave up and made a burn pile. Right in the front yard. As older women are prone to saying these days, "I just don't care" if there's a blackened spot in the yard. It'll disappear soon. Or not. I don't care either way.
When I gave out from raking, I cranked the weedeater and chopped down the winter-burned monkey grass and the beebalm stalks I'd left standing for the birds. Raked leaves off flower beds. While I was doing around, The Husband showed up to clean off the patio, dispose of a fence panel that had collapsed, and.haul away my weedeating debris. We worked for several hours, but it doesn't look much different around here. I'm still waiting on the lawnmower, which The Husband will probably have to boost after it has sat un-cranked all winter.
Not long after we quit the yard, Nanny called to report that her water heater was leaking. The Husband went to see about it. They ended up calling a plumber (one that we have not previously used) who said the water heater could not be repaired and we'd have to get a new one. He said it would be Tuesday before he could install it. The Husband thought the plumber said it would cost $900, which we thought was a tad high. Yesterday, Nanny called to say that the water heater was still leaking (well, duh) and that she could not afford $1,900 for a new water heater. The Husband called the plumber to confirm the price. Nanny was right. $1,900. When I heard this price (I was not privy to the original discussion), I nearly had a stroke. The big box stores sell them for a fraction of that price. The Husband told the plumber to hold off on ordering the new heater, planning to check with the local hardware store. Later that afternoon, when I told Son #1 about the problem, he volunteered to install the water heater. Son #2 dropped by later and also volunteered his help. It's good to have folks in the family who know how to do stuff.
Sunday evening, Granddaughters 2 and 3 came over here carrying a formal dress to be altered for Granddaughter #1 who is to attend a black-tie gala this coming weekend. The neckline of the dress is low and closes with hooks and eyes at the back of the neck, like a halter top. #1 is rather buxom and is worried about compromising herself at the party. She wanted me to take off about an inch on either side of the closure. I did the best I could. She will be advised to wear her hair down, and hide a couple of safety pins on her person just in case.
While moving around the yard this weekend, I noticed that the wild violets have started to bloom. I picked a few blooms, along with some tiny, unidentified star-shaped white flowers, and put them in silica powder to dry. It'll probably take only a couple of days since they're so tiny. I tried drying some creeping myrtle blooms last week. They turned almost black. I tried another batch and only left them for one day, but they still turned almost black. Some redbud tree blooms turned out nice and are perfect for use in resin jewelry.
I have not been very ambitious - or at least not very productive - in the jewelry-making department for the past few days. Friday, I tried to do a herringbone weave around a resin cabochon, intending to make a bracelet with it. The "stone" kept slipping around, and I bent the wires all to heck trying to put it back in place. Started over several times, then gave up and moved on to the band part of the bracelet. Made a mess out of that, too. I finally came up with a bracelet that is okay (but not 100% satisfactory to me), but it is not close to what I was hoping to make.
Today, I plan to work on some stalled projects. I've been trying to transfer laser printer images to air-dry clay, but nothing has worked out well so far. Some new transfer paper came in the mail last week; I want to see how it works. And there's a half-finished leather bracelet on the worktable that needs finishing. Time to get to work!
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