The Guest Who Came To Breakfast I came out to make coffee in the kitchen this morning and found an unexpected guest resting on the kitchen sink. I can’t really say ‘unexpected’ since I expected him to show up sometime in the near future but not this morning. He has been lounging in his chrysalis next to our kitchen sink for the last couple of months, a totally … Continue reading Yellow Winter Butterfly
Surviving ‘Jonas’ Winter storm ‘Jonas’ hit us last weekend. It crippled New York City for a day and dumped over two feet of snow in Central Park at the end. All above ground transportation was shut down and non-emergency vehicles were not allowed on the road. We ended up staying in the city over night and, I admit, it was fun. I ended up walking around … Continue reading Winter Storm
A Time To Contemplate I took this photo at the Bear Mountain State Park this autumn. We make an annual pilgrimage to the park every autumn just to see the leaves. It was so peaceful to sit and look at the amazing colors both on the trees and their reflection on the water. And, to contemplate. Though Carl Sandberg was not Henry David Thoreau’s contemporary, … Continue reading Happy New Year
He Insisted So Getting outside to do my garden routine early this morning, I found this individual in the middle of the walkway right outside the door. Seeing me, he froze with a mouthful of Garden Phlox. When asked, he insisted that he found it. Claimed that he didn’t chew anything off. He also insisted that it wasn’t him that had eaten my chrysanthemum by the … Continue reading Presumed Innocent Rabbit
Other Hungry Visitors Looking at who visits our garden in winter can tell us how bad the weather is. The Pine siskin came down from the boreal area in a flock this winter. The birds alternately tucked their feet up or just puffed up to a ball of feathers and down without legs when it’s so cold out. But it’s not just the birds that … Continue reading A Brutally Cold Winter II
Meditation On A Wet Day Rain had taken hold in the early part of yesterday morning, then came the fog. It was not a perfect day to take a walk in the woods but I knew there’s always something interesting to see no matter what the weather is. Walking in the woods always leads me to a sense of calm, especially when foggy or right after a snow … Continue reading Walking In A Forest
January 1st At 7:20 am Continue reading New Year Sunrise
Nature’s Resilience This post has nothing to do with my garden but I wanted to post it because it’s heartfelt by me and is exceptional. I haven’t been to the World Trade Center area since the disaster on September 11, 2001. That’s a thirteen year stretch now. I used to go there at least one a year for the Orchid Show at the Winter Garden before the organizer … Continue reading The Survivor Tree
The Morning of April 16th I’ve been so happy with the temperature climbing up and the ability to see green again. I started to clean up the garden, pruning roses and feeding plants. Happiness, it seemed, was short lived. The rain that started on April 15th turned to snow overnight and dumped two inches on the ground. The temperature has dropped down below freezing. I felt guilty for removing … Continue reading Snow In April
Taking A Clue From Birds There has been one snow storm after another and the official spring date is still more than a month away. Our garden is covered a foot deep in snow crusted with ice. The cold frame we put up last fall has become an igloo at this point. I have no idea what has happened in there since I can’t have … Continue reading Spring Is Around The Corner
Petals and Wings 