Upside Ann

This should have been a summer picture.  I planted an entire envelope of cosmos this spring and each time a seedling broke the 3 inch mark, a rabbit consumed it.  Finally, I have one.  ONE cosmos.  I think it is a volunteer from plants I grew a couple years ago. It isn't where I planted this spring.   I don't know why the rabbits let this one get past.  She stands about 24 inches tall.  Spindly.  With only 3 flowers/buds.  Still - cosmos always makes me smile.  Welcome.

They are supposed to take down the crab apple today.  Our last picture together.  A cloudy fall afternoon.  Misty rain in the air.  A tear in my eye.  I let her know I loved her.  Her beauty in the spring.  Her gnarled branches.  Her favorite hawk perch.  There aren't many leafed branches anymore.  Part of that is the season.  She never held her leaves all summer and through fall.  But the marjority are dead.  Rest friend.  

I thought that Purple Cane Road was the first book of Burke's that I read - probably 25 years ago.  In my mind I've carried the image of a man crucified on the wall of an old shed.  Turns out, that is an image from Sunset Limited .  A haunting image.  Lush description. Complex characters. Mood.  Mood.  Mood.  (And not in a sunshine and unicorns’ way.) As with all the Robicheaux novels, the plate is full of characters.  One movie producer, one director, one photographer, a shoe-shine man turned farmer of zinnias and chrysanthemums , his son who has one of the all-time best names (Cool Breeze Broussard), prostitutes, mafia mobsters, multiple killers/assassins, 2 sherriffs, good, bad, and ugly cops, two FBI agents - not to mention the aforementioned crucified man and Clete.   Finding words to share with you from this novel was an exercise in restraint.  You can see in the photo I posted with this essay my list of ideas from THE FI...

 Yes, I'm late getting these posted.  Beautiful fall day.  Color.

Do you recognize it? One of our lilacs performing a little do-over.  As a group they have mostly lost all their leaves but one brave soul is over-achieving with a semi-annual blossom.  I have not done any research to see if this is as strange as it seems to me.  I haven't seen it before- other than the crab apple which has rebloomed for a couple years.... those years being her swan song before, well, you know.  

  July 2026 Sioux Falls, SD I love this photo of Zupe.  He was being really cheeky and trying to get in the way of me taking a photo of the falls.  He is having fun and smiling naturally.