Month: September 2011

Landscape & Gardening

One Year Later

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What a riotous mess! This time last year my pond had been totally trashed by a neighbor’s black lab. Consequently an established plant was pulverized, and I chose to replace it with the water poppy. As you can see in the above photo, our extremely hot summer has not deterred it and the lemon bacopa from more than doubling in size, and that’s after they both had died back to their root balls last winter. I took this photo just before cleaning the filter box and pump, because I knew that in the process I would probably destroy the overgrown look. I know my three little fish appreciate the shelter and protection that the foliage provides, but this makes it difficult for me to perform my daily fin count. Fortunately meal time brings them up to the surface.

Just Because

Look, But Ignore the Dirty Glass

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This poor red spider lily had been snapped at the base while still in its prime. It’s one of my group of fall lilies that have started to emerge in the front parkway. Unfortunately they aren’t providing me with any photographic moments, because the surrounding English ivy was scorched to death during our seventy plus days of triple digit heat. The ornament you see hanging above and to the right of the vase is a Christmas ornament by local artist Frances Bagley.

Landscape & Gardening

Take One Last Look

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Before the decline sets in. Actually this photo was taken two weeks ago, and it’s now obvious that the decline has already begun. This portion of the garden is the only section that remained photo worthy. The rest of the front garden has way too many fried and scraggily bits. Taking photos is the best way of keeping a record of all the plants during their growing season and will remind me of what worked and didn’t work when it comes to planting summer annuals next year.

Interior Design

Peekaboo (part 2)

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This blushing chair just arrived yesterday after being reupholstered, and now my boudoir is for the most part complete. Because my new color palette had been inspired by lipstick and blushing powders, the chair’s original pale green and cream material was no longer up to snuff. With this new velvet fabric, the chair now adds a lush touch of decadence to a bedroom already smoldering with subtle Hollywood glamour.

chair by Ethan Allen, purchased many years ago from showroom floor during annual sale; fabric is 100% cotton velvet by Pierre Frey, color #38; cording/trim is Kenneth Meyer, color #26; reupholstery by Julian Vargas

Contemporary Art

Wednesday at The Reading Room

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"Beauty has less to do with how things look. There is only one beauty that does not fade… it is the beauty of the process." Douglas MacWithey
“Beauty has less to do with how things look. There is only one beauty that does not fade… it is the beauty of the process.” Douglas MacWithey

First there will be readings from Douglas MacWithey’s notebooks at The MAC, September 21, from 6 to 7 pm by Charles Dee Mitchell, and the novelists David Searcy and Ben Fountain. The evening is a presentation of WordSpace.

Immediately following the reading there will be a reception from 7 to 9 pm at The Reading Room. “How it is the dead man suffers the loss of his loved ones,” MacWithey’s large three panel drawing from which the reading is taken, will be on view. This drawing, dating from the 1980s, has never been shown before.

MacWithey’s practice included drawing, sculpture and performance and almost always incorporated dense, handwritten text. His work was shown in a 1993 Concentrations exhibition with Cady Noland at the Dallas Museum of Art and at Carol Taylor Gallery and Barry Whistler Gallery. Selections from Seals of the Philosophers was shown in 2009 at testsite in Austin and is currently being exhibited at The McKinney Avenue Contemporary.

Landscape & Gardening

Remember “The Soup Nazi”?

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violation

Here in University Park, she’s called “code enforcement” and has cited me for violating Sec. 3.01.003. Any blockage, impediment, structure, personal property or landscape material that prevents free passage or use or impedes or obstructs an alley easement. Under the dubious guise of “landscape material”, my steel edging could damage wayward tires. Say what? Excuse me, the pointy end of this edging is buried below grade! And exactly where in the ordinance is the easement’s placement described in dimensions? NO WHERE! Just like “landscape material”, the easement’s exact location is open for any kind of interpretation. SCREAM!

Film: Design & Architecture

A South Beach Hotel Circa 1958

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A Hole in the Head (1959) is a comedy film directed by Frank Capra, featuring Frank Sinatra, Edward G. Robinson, Eleanor Parker, and Carolyn Jones. For me, the real star was the down-in-the-heels hotel located on South Beach’s Ocean Drive. Unfortunately, the interior scenes were sets, but the exteriors belonged to the very real Cardozo Hotel, which is now owned by Gloria Estefan and her husband. To continue on and see more captured film stills, click on the link below.

Landscape & Gardening

Backyard Progress (days 19 thru 24)

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If you're wondering why the bottom step is shorter than the others, here's the explanation: The original intent was to have the bricks set on their edges which would have increased the riser height, but after examining the handmade bricks, we discovered that this caused the uneven wavy edges not to butt up nicely with adjacent bricks. The concrete base had already been poured, and we were forced to lay the bricks flat, as I illustrated in a previous post, causing the bottom riser to be shorter than the rest. I can live with this, because I, too, am not precious and perfect. Imperfections are welcome.
If you’re wondering why the bottom step is shorter than the others, here’s the explanation: The original intent was to have the bricks set on their edges which would have increased the riser height, but after examining the handmade bricks, we discovered that this caused the uneven wavy edges not to butt up nicely with adjacent bricks. The concrete base had already been poured, and we were forced to lay the bricks flat, as I illustrated in a previous post, causing the bottom riser to be shorter than the rest. I can live with this, because I, too, am not precious and perfect. Imperfections are welcome.

The fancy stonework has now been completed. Two expanses of random rectangular Pennsylvania stone paving in mixed colors — one at the base of the back steps and another in the front of the house — were carefully laid on a one inch setting bed of decomposed granite and compact soil. No mortar was used. Instead decomposed granite was swept into all the joints and compact surface.