Dreaming of irises...

This is not a new thing, to those who know I have the Iris Virus.  There are a few autumn blooms out there right this minute, because our weather is so mild this time of year, and the Rebloomers (those that sometimes bloom twice a year) planted last spring are having their first chance to shine.

These aren't the rebloomers--just an old photo from last spring.  :~D

But this time, I was not dreaming of iris here at our house, or even of the iris beds I'll create when I take them to Arizona with us.  Last night I had a strange dream...Al Pacino figured heavily, but that was a different part of the dream which we will ignore for the now.  To the point: there was a Rest Home across the street from where I sat drinking coffee.  I have no idea where the coffee place was--you know odd and nebulous dreams can be--but some old people who lived in the home sat around a small courtyard in front of their place.  They were surrounded by a few scraggly iris trying to bloom, struggling in dismally neglected beds empty of little but dirt and wind-blown debris.

In my dream, I was suddenly overjoyed because I knew this was the way to fulfill a longing I've had--to volunteer my gardening skills!  Not to the local Master Gardener Program, where my hours are logged and credit duly charted in return for "certification".  I don't want my hours charted--I want to make a difference for real people!  In the dream, it was clear: I would take care of the Rest Home gardens, make them bloom again for those old people who could not do it themselves.

Those who know me well know that I have very frequent and vivid dreams.  The husband is often entertained by my morning tales of bizarre nocturnal adventures, and I have them so often we just chalk it up to Jan's Weirditude.  But once in a while, I dream of something that simply will not leave me, and I think about it all day, realizing this one was not a case of taking out the mental trash, but instead a message I should listen to.

This dream of the old people's garden was just such a dream, and I am in tears over how happy it makes me.  The town we're moving to, Chino Valley, AZ, has a very large population of elders, with a disproportionate number of elder homes for its size (only 10K population) and a facility for special needs residents as well.  I know now where I can plant--and share--some of my abundant iris blessings.

I hope your week is going well, and at least one of your dreams come true.

Vacation photos!

Yesterday's post was just so...photo-less.  The problem is that most of the pictures were on the hub's camera, and I have so far managed to remain ignorant of its mysteries.  (I think it might be smarter than I am, but that's another post.)

So last night he got photos loaded, and here are some of them.  I think he's got a good eye for composition, and I think I am beginning to look somewhat, um, older than I used to.  Hmph.  Oh well.  Vertical and above ground is always a good thing, right?

The nature scenes are the Desert Botanical Gardens.  The little statue is Gabe and Mary Jo's back yard, one of my favorite places in the world.  That statue is right smack in the center, and I love to visit it.  The view past there is the Sun City golf course, which provides a good deal of golfing AND viewing entertainment.  As well as errant golf balls for the dog.

Looking at Mary Jo and Gabe's old high school albums from the 50's.

More grows in the desert than you'd think.  The "dead tree" is a saquaro skeleton.

A sun dial with barrel cactus, of course.

This cactus is HUGE.  See below...

Hard to wrestle the camera away from him, but worth it.  Smile, baby!

The average rainfall in Phoenix is 7 inches a year. 

Grrrrr!

The "Gabe and Jo" statue.

The Gabe.

The Jo.  (And golf cart parking.)

I tried to tell him I was a mess.  Did he listen?

Home from Arizona

We went to see the husband's folks for a week in Phoenix.  I pretty much won the In-Laws Lottery when it comes to these people, and our visit was a blessing to me.

 It is so strange how Schultz seems to know--after two days of driving--that we have made it to Phoenix.  He stands up in the car, smelling the air from the a/c vents, and begins to look around expectantly.  I made the mistake of asking, "Do you want to go see Grandma and Grandpa?" about a mile from their house, and he howled and barked and trembled the rest of the way!  Sadly, they lost their sweet Boston Terrier Annie this year, so Schultz had to make do with his sister Willie for company, and they provided evening entertainment, play wrestling on the living room floor.

We saw the brother-in-law and one niece with her husband, went to the Desert Botanical Gardens (hadn't been in a while, won't go again for a long while, but it was good to visit), and then had a day trip to Prescott and surrounding area.  The husband and his folks played poker a few of the afternoons--I don't play poker, but the sound of their game is one of my favorite background noises.  I planted some irises, cannas, and Martha Gonzales roses in their back yard, and enjoyed feeding the great flock of quail and dove that stop by every morning.

Arriving home Sunday, we unloaded and spent the next day "recuperating" from vacation--never sure why we are so worn out from such a relaxing time, but we always benefit from a Down Day of being very quiet and still before heading back into the routines of normal life.

This weekend we have the city wide garage sale, and are working hard to clear out accumulations that have gathered up.  Our last long distance move from Las Cruces, NM, in '08 helped cull the "stuff" from our life.  But the move in '13 was only across town, and I have all this Doll Business with its attendant mess of supplies and materials. Time to get ruthless with the clearing out!