Indian Summer Is The Norm
UNITED STATES—The popular definition of 'Indian summer' suggests that it is unseasonably warm and dry weather in spring or autumn, and that it typically happens after frost. Well, that definition just does not work here. It makes about as much sense as our so-called drought, which is actually the normal weather for our chaparral climate. Weather that repeats annually...
Artist’s Return Part 3
UNITED STATES—Off Archer drove after being frisked and subjected to an elaborate sobriety test. The young sheriff told him that they had trouble here at the car lot, and then Archer saw a few pickups in the darkened yard beside the driveway where he had pulled off to sleep.
"Somebody had been using something like a can opener to open...
Groundcover Is Carpeting For Landscapes
UNITED STATES—If shade trees are the ceilings, and hedges and shrubbery are the walls, then turf and other groundcover plants are the floors of some of our outdoor living spaces. Except for turf grasses, most groundcovers are not as useful as hardscapes like pavement and decking, but they perform other functions in areas that do not get such use....
Artist’s Return Part 2
UNITED STATES—"Why do you have plastic bags?" the young sheriff asked. "Poop bags for the dog."
The young buzz-cut sheriff bid Archer to sit on the corner of the bumper. It was odd how a corner of a front patrol truck bumper could be fashioned into a nice little seat, while the park benches in the city were now ribbed...
Flowers For Late Summer Bloom
UNITED STATES—No mater how much work we put into our roses to sustain bloom all through the season, and no matter how successful we are with that endeavor, the first spring bloom is always the best. Some roses continue to bloom in floriferous phases afterward, while others bloom sporadically, but continually; but there is nothing like the first bloom...
Eating Healthy Is Your Choice
UNITED STATES—This past week I had to take a moment and seriously look at all the bad food and junk I consumed this past week. It was not that great and it hit me, “What the hell are you doing?” Yes, you sometimes have to take a moment and ask yourself that question when it comes to your health...
The Artist’s Return
UNITED STATES—He was starting to nod off on the freeway. A taillight and ghost tree whose branches twisted half a mile down the road, fused into a solid three-dimensional object he jerked the wheel to avoid. Now and then he blinked and lost seconds of roadway. He weaved, the bumps on the lane divider trembled and shook the car's...
Where The Green Ferns Grow
UNITED STATES—The list of what ferns will not do is more noteworthy than the list of what they will do. They do not bloom with colorful or fragrant flowers. The do not produce fruit. Very few turn color in autumn, and their color is generally nothing to brag about. Most ferns will not maintain their appeal through drought, or...
Summer Is Over Already
UNITED STATES—I tell this to people all the time, summer seems like the quickest season. I mean it’s already August and I was just talking about July last week. It seems like you really only have 6 weeks of summer compared to the actual 3 months so many people know we actually get. I guess I don’t consider it...
The Cottage Chronicles: Fences
UNITED STATES—Katy is the neighbor with the junky porch and lots of cats. Lotte was the 96-year-old German neighbor with incontinence and an aversion toward bathing that manifest near the end of a long rich life.
The foul scent of Lotte’s dried urine and unbathed body was sharp, I might even say tangy. The smell reached out all the way...