Tulip Throats

Does anyone really know what time it is?

That old saying "The more things change, the more they stay the same" is certainly true for me. Lately I've become disgruntled (isn't that a great word, meaning to be in a sulky humor, or moody discontent) with the state of life in general and the lack of stimulation in MY life in particular.

For grins, I looked back at my posts in May 2007, and find I was in this same emotional upheaval then. However, I was thinking of ways to get myself out of it. I realized that I hadn't carried through with my solutions. Maybe I'll try again. At least last year I was trying to untangle myself from the predicament. This year I'm not even trying. Yet?
It occurs to me that maybe this is a Spring condition. In the past, it was customary to Spring Clean the house. To open the windows, let in the fresh air, wash all the bedding and linen, beat the rugs, starch the curtains, polish everything until it sparkles. (Does anyone actually DO this anymore?)

Maybe I'm trying to Spring Clean my mind, my attitudes, my values and expectations.

If time is a spiral, I've just completed another round. It's Spring, so one revolution has happened. Usually I look out from this vantage point and realize that while I'm in the same place, I'm not in the same space. Usually I realize that I'm up a rung, or notch, or however you'd quantify being a little bit higher than last time.

Sadly, this time I'm afraid that I've revolved to a lower level on the space/time continuum. Is this a bad thing? I'm not sure. I believe it's meaningful and I think it's going to take a little introspection to come to any real conclusions. Guess I know what I'll be doing for the next.......?

Dandelions...A Rose by any other name...

April showers bring May flowers, and one of the first to spring up is Dandelions. I have never seen as many dandelions as we have in Wisconsin. Could be because there are lots of fields, and plenty of rain.

Driving through the countryside, you see fields of yellow. The first time I asked what the crop was, the person laughed and told me it wasn't a crop. It was the dandelions. I would watch them, and notice that they were allowed to go to seed before being cut. Wouldn't it make more sense to cut them BEFORE they go to seed?

Or maybe the dandelion provides something I'm ignorant of. The yellow color is so eye-popping and cheerful after months of grey winter. Every year I have the same thought. Someone should figure out some way to use them. They are plentiful, resistant to nearly everything, perennial and found nearly everywhere. It's a shame to see Nature's abundance just go to waste year after year. Maybe I'll look into this....

My research found that dandelions are marvelous for detoxifying the body. The greens, before the flower comes, are tender and tasty, full of vitamins and nutrients. After the flower blooms, the leaves can be boiled to get the detoxification effect. The flowers can be eaten, and/or saved and made into Dandelion Wine. The root has multiple uses, the best one being the propagation of the species. The taproot of a dandelion is long and difficult to uproot. When surface dandelions are pulled up, the taproot usually breaks, which causes it to multiply and reproduce.
So, Nature has given us a perfect solution to long winter. After months of having no fresh produce, the dandelion springs to life in the early Spring with tasty nutritious greens. This is followed by yellow flowers that are cheerful and can be saved to make Wine. We can boil the entire plant to detox our body from the ill effect of a long Winter. Nature also made Dandelions with the ability to easily seed and propagate themselves. A near perfect plant that we spend great effort to eradicate instead of enjoying it's many benefits. Read more here: http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/Dandelion.html

I for one, am going to give this a try.

monument valley

 

This picture was on my Pisca page, and it gave me wanderlust. I miss the desert sometimes.

May days

With the beginning of May, the weather warmed up! When we were at the Capitol for the Farmer's Market, I noticed that they had lots of tulips planted, just ready to bloom. After a couple of sunny, warm days I figured the flowers had opened and I wanted to see them.

I LOVE tulips! Maybe it is because they come up early in the Spring and it's nice to have all that color after months of cold and dreary.
Whatever it is, looking at tulips makes me happy! I especially like to look at what I call their throats, the place where the petals meet the stem.

One of my favorite tulips IS my favorite because of the throat coloration. That dark center, outlined in yellow ALWAYS makes me smile!

Start looking down, into tulips, and I promise, you'll be hooked. I never look at a tulip without looking to see what the throat pattern is. And seeing...I smile. And when I smile, I feel happy. Thank goodness for tulips!