The weather is getting nicer here, with just sweaters needed most days. I had to get out for a walk.
Everything is blooming! This chestnut tree is about fifteen feet tall, which means it is just a baby. The pink blossoms stand straight up, about six inches tall, and the bees love them.
Banks of rhododendrons planted in the 1920s line the sidewalks of the Sunnyside and Laurelhurst neighborhoods.
Since it is almost June, the roses that Portland is famous for have started blooming, as well. They look particularly nice when growing a bit wildly by a wonderful old house.
And, of course, it rained a bit while we were out. Not enough to be miserable, just enough to decorate the roses and remind us of what makes this part of the country so lush and green.
I got home, a bit damp, but happy to live on such a pretty planet.
I finally felt like going out for a walk after being sick for a week, and the spring flowers did not disappoint.
I did a short turn around the neighborhood as the sun dipped below the clouds on its way down. There were so many dogs out walking their people, I wished you were here to pet all of them.
The azaleas and irises are teaming up for a one-two punch of pink and purple.
Yep, it is mighty nice to be out in the world again.
Maybe it’s because our summer has been so hot and dry, but Fall is falling hard here in Portland. Leaves are falling in piles earlier than usual. The change from heatwave to rainfall seems more abrupt.
In our lovely, funky Sunnyside neighborhood, the lush flowers of summer are dying back, waiting to be trimmed into their winter rest.
Plum, apple, and fig trees are all over the neighborhood, planted decades ago by resourceful homeowners. Some folks gather them up and share them, which is really nice. One house on Taylor Street even provides little boxes to take them home!
Other folks seem overwhelmed by the abundance and the fruit just falls and rots, smelling like a brewery. Not terrible, but a terrible waste.
Piles of leaves are everywhere. They make for a seasonal carpet and art materials, as well as pulling nutrients back in the soil. But I know once it rains, we will have ‘leaf slime’ in every gutter.
So it is when summer ends. There is a melancholy, especially when it feels like Covid has cheated us of another summer’s concerts, plays, and festivals. But I am ready for Fall. The inside time and contemplation, and the creativity that come with it, are okay by me.
The neighborhood has gotten so pretty! It has been hot, and if people water enough, their flowers are just going nuts.
There are about a zillion varieties of dahlias, and they are all beautiful. Some of them grow taller than my head, and others are little guys about six inches tall. They all grow from potato-like rhizomes and I think I’ll put some in my garden next year.
Cone flowers are another plant that can be stunningly tall and showy. They have really prickly centers and petals that flop like skirts.
AND when you have coneflowers, dahlias, and sculpture all together in front of a delightful old house, it’s even better!
When Auntie Bridgett and I started jogging this past weekend, I decided to start eating better. More veggies, less junk food. We bought frozen edamame and lots of vegetables to cut up for afternoon snacks. And I have been enjoying it!
But, by golly, when Grandpa Nelson says, “I’m going to Zach’s, want to come?”, I say “Yes!” It has been odd, spring-y weather the last day or so, with clouds blowing by between sunshine, so, obviously, we knew we might get wet.
We headed off in chilly sunshine in just tee shirts and jeans. Grandpa Nelson at least wore a hat! But not me. Nope. Caution to the wind Judy, that’s what they call me. We walked past wonderful flowers and the Morrison Street chickens, enjoying lovely rhododendrons. But I couldn’t help noticing…..the clouds….
At Zach’s Hot Dog Shack, we took up our usual table on the patio, and Hunter brought our French fries and Chicago dog. It was cool but out of the wind. Then, within minutes, it got dark and the temperature dropped. The rain hit like buckets!
We watched for a few minutes until the cold chased us inside. Thoughtful Hunter even turned on the heater at my back, and we continued our lunch amid the friendly, dive-y decor. We watched the rain come down through the open front door as we talked about whatever came to mind, waiting for a chance to get home without being washed away. “This will be over in fifteen minutes,” Grandpa assured me.
And it was, mostly. When we saw some sunshine, we waved goodbye to Hunter and headed out, opting for the shortest route home. There were still drops, but the storm had passed. The flowers were lovely again. We got home, warmed up, and had a good rest.
Never pass up a chance for fun food, an adventure, and good company. That’s my advice.
As our spring has moved toward summer (with several bright days interspersed with soaking rains), a whole new batch of flowers are showing themselves. The pinks of early spring, the cherry blossoms and dogwoods, are giving way to oranges and reds.
This clover is over a foot tall and is growing in a parkway near our house. Clover is usually only a few inches tall! The soft, fluffy blooms are about four inches long and very popular with bees.
Thanks to my good friend and French teacher, Shawn Quiane, I found out that this lovely plant is called Helianthemum nummalarium. It is a type of common rock rose.
And the best thing about it is that each individual petal looks like a piece of candy corn!!! Love it!!
So, it is May, and we are still having chilly mornings and some wet days. I’m getting a bit impatient for some solid sunshine. Of course, I know that In July I will complain that it’s “just too hot!” but I guess that’s human nature.
Our spring has been alternating between rain and sun, so when the weather is nice, we get out in it! Grandpa Nelson and I headed out in Friday, with not much idea of where to go.
All sorts of flowers are blooming! The tulips are starting to fade, but azaleas and irises are going berserk. The colors are eye-smashing.
We continued south west, sort of in the direction of Ladd’s Addition, where Auntie Katie’s book shop, “Books with Pictures” is. The rose gardens had a few early bloomers looking good, with dozens more in bud, just biding their time.
Palio, a delightfully tasty and pleasant bakery/coffee shop on the Ladd’s Circle Park, has set tables and chairs out on the sidewalk. We ordered some delicious lemon custard cake and texted Katie with an offer. “Yes, please!”
Auntie Katie got her second vaccine just the day before and is on her way to being able to run her shop more easily. The business is doing well, mostly because she works hard to make sure she gets books to her customers. She has been driving to deliver all over the city for more than a year now. Exhausting, yes, but that’s what it took.
After a lovely chat and snacks, Grandpa Nelson and I headed back home through the Richmond neighborhood. It is full of craftsman style houses from the turn of the 20th century and hundreds of majestic trees and flowers bushes.
Before I moved to Portland, I lived in Salinas, where the land is very flat. The wide Salinas Valley runs for about a hundred miles, wide and flat. Down most streets you can see a long way.
Looking about half a mile down Alisal
Portland has a river, too, bigger and wider than the Salinas, but the Willamette hasn’t flattened things out much.
One of the few unobstructed views in town… down the river!
Portland has lots of hills and lots of trees. Looking at anything more than a block away involves looking through things. And I am loving it.
Having to look through things and past things makes my brain work harder, and ask questions.
Is it the house I love, or the view of the house beyond the rock garden and blossoms?
Would this flower look as lovely if it were all by itself? (Probably not, I answer myself).
And why does the moon just look prettier through trees?
Anyway, I hope you love the street you live on as much as I love mine!
Pink has never been my color. As I have told you before, it was always mentioned as “The Girl’s Color” in a derisive sort of way that made sure it would never be “my” color.
Majestic Dogwoods reach for the sun
But Portland has changed my mind about that. In Spring, pink becomes the power color. The color of pollination, of getting things done. And it is breathtaking.
Gigantic peonies lurk in the shadowsRedbuds bloom to contrast a green house
The bees, butterflies, and birds love the pinks! They flit and hop around, making sure we see their colors, too.
And Camellias, of course…
So, though I may still not wear pink, I love it. It is bright and full of life, and will always, now, remind me of spring in Portland.
Your great grandma Billie, my momma, knew so many poems by heart that they would sometimes just jump out of her when she was emotional. The words of the poems expressed how she felt better than her own words.
Rainbow over Ladd’s Addition
This is one I heard very often, a poem William Wordsworth wrote about 150 years ago. It is about rainbows, but it is also about trying to carry the wonder we feel as children into our adulthood. I have chosen it to accompany some lovely rainbow-colored flowers in our neighborhood.
My heart leaps up when I behold A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began; So is it now I am a man;
Dear Liza 