Spring joys

Plants for joy!

Saturday Gardens

Raised garden beds

I planted yellow squash, beets, cherry tomatoes and flowers in raised garden beds to keep the weeds down.

Hubby uses straw-bales as mulch as well, to keep weeds down to a minimum.

This year he is using plastic bottles to create mini-greehouses to keep the rabbits out!

Little terrariums

Right now green onions are on the table everyday in most every dish I cook.

Springtime is full of happy hours spent outside, even if it means repairing the outdoor spigot with plumbing thread tape and new washers.

Plants need fresh water too!

Something tasty

A tasty treat

Somedays you crave a tasty treat.

I thought I might just do something fun with buttermilk biscuits.

I topped them with fresh ripe strawberries and banana, then added Coconut whipped cream from a can.

Tasty, and great at breakfast with French roast coffee! 😋

Ode to Springtime

Something about a Spring day stirs my imagination.

Beautiful flowers

Living. Breathing. Stirring.

Life in all its glory.

Energy. Beauty. Fresh air.

It speaks to the soul.

I love Springtime in May in Minnesota.

Better than Winter

Looking out my kitchen window

It was a long-time coming, but it looks like Spring has finally sprung!

To celebrate the joys of warmer weather, I brought home a stunningly beautiful Hydrangea plant.

A flowering Hydrangea plant
Beautuful Hydrangea 😍

They say being here in Minnesota is like living 6 months in Eden, and 6 months on Mars!

Well then, hypothetically-speaking, it looks like being here in May through October will be better than Winter!

The fountain is up and running now!

Pops of color, pops of joy!

Fresh flowers

Flowers give me such joy. I just love them so much!

The colors, the scents, the freshness and the beauty are as romantic today as it was when I was in New York City decades ago.

I saw an eager gentleman give his lady love two dozen beautiful red roses at Grand Central Station.

It was a sight to behold! It seemed straight out of the pages of a Harlequin romance!

Flowers not only say, “I love you,” they say, “I love me too!”

Buy yourself or your sweetie a flower or a bunch and make your world a happier place today!

Lift yourself up

“If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.” -Booker T. Washington

There are many truisms all over the Internet. You can read them on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and lots of places online.

I love motivational and inspirational quotes.

This one really struck me when I was feeling blue and lonely.

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else!

Giving is living, and that’s the reality for all people!

Head-shot day

We change through the years.

High school dropout

Yes I quit school at 16. Mental depression and ADHD. I did not fit in.

Singer-songwriter

On to University after getting my GED, I graduated and began teaching and performing.

I was in my forties by the time I graduated college. Being a non-traditional student was hard.

In the nineties, I was mistreated and rudely shunned by most of the other students. Some bullied me, and called me a “re-tread.”

The professors were a bit kinder.

Happily, I was a college radio broadcaster and wrote for the campus newspaper.

I lived off campus, and that helped.

Keeping busy kept me happy.

College graduate in May 2003

By 43, I started my own music teaching business. My college degree was in Music Education.

My music teaching business ran from 2004 until the pandemic in 2020.

Me now

Now I am just getting back to writing songs and stories and recovering from the fallout of the pandemic. My duo, Molly and Sonny Boy have some upcoming gigs, and more original songs to record

Enjoy this song we recorded before the pandemic.

https://youtu.be/AVFYEzeWRmU

I still work in radio and audio production. Each Sunday at 4:08pm Central on AM 860/97.3 FM and at http://KNUJ.net I produce and broadcast a show called, “Music from Germany.”

Germanic roots

Music from Germany – May 1

Morning Potatoes

Pan-fried Potatoes and more!

I own the popular Aroma steamer. I like to steam a big batch of chopped Golden Yukon potatoes and then fry them in a cast-iron pan with a medley of vegetables and soy bacon.

French roast drip coffee is the best!

Homemade is hard, but it is the price you pay for tasty food that will most likely be eaten quickly! 😋

Musing over Muesli

Morning muesli

Yesterday I found out that art helps us in our emotional growth.

I went to a pow wow of sorts at the local arts center regarding the direction of the Grand.

https://www.thegrandnewulm.com/

The future of art

I found out that some people feel that art is not for them.

Yet throughout the ages, art has been significant in every culture.

I have seen all kinds of art.

To be honest some of it has downright puzzled me. “What’s that?” I sometimes wonder.

As a singer and a songwriter, I don’t always think of music as being an art per se. I think of it as musical storytelling. It’s fun and entertaining.

My music duo, Molly and Sonny Boy

However music is a means of self-expression. It is an art.

My preference is towards the wordy arts.

I like songs and stories and film.

I like accessible art as well.

I like mainly realism and functional arts and crafts.

I like pops of color as well, for décor and inspiration.

So now, I will continue musing about art over my muesli this morning.

Good question