fall: tying up loose ends edition

I think it very fitting that fall is hurricane season. Autumn always seems to sweep in and hurl me about in 120 mph mind-storms, leaving me dizzy with excitement and soaked in a creative downpour of ideas. It also really stresses me out, making it really hard to keep track of all the irons I've put in the fire, which are suddenly all hot at the same time.
Since there aren't enough hours in the day, or brain cells in my head to process all this energy, I have to let a few things slide here and there. This blog is one of those things.  I'm not giving up just yet, but since it's not a money making endeavor, and since our finances and the rotten economy seem to be the only things in sync these days, I just have to focus on the bottom line: keeping the refrigerator stocked and the wolves from the door. So my posts here will be few and far between for awhile (I really don't know who I'm talking to, either. It's not like I have millions of faithful followers, but I know there are one or two of you who check in from time to time. )

Anyway, here are a few photos of my fall so far:

here's the galette I made with the plums from the last post

 we went to a fun surprise birthday party here for a dear friend

 with incredibly colorful and really tasty seasonal food

the grapes were almost ripe

and the wine was fantastic, of course

the evil hops growing on our fence have had a very good season

but they seem bent on taking over our neighbor's driveway...

too bad I'm not a home brewer!

drawing classes continue in my studio

and the spiders have set up housekeeping across every path and doorway 

making everyone walk around waving their arms out in front of them like lunatics,

lest they end up with spider webs across their faces and creepy crawlies in their hair.

All in all, things are pretty normal around here for hurricane season.  I'll check in again whenever I can. Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers,

Petunia

not exactly wordless wednesday: green

Jodi over at the Women's Colony has issued a photo challenge featuring the color green. Here are a few of mine...

Can you tell that green is my favorite color?

(It's a good thing I live in Oregon)

Now head on over and check out more

verdurous leafiness at the Colony!

a few random moments at camp cactus

Sometimes the days seem warm and sunny, idyllic almost. Everyone's basking in the early morning light...

and then without warning, the underbrush attacks!

I've really gotta do something about those hops.

gardens gone wild

It's barely midsummer, and I'm pretty sure the garden is trying to take over the world. Seriously, the hops vine (just one) I planted to cover the chain link fence a couple of years ago is threatening to engulf the house and anything else in its path unless I hack it back to the fenceline every day.
Yesterday it almost got Abbie while she sat peacefully on the path, minding her own business. I could almost see the evil green tendrils reaching out for my poor, defenseless pup, ready to encircle her neck in a choke hold and drag her into the thicket. Thank God the monster dies back in the winter, or we'd all be up to our necks in hops by November.


Everything else is growing to giant proportions, and it seems like the yard is getting smaller every day. Don't get me wrong, I love the flowers and vines and crazy volunteers popping up everywhere, it's just that it all grows so fast!


In the picture above, you can see the studio disappearing under the climbing roses and clematis. I started planting vines and climbers when I ran out of horizontal ground to plant stuff in...
Did I mention that HGTV has contacted me about filming their new reality show, Gardens Gone Wild? (Not.)

Peace out, people.