Last week we hosted what is now our annual Summer Solstice celebration in the garden for our friends and neighbours, a day that ostensibly marks the first day of summer, but here, this year on the left coast, full blown summer has been with us for the past 2 months. Traveling in these summer months is not possible, as caretakers of this jungle we have created. Mindful of water consumption we are careful to handwater, or shrubblify only those plants that need it – new additions still establishing themselves or the potted plants, which is still not insignificant – ~40 fuchsias, 4 brugmansias, 4 strawberries, 3 cherry tomatoes, a few agapanthus, cannas, giant red banana, 5 Japanese maples, GreenHouse hibiscus, window box annuals, a few potted bamboos and other assorted things I may be forgetting to mention.

Prisoners. Of Paradise.

Except when a Pink Martini is involved. Continue reading →

We recently returned from a 9-day road trip to the southern interior of the province on a quest for a change of scenery, through the coast mountains, through the Similkimeen valley, ending up (coincidentally?) in the primo wine country of the Okanagan.

It was a fine time! Continue reading →

Howard warned his son that when you are young, all you get is a hangover. When you get to be our age, you have a near-death experience.

I sit here under the big table umbrella in The Garden sipping my Diet Root Beer, blissed out after a long walk on the beach earlier this morning. It’s quiet and peaceful and I’m in Post Son’s Visit rehab. Where we live we usually can’t hear any traffic – the only sounds are the wind in the trees on the adjacent lot to the back, the fountain, the hummingbird dive bombing past my head and… oh no, Navid, the gardener from next door, just fired up his lawn edger. Oh well, can’t rain on my parade, the garden is filling out rapidly, the bamboo is shimmering in the breeze, the poppies are blooming and the allium have flower heads a foot in diameter. I’m not making that up, I measured. The new little fig tree has a single fig ripening and the lavender buds are about to explode in purple madness causing the bees to go berserk. Flip flops and pedal pushers. Summer is here and the living is definitely easy. Continue reading →