Sunday, April 18, 2010

Baked with love

Fixing this morning's breakfast revealed an unexpected culinary anomaly:

A cutout to die for — get it?
Pillsbury with payout potential?

Okay, so this tiny heart doesn't carry the religious significance of the Virgin Mary pretzel or Jesus Cheetos that occasionally make headline news. But since divine cuisine has become almost commonplace, I began to wonder if this secular biscuit might be considered rare and valuable among ebay bidders.

Realizing that a hunk of raw dough wouldn't ship as well as a baked item, I slid the cookie sheet into the oven and began imagining how I would spend my sudden windfall — then realized my mistake 20 minutes later.

Frozen Heart Warm Heart

No matter how good my intentions had been, the baked-til-golden-brown version appeared to be nothing more than a flaky biscuit.


You don't need to understand Japanese to realize the worldwide appeal of the item shown in this video:

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Ready to dig its roots in

Green fingers are the extension of a verdant heart.

Russell Page · British garden designer
1906 - 1985

Three months ago when I bragged about my inherited hydrangea, I could hardly wait for planting season to arrive — then when it did, I grew nervous and began to drag my feet.

North side of the house?
Not enough direct sunlight.

South side then?
No way, it would block the forsythia.

Back flowerbed?
In the only suitable spot for Grandmother's hosta?

Okay then, somewhere out in the yard?
Just another obstacle to mow around.

How in the world will I get it out of this big planter?
This dilemma eventually took care of itself when the rotten wood began to fall off, making the rest easy to remove.

But what if it becomes fungussy and diseased?
Hates living here and refuses to bloom?
Or just shrivels up and dies?
You'll never know at this rate, will you?

Finally settled on a location, dug a big hole, pushed it in. Even remembered to use root stimulator.

Out in front for the world to marvel at

And look what I found hiding under several years of dust in the garage —

An old fashioned hydrangea's best friend!

From pink... to purple... to blue