Close-up of zinnia

Today I ripped all of the cosmos out of this bed. I wish I had done that sooner as I really didn’t appreciate the gladiolus on the other side (not shown) as they were consumed by the cosmos. We planted all the box hedges and I planted 10 new iris rhizomes. They are one of the easier flowers to put in.

The zinnia and cosmos bed-they are over 5 feet tall! The butterflies are just loving it out there.

The raspberry color of the Gaura looks neat against the mica flecked rock!

This is Caryopteris (Bluebeard spirea) next to a Purple Majesty ornamental millet plant.

I’m really impressed! The guy on the end next to James Gandolfini and John Travolta use to ride on my school bus! I knew Todd was an Emmy winning screenwriter for a Billy the Kid tv movie back in 1994 (but check out all his writing and directing credits too). He wrote a movie screenplay called ‘White Squall’. I should have guessed he was doing really well when I read on our high school alumni page (class of ’77-my class) that he lives in Malibu, California! Rock on Todd! (I emailed Todd at the alumni site and told him to put one of these director photos on there).


From the Reeler: Things got considerably lighter following a screening of Todd Robinson’s film Lonely Hearts, which features a scowling John Travolta as a homicide detective on the trail of the 1940s’ notorious “Lonely Hearts Killers,” Ray Fernandez (Jared Leto) and Martha Beck (Salma Hayek)…
You know the 6 degrees of separation theory-well, when I was a teen I went to a car show to see the ‘cutest Sweathog’ John Travolta. I stood in line for 2 hours with my friend, you went up to a table where John sat, he looked at you and he signed the picture. I have it somewhere!

I way over did it in my iris garden today. It was such a beautiful day and the Fed Ex guy brought 10 more iris rhizomes-white, gold, blue and white, pale yellow-that’s all I remember. We arent’ going to be home for a few days next week and I knew I had to get them in the rock hard ground sooner not later. First I had to get to the area where I wanted to plant them. Out came the weed wacker again and zoom zoom-it attacked a lot of the weeds. The darn ww cap has a piece out of it now-the spring wants to come out of the middle (I think Bri did it when he was using it in the tomato patch). I’ll have to get a little duct tape to cover it or see if my mom has a spool cartridge from one of her old weed wackers. I also managed to get both Sean and Brian to help me plant the rest of my miniature box hedges-10 today but 15 in all. The dirt was horribly dry. I hope I got the rhizome roots covered good enough. I may toss some potting soil around them too. The tall grass was unbelievable. That’s what took the most time to clear out. I also pulled up cosmos (I saved seeds from them already). Everything was in and watered by 7:30. I’ll have to post a photo tomorrow. I like the little box hedges-but not their cemetery smell (though I heard the smell compared to cat’s litter box). I am utilizing the deep heat rub tonight.

Mike Douglas, Former Television Talk Show Host, Dies, AP Says
Aug. 11 (Bloomberg) — Mike Douglas, a former television talk show host and singer, died today in Florida, the Associated Press reported, citing his wife, Genevieve. Today was his 81st birthday.
Douglas died in a Palm Beach Gardens hospital at 5:30 a.m. after being admitted yesterday, AP said, citing his wife. She said Douglas had been receiving treatment for dehydration for the past few weeks, although his death was a surprise, AP reported.
Douglas hosted guests and performed big-band music on “The Mike Douglas Show” from 1961 to 1982. He interviewed seven former, sitting or future presidents, talked to Tiger Woods when the golfer was in preschool, and hosted about 30,000 guests during the show’s run, AP said, citing Douglas biographer Tom Kelly.
Born Aug. 11, 1925, Douglas worked as a staff singer at an Oklahoma City radio station before serving in the U.S. Navy in World War II, AP said. Douglas’s politeness on air in the 1960s and 1970s stood out from the anger prevalent in America at the time, AP said, citing Tim Brooks, executive vice president for Lifetime Television Network.
(AP 8-11)
Footnote:
I had the pleasure to be in the audience of the Mike Douglas show a few times when I was a teen. It was an awesome experience. He was a nice man who shined a little light on Philadelphia at the time.

APPETIZER

Tell about a toy you remember from your childhood.
I had a Hasbro Thumbelina doll that looked like a real baby. I slept with her, cut her hair and just loved her to pieces. She made up a litttle for not have a baby sister.

SOUP

If you could make one thing in the world absolutely free for everyone, what would it be?
At least one hot meal a day.

SALAD

Approximately how many times per day do you think about your significant other?
Several times. He calls me twice anyway to check up on me, which is nice. I wonder what he would like for dinner, etc. Just the other day (in my mind’s eye) I had him dressed like ‘Mr. Darcy’ from the DVD I was watching (Pride and Prejudice). He had the long jacket with the high waisted trousers and his curly hair was poufy-he looked-interesting! ; ) Sorta what I had in mind:

MAIN COURSE

What is something you believe in 100%

I’ve been reading blogs lately where the individuals said there is no God (actually two blogs and blogs I use to read all the time). I believe there is a power greater than us and that even the smallest things are miracles. I find it odd that people who have children may make this kind of statement.

DESSERT

Name one thing you have done this week that you would consider a “good deed.”
I went to my mom’s on the intention of taking her shopping and ended up cleaning half her kitchen.

Josh Blue won Last Comic Standing tonight. This is awesome for a young man with a disability, though he also plays soccer on a special nationwide team. He has cerebral palsy. Check out one of his earlier performances: