New improvements in the kitchen and garden!

Well it has been many months since Mr did much to improve the shore side farmhouse. It is at times a painful place to live. When this happens I have to remind myself to look out at the view, and not the one hundred and fory year old ruins, and take it all in.  I am getting used to seeing that view and using that sight for spiritual renewal. There is something about the constant of the natural world, alive and vibrant that can lift a spirit and bring one back to a better mental place. I am ashamed to admit that it doesn't do much with my patience for the situation, but it does make me feel momentarily calmer. Living in an old maid, is like living in the past. It can be very painful.

Well there was one positive change in my living situation this week. Stupid and negligible as it may be I was glad when Mr installed the kitchen pendant light I bought for over the kitchen table.

It was purchased over six months ago. It has been patiently sitting in the box, and I have not so patiently been pushing to get it installed. Mr is really talented and smart, but not so motivated. Time and circumstances take their toll, and we are definitely talking toll here. But, it did get done, be it more than six months past due. I am very pleased with the way it looks, modern and fresh. It is also super to have light on the table, and food, when going to eat. My end of the table was dark and I could barely see what was on the dish. Mr's end was bright and light. I wonder why there was a lack of motivation? The former fixture was installed in 1970 or so by the previous owners. Leaded slag glass chandeliers were oh so "in" then. Now they are long "out" and pretty dowdy. I needed a jolt of the 2000s. This does it. So here are some pictures:

Its not perfect yet, but it is pretty damn good. The chains on it are a bit long since they are designed for high cathedral ceilings, but we will shorten them somewhere along the line.  There are some adjustments built into the light, so we are learning how to use them to make it better. At some point we will have to remove some chain and haul up some of the wiring. It still looks damn good if you ask me. What do you think? 

I also put out my new little fun item from the Christmas Tree shop, a very colorful table runner. I could not resist the combination of violet and turquoise. It makes my silly heart sing. I so miss my little comforts of color, serving pieces and linens. I like having a nice fine home, and this isn't one. I miss it. I am not sure just how long I can hold on here without it. Fine things like these, and organizational tools like closets mean too much to me, so living here is painful much of the time. The lack of those comforts makes living and keeping house difficult. I know the ghosts of previous residents of this place laugh at me in the fifth dimension..."amateur" and "just a WIMP" seem to resonate in my bones. Hey, I am a modern kind of being with a country comfort streak...Speaking of which I did momentarily achieve part of the dream yesterday. I actually cut a small bouquet of flowers from my garden. Nothing to boast about, but enough to enjoy immensely, especially in conjunction with my table runner and new kitchen fixture. Here are some photos of my bouquet. It made me smile and my heart sing...a simple melody, but it did sing!

It has been raining here for three days, so the flowers in the garden are very very  very happy. Too bad it didn't rain while I was away, I might still have some pots of beautiful annuals coloring my entry!

It is raining as I write, I welcome it, and I am enjoying the saturated colors in the garden. The crape myrtles are full and beautiful.  The weight of the water on them has brought them down to eye level and they are smashingly beautiful.  When I went outdoors yesterday I was pleasantly surprised to be enveloped in wonderful scents, which turned out to be the pink crape myrtle. The violet one on the left is pretty awesome too, though, I don't detect a scent in that one. The crape myrtles put on quite a show in the summer here. They are wonderful, and their bark is a beautiful green and red color in the winter. I love them.Wow, a treat!

Other plants are also reviving in the showers.  The Rudebeckia are reborn. They were so forlorn, I was heartbroken. I rely on them for cut flowers and for heart lifting color. Not this year. But as of yesterday that has changed! Here are some comparison photos so see the before the rain and after the rain photos. It is a dramatic change!

               Before the rain above left                                                         After the rain above right

These two photos are the exact same bed. It does have sprinklers, and soaker hoses, and it has been watered several times a day for the past two months, but look at what a good soaking of rain can do for the bed. They have just opened up like they are preparing to give me a hug. Like a good shower and clean up for us humans I guess. Under any circumstances I am very grateful for the change.