The weather turned dark and rainy as the week went on and so has my mood. This was the week of staying indoors and taking care of some business that has taken over my mind the past few months. But I still took time to get outside, at least a little bit.
Sunday was Mother's Day and after a long chat with Robyn we headed out for a stroll through Beacon Hill Park. The manure here must be strong (and not just the odour!) because every time we walk through the park the plants have shot up another foot. The giant rhubarb is the tallest and most scary looking, almost alien in appearance, as if aliens landed and pretended to be plants but weren't exactly sure how to blend in. We saw two peonies with blooms so large they were like dinner plates rather than flowers.
Dozens of peafowl were resting in the beds, between the plants, taking a break from all the tourists. I was struck by how many colours of peafowl there were. Grey, brown, white and speckled, all in addition to the blue headed show-offs.
Monday was back to work. A Zoom call here, a quick walk to do run errands there. All week was more of a dash around the block in the late afternoon to say I did it, rather than settling into nature.
One thing I noticed was how proper gardeners deal with spent daffodils. In Beacon Hill Park, the pull the plants up whole after flowering and take them away. I'm not sure if they let them air dry or plant them in a holding plot, but the beds are cleared and ready for new plants. What they don't do is cut the leaves, which I did on the balcony. Ah well. Live and learn.
Thursday was Moose Hide Day so I got outside earlier and joined the drizzly march from the Big House to the Legislature. Powerful stuff, with what looked like over 1000 people joining in. We filled a long block.
A couple days of rain has transformed this place again. It's been so dry and dusty but now everything is lush and deep, deep green. The Big Oak is so thick with leaves I can't see the harbour at all and only a sliver of the Empress Hotel roof. They're hanging heavily on the branches, in thick clusters, like wool socks on a laundry line.
Friday was a fun day. Cindy had a professional development day and I tagged along to listen to two Indigenous storytellers in the big auditorium at Oak Bay high school. It was rainy still, but after the talk we walked over to the Kiwanis Tea Room for lunch. We took the Bowker Creek trail to get there, which was my first time walking it. It's a restored creek bed running between some very nice and extremely quiet houses. The thought of living in Oak Bay tips my privilege-meter into the red zone, but my gosh there was one house that I would gladly inherit and manage to live with the guilt. Just a tiny, ultra tidy cottage backing right onto the trail. Bliss.
I left Cindy in the afternoon and walked over to Oak Bay Village before taking the bus home. It's prime Iris season and I saw some stunning colours, including a violet so dark it was nearly black.
what deep colour
deep purple
Garden update: The marigolds and cosmos are just starting to flower. I pinched off the blooms when I first planted them so they are bushier than usual, which is a good thing. My lettuce bed is full to bursting. Peas are growing, with the sweet peas winning that race. The garlic is getting stronger and straighter. And the bamboo is loving the new pot. I swear the bamboo grew three inches this week. It's looking like a proper garden right now.