WHAT DO YOU SAY (AFTER ‘THANK YOU’) when someone sends you something thoughtful but, well, um, you’re just not an orange person? This latest doodle from Andre Jordan reminds me of all those holiday gifts I never wore but just couldn’t throw out, either. Of course, I actually like pink with orange, but then there’s no accounting for taste, is there?
doodle by andre: it’s all a matter of taste
October 29, 2009
the mixed blessing of the asian lady beetle
October 28, 2009
IS THAT A LEAK I HEAR COMING FROM THE UPSTAIRS BATHROOM? Oh, right, no; it’s just the annual shower of Asian lady beetles dropping, one by one, off the screen or the outer window onto the sill–drip, drip, drip (above). The south side of the house is crawling with the creatures. These non-native “ladybugs,” introduced by the Department of Agriculture to help combat certain agricultural pests, have made themselves right at home in America—and want to do so in my house every October, too. The annual argument about who’s welcome here is under way. [Read more...]
learning to love another mum: ‘sheffield pink’
October 26, 2009
ANOTHER MUM IS TRYING TO WOO ME. This time it’s someone a lot less brash than my longtime one-and-only, but despite the quieter demeanor, it’s starting to grow on me. What do you think of ladylike ‘Sheffield Pink’ (or just plain ‘Sheffield,’ as it’s also called)? [Read more...]
a friend shares another peek indoors
October 23, 2009
WHO TOOK THAT PHOTO IN MY LIVING ROOM? When your lunch guest is as crafty and charming as founder Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan of the popular Apartment Therapy blog network, all you need to do is turn your back for a moment and poof! He’s off peering at your world through his Canon–and look what happens: an impromptu take on where I live, write, and ruminate–which Maxwell published as a newsletter to his readers just the other day. I am always fascinated to see what surprises other people see in spaces that to me look so familiar. You can view read his email and see the other photos here. You may recall it was Maxwell’s wife, Sara Kate, who showed you my kitchen.
doodle by andre: my kingdom for a shed
October 22, 2009
FETISHES COME IN ALL DIMENSIONS AND DESCRIPTIONS, and Andre’s is shaped like a shed–a very unusual shed. My only questions: [Read more...]
will i be seeing you at wordcamp nyc?
October 21, 2009
HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A YEAR HAS PASSED since the first WordCamp New York City, which I was proud to co-sponsor to try to express some of the gratitude for what the blogging platform called WordPress has given me–and by extension to you, too, dear readers, since without WordPress I could not invite you into my garden and communicate with you this way. A Way to Garden is built on WordPress, as is the blog network I started late last year, The Sister Project. The upcoming WordCamp, an opportunity for all levels of bloggers to learn more about this powerful tool and network with others using it, will be November 14 and 15 in New York City. Will I see you there? Ticket registration information is here.
slideshow: a few glimpses of fiery fall
October 19, 2009
I FEEL ANCHORED TO THE LAPTOP, TUCKED INSIDE WRITING madly to meet the book deadline I’ve assigned myself. But even a prisoner deserves a walk in the prison yard now and again, right? And so out I went, for a few minutes here and there the last week, and here’s the evidence: [Read more...]
I WAS BLESSED TO visit many of the nation’s finest homemade gardens for 15 years for ‘Martha Stewart Living,’ first as garden editor and then as editorial director. The places we published included my rural New York State home. Want to know more 
