Dogwood green

My flowering dogwood surrounded by the green of Spring. I left the photo blurry. I sharpened it, but liked it better with a little blur. This was taken on a rainy evening. They are still pretty much in bloom, some have fallen off the tree onto the grass like huge snowflakes. I dreamt about white flowers floating down from out of the sky the night before they fell. It was beautiful.

I like to do the crossword puzzle in my daily newspaper. I am currently on March 24th. I do the crossword, the cryptoquip (cryptogram) and the jumbo (jumble word scramble) puzzles. All word puzzles. I have tried a few of the sudoku's but they aren't my forte. If it is the morning, give me a good cup of hot coffee and the puzzles. If it is afternoon or evening, iced tea will suffice. And I am in heaven. Sometimes the television will be on in the background, sometimes not. This is probably why I have to watch movies a second or third time. Distraction.

In all honesty, I have been doing the crossword long enough so that I understand the author's lingo and terminology enough to work them. When I first began, I had not a clue what an Epee was and other clues and would have to peek at the next day's answers to finish solving the puzzle.

Rarely would ninety minutes or two hours go by in my house without some form of chaos or madness. Too many pets for that. For some strange reason my dog has started snapping at our cat, Precious. Since my sister has moved back into her farm house she may be getting this cat back. She can be very needy. In fairness to my dog she does give quite a few warning growls to the cat, but she isn't the brightest crayon in the box.

My cats have been enjoying the open windows and doors. They gaze out of the screens. When there are birds or squirrels in the yard they chatter. Have you heard a cat chatter? I have only heard it this year. My daughter pointed it out to me. I have two cats that chatter while watching their "prey" in the yard. Only the dog goes outside, though. Precious does run out whenever somebody leaves the door ajar for too long. She is easy to catch because she is out there rolling around on my patio or driveway.

Oooh, I purchased a hydrangea. I have been wanting one for about four years, but was hesitant because I was not sure how difficult they are to get started and to keep them growing. I have taken the plunge, and am nervous. I worry that I will kill it. Either by neglect or over watering it or something. I need to read up on the flower and get some good ideas. The gardener said she planted hers on the west side of her house and it gets more sun than not. She also stated that she pruned it too much last fall and it won't be blooming this year. Yikes. What if I do that?

But I'll tell you what. My peonies on the west side are going to be stunning again this year, but the bush on the east side is a little bit slower. It is still alive, though. The first year I didn't think it was going to make it. They were my first flowers that I planted when I purchased my house. Perennials.

I also have a flat of marigolds to plant. I am weird. I actually like the smell of marigolds. I love orange flowers. The ones I picked out are a blood red orange. I have some dirt(y) work to do.