Dragon Lily

We have had this plant for years. Once, long ago, a man came up to us at the Farmer's Market and asked if we'd like a bulb. We had to promise we'd plant it. And we did. Here it is at least 15 years later. It has spread a bit. The flower is amazing. The smell is not. It attracts flies by smelling like rotten meat. Luckily it only does that for a day or so. It is a kind of Arum.

I was rushing when I wrote the above. Arvin and I were going to pick up Helena to go to the final concert of the Whatcom Symphony Orchestra. Alessio Bax played Beethoven's Emporer Concerto with amazing skill and finesse. He and the orchestra melded like musical twins and everybody there was the benefactor of exquisite music. After the intermission the orchestra masterfully played Mahler's First Symphony. It was one of the best concerts we've heard. Bravo our wonderful local volunteer orchestra. It is in a class by itself.

After the concert we joined friends Allen and Susan for dinner at Brandywine and Mallard ice cream from the booth at the season!s end party taking place on Commercial Street. It was a lovely evening.

Thank you all for your kind words on my difficult day. They really helped. I am now feeling much better. I cancelled the carpet cleaning that was supposed to be tomorrow. I realized I couldn't deal with the chaos. The carpets will have to wait. And tonight when Arvin was grumpy as he has been at bed time recently, I realized he is sundowning, a term for dementia patients who experience a drop in mood and mental agility in the evening. I told Arvin about this and he suggested he wear a T shirt to let people know. I said, "How about this, 'Don't bother me! I'm sundowning.'" Then we both had a good laugh and both our moods improved. Ya gotta love a man who can turn a grumpy mood into a good laugh.