Spikey takes up Gardening

We got off to a slow start this morning and wanted to go to the nursery, so we decided to take Spike with us and walk around the neighborhood with him before going into the nursery. It is a beautiful old neighborhood of leafy trees and stately, beautifully maintained Victorian homes. It must be a popular dog walking neighborhood because Spike loved sniffing his way along the wide sidewalks ('reading the newspaper' as somebody once said) and running himself dry. By the end of the walk, I think his leg lifting was strictly pro forma as he had nothing left to add to the marking effort. I put a picture in extras of some of the houses that caught my eye. I liked the yellow house with the seafoam Vespa parked on the front walk. It reminded me of the house I grew up in, although it was neither stucco nor yellow and I included the little Queen Anne bungalow because it looked more inviting. It was also one of the few gardens in the neighborhood that had had its lawn taken out. I think it is still a work in progress....

Several of the houses were covered with red, white and blue bunting or flags in honor of the nation's birthday on the 4th of July. I can't say I feel like celebrating since the Supreme Court seems dead set on taking away the hard won freedoms achieved by women, minorities, and the LGBT communities. Now they have their sights set on dismantling environmental regulation. For the last decade, we have been telling ourselves 'this won't happen to us'. But it is happening, and it is alarming. 

The nursery specializes in blooming plants of all kinds and is located right on the edge of this stately neighborhood. It's small but crammed with blooming flowers and shrubs...manageable and cheerful and surprisingly not very busy on a day of cool sunshine...perfect for gardening.

Spike had to share his den in the back of the car with our purchases. I put down one of the seats in case he wanted to decamp into the back seat, but he didn't seem too bothered.