Always graceful, The Botanist preferred the out-of-doors, and unequivocally thought food sacred. He worked his garden to perfection, growing a wide variety of produce for his family, neighbors, and friends.

We lost him today, late in the afternoon, during a spring that came unseasonably early, allowing him to watch the asparagus become pickable by mid-March (unheard of here in SoMI), and the weeds march across the garden plot, except for the strawberry bed, weeded with care by my bro several weeks back.

It reached almost 80°F this afternoon, and—even with the time change—I can’t believe it’s March (in Michigan).

The sunshine tempted The Botanist out, where he perched on the broad redwood-board steps and surveyed his terrain—especially the garden between the lawn and the fence, and the maize-stubbled field beyond. The rich soil is now banded with weeds—need to get those turned under…tomorrow?—and think about what veggies to plant….

Hands down, the biggest excitement of the day around here was the arrival of The New Chair, carried in by two guys whose sartorial choices trended camo. Note, too, the elegant and very cool IKEA LED lamp on the lazy susan (which you can’t see from this angle and which we introduced to this tableau last week).

I have obtained a new skill. It’s not one I sought out, but now that I have it, well, I have it. Together, the lovely C and I set up and carried out an IV drip for the Botanist, draining a high-powered antibiotic straight into his personal command central.

Apologies for the lack of inventiveness. On the other hand, this architectural wonder (ha!) could me my Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen; of course, I’m no Monet, and I’m not painting this view.

Not sure why this image appealed to me today; perhaps it was because I spent the day, you could say, working in the shadows.

But here, after the freeze, we have one daffodil that’s still standing, that didn’t bow under the cold temps.

And here’s my wine, so happy valentine’s day!

Going with abstract….

No cake and candles, today, but we did celebrate Someone’s 86th. (No, crabcakes are not cake. Nor are brownies.)

Sometimes, this works for life, too—you bob your head a bit to the side (or up or down), and change the angle (or even the focal point), and pufffft, life is better.

…spotted first by the Guru (but my photograph).

Wonder how these would look on an aging Ford Explorer?