Plant a palm tree?

Pfffftttt! We'll build one.



We had an old, rusty outdoor light pole that no longer worked planted smack-dab in the middle of our yard. It was ugly and useless...so we made a palm tree outa it.

Ziggy cut 3 or 4 feet off the top and "wrapped" the rest with bamboo poles that had been cut in half. I had nine big silk banana leaves that I snagged on clearance somewhere a coupla years ago, so I wrapped 'em together and Zig stuck 'em in the top of the hollow pole.

We hung a parrot from one of the "branches" and screwed a buncha different signs...some store-bought...some I painted...to the "trunk".

Signage reads from top to bottom - Zig's River Rat Retreat; Key Largo - 1436 mi.; Happy Hour - It's Five O'Clock Somewhere; To The Bar; No Shoes, No Shirt? No Problem!

We added a coupla tin flamingoes and voila! One build-it-yerself Illinois Palm Tree. Eatcher heart out, Charlie Brown. heh



Yea, I know it's rushin the season a little. But it was about 75 degrees and absolutely gorgeous today. And I just can't wait another minute for summer. In fact, we made a trip to the local greenhouse yesterday, and I bought a couple of astilbes for the front yard and some really unusual coleus for our planter boxes that sit on the deck rail. They didn't have any springerii (asparagus fern) yet, so I'll hafta make another trip for those to plant alongside the coleus. I still need three Boston ferns, a fuschia, a hibiscus, a pot of some kinda shade-loving bloomer for the front...and a partridge in a palm tree. heh

There's a coupla thick, juicy rib-eyes and a mouth-waterin caprese salad hangin in the fridge. I'm gonna fry up a plateful of eggplant frittes and I believe we'll just dine al fresco this lovely spring evening. When it gets dark, I think we might build a fire in the chiminea that we moved down by the river (you can juuuust see it in the first photo), pull our chairs close and enjoy a nightcap of somethin or other.

Ahhhh...life is good.

Later that same day...


A happy little fire.


Twilight hush.


Yellow moon rising.