Not a weak week!

Last weekend it was back to the woods with the guys, this time to lead the "Brotherhood Walk" for the Order of the Arrow.

The trail I take the "brothers" on is very seldom used ... probably only by my lead walks several times a year ... and I have to make at least two walks to clear a path under, around, or through fallen trees and dispose of branches and logs across the narrow path.

Aside from scratched arms, the day went well and I stayed to attend an Eagle Board of Review, (being a convenient opportunity as there were several other members of the council advancement committee there for the weekend.) I did not stay for the feast and it was already late when I returned home.

Sunday after church, was our second to last rehearsal for "Choir Sunday" coming up this week.

Monday I left home at 4:00 as usual for rice delivery but when I got to church for picking up the onigiri, there was nothing in the cabinet. The building was locked up tight so I could only turn around and drive back home. As it turned out, the rice was put in the fridge because Sunday had been very hot and the team was afraid of it spoiling over night. No one moved it out in the evening when it cooled off. Two hours wasted and I had to drop off Nikko with her breakfast and rush out the door to school.

Tuesday was even busier. I had to bring the car around from my parking space and unload all the camping gear from the back ... plus the craft items that still remained from Cub camp. Then it was off to find a station I had never driven to ... to pick up Norie and Hiro and Wally Higgins, as we were scheduled to make another rescue run to his garden in Shizuoka. Driving on unknown roads is a big challenge to me and I have to admit at least every trip takes me on at least one "scenic" lap.

Though our start was through rush-hour traffic, we made it pretty far along the highway and decided to stop for an early lunch while the heavy traffic cleared. Above is the view of Fuji from our lunch table.

With Wally riding shotgun, the only scenic routs were the intended ones, but Mt. Fuji and the hills of tea bushes and the fresh new greenery were scenic enough.
At Wally's garden we all lit into an active rescue of what might be saved.

Hiro set to digging up flagstone from the garden paths and filled the area in front of the back seats with big heavy rocks. Norie set out to collect more Spanish moss from the trees and plants from the garden. Some for herself and some for friends.

My goal was bringing back hanging pots that I can put on the walls surrounding my own garden ... partly to hide the ugly cement blocks and also for garden space. I also collected multiple hooks for hanging planters and some really nice pots that I just couldn't let pass. There were lots of ceramic pots which I prefer to the plastic ones that things seem to come in these days, but looking at what Norie was setting outside the car, I decided to leave them behind.

Wally led me to a few orchids attached to trees that we had missed the last trip and they are now clinging to a new location. I filled up the space behind the back row of seats with several boxes of things I wanted. Oh, there were a few hanging plants as well, but now I have all those hooks so why not something to hang on them?

Finally I was beginning to get a little anxious about the amount of vegetation piling up beside the van and afternoon was coming to a close. I had thought of taking the train back to Tokyo and letting Hiro drive to their place and return the car later ... but he was tired from moving rocks and I am unfamiliar with the bus and trains I would need to return home ... and would miss my evening meeting anyway, so decided to drive Norie and Hiro to their place, unload their items, and then find my way home.

We had some drinks of cool tea and latched on to some rescue items from the house.
Norie took this shot of Wally at his garden gate as we pulled out of the narrow space on to another narrow road around a rice paddy and onto the main road.

Even this foggy-looking shot shows his big garden and lovely vintage home. He has moved most of his things to Tokyo but is still making trips during the week to sort through what still remains before the house is sold. It is most probable that whoever buys the property will destroy the house and garden to put in a modern building. I wonder if I could ever leave such a house and garden and can well imagine how glad he is for items going to new homes where they will be loved and cherished.

We made it to Tamagawa Gakkuen using my google map on the mobile phone with Norie's help and Hiro resting in the middle seats among the containers filled with plants.

Everything got unloaded from the middle and rear seat areas in good season and Norie set the phone map with voice instructions for finding my way home in the dark.

It was much more of a "scenic" route home ... just to get back to the highway ... only too dark to enjoy the scenery. The voice would say, "turn right, then right again" so I would get over into the right lane and when I reached the intersection it would say, "turn left". Finally I found the highway and could ignore the voice the rest of the way.

I got the items unloaded at my gate and the camping gear back into the rear where my boxes had been. Nikko was glad to see me and jumped into the car for the ride back to my parking space.
When we returned home, the phone was ringing and Norie was calling with worried voice to see if I made it home, saying my first turn when I left their place was in the wrong direction. (so much for the voice instructions)!

Well, it was way past my bed time and Wednesday was a work day ... walk and feed the dog and hit the station by 6:15.

After school, there was a lovely late "Appreciation lunch" for the teachers and staff given by the parents, so instead of departing I stayed and enjoyed the festivities and talking with my fellow teachers with whom there is seldom time for a chat during a normal  day.

After a week of hot sunny days and time for ME, Thursday turned out to be rainy.

My first goal was to find places to put the goodies that were now in my care. There was a whole day of "musical pots" something like musical chairs without the music... That came in the evening during out final choir practice.

The little pink-white cactus flower in the picture above was blooming to the right of the azalea bushes along the east side of the house.

I had set those cacti there to discourage the local cats from using the soil for their business (however, in the small space by the lily, seen with multiple buds, was a large deposit of cat poop.

Above the garden gate the biwa are beginning to ripen.

And, as I sorted through the pots on the step below the gate leading into the garden, I noticed a few volunteers coming up.

Maybe I will put them in pots and take them to camp to plant.
I'm sure the wild birds would enjoy the ripening fruit .

In a hanging pot on the gate, I found this succulent beginning to bloom.


This was a rescue from an earlier trip to Wally's garden.


Since it is a new plant to me, I am always surprised by when or how  ... or even if ... things will bloom.

The Easter cactus sitting outside my third floor greenhouse on top of the air conditioner unit has finally decided to bloom.
Maybe it was waiting for the orchid in the background to finish up.

My plants don't seem to like competition.

And, just on the other side of the window, another spiky succulent,
that was an even earlier rescue from Wally's house , has put out spikes in every direction of these tiny flowers.

Thursday turned out to be another crammed day of getting things settled amid the showers and ending with choir filling up what was left of the day (and evening).

Today I must do laundry and it can be hung inside.

Meanwhile, this is really a quilting blog and with new babies coming like the spring rain, I have measured and marked and cut an alphabet quilt for the next customer.
Yesterday during a rain-break, I laid out the pieces to find a good order of colors to go with the prints. I have only now to choose the fabrics for the alphabet and get a good balance of color, then I can begin  stitching the blocks together. If the rain continues through the day, I may have something to show before another week flies by.