I don’t know if it is just me but there are certain things that just taste better when other people make them. Take iced tea, for instance. Probably the easiest thing in the world to make yet it never tastes quite right when I make it. Tuna salad is another one. Why is that?
Saturday was an iced tea kind of day. Sunny, warm (it got up into the low 80’s here) and spent weeding. I finished the beds around the house and now I just have the big bed in front of the garden shed to do. Lest anyone gets a romantic notion about any type of garden shed I might have let me set you straight. It’s actually made with chain link fence walls on two sides (with slats of wood woven into the chains), wood walls on the other two sides and it has a tarp for a roof. It was actually a kennel before we moved in.
We tacked on a pen for the goats on one side and the other side (that faces the bed I need to weed) is planted with jasmine which climbs up the chainlink fence and at least hides it’s true ugliness when you are approaching it from the driveway.
Before you enter it you have to stomp about a bit so the rats are warned. Sometimes they scatter and hide, other times they just sit nibbling the goats hay (which is stored in the shed) and look balefully at you when you walk in.
You also have to kind of kick things before you pick them up to warn the black widow spiders that you are there so they have time to scatter and hide.
My dream garden shed would be a small stone, one room structure with a convervatory attached to one side. I would have a sink with lots of counter space for potting and arranging flowers. There would be shelves and shelves of my vases and pots. An old shabby dresser for my trowels and clippers. A bookcase for all my gardening tomes and an overstuffed chair in the corner were I could curl up and read.
There would be no spiders or rats invited in. Just the cat and dog who could curl up on the old oriental rug in front of the small fireplace.
The problem with such a shed is I would probably spend all my gardening time inside of it rather than out tending to the weeds.
I know what you mean about things tasting better when other people make them, I’m like that with salads. I bought a Mr. Coffee Ice Tea Maker and it makes the best tea and it’s fast. You can have cold ice tea in just a couple minutes. Your ice tea looks so good, now I’ll be craving ice tea all day!
I love the photo at the top of your blog – it gives such an air of gracious elegance. Your dream garden shed sounds wonderful and I’m definitely with you on the no rats and no spiders part:) Particularly no spiders – and particularly no black widow spiders! At least in UK our spiders tend to be reasonably small and non-poisonous. I shall be back to read more, a quick look has shown me that you like gardening, roses and antique linens. I tick all of those boxes too. Why don’t you open that antique linen store,follow your dream……
I wish I could see my gardens-we got a foot of snow last Friday in NH!
I am happy to have discovered your blog, though it is winter and now 2008.
I like gardening, too. I have room for tomato plants 3 and love to watch the morning glories bloom in the back yard. I like the idea of the Sombreiul climbing rose, perhaps I can get one for the front yard near the front window. I also want to plant foers that attract butterflies.