Last fall I planted a bunch of pansies in the bare flower bed in a corner by the back door of my apt. building. Syrprisingly, most of them made it through the winter & were blooming in March, even through a couple dustings of snow. They were also multiplying, which was great. A few gaps were in the flower beds, so I bought some new plants to fill in, though they look more spindly than last years'. My iris bulbs also sprouted & finally bloomed, so now they don't look like a row of onions in the back. At their zenith, there was 10 iris flowers blooming at once. They're my favorite flower, so all that rich purple was lovely to behold.
   A former neighbor had planted hostas last year, which returned, but they aren't very big yet, so I put circles of petunias around them, which adds some color. The petunias are next to the pansies, but the 2 sections are divided by a drainage pipe. The photos don't capture how lush the pansies are or the shades of the petunias, but you get an idea. Those areas had been bare dirt for 4 or 5 years since the maitenence   crew cut down the forsythia bushes, so all the flowers are a welcome change.
 

  I finally downloaded the pics I've taken over the last few months, so I'll be posting some of them here later this week.In the meantime, though you can read an essay I wrote about my favorite poem, Langston Hughes "Dreams" on the literary website Vulpes Libris during their 2nd Annual Poetry Week. Here's the link to my essay http://bit.ly/aP6ai6
   A real update from me will be coming within a few days.

   It's LGBT Week on the literary website and my review is of "Fingersmith" by Sarah Waters. To see what the title means & learn more about this riveting historical novel, please go to this link= http://bit.ly/dkKXGr

  My latest book review is up on the website Vulpes Libris. It's about F. Scott Fitzgerald's novella, "Benjamin Button". I haven't seen the movie to compare, but people who have, said it's very different than the book & some people who have only seen the film summed it up by just saying "It was long." which is remarkable, considering how short the book is. Anyways, if you want to see what i thought of the book, here's the link=   http://bit.ly/cPDRGY 

  Oh dear, I've turned into one of those people who don't update their blogs.
   Starting the last week of March, I was having severe pain on the left side of my face, which was eventually diagnosed as a flare-up of TMJ, a jaw joint disorder. It was some of the most excruciating pain I've ever experienced. Chewing made it worse, so for several weeks I was on liquids,which had to be room temperature and was drinking through a straw. I was fantasizing about hamburgers & tuna salad sandwiches while sipping mushroom soup. Eventually, the right medicine solution was found to deal with the pain and just last week I began eating soft foods again.
   The last weekend in April, the 24-25th, was a 2 day art show in the Cleveland Metroparks, Naturefest.I really needed to feel half decent to participate, which thankfully I did. There was a lot of new & returning artists, but we didn't have a very profitable weekend, since it rained most of the time. On Sunday there was a big thunderstorm in the afternoon, cancelling all of the outdoor activities. The artists were allowed to take down their displays early, because there was no one there. Luckily, it stopped raining for everyone to load up their cars after the show.
   I've spent the last week trying to complete a special order painting which I need to deliver mid-week. I'm taking a short break while the paint dries.
   Dora is fine and eating hay as I write this.
   I took a bunch of photos at Naturefest, but haven't downloaded them yet. When I finish the painting, I'll do that & then post some here. And I'll also try to update more frequently, too.