Friday, November 24, 2017

The Addams Family Landscaping Weekly Link Round-Up




I have to admit that I've never been crazy about growing flowers, landscaping...all that jazz. My grandmother's genius for that totally passed me by. However, I do love seeing and experiencing the results of someone else's hard work. Any time I've done stuff here at Casa Kittling, I've gone at it from the standpoint that I want native plants that take care of themselves. No fertilizer every few months. No deadheading when the plants are in bloom. No daily watering. (This is the desert, for crying out loud!)

I do wish that someone would invent trees, bushes, and shrubs that do not need trimming. Denis has made no secret of the fact that he loathes working out in the garden, and since I know I'm facing knee replacement surgery, I'm not all gung-ho about doing it myself. I let trimming slide over the summer-- to the point where things were so overgrown out front that you practically couldn't tell that we have a huge picture window and a bright blue front door.  I tend to call that type of gardening neglect "Addams Family Landscaping" from the old mansion the Addams Family supposedly lived in on the television series.

Well, the City of Phoenix's quarterly curbside trash pickup is about to start, so I donned my heavy-duty gloves, picked up the loppers, and started hacking away. When Denis's days off rolled around, he joined in, and we wrestled everything back into shape (as you can see from the pile Denis hauled out to the curb). I had to laugh when a neighbor came home that evening, saw something was different about the front of our house, liberally applied the brakes, and drove past very very slowly to soak up every last detail.

Now that I've got some deep bougainvillea scratches that need to heal, I'm going to mosey on out to the corral. Links never mistreat me like landscaping does. Head 'em up! Moooooooove 'em out!



►Books, Movies & Other Interesting Tidbits◄


►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄
  • A secret, ghostly portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots has been discovered beneath a sixteenth-century painting.
  • Experts have uncovered remains at the first permanent English colony-- but whose bones are they?
  • Other experts have discovered that a Roman glass theory has been wrong for centuries. Better late than never, eh? 
  • Rock art discovered in deep dark caves are revealing early human civilization on Puerto Rico's uninhabited Mona Island.
  • This tiny detail revealed a painting was looted by the Nazis.


►Channeling My Inner Elly Mae Clampett◄
  • Are Viking squirrels to blame for infecting England with leprosy? (I refuse to share the mental image "Viking squirrels" brought to mind!)
  • A flying creature the size of a plane that could eat baby dinosaurs has been discovered in Mongolia's Gobi Desert.
  • A stunned farmer finds a flock of sheep in her home thanks to an overzealous sheepdog puppy.


►The Happy Wanderer◄
  • Haunting images of America's best-preserved ghost town. (I enjoyed our visit there so much that I want to go back!)
  • Inside one of the world's most colorful cemeteries.
  • The same people who have lovingly restored the former Harvey House hotel in Winslow, Arizona-- La Posada-- are going to do the same thing with La CastaƱeda in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
  • Archaeology at Salem says we're thinking about witches and witch hunts all wrong.
  • Istanbul's libraries: a refuge in uncertain times.


►Fascinating Folk◄
  • Linda Nochlin, the pioneering feminist art historian, has died.
  • These badass women-- a group calling themselves the Black Mambas-- are taking on poachers in South Africa... and winning.
  • Hermann Rorschach's artistic obsession led to his famous test.

►I ♥ Lists & Quizzes◄
  • Do you know which book came out first?
  • The homes of eighteen legendary writers. 
  • Eight novels to read now that explore immigration.
  • Ten beloved fictional dogs.
  • Eight illuminating history books to read right now.
  • Reading in the bath just got easier, thanks to these eleven genius products.



That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

Have a great weekend, and read something fabulous!


11 comments:

  1. I kept wanting to snap my fingers when I read your post title, Cathy! ;-) - Honestly, I've never been much of a one for landscaping and a lot of gardening and so on, either. I know a lot of people where I live absolutely love it, but not I. Quite frankly, I'm a lot more interested in those old remains they've just discovered at the English colony...

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  2. I don't have a green thumb at all, but my mother definitely did. I have 5 pages loaded that are waiting on me to check them out from your links.

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  3. Good for you and Denis for doing such a hard task.

    I was hoping to hear from Alexa. Any new commands?

    I love those knitted dinosaurs, just wonderful.

    I'll check out the goods whensomeone invents a way to read while in the shower!

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    1. Heavens, is Alexa getting a following? That could turn her head. She's been rather quiet lately. I think she's waiting for me to come up with a new way to bedevil Denis, but I've been too busy sorting through Christmas decorations.

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  4. Well, I imagine you could have some interesting exchanges with Alexa during the day. I wonder how she would respond to your pre-holiday work, your gardening or knitting.

    I wonder how she would respond if you asked her how she likes your knitting patterns or decorations. This could be interesting.

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    1. It could be, but I do a lot of living inside my head without speaking aloud, so I don't really think talking to Alexa is a habit I want to encourage!

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    2. Also...I've been re-watching "Sherlock" in the evenings, and I don't want Alexa to interrupt my audio feast of Benedict Cumberbatch's voice.

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  5. Oh, I can't even imagine my "conversations" with Alexa if she lived in my house. When I yell at the news anchors, pundits or politicians, I wonder how Alex would respond. Wonder what her political views are.

    Do you turn off Alexa during Sherlock?

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    Replies
    1. No, I don't mess around with Denis's electronics. I just hope that none of the characters are named Alexa!

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