Tales from the Microbial Laboratory

I've certainly done it, have you?

R.E.M. 'Gardening at Night'

~~~~~

Natalie Merchant sings poetry

Years ago I went to a Natalie Merchant concert at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center and it was just terrible, for a whole bunch of reasons:  her stage presence was annoying to me (a tad melodramatic) and the audience was loud and moving around alot, so you could barely hear her sing.  But this...Natalie Merchant singing poetry - is just wonderful.  And her voice isn't competing with the guy's voice in front of me either.  Sweet. 

~~~~~

'Oh, airstream driver...'

~~~~~

Gomez – Airstream Driver

Song Words by Artist / Band : Gomez
From the Album : A New Tide

All the angels on the wire
Getting dizzy from the heights
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, airstream driver

She shoots but never misses
Stare down, passin’ traffic
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, airstream driver

I would return the favour
Oversleep the rapture
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, airstream driver

Your watermelon candy mouth
The penthouse at the sands
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, airstream driver

Go go go go carefully, airstream driver

~~~~~

Miranda Lambert 'Airstream Song'

~opening song from 'Up in the Air'

Sharon King and the Dap Kings

This Land is Your Land 

Love Sharon Jones!

(Now one might ask the question:  why did someone who recently lost their job go to see the movie 'Up in the Air'?  Now that is a very, very good question...).

Now, 2010 has gotta be a better year.

~some days are just Nina Simone kinda days~

~Nina Simone, Harlem, 1969~

~a song from down the street~

~Ipomoea indica, oceanblue morning glory~ 

I spoke too soon about this morning glory a week or so ago - it's on my front fence, attracting a county's worth of cotton aphids (and not looking so good in the process) - and so what does it decide to do?  Bloom like a crazy thing.  What a pleasant surprise.

~~~~~

I enjoyed hearing today that someone from my very own neck of the woods won 1st place in the Coastal Conservation League's 'Music with a Message' contest.  Very cool.  Corey Webb will be playing this Saturday during the SC Green Fair at Marion Square.  Here's his winning song, titled 'Coastal Conservation Coconut'.

~~~~~

~a mood~

~moss on a clay pot, in grayscale~

You've had those days, those funky-wish-it-would-rain all day days, when your battery on the cell goes low and you let it die for awhile, because your mood is even boring to yourself so why would you want to bore someone else?  One of those moods where you feel the opposite of 'light' and would hate to have your mood infect an otherwise beautiful late September day.  What ashame that would be!  So instead of washing your hands a million times (for fear of transferring this mood to others) you choose not to attend a festive gathering that included a pinata and a trip to watch a roller derby match (are they called matches?  does anyone know this?).

The Microbial Lab's Poet Laureate emailed me that a line in the play she saw last night - 'A Year of Magical Thinking' - reminded her of me:  "getting nibbled to death by ducks" and I thought 'Wow!  She's right' and then... 'How horrible is that?'  My dysfunctional work situation is now beyond bizarre and if I could explain it to you I would - but then I'd bore you...and there's no point in that tonight.  Luckily a few others have decided to carry the torch for awhile - and with much gratitude I will let them.  I'm exhausted and crave quiet and happy dogs and a growing vegetable garden and no storms out in the Atlantic.  I want to sit and listen to Bebel Gilberto sing - a voice that a good friend recommended to me earlier today and by God he's right, she's good - really good.  So instead of infecting you with my boring nonsense, I'll share a bit of Gilberto with you.

~~~~~   

~cannas, my friend Candice and Britney Spears~

  

~Canna americanallis var. variegata 'Pretoria'~

~~~~~

A few days ago I posted a grayscale image of the variegated foliage of 'Pretoria' - I like the striking pattern on the leaves, and for many years I've cut off the flowers.  This year I didn't, and I must say that the bright yellow and orange flowers in combination with the variegated foliage is...something that I never thought I'd hear myself say that I like.

But I do.

I mean, striking is striking.  This canna is not shy about having it's presence known.  In fact, it's screaming about as loud as a plant can scream.

(Do you think Britney Spears would like this canna?  I'm guessing so.)

And while I'm on the topic of unusual combinations, I laughed for much of the day over something a friend from graduate school told me yesterday.  We both worked in labs in the same building - she was working on her doctorate in horticultural - and she's now at Kansas State University on the faculty.  Well, it seems that a few months ago, she was quoted in an article about Britney Spears and her new-found love of gardening.

From a piece in the UK's The Sun titled 'Why Britney digs getting dirty':

 BRITNEY Spears is getting down and dirty in the garden to overcome her health demons.

The troubled star, who has battled booze and drug problems, is a fan of flower therapy.

A source close to the star says: "Britney has tried every kind of therapy going. This time seems different though. She's committed to learning as much as she can about horticulture and how it impacts your well being."

And there are plenty of studies confirming the health benefits of digging the beds.

Researchers at Kansas State University found gardeners have better overall physical health, self-esteem and hand strength.

Candice Shoemaker, professor of horticulture at the university, says: "If we had a larger sample I think we would see more health differences between those who garden and those who don't, including in areas like sleep quality and life satisfaction."

I'm guessing Candice never imagined that she'd be quoted in an article about Britney Spears.

And I never imagined that I'd like bright, crazy-orange flowers on top of such spectacular (and loud) canna leaves.

The world is indeed an interesting place.

~Canna americanallis var. variegata 'Pretoria'~

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~I'll be there...~

There's alot of words being written today about Michael Jackson.  I suppose there is alot to be said.  But this is the Michael Jackson that I'll remember - a young boy with a beautiful voice and amazing talent.

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