rain, rain, go away! come again another day!

new mat for the back door. "is it ME you're looking for.......?"

you know, i'm usually a great lover of fog and rain - but EVEN I am growing tired of it this year. it's felt like monsoon season around here lately (only without all of the lovely tropical temperatures and foods) and, frankly, i'm sick of it. sick, i tell you!

the one benefit, i hope, is that "Sweet April showers - Do spring May flowers." (courtesy Thomas Tusser, "A Hundred Good Points of Husbandry", circa 1557).

to that end, light gardening continues in the yard. i thought some of you would enjoy a few updated photos of the progress.

this is a view from the second floor office. as you can see, the yard is quite small. even so, i am trying to create a few spaces for seating guests.

the first is obvious, but i have added a small outdoor area rug under the table for extra color and definition. i'd also like to run tall flowers along the right side fence for extra color near the table.

the second will go where the "yet to be potted" plants currently sit - in the back left corner. i plan to pick up some antique park bench ends and build one to put at an angle there. a nice, cozy spot for romance.

the third will be on the landing, just outside of the kitchen, at the top of these stairs. i'm thinking another antique park bench - but this one scaled down to seat just two.

my new sago palm, potted with violas and alyssium

and i'm on the lookout for tomatoes that do well during our famously gray summer months. i just hate the ones that are available at the store - no taste! didn't they used to taste like something when we were kids? not just some amorphous, reddish, mealy blob that we somehow feel OBLIGATED to put on salads and summer burgers? *sigh* (i think it's time for my afternoon cocktail.)

what else do you think would suit my little urban garden?