I passed my 5-year mark of being here on February 7. For the first couple of years, I didn't feel like I was at home. I didn't work, I didn't have my green card, this house felt like Chuck's house, not my house. Even though we were married. Just didn't feel homey.
Now 5 years later, what's changed? I have a decent job that I love, Chuck and I love each other more than we did when we met (I think), and this house is full of MY stuff...oh, and not only do I have my green card, but I just got a letter in the mail from my immigration lawyer that as of March 18, I'll be eligible for citizenship. I think I may do that. Time sure does fly.
But what MOST makes me feel at home?
The freakin' weather and my freakin' garden.
I was made for a climate like this. I got such bad seasonal depression in Edmonton every winter. Like, BAD. No wonder I didn't care for gardening, who cares to garden when it snows/frosts from September to May? May to August is beautiful there, don't get me wrong. They have a more pleasant summer than we do, because there isn't that awful humidity. I loved it.
But...well let me just show you what I'm babbling on about. This is what I saw when I drove up the driveway after work yesterday.
Nothing makes a girl feel sunnier that coming home from a long day and seeing daffodils waving at her (and maybe a penis or two, but I digress). Those were the first things I put in when I came here. The first mark I put on this house (actually the second, I did pee on the siding to mark my territory) were those daffodils.
The rest of my garden looks like hell though, I'm going to get out there and work on clearing out all the dead shit and the weeds today.
Those pansies are from last fall.
I may take a trip out to the garden centers today and see if there are any pansies that I can add until the weather really gets good and all the rest of the flowers are plantable.
In Edmonton, I wouldn't even be thinking about this kind of stuff until the third week of May. My friend Michelle told me it's -28C/18F there today. Another friend on FB said it's supposed to be -42 with the windchill. -40C and -40F is the only place where both temperature scales meet, so I don't have to translate.
It's going to be +22C/71F here. Yep. I think I've fallen in love with North Carolina.
For those of you wondering, Chuck didn't get his results from the CT scan yet. We're going to go up to Greenville on Tuesday and see his oncologist. I guess we find out then. I hope it's good news, since they haven't called us in early. Thanks for all the nice comments about him on my last post :)
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18 comments:
To me, there's nothing that shouts 'spring's here!' louder than daffodils. Love, love, love 'em.
Wait.
I just re-read that bit about seeing waving daffodils. Two? Two?? Is that a subtle way of telling us Chuck is extremely well endowed?
I was just going to whinge about our measly +5C and rain here, but after seeing all those minus temps, I just think I'll keep my mouth shut!
Enjoy your day and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Tuesday.
You're so lucky to have found a part of the world that you love so much and feel most at home in, while still so young (not to slight the man you love too). I didn't realize how much I hated snow and really cold winters till I moved to Washington state from Massachusetts, when I was 50+.
I know you'll do a great job on the garden. Can't wait to see it!
I hope you will always be a 'local' girl in your heart. I can't argue with your photographic evidence though. I know if I saw a tulip right now I would hug it and love it and kiss it and call it George. Hope your guy will be okay. He gives hope to this old man that personality can attract a dynamic force of nature such as yourself. Even if that girl is currently on a Ukrainian potatoe farm.
Your daffodils look sunnier than ours...the rain has flattened ours into the soil :( Congrats on (almost) being eligible for citizenship. I finally did the citizenship thing last fall. I'd been eligible for years (21 to be precise), but well with one thing and another, just never got around to it. Glad I did it though! Crossing my fingers for Chuck!
Hi Kyna,
22C in February? That I wouldn't mind in Summer as it's a pleasantly warm heat, I don't want to know how hot it gets!
22 would be lovely right now, we had some more snow today, should be gone by tomorrow, hope it hasn't damaged all my blooms :(
Hope you have a nice weekend, and fingers crossed for Chuck!
Daffodils ARE beatiful! My miniature ones are ready to bloom. I cut several stems and brought them in, and they opened the next day! I like your partner in gardening crime' picture on the side panel of the blog!!! All the best to you two!
We have 20 tomorrow and Feb is supposed to be our hottest month. Man! where has my summer gone? We've only had like three days over 40C unheard of.
Marking your territory? Given your previous comments about high fences I bet you did that at night!
Bub: Usually I'm not much on yellow flowers but for some reason I love daffodils too...probably for the same reason you mentioned. And they smell nice and look really neat :)
And they don't call Chuck 'Tripod' for nothing.
Alison: I thought I'd live in Edmonton till I died. And I wanted to! Love makes you do things you would ordinarily never do. I'm glad I did though. Forced me to grow up a lot, and fast :)Not saying we're never going to leave Carolina, because we may when Chuck's younger kid is older, but we're probably just going to move farther South lol.
Mike: I'm hoping to do a lot of things out there this year that I didn't really get to do last year :)
Kal: Are you kidding me? :) When I meet new people, it's like that old Molson Canadian commercial...'Hi. My name is Kyna, and I. AM. CANADIAN!'. Every day I get to tell people how much I love Canada. How did you know all my tulips were named George? (btw, when I say that to people, 'Hug it, kiss it, call it George, etc' nobody ever seems to know what I'm talking about).
Chuckles does indeed have an awesome personality...sometimes we're too much alike and we butt heads. But he makes up for it...see my above comment to Bub ;)
Liz: Actually it got up past that yesterday, closer to 30C. It was amazing, and I ended up with a wicked sunburn. But it was worth it :) Hope your nice weather is not far behind!
Tatyana: Hehe...that's the look he gets when I come at him with the camera ;)
There are miniature daffodils growing wild all over the place here. They're not really wild, they're in places where a farmhouse once stood like 50 years ago, but now they just look like they cropped up there for no reason. They're so little and cute. I don't know if they were originally like that, or after that many years they just grow out smaller.
Al: It always blows my mind that the southern hemisphere is backwards with the seasons. A friend of mine lives in Brisbane (he's from Cairns) and it's funny to see his FB comments in the Australian summertime..'I wish it was COLD!!' lol. I think our summers come close to the heat and nastiness of your summers (usually). My A/C bill was ridiculous last year.
one penis isn't enough?! Those are beautiful daffodils. I'm jealously reading all the southern blogs today as I'm sitting snowbound in the house. Gotta get my fix before I go completely haywire.
Marguerite: Of COURSE one is enough (Chuck is looking over my shoulder, shh).
But if TWO were to be waving at me as I drove up the driveway, well, that's just a sign from God, isn't it? Who would sneeze at that? It would be sacreligious.
Happy anniversery. jim
Our early spring here in Texas kinda sorta makes up for the miserably hot and humid summers. I was greeted by waving, um, daffodils this weekend too.
In our backyard it's Irises. Left over from the previous owner. Honestly, I think he took bagfulls and hurled them from the roof planting them wherever they landed.
im: Thanks! I almost feel American by now ;)
Jayne:LOL :D I remember the first time I ever experienced 'deep south' humidity was my trip to Austin in August of all months. I remember stepping from the plane door into the walkway thingy when I changed planes in Houston, and WOOOOOOO! The humidity practically punched me in the face. And that was only a split second...I was almost afraid to go outside. I was visiting a friend, and the first day I was there, I think I spent the whole thing in a pool of sweat.
Turling: They're not too bad to get rid of if you don't want them though, are they? Man, Chuck had some gladiolus planted when I first came here. Only a few plants, and I didn't like them. Try and get rid of THOSE bastards. The bulbs split off into corms...corms were the bane of my existence for a couple of years. I thought I'd never dig all of them up. Trying to dig a single plant up was like trying to scoop up an entire bag of frozen peas with a teaspoon. Horrible.
Those daffodils are SO HAPPY looking!! And so full of hope re: warmer days are coming. 70 dF!?!? OMG. It's 24 dF this morning. Wow. And more snow later this week, but it's SUNNY, which is really all I MUST have. Best of luck to you and your honey re: test results. Gotta go get some more wood for the stove, now, which means slapping on my snow boots--aren't you jealous?!? =)
PS I get that re: "Chuck's house." My husband came with house as well. (oops, or vice versa)
Ah yes .. winter in the GWN ... we have a winter storm warning out for the next couple of days so showing off your daffodils .. that was just plain MEAN girl !!!!! hahaha
I'm working backwards on your blog so I already know the results were clean for Chuck ! Congratulations again : )
Stop peeing on the side of the house now please ? .. Number one son is only beginning this whole move south .. they are waiting for the interview in April hopefully .. lord .. the things I could say .. but I will spare you for now ?? LOL
Congrats all over the place girl!!
Joy ;-)
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