SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY AT ITS FINEST

 No matter where I was going to be situated I knew when I heard  a Arkansas Master Gardener trip was planned for early October I was game. COVID certainly would have waned by then, right? Who knew the Delta Variant would follow on its heels.

I made my deposit for the 4 day excursion which was refundable and would carefully be planned with out of door garden visits and precautions. 

We would do COVID home testing the night before departure and be masked for indoor situations while most of the adventure would be out of doors in both private and public gardens.

Yesterday we departed, some in private cars and the rest of us filled half a bus even after picking up a couple more folks on the U of A Texarkana campus. Then it was on to Mt. Pleasant, Texas where the Cypress Basin Master Gardeners provided an incredibly warm welcome at their extension center with a homemade luncheon with everything individually wrapped and labelled ( Of course I chose a pimiento cheese sandwich- heck I'm in the South!) 

The table centerpieces were lovely nature items. 

In addition each of us received the sweetest most considerate homemade goody bag filled with items like seed packets, homemade lemon basil cookies, tiny book for notetaking, a scrubby, soaps and lip balm.  The bags decorative thimbles were mini potted plants.

As we ate, a slide show provided the history of the extension center's garden beds and green house. Afterwards we were divided into 2 groups to tour each garden area for a 5 minute presentation with a local Master Gardener. We heard about care, propagation of Texas Superstars, their greenhouse, mulching, raised veggie beds and the nurturing of butterflies with specific species along

 

with a little walk a charming trail with QR codes on the tree species for more info. 

Beautiful azaleas were adapting to their mulch beds...

 

What a terrific welcome and beginning to our trip. Feast your eyes on some of my favorite Kodak moments!  

Sex in the garden butterfly style

 

Turk's Cap

This one I'd love to try to grow

Russian Sage

Cleo Barnwell coneflower

Happy butterflies and Happy Master Gardeners

OUR CHOICE

Yesterday all across our country hundreds of thousands of women and yes, even some men took to the streets to let their voices be heard regarding reproductive rights. Chants of "Not the church, not the state, women must decide their fate,"  resounded at these rallies along with " Tell me what democracy looks like, This is what democracy looks like."

Here in Little Rock, a miserable rainy morning dissipated into blue skies for the mid afternoon rally at the Capitol with a very masked crowd listening to :

clergy, 

ob-gyne docs, 

elected officials,   

and representatives from local, state and national advocacy organizations espousing the need for healthcare for all women, regardless of race or class with their words, poetry/chanting amidst the crowd's cheering and applause.

Recommendations included voting to have more female representation in our government, patronizing and supporting boycotts of big business who gender discriminate both in their hiring, pay and support of male practices. Monetarily supporting various advocacy groups's efforts.

Since police had not cordoned off side streets there was a delay and change of plans in the program but the crowd was patient and well behaved. A decision finally had all the speakers deliver their presentations in order for police to prepare the route so the march could happen.

The political signage speaks well for itself as my sign said: 

It's 

 

AND by all means remember: