August 28- August 30, 2011--post Irene

Well, August 27 at around 2pm--we lost Internet connection (in addition to power lost earlier), so I couldn't post to blog, but I did take photos. Aug. 28 was big clean-up day--tons of downed wood in the yard including huge red maple that took out a corner of our roof. Seemed fitting to just put a piece of wood in the window. (Actually, it's a woody piece of ivy I pulled off the fallen maple.) Later in the day, I rotated the wood, added low vase and white Angel's Trumpet flower. That flower lasted only a day (as it does outdoors), but it sure was pretty to look at while it lasted.

If you look carefully, you can see some of the fallen red maple out the window. And below is wood formerly blocking back porch steps. Look at the ivy vines on the trunk, because they will show up some later day in an arrangement!

August 29, I did this arrangement in a different windosill. Irene contributed to it, too. The sunflowers were toppled by wind, so it made sense to cut them, but, because they didn't want to hold their heads up in vase, I had to make crutches for them. There is a piece of wood felled by the storm holding up every one of these sunflower stems. Plenty of wood with crotches in the right place to choose from!

Aug. 30, before leaving Ashland today, I pulled apart some flowers in kitchen windowsill with intention of throwing them out, but the zinnias were still too pretty to toss. Cut their stems way lower and gave them some fresh water in a jar. Also added more windfall from the storm--tufts of willow oak foliage that had tiny acorns attached.

P.S. We're still without power in Ashland, and I'm guessing we will be for a long time. I'm posting this from Buckingham.