Beth Carpenter Books

A first draft is all about the big picture. Who are these people? What happens to them? Why should I care? If done right, it paints a sweeping picture of the story.   Draft two adds more layers to the story and makes it come alive. And to do that, we need details. Last October, I decided to cheer myself up by dedicating a week to noticing the beauty around me by photographing  one beautiful thing every day. An interesting finding from this project was that it isn't usually the huge, expansive views that make me smile. It's the little things. A plant growing bravely out of a depression in a rock.                                                                                                            ...

Anticipation    -   Why don’t we celebrate Christmas all year long? One of my kids asked me that once in January when the bloom was off the new toys. I told him it wouldn’t be special if we did it every day. Anticipation is part of the reason Christmas is so much fun. I think the same is true of gardening. In early February, I found this cranesbill in full bloom in London. In Alaska, mine won’t be blooming until June. The picture below was taken in July. The cranesbill are in the lower left. I planted tulips under a deep mulch on the north side of the house once, and they actually bloomed on the Fourth of July.                                                   I don’t know if I appreciate flowers more than a Londoner, but I suspect I get more excited about them. If I hadn’t waited all winter...

Yesterday was Mother's Day. With my broken leg I'm basically home-bound, so it wasn't terribly exciting, but I had a good day. I had a long talk with my own mother, who will turn 90 this year. My kids spoiled me with flowers, chocolate, and books -- my three favorite luxuries. My husband took good care of me and made me tea.  Bottom line - it's good to be loved. I'm thankful.

You may remember my experiment in early March with setting out lettuce and Brussels sprout seedlings early to see what happened. It failed. As often happens, the hazard was unforeseen. I planted them in a fenced garden lined with welded wire to keep the deer and rabbits out. I mulched to give some protection from frost and weed competition.  But I forgot to look up. After spending the winter foraging on dried seeds and plants, the birds were hungry for fresh salad. Those tender green shoots lasted no time at all. The good news is that as soon as I set out the seedlings, I started another set indoors and they’re ready to be set out, this time under netting. The bad news is my broken leg isn’t going anywhere near that garden, but judging by the tomato plants he brought home yesterday, my hubby is catching spring fever, so he’ll be doing all the planting this time. And my leg should be better by time for harvest. Hope everything is greening up and growing for you this s...