Nikki's Photography

Croton garden plantings at the Cotton Bowl Stadium, Texas State Fair grounds, Dallas

This yellow pepper started rotting in just the right place so I cut eyes and made a Halloween Pepper.

Contemporary art on the sidewalks of downtown Dallas.

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..October morning in the garden..

All the  recent rain in Lewisville (Texas) has washed out a few reptiles into our neighborhood from the nearby canal…a Painted Turtle showed up by a neighbor’s garage and was the center of attention for a few hours until it was brought back to the canal area. The same neighbor found a snake in their garage earlier last week. Judging from their description it may have been a non-venomous Rough Green Snake.

I recently watched a very interesting documentary about the perilous state of our planet, and things we can do to affect the course of necessary change. Narrated by Leonardo Dicaprio I highly recommend seeing this film,  The 11th Hour

Frog and spider in my back yard pond, Lewisville, Texas

Awesome sunset near Little Rock, Arkansas – heading back to Dallas…and Happy 26th Birthday, Adrian!

If you can grow tomatoes in Texas, I figure you can grow anything. If the plants manage to survive Summer’s 105* F heat they will still not produce tomatoes on those leggy vines until November.

One day in July when I was outside tending to yard work, my neighbor came shrieking out of her yard with a tone higher than her usual typically high octave that native Texan women have. All the fuss was about a tomato presenting itself in her garden, and she was mighty excited about it. She told me that someone told her that someone else told them that throwing used coffee grounds on the base of the plant will do the trick. I had heard about putting coffee grounds on rose bushes and do know the goodness that composting provides, but for fear of attracting snakes, rats or scorpions into my yard – which I’ve never seen but apparently they exist here – I have not kept a compost at all in this garden. I’m not fond of the idea of Snake Surprise. Anyway, coffee grounds have regularly been sprinkled on the tomato patch since July, plus this particular plant was propped up onto a bird bath stand. It’s November on the verge of frosty nights and the fruits are looking quite healthy. Next year the tomatoes will have the advantage of this years’ supply of the ol’ Texas coffee-ground-trick a lot earlier in the growing season. I can hardly wait for next year’s giant tomatoes to appear in June.

Excerpt from “Heaven’s Here On Earth” by Tracy Chapman from her CD, “New Beginnings”:
…Heaven’s here on earth    In our faith in humankind    In our respect for what is earthly    In our unfaltering belief in peace and love and understanding     I’ve seen and met angels wearing the disguise of ordinary people leading ordinary lives    Filled with love compassion forgiveness and sacrifice     Heaven’s in our hearts…

The changing seasons in Texas are not as dramatic as in the North. There’s more time to appreciate the cooler weather and enjoy the colors of lingering leaves. Autumn here is all about extremes though; AC on during the day and furnaces on at night. Petals in the wind blowing off the remaining white Crepe Myrtle flowers remind me of the snow already flying up north. It’s so beautiful today.

Old barn near Taos, New Mexico

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