The lavender is blooming and the bees are going bonkers. It’s a veritable highway of busy apian foragers out there, all heavily and slightly drunkenly flying from flower to flower, stem to stem, plant to plant. There’s the heady scent of it, too, mingling with that of honeysuckle and privet, especially in the early evenings.
Hasn’t the weather been incredible? It’s so unusual to wake up in the UK and be confident that it’s going to be warm, or even hot. We’ve been pottering about in bare feet and summer clothes for a couple of weeks and the boys can’t believe their luck. No school and sunshine! I do love the blue skies and not having to bother about shoes, but the garden could really do with a good drink. It’s actually a little cooler this evening and it has turned quite grey and gloomy, as though it could crash with thunder and tip it down at any moment, but there’s no sign of any rain yet.
I started my vase pickings today with lavender and jasmine, which is coming into flower (and also packs a punch smell-wise), a multi-headed stem of pink cosmos, a single rudbeckia (the first flower) and added a load of different dried grass stems (dry from lack of rain) and a few poppy seedheads. There are also a few leftovers from a hasty table-centre I put together on Saturday (cornflowers, salvias and love-in-a-mist seedheads).
It is lovely to be joining in again with Cathy and her IAVOM-ers this week – last Monday I was in Cornwall visiting an old schoolfriend. We hadn’t seen each other for far too long and it was wonderful to see her, and our other friend who came too, and to see the beautiful part of the country she lives in. The three of us were military kids and boarders at a state school that had a small boarding wing in the late 70s and early 80s. There was no such thing as pastoral care in those days; benign neglect (putting it kindly) was the order of the day. It was character-building and we stuck together in adversity, making us firm friends for life. We are determined not to leave it so long until the next time.
If seeing them wasn’t fabulous enough, this weekend another old schoolfriend of mine came to visit. She was a day girl who I became great friends with and we have kept in touch over the intervening years. She now lives in Australia but is in the UK for a few weeks and slotted in a couple of days down our way. It was so lovely to spend time with her and to catch up. Honestly, I don’t see old friends for ages and then see three in two weekends! My heart is full and I feel enormously lucky to have such long-lasting and dear friends. It’ll keep me going for a while.
Right, I must go and find something in the fridge for dinner. I spotted half a pepper, an end of parmesan and some tired salad earlier. It’s going to be a scratch meal most probably involving pasta.
Wishing you a lovely week.
acoastalplot 
A lovely vase and an even lovelier post!
How wonderful to have the opportunity to catch up with old friends.
Have a super week.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What gorgeous colour combinations – especially the rusty orange rudbeckia with the blue-purple lavender. I also especially like the very wispy grass at the top. So wonderful to see long-lost friends … especially when it feels as though no time has passed at all.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A striking mix of color and form. Love that rudbeckia. Nice to catch up with friends.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I see what you mean about the autumnal appearance, with the grasses and the rustic rudbeckia – and the jug which I thought at first was metal has a cooling appearance too. How lovely to have all that concentrated catching up, renewing acquaintances that you don’t see very often – it is definitely worth the effort of keeping in touch with friends, from all parts of our life
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lovely mixture. Spectacular lavender. I am listening to thunder in the distance, but not expecting any rain to arrive.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your arrangement is a lovely, summery mix, Sam! The blast of heat we had this past weekend had me wishing I had more lavender, specifically more English lavender. I currently grow a lot of Lavandula stoechas but it just doesn’t pack the same punch as Lavandula angustifolia. Your visits with old friends sound great for the soul!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The sky threatened rain here yesterday, but alas, it came to nothing. Your arrangement sums up this summer.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The lavender is gorgeous right now isn’t it, always such a pleasure to see and smell. And it looks so good with the dried grasses. Glad you’ve had a good catch up with friends, that’s always good for the soul I think. I’ve been making a lot of meals like that lately and wondering where all the food went. Sigh. There has been a big need for lots of very fast very early meals around here as well so that people can get to cricket matches. At least none of them have been rained off this year, but I agree with you, the garden could do with some water now. CJ xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hard for survival at the moment for flowers and gardener alike, o please rain. Glad to hear you have had fun with some old friends, very precious. The guide song make new friends but keep the old one is silver the other gold. Lots of love see you soon Joy x
Sent from my iPad
>
LikeLiked by 1 person
So nice to see your weekly arrangements. Everything in my garden is only just about surviving, looking either limp or crispy. Rain would be so very welcome right now. I think we might even go out and dance in it, when it finally comes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m surprised by how your lavender is such a deep blue. We’ve also had nice weather lately, but could really use some rain.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s an angustifolia called ‘Miss Dawnderry’, described as “intensely dark purple known as a ‘super blue'”.
LikeLiked by 1 person