Friday - Went to a concert at a guitar shop, a folk singer-songwriter-guitarist named John Wort Hannam. He was very talented and so funny. Sad news for Friday - Norton Buffalo died at age 58. He was a great blues harmonica player and singer, best known for being in the Steve Miller Band but was a session player for many other bands. Saturday - Not as many trick or treaters this year, but still had 185 kids. Lots of candy left over! Sunday - A good day to relax. Went to my sister-in-laws for dinner. She's such a good cook; she made an Italian feast. The weather was beautiful all weekend. Clear blue skies, temps in the 80s. Leaves are just starting to get their fall colors. Mary Here is a link that might be useful: Norton Buffalo sings

Jane - My Royal Jester looks much more coral with orange tones in the sun and later in the day. Here's another photo: ROYAL JESTER Here's my last bloom on HOLLY DANCER today. This one not only stopped traffic this summer. It got people out of their cars and asking about this pure red spider. HOLLY DANCER SWAMP CREATURE, an ML bloomer from Margo Reed, blooms very late here. This photo was taken at 7:30 last night when SC had faded from very light yellow to a ghostly white. Debra

Thanks guys :-) Judy, I dug a bunch of my dahlias for the first time last winter to move them and so didn't have my normal bumper crop. I bought the pink and yellow one from Connell's Dahlias but I couldn't access their site to get the name and I'm not sure where I put the tags. Jim, That puppy has a whole bunch of color pop, eh? It surprised me for this late. Lovie Dovie Song ;-) I'm wishin I didn't have to say it was so, it seems like the first day of summer (July 5th this year) was just yesterday. I've done more than my share of whining about the lack thereof only to peruse my pictures from this year and query what the ?????? Was it like the previous several ? Not even but still a lot better than before I built it ;-) Pelican, I just cut them, fill the vase with water, start with the base of hydrangeas/dahlias for volume and then circle till done, maybe 5 minutes to build on average. I deflect all credit to the blooms ;-) Inga, a good garden is a gift that just keeps on giving.

Very pretty with all the red, white and blue. I'm a lover of books of all kinds, and am paricularly fond of the "favorites" our children have in their book collections. Like you, I don't like having any kind of centerpiece that interferes with conversation or the ability to see the people across from me. Our centerpieces almost always get moved once dinner begins. Having special family memories and picture that capture the essence of those times is a wonderful way to celebrate any holiday. Sorry you couldn't be with your family at the beach house, but it looks like you made a special meal for your family at home. I'm not ready to give up on summer yet....not quite yet! Thanks for sharing....