Spring CleaningBy Susan Reiner
March bustles in on windy feet
And sweeps my doorstep and my street
She washes and cleans with pounding rains
Scrubbing the earth of winter stains
She shakes the grime from carpet green
Till naught but fresh new blades are seen
Then, house in order, all neat as a pin
She ushers gentle springtime in.
My Round Robin teammate Steven, chose "Spring Cleaning" for our photo subject this time around, and we also have the additional task to come up with 3 more challenge topics each for the challenge pool. The last time we did this was in November. Every 6 months seems about right to do these new challenge subject roundups. You Robins have submitted some really great ideas, I am looking forward to seeing what you have come up with this time around. :)
As for the subject of Spring Cleaning, well, see, I thought I was in a bit of a fix with this one. See, I am not a "Spring Cleaning" gal, I am an "Autumn Cleaning gal." I do everything backwards. It's just that I really like getting the house in shape before the cold winter months set in. Because of my Fibromyalgia, I am often limited in the winter in terms of my energy. My hands swell, and I am really tired a lot of the time, and therefore things can get away from me before I know it. So, what's a girl to do? Well, she does a deep house cleaning no later then a couple weeks after Halloween, that way she can take better care of herself during those difficult winter months. But that didn't help me much with this challenge.
So I thought... and thought... and thought. What to do? What to do? Yikes. Would I have to sit this one out? Hmmmm... then it came to me. I did have a bit of a mess on my hands this spring, in the form of those yucky aphids in my beloved rose garden! It was a mess! But all was not lost, in fact, I didn't have to do much cleaning at all to get rid of those intruders, I simply called in the cleaning ladies... The Ladybugs. After a brief trip to Home Depot to purchase them, I put them to work, and within four weeks, we were back to a nearly all clear lovely garden again. In fact, in the photos below, you see a beautiful, spicy scented rose I had all but given up on! Isn't she gorgeous!
Now on to the new challenge ideas!
1. Quench My Thirst
Take a photograph of your favorite beverage, in an artistic light. Include a recipe if you have created a completely unique drink.
2. Politics
Whether we like it or not, at least a little politics is a part of all of our lives. City government, state and federal it affects us all. With the upcoming elections, there will be a lot of campaign signs, and political statements being made. Photograph something that says "Politics" to you. Have some fun with it. Buttons, yard signs, a candidate's personal appearance in your town, a protest, a political bumper sticker, anything to do with politics that strikes your fancy.
3. Numbers
Photograph anything dealing with numbers. The face of a clock or watch. A cash register, a pair of dice or dominoes, a math equation, a scale, a measuring cup.
Okie doke. There are my three new subjects for the challenge pool. Now, go visit the participating Robins on the list below. If you haven't played along with this challenge yet, there is still plenty of time. You have up to one week from today, to take your photos and submit an entry. If you can't play this time around, but would like to submit some ideas, well that's cool too. Just send them to either Steven, Karen or myself. You can find our email addresses on the RR blog sidebar. Hope to hear from you soon!
Linking List
Steven... (sometimes)blog POSTED!
Carly... Ellipsis POSTED!
Karen... Outpost Mavarin POSTED!
Momma... Sandcastle Momma
Gattina... Keyhole Pictures POSTED!
Wammy... The Ellis Family Cincinnatti
Martha... Perception
Lisa... Lisa's Chaos POSTED!
Sarah... Charish Me POSTED!
Vicki... Maracas POSTED!
Angela... Chocolate Syrup For The Soul POSTED!
Marie... Photographs and Memories
Kiva... Ecletic Granny POSTED!
Kim... Nekked Lizard Adventures POSTED!
Julie... Julie's Web Journal POSTED!
Jennifer Robin... Robin's Woods POSTED!
-OndineMonet
15 comments:
Such Beautiful flowers!
And I do things "backwards" too. :)
I'd love to do your "numbers" suggestion!
Happy to see beautiful flowers and not a bucket and a broom, lol !
What lovely flowers!
Mine's up too :)
Very nice interpretation!
I like the cleaning crew! Very cool too. Great looking roses and wonderful ideas as well :-)
What an orignal take on the subject! Your rose is beautiful, and I love the poem, too.
Pretty flowers! And it looks like your ladybugs cooperated pretty good too. :)
True pest-icide! Great way to take care of your plants and beautiful way to record their efforts.
I swear I smelled roses when I looked at those shots. Very stunning. I really don't spring clean, either. I do as-needed, cleaning... only getting the really nasty stuff when absolutely necessary.
I didn't know you could buy ladybugs. How utterly brilliant! The photos are wonderful, as always, and I'm sure it won't surprise you tha tthe first two are my faves. I look forward to trying your topics, too.
Now I've got a poem about aphids stuck in my head, which I first read in Jack & Jill Magazine circa 1964!
I had no idea you could buy ladybugs either! Your roses are absolutely gorgeous. I've always done my spring cleaning backwards as well. I usually do it right before Thanksgiving so when I get my Christmas decorations down everything is sparkling and clean.
Love the roses...would love to know the acutal name for maybe a little added pop i nour yard. They are beautiful.
Lovely photos for this challenge, just beautiful! By the way, from your suggestions - there's no way I'm taking a photo of my scale, not with me on it anyway!!
Lovely flowers. I especially like that last shot.
I so love these pictures Carly!
The ladybugs are my favorite !
love,natalie
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