WHERE DID SUMMER GO? A GIANT GIVEAWAY

I have no idea what happened to summer. As soon as school was out, we had major construction projects going on. Then in July we went to the Big Island of Hawaii for a much-needed vacation in the vog, and then spent several weeks at home while the sky and air was filled with wildfire smoke, trying to downsize my huge collection of cacti and succulents so that I don’t have to figure out where to put them all when the weather gets cold. On top of it, there was our summer sale, with frenzied packing and shipping for a month. Now I’m one week back into teaching the intensive 4-week course that I do each year. So much for summer. 

As I type this, I see that the leaves on the maple tree outside my window are turning yellow. I don’t know if it is because the weather was warmer and drier than usual (I don’t think so), or whether it is an effect of the smoke. This tree normally doesn’t lose its leaves until the middle of November, so I don’t know what’s going on with it. 

Yesterday was the first mostly smoke-free day we’ve had, and it was good to see blue sky. This morning it looks like the smoke may be coming back. Smoke in summer seems to be the new normal. 

I’ve been trying to upgrade my perfume studio with new shelving and storage for bottles, stock, and labels. It’s an ongoing process. To celebrate the fact that I now have storage space with easy access to printed bottles, I’m offering a huge end of summer giveaway. Leave any sort of comment about your summer or anything else that strikes your fancy, and be entered in a drawing for 100 g of perfume samples along with other random things including creams and lotions, facial cleansers, cosmetics, and who knows what else. 

[Photos are mine, taken on the Big Island] 

THE FIRST MONDAY OF SPRING GIVEAWAY

It’s sunny! It’s warm!  The crocuses, cyclamens, hellebores, and camellias are in full bloom after a ridiculous cold spell that slowed them down. The purple crocuses have reproduced so much that there are huge purple patches in the garden. The jasmine survived the winter. The fruit trees have huge buds and the birds are going crazy. It must be spring cleaning time.

This week my cleaning will consist of another 100 g of miscellaneous perfume samples, plus a mint condition 28-color lipstick palette. If you like lipstick and don’t mind applying it with your finger or a brush, this should be fun to play with. It’s an extra because I ordered one and they sent me two (maybe it was a buy-one-get-one free deal) – it was a while ago so I don’t recall how I ended up with a duplicate.

This week’s question to answer if you want to be entered in the drawing is one or more of the following: Do you (or someone you know well) like to wear lipstick or other form of lip color? If so, how long does it typically stay on? Have you/they found one that lasts a decent amount of time?

[Crocus photo is mine from last year - there are way more purple crocuses this year. Lipstick photo from Wikimedia]