Coffee Time! #19

Hi everyone! I’m back again with coffee in hand and another chilly day to enjoy. Actually, it is a bit milder today than it has been lately with a temperature of 63F (17C). However, there is a strong east wind which makes it feel colder. It was cloudy but the sun is now shining which makes it look nicer than it is out there.

Even though it has been cold the last few days, the birds continue to return and the ones that are back already have been singing cheerfully all day long! The robins don’t seem to ever sleep. I have heard them singing past midnight and again at 2:30 am. I have wanted to get my flowers planted out on the balcony, but it has been a bit too cold for that with frost warnings at least 2 nights this week.

One of my African violets.

I don’t think we actually had any frost in town though, this lake helps to keep the area milder for about 5 miles out from the lake. Perhaps I will brave the chill and get my balcony flowers planted today. Or not. I will put them outside however, so they can get used to being out there in the cooler air. Well, I just put the plants on the balcony and it didn’t feel too bad out there, but it is sheltered from the wind quite nicely and the sun is shining on the balcony partially.

The geraniums have been out there since last week and they are doing nicely, the cold weather didn’t seem to bother them. They are kind of tough. My indoor plants are doing great, this is a perfect apartment for growing plants of all kinds. The problem with our little town is that we don’t really have a place that sells houseplants specifically.

Another one.

And when we do get some in, they are not named, which makes things a little difficult. So, I have to go online to find out what it is, and that is not always easy either. I use Google Lens, but that is not always foolproof either, but it does help. I use it to help identify a plant before I buy it. As you know, I have a cat, so I have to be careful what plants I bring into my apartment.

A lot of common houseplants are toxic to pets. So, I want to stay away from those, even though Muffin rarely pays any attention to plants other than her own. Unless the plant produces flowers. She likes to sniff flowers. Like the ones on my African violets. They don’t have a scent, at least nothing that I can smell. But she sniffs the flowers anyway.

A nice close up of an African violet flower.

There was an internet outage today, over most of the country. So I was unable to get online earlier or my post would have been done this morning. It was off for several hours. Sigh. Oh well, at least it’s working again now. Have a great day, or midweek, or rest of the week, and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2025 Steve McLeod.