The Koi Pond is Finished!
It's done! The Koi pond is actually finished! It took us all summer long. It still needs waterlilies and lotus and some more border plantings and annuals but they will have to wait till spring, unless I find a really good clearance sale somewhere that is.
160 gallons of water flows through the fall per minute. We put it in to drown out some traffic noise from a busy nearby road.
This is the stone and cedar shake "pump house" we built. It houses the entire mechanics of the filter/ waterfall. Hubby has a little gnome standing guard "inside" the house because I won't let him stand one out in sight anywhere. We built it to resemble an old spring house like you would find in colonial times or on an old plantation. I can't wait for the roof to weather!!!
Some of our 14 koi and goldfish.
The bay window we put in, as seen from the backside of the waterfall.
It still needs some finishing work but this is the bay window looking out onto the waterfall and pond. It's really beautiful with the waterfall lit up at night!
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Ode to Summer
It's a sad, sad week for me. I took my last swim for the year in my pool last Sunday. The temp was all of 72 degree's and the pool water was 76 degree's. Still warm enough (barely) to get a 1 1/2 hour workout in but
the rest of this week we are expecting highs in the 60's and low's in the 40's. True I should have been born a fish, but I'm sure no polar bear!!!! It's especially sad because we didn't move into this house until June 11 and we didn't get the pool opened until the July 4th weekend. Then life's little mishaps kept popping up on me all summer. Mishaps that kept me away
from home and the pool. I did manage to squeeze in some midnight swims during the 2 weeks my "crazy cookie" mother was hospitalized but it's just not the same as swimming under a bright warm sun. Now I'm not saying I didn't get to spend a few bright summer days basking in the sun. There were a few days that my granddaughter got to come and share in the fun with me. And I even managed to turn the pool into display tool for some nautical ornaments I'll be posting on ebay later this fall. That brought new meaning to "working from home" to 
bring my camera and a tray full of ornaments into the pool for a photo session. But today there is no escaping the fact that summer has faded away here in Michigan. It is 65 and raining and the leaves of the maple tree outside my window are already beginning to turn red. Yes, fall is a beautiful time of year in Michigan but to me it is a reminder that old man winter is lurking just around the corner. Call me meloncholy......"Word of the day"
Melancholy - depression of spirit, a pensive mood
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My Friend Bonnie
I have a friend who is the bravest person I know. She found out she had a rare terminal cancer 3 1/2 years ago. Well, being the fighter she is, and with no health insurance to help, Bonnie has fought this ugly beast with everything she has and then some. She has been through numerous rounds of chemo, bald heads, tests, scans, x-rays, surgeries, and even spent weeks away from home to get special "high speed" radiation treatments in Seattle. These treatments have really taken a toll on her body. They have left her with scars and half of her face paralized. But this gal, who just celebrated her 50th b-day, just keeps going. With everything she has on her plate, she (and her hubby) even managed to take in some family and a wheelchair bound friend when they were evacuated from their homes during the Yosemite fires in CA this summer, all the while hoping the winds would not pick up and force them from their own home. She has a real zest for life and hasn't let this thing stop her or barely even slow her down. I'm sure she has her moments of depression and anger (who wouldn't) but she sure doesn't let on. She is funny and clever and can really make me laugh. She tells me how people think she is "stupid" because of her drooping face but at least it gets her some extra good deals at the sales. Anyway, I don't know another person who loves to shop garage sales and flea markets anywhere near as much as Bonnie. I'd call it an addiction. And it amazes me, not only the great treasures she finds but her knowledge of these items. You can visit my friend Bonnie's (& her hubby David's) on-line antique store at http://www.yosemiteantiques.com/
Who knows! You might find just what you've been looking for!***************************
3 comments:
Your pond turned out lovely...beautifully done!! Enjoy!
What a lovely view you have from your new window - the pond is gorgeous!!
Mary, I just wanted to tell you how beautiful your koi pond is!! What a fantastic job you have done.
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