Category Archives: Rancho Roly Poly

Spring planting

Posted on February 24, 2007 | Comments Off on Spring planting

I do believe another Ducher (white) and a Souvenir de la Malmaison (pale pink) will do it for fresh antique roses this spring. Souvenir is a Bourbon and they generally aren’t disease-resistent enough to thrive at the Rancho, but Souvenir was doing fine before the deer ate it. Besides it’s one of the few roses named in my great great grandmother’s 1850s pocket diary as one she used to form an arbor near the house. The other Bourbon, a reddish-pink climber called Zephirine Drouhin, survived the deer, and looks ready to go gang busters by late March. The Ducher is a China, the hardiest of all we’ve found. Add a few perrenials, a Blackfoot daisy or a Barbadoes Cherry, and we’re good to go. Nandina frames them. Blue jasmine added for highlights. Local pictures when available.

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Posted in Antique Roses, Rancho Roly Poly

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The arrows of light

Posted on January 21, 2007 | Comments Off on The arrows of light

Mr. Boy and I attended a Cub Scout graduation ceremony tonight where six Webelos cubs moved on to Boy Scouts. It was a simple ceremony with few words and lots of applause from parents and friends and the other cubs. Mr. B. was most impressed with the handmade arrows the graduates were presented with, called arrows of light. Then he got his snack, a cookie and a brownie, and decided not to stay and play with his pals. He preferred to go home and spend the evening with Mom who’s been working late too many nights recently.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly

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Back to school

Posted on January 17, 2007 | Comments Off on Back to school

The ice hasn’t all melted and much of it may still be around by morning, but Mr. B. goes back to school tomorrow, two hours later than normal, while getting out at the regular time. He’s not acting too awfully sad. All this hibernation–with Mom working from home all day–had gotten pretty boring by this afternoon.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly

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Still frozen

Posted on January 17, 2007 | Comments Off on Still frozen

The power is still holding at the rancho, as the temperature nudges above freezing and the icicles hanging from the eaves and trees slowly begin to melt and drip steadily. We’re lucky, I know. Some have it much worse:

"At the First Baptist Church in McAlester, Okla., where most of the city’s 18,000 residents have lacked power for four days, residents huddled under blankets and in front of space heaters."

Chris White, a friend who lives way east of here, near Washington-on-the-Brazos, still is bird watching a big egret down at his frozen pond, but wondering where the roadrunner and the deer have gotten to. About the only movement around the rancho are kids using pieces of cardboard to slide down the nearby hill, and Mr. Boy using his baseball bat to knock ice off the naked branches of the Red Bud in the backyard. Meanwhile, meteorologist Bob Rose expects some melting today will refreeze tonight before a slow warmup begins Thursday and Friday.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly, Weather/Climate

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Brrrr

Posted on January 16, 2007 | Comments Off on Brrrr

Bob Rose, meteorologist for the Lower Colorado River Authority, is making Mr. Boy happy. Bob  is forecasting another day off from school with more rain, sleet and snow for the rancho and environs:

"The wintry precipitation is showing no signs of letting up in the near term, with more freezing rain, sleet and snow expected into Wednesday.  Precipitation does look like it will taper off Thursday morning.  For the most part, temperatures will remain at or below freezing into Thursday morning,"

Then, another cold front on Friday and more rain into the weekend. Unfortunately, there’s not been enough rain yet to raise Lake Travis much, just under two feet in the past 48 hours. There is, however, one live oak whose ice-laden branches are embracing the roof, and another more menacing one embracing the power line connection in the backyard. So it’s iffy how much longer we’ll be on the air. The good thing is this is our winter, a week or two at the most. Eat your heart out.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly, Texana, Weather/Climate

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Conditions deteriorating

Posted on January 15, 2007 | Comments Off on Conditions deteriorating

The title is the words of meteorologist Troy Kimmel. Sleet and freezing rain are falling at the rancho, with temperature well below freezing and also falling. About half an inch to an inch of ice is expected overnight, followed by a rare snowfall tomorrow through tomorrow night, so it’s anybody’s guess how long before the power lines go down. Too bad, I had several other posts in mind, inspired by John Salmon’s Mystic Chords, and a few other good blogs, as always. Mr. Boy will also miss his Ninja Turtles video, if the lights go out. But who knows? Maybe we’ll get lucky. Blame Pacific moisture overriding a blast of Arctic air, according to KVUE meteorologist Mark Murray. The local daily is on the case and, as always, is the best source for Austin-Central Texas news if this ice storm progresses from a temporary inconvenience into a disaster. I oughta know. I used to work there.

UPDATE  Latest from Troy at 5:47 a.m. Tuesday is good news, although it will not please Mr. Boy. He will get to stay home from school today, but the anticipated snow this afternoon likely won’t fall on the rancho and a warmup is expected Wednesday afternoon. Meanwhile the power is holding.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly, Texana, Weather/Climate

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Floodin’ down in Texas

Posted on January 13, 2007 | Comments Off on Floodin’ down in Texas

Awakened by Mr. Boy, who was excited at the possibility that the rainwater cascading off the stone steps in the backyard might start flowing into the family room. Got up to see that it was barely threatening to do so, as the French drain was working well, channeling the water around to the garage side of the rancho. Nevertheless, there’s flash flooding all over town, mainly along and east of Interstate 35, after 2- to 5-inch rainfall overnight, with more on the way. The worst part, maybe, is the forecast Arctic air is already settling in, overnight temperatures of almost 70 degrees having already plunged almost 30 degrees. So after the flooding, the next big thing could be ice and snow. One good thing is this will squelch the drought and that the lakes are bound to rise, at least a little, perhaps a lot. Mixed bag of good and bad, as always.

UPDATE  Rain totals set records for the date, according to National Weather Service: 4.20 inches at the airport, eclipsing a 1951 record and 3.55 inches midtown, knocking off a 1944 record. Ice storm is expected to begin overnight tonight, worsen Sunday and overnight Sunday when it changes to snow through Tuesday. We have no travel plans, so that’s not a problem, but ice buildup may bring down power lines and that would be an inconvenience, to say the least. Never a dull moment at the rancho.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly, Texana, Weather/Climate

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