the proper gardner

yesterday afternoon, a tiny old lady was sweeping the sidewalk of her tidy home on minnehaha parkway. i was happy for the red light so i could sit and watch her for 2.3 minutes. she must have had her hair done yesterday - little old ladies do that on saturdays, and it was silver white, puffy and perfect. she was wearing a short sleeved white blouse and light blue capri slacks, both crispy clean with neat creases where creases ought to be. sturdy sensible shoes helped her bend and balance, balance and bend as she swept some flower dust and helicopters off her front walk with her O Cedar angler broom and pale yellow (perfectly spotless) dustpan.

in line at the garden store there were three old people behind me in the long long line. one man in a nice shirt and casual pants, leather belt and walking shoes. two women with perfect hair (of course), one darker than the other, and both wore comfy pants and bright sweaters, one red and one light green. jewelry? of course. dangly chains around their necks and matching earrings.

being the curious person i am (read: snoop), i listened in on their conversation which trailed around from topic to topic -- betty's new hip and the crackpot who did the surgery, what a whack job he is! betty should sue but she won't but she should. they wondered about the plants people around them were purchasing and marveled at the money being spent...these three with their shopping cart containing three small pots of pink petunias.

next to the check out lines ther were piles and piles of every kind of dirt and soil you can imagine...topsoil, sterile garden dirt, potting mix, moisture control...all by Miracle Grow. one said

"who owns that outfit? look at all that stuff! we oughta buy stock in that outfit!"

old man answered "scott - it's a scott company"

"well we ought to buy stock. look at all those piles. people buying it up like crazy. who ever thought we would see the day when people are paying good money for dirt?"

and finally this afternoon at garden store number 2, another pretty old lady with a fresh do was carefully placing one medium sized pot of bright red geraniums in the back seat of her car, but only after being sure the towel in the back seat was in place so as not to soil the apholstery. denim jacket, black pants (the backs of which were covered with white cat hair), large shell earrings, and again, a good pair of shoes.

when i shop garden stores and when i garden, i try my best to make sure my t-shirt is not stained and my shorts aren't too tight. it's ok to be sloppy when you are considering dirt, yes?

what a shame for me, how embarrasing for me. oh dear -- what i look like!

the proper gardner cares about his or her appearance at all times. it is the respectable way to choose plants and care for them.

and don't forget

the sensible shoes.