A seedling rose-of-Sharon has appeared in one of the few sunny spots in my back yard. I didn’t plant it and I have no idea how it got there. It’s barely above ankle height so it won’t bloom for a year or two yet, but I’m ridiculously pleased. Rose-of-Sharon is a local name for Hibiscus syriacus, a shrubby tree with huge showy blossoms that come out in high summer and last well into September.

Among the things I love about Stratford is the abundance of flowering shrubs and trees. Yes, they make me sneeze. No, I don’t care. Ottawa, by contrast, has lilacs and wild roses, but also a preponderance of spruces, pines and firs, and miles and miles of bleak, spindly birch. Here, we have chestnuts! Magnolias! Holly!

You subtropical folks with your crepe myrtle and azaleas the size of a state coach must think I’m easily pleased. Okay, I’ll take the hit.

À propos de Replacements.com, Stilly, they do not want my Wedgwood “Strawberry Hill” tea and dinner sets. The pattern is old-fashioned (a feature, not a bug, in my book), and not one of the maker’s most popular — I had never seen it before my mother-in-law gave me the tea service as an engagement present. Fortunately, the entire accumulation fits neatly into a little old china cabinet that lives in the basement, and it’s not taking up space needed for something more important. I’m sure the pendulum of fashion will eventually swing away from today’s minimalism, and fancy table settings will be wanted again..