Ohhhhh...gardenias

This morning as I sat down to the computer, the birds were singing and cheeping, and it was the perfect start to an otherwise overcast day.  Now, it's a little after 9:30 AM and suddenly all is quiet.  What's the deal?  No singing after 9:30....do they only get paid up to a certain time each morning and then knock off for the day?  It is silent as the grave out there and I just wondered what gives?  I may have to Google that. 

I did load the CD of my MRI last night 'cause I could, and after studying the first image and not being able to go on further for some "user unfriendly" reason, I pulled the plug and decided I'd just have to be patient and wait until Monday for the results. 

Back to the bird issue: I just went to grab more coffee and they are singing in the backyard, so maybe they trade off after 9:30.  Not sure, but I'll get on this and report back.  More interesting news-- at least at our house anyway-- is that the gardenia bushes Fred like to died planting last summer, in hopes of having some prolific flowers this summer, are beginning to bloom.  If you remember, these are the old timey gardenias that are about the size of a butter plate when they bloom, and 3 or 4 will scent an entire room with a dizzyingly fragrant smell.  There's just nothing else in the world that compares to the smell of fresh picked gardenias.  One minor glitch to that plan:  the ice and snow from last winter did a number on these gals, so the fact that I have ANY blooms v two dead bushes, is a miracle of nature.  So far, I missed one bloom, have already harvested one, and have 9-11 more to come, so I am patrolling daily.  The bush on the far right got it the worst and so far has only put out one possible bloom, but I'm coaxing her along and will throw her some additional fertilizer, to see if I can get her going.  Poor gal....she looks almost anorexic... but she's putting out all new tiny little leaves, so she's on her way back. 

Gardenias always make me think of my grandmother, Mimi, and her lake house at Coon Creek.  When I was young, she had gardenia bushes all across the front of her house and when they bloomed, it was just insane.  She had to keep them surrounded by chicken wire to keep the deer from eating them but they were fantastic while they lasted.  When they finally croaked, Fred and I used to snag fresh ones from another lady's yard, on our walks back from dinner.  The lady was never there when we were, so we decided it was our job to enjoy her flowers, so they wouldn't got to waste.  An..oh, baby.....we did.  Nothing says summer like the smell of of gardenias.