Perfection vs Reality

Because I canned a few jars of beans, I don't want to give the impression that I'm some sort of Martha Stewart. (There is dust under the beds and cobwebs in the corners of this old house.)

Take my bonsai plants for example. When our friends Candi and Roger left Seattle years ago to live in the frozen Montana climate, I inherited their lovely bonsai collection. I'm proud of the fact they are all still alive, and haven't turned into great forest trees by now. But I don't have the obsessive attention to detail to maintain the type of plants like you'll find at the Weyerhauser Bonsai garden in Federal Way. Yes, this is the same Weyerhauser that cuts down forests all over the NW, and they have a famous bonsai display at their headquarters. If you live in the Seattle region and have never visited here, I'd encourage you to go. Like walking through a living museum, and although this sounds pretty boring, it's actually fascinating when you learn the great age and history of these specimens.

Compare for example the museum presentation above of a classic larch grove, and my larch "forest" below. (Candi, I think there might be an elf living under there.) I call this the natural look, but you get the idea on the perfection thing! Time for a fall bonsai grooming session.