Desert Willow

This is a picture of a desert willow tree that I swiped from the Texas Agriculture Experiment Station website. It is like the one in my next door neighbor Tracey's yard. It is not a true willow tree, but is related to the bignonia species, which includes trumpet vine varieties. The "willow" in its name is from the willow-like leaves on this plant.













My best pal Sneedlet One and I spent a very busy day today. I had to pick him up early because his mother had an appointment at ten thirty this morning. It was at some fancy chick spa. I asked her what she was getting done and she gave me a prolonged sigh and some advice about not asking personal questions. Geez, I thought it was a hair, makeup, nail place. Now I am left wondering what sort of sordid business goes on there.

Speaking of businesses, sordid and otherwise, the way people figure out how to make a living fascinates me. Sneedlet One and I were at the mall today and we walked by a business that has sprung in one of the areas where pedestrians gather, right outside a department store. The business is about ten Asian-American persons giving massages. They have about ten of those massage chairs you sort of knell in. Who thought of that? Even though I am not the sort of fellow who gets massages, there are plenty of folks who do.

Someone is always finding a new angle on things. Unfortunately, that someone is never me.

Tom Peters the business expert and co-author of In Search of Excellence talks about the law of intended use. He says that when something is invented a use for the invention will spring up that no one anticipated. This always provides and opportunity for the innovators to find a niche. Peters uses the example of zip lock bags which started with food storage in mind, but now has a zillion other uses.

Take the carabiner as another example. In case you are not familiar with that term, a carabiner is a safety device used in rock and mountain climbing mostly. Unless you are a climber, you are most familiar with it as the things guys with lots of keys use to hook them to their belt loops. Makers of cellphone and camera cases, key rings and many other consumer goods have latched, onto the idea of the carabiner for other hanging-related needs. Brilliant.

Sneedlet and I also spent some time working in the back yard today, although we abandoned the idea sooner than we would have liked because it was very windy. It is also cooler than we would expect it to be at this time of the year, which is fantastic.

My neighbor Tracy, who you will remember a the lovely young woman next door who jilted me for some handsome young guy with aa Porsche, has a giant desert willow tree in her front yard. The tree is covered in pink flowers this time of the year. That, in combination with the high wind, has left our front yard with a pink blanket.

One important thing we did accomplish today was that we bought sunflower seeds to fill the bird feeder. Eddie has pestered me relentlessly to get some seeds, so now he will be satisfied. We got sunflower seeds that were already shelled and chopped to make it easy for the birds (and passing squirrels) to eat. I am just an old tree-hugger at heart.






Things in this blog represented to be fact, may or may not actually be true. The writer is frequently wrong, sometimes just full of it, but always judgmental and cranky


Tag: Daily Life
Personal Finance
Humor