Stan & Joyce Orchard

Don’t Be A Tease

We love visiting local nurseries. Always looking for new ideas for The Orchard Compound. Spotted these words of wisdom at G E & B Nursery in Enumclaw. Nice folks. Be kind to your plants.

Mole Kill

Should I be sad that this furry little creature has died or should I feel immense satisfaction? Forgive me. This battle has raged for many years.

Dreaming Of Spring

Today’s sunny and bright weather was infectious. When we did our weekly shopping I got carried away at the seed display.

Gelatinous Goo

No, not the name of a punk rock band. We spotted this stuff on our midday walk here at home on a sunny day. More of the fungus among us. Always fascinating.

These three guys showed up just before sunrise on a dark, drizzly morning. The bull on the right is missing his left antler, hence the nickname. Never tire of watching them out our living room window.

Brightest Light

As the world watches the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter this evening, we on the Orchard Compound celebrate another event. On this date long ago in the U.S. Territory of Alaska a child was born. On the darkest day of the year she brought a light into this world that still shines and fills our hearts with joy. Happy birthday Joyce Carol. We’ve been together for more than 45 years. Here’s to many more.

A Walk In The Woods

While the east coast gets a heavy snow, we continue with boring, damp, moist weather. Sure, we may have to wash off the moss from between our toes now and again, but this is way better in my opinion.

Christmas Traditions

We get one of these every year along with a Panetonne. The latter are MUCH smaller these days. But they’re both still as tasty as they’ve ever been. An annual indulgence to brighten these dark days.

Life Goes On And On

Joyce Carol has been tending to this Christmas Cactus for so long, neither of us can remember when it started. We agree it used to be much larger. She took cuttings many years ago and has managed to keep it alive. Still amazes me.

My Trophy Wife

A few years ago, we got serious about our health. Low-carb, intermittent fasting, walking, etc. Today she tipped the scales at 125, the same as she was 45 years ago when we married. To show she’s still wild and crazy after all these years: she took her mask off for this photo. Rebel.