Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Sunday 27 December 2015

Sunday Selections #256

Sunday Selections was originally brought to us by Kim, of Frogpondsrock, as an ongoing meme where participants could post previously unused photos languishing in their files.
 
The meme is now continued by River at Drifting through life.  The rules are so simple as to be almost non-existent.  Post some photos under the title Sunday Selections and link back to River.  Clicking on any of the photos will make them embiggen.
 
Like River I usually run with a theme.  This week?  Not really.  A few random shots.


Our 'over decorated fridge'.



And some pictures of the fruit salad which is currently taking up a LOT of room inside it.  Fruit salad is a Christmas tradition for me  There are over twenty types of fruit in it including pineapple, mango, passion fruit, pawpaw, cherries, lychees, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, kiwifruit, green grapes, red grapes, peaches, apricots, nectarines, plums, black currants...  Forget the turkey.  Himself has that, but for the next little while I am virtually living on my fruit salad.




And some more from the garden.
I pruned the hibiscus viciously a while ago, and it seems to have forgiven me.




More coloured calla lilies.




And a scented oriental lily.  I love them, but know that they are overpowering to more sensitive noses.  There are scents which give me difficulty, but fortunately they are almost all artificial.


As I type this on Boxing Day we are having some wonderful life giving gentle rain.  Even better, I hear it is raining in Victoria on the areas savaged by bushfires yesterday.  My heart goes out to eveyone (human or animal) who lost their homes.

107 comments:

  1. Happy Boxing Day! I love the calla lilies. So pretty!

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    1. We are: Clamco: Boxing Day has been and gone here. I hope yours is wonderful.

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  2. Your fruit salad looks delicious EC. No mention of books for Xmas? Surely Santa didn't forget you. And yes, I concur about the Victorian bushfires.

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    1. carol: Of course there were Christmas books. You would have heard me pouting if they had been missing. I am trying to be strong. I have not one but two books to finish before I dive into the Christmas haul.

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  3. I love fruit salad! Unfortunately, most of the fruit in the stores over here these days taste like waxed cardboard. Glad to hear you're getting some rain. Fires are heartbreaking.

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    1. River Fairchild: We have some issues with cardboard produce here too. I go to the markets and to a couple of trusted stores and gently poke and sniff...
      Fires are terrifying things. Over 100 homes lost. And that is just the people homes.

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    2. The sniff test is more reliable. If I can't smell fruit even on something that feels ripe, then it's probably cardboard produce softened from age and I don't buy it.

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    3. River: I rely on the sniff test too. It doesn't let me down either.

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  4. I didn't even know there are colored calla lilies!!

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    1. fishducky: There are. I have some more yet to come out as well. The white ones have been and gone, as have the green ones.

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  5. I've not had fruit salad with so many types of fruit but I would like to.

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    1. Andrew: It is good. Very good. No apples, no orange but other than that anything goes.

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  6. Replies
    1. Author R. Mac Wheeler: Inside and out it is busy.

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  7. We're getting some lovely gentle rain here at present, too...it started through the night...a hot steamy night. We had heavier rain on Christmas Day, which was wonderful.

    I eat loads of fruit as you know, but I never make fruit salad for myself...I eat it as it comes. I used to make bowls and bowls of it when I had my greengrocery shop and as the bowls got low...I'd convert the salad into fruit salad ice-blocks and sell them. The kids, in particular, used to love them.

    That sure is one decorated fridge!

    Stay cool, EC...I hope you get more rain and that you have a good week ahead...cuddles to Jewel and Jazz.

    Remy and Shama looked at me strangely when I showed them their Christmas present. I had a feeling they would....oh, well! :)

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    1. Lee: No more rain here. Sigh. Yesterday's was lovely, but more is needed. I eat fruit as it comes, but also like the melding of flavour and texture that the fruit salad brings. I will top it up as the level goes down - and then revert to eating it as is again.
      Jazz and Jewel both rejected most of their Christmas treats.
      I hope your rain continues and you and the furry ones have a great week.

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  8. Gorgeous, bright, colorful shots! Thank you, a welcome sight on this overcast day.

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    1. Sandi: Welcome and thank you. There is a LOT of sun and colour on this side of the world at the moment.

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  9. Thank you for this treat

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    1. Martin Kloess: Thank you. Your site still doesn't get on with my ISP. I will keep trying.

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  10. Beautiful photos as usual. I have never had so many fruits in a salad and it looks delicious. Those beauties are out of season here, but in July I am going to use as many as I can find for a fantastic salad.

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    1. Anne in the kitchen: It is delicious. Or I think so. I have just had a large bowl for breakfast. And will almost certainly have another for lunch.

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  11. Fruits and flowers! Just my sort!








    ( '>
    /))
    //""
    Warm ALOHA to You,
    ComfortSpiral

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  12. I've never seen anything but white callas in the wild. I do have some colored callas myself but must bring the bulbs in every winter as Michigan is usually too cold. The fruit salad looks wonderful

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    1. Sue in Itali/In the Land of Cancer: We get frosts, and sometimes hard frosts but snow is rare. And plants stay outside and take their chances.

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  13. Geez, that fruit salad looks wonderful! I can taste it almost from the pictures. My favorite holiday fruit is cranberries cooked in red wine. I tried to skimp on sugar this year for health reasons so it is bit tart but still wonderful with turkey. I have enough cranberries and wine to do it again in a few weeks.

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    1. Bookie: Cranberries in red wine sounds delicious. I may have to experiment when the weather cools down - and the fruit salad is wonderful.

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  14. the fruit salad looks delicious, how do you keep it from getting all mushy when you stir it up, love that double hibiscus and the calla lilies are wonderful

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    1. Linda Starr: Stir gently. The raspberries do disintegrate a bit, but most of the fruit remains whole. It is raw which helps.

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  15. Such wonderful fruit - I would be happy to eat it every day! (No pineapple in mine, though.) I am really loving the stone fruit at the moment - nectarines, apricots, cherries - just delicious!

    It's so sad to hear about terrible bushfires in Victoria once again. I loved the drive along the Great Ocean Road when I did it a few years ago, but it sounds as if the Otways bush has been badly hit.

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    1. Alexia: The fires are tragic. And a tragedy which is repeated every year here. Somewhere. And often several somewheres.

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  16. That fruit salad looks like something I would ADORE living on for awhile. And aren't those calla lilies a little phallic? Never noticed before. :-)

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    1. DJan: My fruit salad binge is no hardship. You are right about the phallic callas - but pretty with it. Which is more than can be said for some...

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  17. That is a full frontal fridge.
    The festive fruit salad is a feast for the senses, delicious.
    I love your callas, their colours are lovely.

    Devastating bushfires at Christmas. My heart goes out to those who suffered in this tragedy.
    I so lament the poor confused, frightened wildlife who weren't able to get away. All those babies just getting their independence to move/fly around, but not fast enough to escape the smoke and flames...

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    1. Vicki: The wildlife has been in my thoughts and heart too. So frightening. So inescapable.

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  18. Wow, that is some fridge front! Awesome! Also, that fruit salad looks so delicious I wish the picture were printable in 3D. I would eat it.

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    1. Strayer: The fridge magnets are a magnet for the cats (one in particular) and can frequently be found on the floor. Some have been repaired many times.

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  19. I've never made my own fruit salad either, I think it would be one big soggy mess. Do you cook any of the fruits you use? and what do you use for the juice?
    I love your fridge.

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    1. River: I don't cook any of the fruit. I often use a small tetra pack of juice -apple and blackcurrant this year. Some of the berries get crushed, but the flavour is still there.

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  20. I also made a big bowl of fruit salad, it's delicious, will be eating it for awhile.
    Your flowers are looking good.
    I have nothing on my fridge door at all.....just about two items on one side of it..

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    1. Margaret-whiteangel: There is NOTHING in this house which is minimalist. Isn't fruit salad a delightful treat at this time of year?

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  21. I love fruit salad.. I have been eating a lot of cherries this week. ;) Merry Christmas!

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    1. Snoskred: Mmm cherries. And raspberries, and nectarines, and lychees. I can't decide.
      I hope your Christmas was wonderful.

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  22. Your fridge adornments amazed me. When our kitchen was re-organised (after I flooded it) I found one side of the fridge bare so that now is where my magnets live with less likelihood of them being knocked off.
    That fruit salad is better than any I've ever seen and reminds me it is years since I made one.
    The flowers are glorious and I am so glad you've had at least some rain. We've had none for weeks now and everything is so dry.
    I feel so sad for the people who lost their homes, even if only holiday and nor permanent homes. First here in WA and then in SA and now in Victoria but at least over there no loss of life which one must be so thankful for. I feel it is going to be a long, hot summer even in Tasmania.
    Once again, thank you for sharing such interesting things.

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    1. Mimsie: We have overflow magnets on the chest freezer too. The collection has been growing for well over twenty years now.
      The rain was lovely. Not enough of it, but very, very welcome. And yes, it does look like being a very harsh summer. I hope no more fires, but fear there will be.

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  23. Your salad looks very exotic.
    I do not even know what some fruit tastes :) (Of course I can buy them also here, but I don't use them.)
    Hope you had nice and lovely - not too hot - Christmastime.

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    1. orvokki: The very best fruit is in season at this time of year. And I love it.
      Christmas was warm, but not hot - which was lovely. I hope yours was also good. And the wonderful magnet you sent has pride of place on the fridge.

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  24. Your fridge door really surprised me and then I started reflecting on your voracious flower collecting and realised I estimated wrong! :)
    Ditto the fruit salad, which sounds decadent in the extreme.

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    1. kylie: The fruit salad is decadent. And delightful. And yes, I am an obsessionist. About so many things.

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  25. Hurray for the rain! And that sure is some fridge!

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    1. ladyfi: The rain was more than welcome, but more is needed. Quite a lot more.

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  26. I can't formulate a sensible comment...I got rather damp this morning in a lovely shower.I think it affected my brain!

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    1. dinahmow: Water on the brain? A lovely shower sounds good though.

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  27. I could easily live on your fruit salad. So nice to see flowers in a garden. Mine suffered so badly that all my raspberries, black currants, vegetables are history. The last heatwave was so bad that it killed large shrubs and trees as well as many of my beloved roses. We have not had a soaking rain for longer than I can remember.

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    1. Arija: I am so sorry that your garden was cooked. We have lost things, but fortunately not shrubs or trees. Yesterday's rain was very gentle, and didn't count as soaking rain - but was very, very welcome. I hope you get some too. Soon.

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  28. And I thought I had a lot of fridge magnets! Your fruit salad looks delicious.

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    1. lynners: Many years have gone into our magnet collection. Many, many years. Jazz destroys a few, but they get replaced. And this year we were given another dozen for Christmas.

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  29. We have nothing on our fridge at all! If I had all that stuff I constantly be knocking things off. :D Very tasty fruit salad, and healthy too. I hope you are enjoying Christmas, well what's left of it.

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    1. LL Cool Joe: The cats do knock things off. As we do, occasionally. Christmas was quiet and peaceful - just the way I like it. I hope yours was good.

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  30. Dear EC
    We have fridge magnets too, but not quite as many as you! I have been eating rather too much chocolate and not enough fruit, so your fruit salad served as a reminder.
    Have a lovely New Year and enjoy your garden too.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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    1. Ellie Foster: There is rather a lot of chocolate here too, but the fruit salad tempts me more at the moment (long may that continue).
      A very Happy New Year to you too. And happy gardening, when the weather allows you.

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  31. So glad you are getting rain...and what a wonderful tradition of fruit salad....wish it was in season here. I used to have a frig that looked like that but with so many moves about 10 yrs ago, I pared it down. Seems like terrible weather everywhere these days causing such heartache...blizzards, tornadoes and floods here in the US....more flooding rain here.

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    1. Donna@LivingFromHappiness: We need to do some paring here. Not only the fridge.
      You are right about the weather. We have floods here too. Sigh.

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  32. Your flowers are gorgeous, I've never seen coloured calla lilies. And the fruit salad is especially tempting with all those fruits combined. Are you sure your fridge won't collapse carrying all that extra weight?
    Panto today, then family Christmas dinner and prezzies for the littles tomorrow, then Christmas will be officially OVER!!

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    1. Shammickite: Prezzies for the littlies tomorrow? Extra, or was their Christmas spread out?
      I suspect a large cat on top of the fridge (one of his favourite spots) is more likely to cause a collapse than the magnets.

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  33. Belated Merry Christmas and Happy holidays EC! I signed off my computer for a few days but wanted to stop by today and wish you a very happy holiday. Your fridge, fruit salad, and flowers are all so colorful! I love how many types of wonderful fruit are in the salad. My wedding bouquet had rubrum lilies in it- and I well remember the intoxicating fragrance!

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    1. Susan F.: Rubrum lilies was a new term to me. Thank goodness for Google. I love the fragrance, and at the moment it is perfuming the house and garden.
      Happy holidays to you and yours.

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  34. Hi EC - I noted the fires in Victoria - dreadful .. on the other hand we're deluged up north .. thankfully not down here. We have fresh fruit salad too - in the hot, in the cool! Enjoyed my turkey though ... Happy rest of the last few days of this year - cheers Hilary

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    1. Hilary Melton-Butcher: Some world-wide weather moderation would be nice wouldn't it? There are floods in our north too.
      I am glad to hear that you have escaped.

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  35. Dear EC, great fridge, stunning fruit salad! I'm spending a few days in the Roal National Park south of Sydney and each morning it rains from about 5-6 am. Perfect to cool things off and keep it green. The kookaburras start laughing at 4:30 and now at 6am the sulphur crested cockatoos are drowning out all other birds with their screeching. I love it! Happy New Year to you, the SP and the furry ones! 🌟🌟🌟

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    1. Carol: Early rain and birdsong sounds absolutely blissful to me. Of course you love it. And a very happy New Year to you and yours.

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  36. I'm not sure which I find more appealing... the lilies or that fruit salad. Hmmm, maybe a bowl of salad while sitting in the yard admiring the lilies...

    Wow! Your fridge has even more stuff on it than ours does... impressive!

    It may be winter here, but it sure doesn't feel like it. Some flowers and trees are blooming that should be dormant until spring. No wonder they're confused, though. It was over eighty degrees on Christmas day, with lightning, thunder, and a LOT of rain. Flooding all over the place. Kept the grandchildren inside playing with me. :)

    I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, and here's to an even better new year.

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    1. Susan: The rain kept the grandchildren inside playing with you? Definitely a silver (gold/platinum/diamond) lining to the cloud. The weather is on the odd side here too. We get some very hot days and then the temperature plummets over night (which I am not complaining about).

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  37. Boxing Day relates to our Second Christmas here in Latvia. Hope you had a great holiday. Love the pictures and cannot decide which is more beautiful the fruit salad or the flowers.

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    1. Rasma Raisters: I hope your Second Christmas (and the first) were wonderful. I am fond of both the salad and the flowers.

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  38. How welcome, the fruit salad and the flowers - and especially the rain for those who have suffered so much in the heat.
    Very happy New Year.

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    1. Relatively Retiring: The rain was lovely. Not enough of it, but very welcome. While the fires are still burning (sigh) they are no longer threatening homes. Hopefully they can be brought under control. And the floods in other parts of Oz recede.

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  39. Now I want some fruit salad. More specifically, your fruit salad.

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    1. Birdie: It is a good one. I have converted one of my sisters-in-law too. She also makes a BIG fruit salad on Christmas Eve. And gets to have leftovers for breakfasts.

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  40. As a lifelong victim of a sensitive nose, I can smell that lilly right through the screen. It'd send me running away, but your picture renders it safe. Thanks for sharing, EC!

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    1. John Wiswell: So many people are made miserable by those lilies. One of my best friends has HUGE difficulties with them. I have problems with incense and rather a lot of aerosol sprays, and pollen but scented plants are fine. Which is lucky.

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  41. Beautiful photos. Your fruit salad looks amazing. What does a lychee taste like? Wikipedia tells me it is sweet and juicy, but does it taste "like" anything else in the fruit world? Pretty sure I've never seen one in our stores.

    Your fridge is wonderful - so colourful!

    I hope you and all the dry and/or burning areas get some steady rain.

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    1. jenny_o: I am not sure how to describe a lychee. Sweet and juicy they are, but that covers a multitude of things. Do you ever see canned lychees? Fresh is better (of course) but you get a hint of the flavour from the canned ones.
      The rain has gone. The fires are better, but not yet under control. And in the north of Oz, we have floods. Sigh. World-wide weather moderation would be nice.

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    2. Good idea - I hadn't thought about canned fruit. Although we don't even have canned plums in our little town, so I'm not optimistic ... but I will check.

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  42. I envy you your flowers blooming so prettily. After a fairly warm warm fall and unseasonably warm Christmas, it's turned cold and wintery with snow expected for tomorrow. Love the pink calla lillies!

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    1. mshatch: We are never satisfied are we? I am thoroughly enjoying (and envying) photos of snow and ice. Despite loving my lilies.

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  43. I am green with envy, almost as green as your plants.
    All this glory at Christmas. It’s unthinkable!

    Happy New Year, dear E’s C.

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    1. Friko: And a very happy (and healthy) New Year to you and your beloved. Lots of green is turning to gold here now. Fast.

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  44. I love your colorful world, especially your frig oh and contents!!!

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    1. Sonya Ann: It is a colourful world. Sadly I spend too much time exploring that fridge. Much too much.

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  45. your fridge is FABULOUS! I see lots of cats on there!

    xxx

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    1. My Inner Chick: Lots of everything. Cats, gardens, birds, fish - and a few other things too. Hugs.

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  46. That was fun to see your fridge and flowers. I like posts like this, just all tossed in for fun.

    Cheers and boogie boogie.

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    1. The Happy Whisk: Thank you. There will be more of all of my obsessions over the coming months.

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  47. Beautiful flowers, and the fridge, how do you know what it is doing?

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    1. Bob Bushell: I leave the fridge to its own devices. Which mostly works well. Except when it doesn't.

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  48. Hey Sue,

    That's a serious amount of fridge magnets! A very fruity, flowery post. Ah yes, Boxing Day. The day after Boxing Day Eve!

    Thanks for the visual delights. I believe your fridge is talking, strewth!

    Gary

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    1. klahanie:
      Dear Gary. I hope if the fridge is talking it is telling me to stay away.
      The New Year is looming - I hope it is health and happiness filled for you.

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  49. That salad looks amazing! Wish I had some right now - I'm a little weary of holiday food. :)

    And your flowers - just glorious.

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    1. Lynn: I have just had another big bowl of it. It is my holiday food and I love it.

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  50. Happy New Year, my friend - I see it's already 2016 there.

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    1. Lynn: It is indeed here. I hope your year (and life) is truly wonderful.

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  51. I have a very decorated fridge too! The fruit looks delicious! Love the beautiful flower shots. :)

    Happy New Year! I hope 2016 is filled with the best things in life.
    ~Jess

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    1. DMS ~ Jess: A very happy New Year to you and yours too. I hope it is wonderful.

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  52. I will send you a picture of my overdecorated fridge. My dad's second wife insisted that all of the magnets match the color of the fridge (which was butterscotch...so no magnets.) I think she just didn't want our stuff on it. So now, in an otherwise very neat house, I have a fridge that is obscenely covered with magnets.

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    1. Riot Kitty: More than ours? I look forward to seeing that.

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