Summer in Austin

About 18 months ago a friend gave me a cutting from his rock rose (see picture above).  He put it in a plastic pot and I managed to not kill it.  It was a stick in a pot of dirt with about six leaves that I occasionally watered.  It even managed to survive last summer's 60+ days of century mark temperatures and our very cold Hill Country winter.

I had always planned to put it in my side yard bed, if I didn't kill it, of course.  When I put it in the ground, it looked like one of the sticks on the Possum Haw right next to it.  After a few weeks in the ground, it looked like this:

...scrappy, but starting to take off.  Well, last week, I noticed that it has become a full-blown bush!  From stick to bush in 2 months flat...I love you rock rose...you rock....all bushy and beautiful. 

 At least I have one thing to be thankful for in the unbearable heat!

Changing the subject entirely,  I ran across this Youtube video about Whole Foods.  Since Austin is the home of WF and I shop at their 6th St. store (can you believe that tourists visit this place?), I feel it quite proper to share.  Apparently, they only have one level of parking at the West LA WF, I, however, had to park 2 LEVELS DOWN at the 6th St. store last week....2 LEVELS DOWN...I think I saw  smoke from hades wafting up...maybe it was the smoker across from the meat counter...

Anyhoo, if you've ever been in WF (aka Whole Paycheck around here), you'll have a good laugh!