Monday, March 21, 2011

Springtime -- Clutching at Straws -- or Tulips

I'm writing this post on a cold, gloomy day. They threaten it will be warm, but it wasn't when I went to the gym and it's not any warmer now. Or brighter. Maybe it will be by the day this post actually hits. But right now, we are talking gray. Seriously gray.

So, I bring spring inside and play with the tulip photos I took a few days ago (when we actually did that tease called sunshine).

To me, daffodils and crocuses herald the start of spring, but tulips -- and by this, I mean the tulips growing outside, not at Trader Joe's -- tulips herald the fact that spring is here to stay.
So, when I need a dose of hope, I trundle off to whatever store is closest and pick up a bunch.

Perhaps its their showy blooms...

...or their beautiful colors.

Perhaps it is the way they look deep inside.

Is it their striping?

The way they unfold?

Or is it simply by the time tulips start to appear in the stores, I am starved for their beauty?

I'm not sure about that, but I am pretty sure I'm not alone! Recent posts I've discovered from too many of you to name have featured this showy bloom in various incarnations. And really, didn't you feel good to have these flowers in your space? I know I did!

23 comments:

Dogwood said...

great photos.
lovely colors.
i love spring flowers especially daffodils and tulips.
have a great day.
hugs, dogwood

anno said...

Oh, yes ... tulips = spring! I start buying them in February and don't stop until I can find sunflowers in the market in July. (from then on, it's roses, just in case you were interested).

Love your gorgeous pictures! They look like paintings, and remind me: I need to find some tulips ... today!

Janet said...

Your tulip photos are spectacular!

Sally Wessely said...

Yes, they really do brighten up a space. I loved your photos. Your comments added to the interest.

My tulips are beginning to come up in the backyard. I just planted them, so I can't wait to see how they turn out.

Barb said...

I think blooms in spring look fragile but are able to withstand some abuse from weather. A bouquet of tulips brings a bit of spring inside. Your tulip photos just brightened my day.

Becca said...

Oh my, these put a smile on my face! And made me want to rush out to the market for some tulips and daffs!

It does seem like we need a spot of color these days. I've been wearing my yellow and turquoise and tangerine to try and brighten things up in my own personal space :)

Marilyn Miller said...

Soon I will need to show tulips too. I love your tulip pictures. It looks like you were having some fun.

beth said...

i kind of want to bathe in them :)

Jeanie said...

My tulips almost always get covered with snow shortly after they begin to peek out of the ground. They always survive even through a pretty big storm. They are a beautiful and hardy sign that spring has arrived.

Privet and Holly said...

You and I
are SO on
the same page...
bring on the
BLOOMS!!! Your
pics are just
beautiful.
Tulips amaze
me with all
of the variety.
And how they
change over
the course of
a week! AND
the fact that
they continue
to grow, after
they are placed
in water. Hope
the sun comes
out for you and
dispels the gloom,
Jeanie!
xx Suzanne

~*~Patty S said...

Yes...flowers really do speak of the different seasons and tulips are so varied and beautiful

when I was a girl we were stationed in Germany and took a day trip to Holland to the Keukenhof Gardens (sp?)...it was a tulip festival...more tulips than you could shake a stick at...outside and in greenhouses

I remember stopping to smell the tulips BUT found hardly any with fragrance and there were LOTS of tulips...I guess when you look so good you don't have to smell good too

People bought garlands made of tulips and strung them outside along the windshield on the fronts of their cars
Sweet memories!
Happy Spring Jeanie!
oxo

Joanne Huffman said...

Beautiful photos, beautiful blooms. I'm currently in Louisiana, where it really is spring. Such a nice break from Michigan weather.

Annie Jeffries said...

These are just so lusciously beautiful, Jeanie. Happy Spring even if the day is gray.

Lisa's Yarns said...

It's seriously gray here, too, and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight anytime soon. At least not in the next week. Perhaps I shoudl cheer myself up by buying myself some tulips. :) The photos are beautiful! Tulips are one of my favorite flowers!!

Mae Travels said...

Today was the second time I've come back from spring (with shirtsleeve weather and daffodils and crocus) to Michigan. And we were greeted at the border by cold pelting rain. So your photos are very welcome.

Bella Rum said...

What beautiful photos. Spring can not make up its mind. I bought daffodils at Trader Joe's this weekend.

Thanks for a touch of spring.
Bella

Karen Owen said...

Gorgeous photos! I believe tulips are my favorite flower. I'm fickle - sometimes I'm partial to calla lilies or roses - but in the end I always come back to graceful tulips.

Paris hotel said...

great photos and lovely colors
Thanks for a touch of spring.

Paula S. said...

i posted one lame fb photo of my orchids. and you present the tulip so magnificently! georgia okkeefe-like!

Relyn Lawson said...

Oh, your tulip images are making me giddy.

jet1960 said...

Yes, indeed, beautiful colors!

Ruth said...

They are such a gift, for all the reasons you listed. I've grown to appreciate them all the way open more than before. I love them as buds too. They are just so elegant. And the Rembrandts and other varieties available now are fantastic.

I saw some at Trader Joe's just yesterday!

ForgedinPaper said...

I love tulips espeically the way they keep growing in the vase. Sounds wierd but it's like they are still so enthusiastic about the spring.

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