Coronado yards for my momma!

I awoke Saturday morning to a perfect weather day. I rolled out of bed and made a cup of coffee (OK, an espresso actually). I mossied outside and felt a significant increase in temperature from previous mornings. Wow, it feels warm today! For my friends further north or out on the east coast, you are probably snickering at this point and mumbling under your breath something about how the weather is always warm in southern California compared to where you live. To that I will remind you that my frame of reference is south Louisiana! Although being greeted by a morning temperature of 50 degrees may seem balmy to my east coast and mountain dwelling friends, I assure you it is nothing of the sort to my family down in bayou country! So when I stepped outside and experienced 60s first thing in the morning, I knew this was going to be a special day! As if the weather Gods decided to compensate me for 4 winters I endured living in Colorado, record-breaking heat and a cloudless sky was bestowed upon me this whole early April weekend!

After savoring my cup of dark roast, I threw on some clothes and running shoes and headed for the beach. It was still early but there were already a few like-minded early-birds out there taking advantage of the low tide. The packed sand provided the perfect running surface for my tri-weekly 30 minute therapeutic jog.

I came back to my apartment, took a shower and again headed out the door. There was a cloudless sky and high temperatures out there and I wanted to be enveloped in it! Every morning I ride the mile from my apartment to the Coronado bridge that connects the "island" to San Diego and head out to work. Every morning I ride extra slow and take in the smells of jasmine and honeysuckle and admire the explosion of flora as I make the journey towards the location of my livliehood. I decided that this was the perfect day to get an up-close look at what I can only glimpse while doing 35 mph with a helmet on my head on the way to work.

I'll start off by saying that some of my favorite flowers in the world are magnolias (for fragrance and the sultry reminder of the south), birds of paradise & plumeria (my tour on Hawaii), and azaleas. Every respectable yard in the Gulf Coast region has an azalea bush. For several years during my college days, I ran a race in Mobile, Alabama called the Azalea Trail Run. There are few things that I associate as strongly with spring in the Gulf coast south as I do azaleas. My Mama had a few bushes in her yard as does my mom. I have to admit being slightly offended at seeing them out here in California. It only seems right that azaleas would refuse to bloom anywhere where the humidity is less than 60%!

So on my stroll down my street with camera in hand, I stopped to smell many flowers along the way. As luck would have it, judging for the Coronado Floral Association's home front competition was this weekend! The yards (or lawns as my Yankee friends like to call 'em) were decked out and fussed over to competition worthiness!

It seemed as if there were ribbons in every house window I came across! I stopped to chat with a few older ladies sitting in lounge chairs in their front yards. They were full of information about their flowers and neighborhood goings-on. All three of them had lived on Coronado for many decades and were eager to fill me in on some history. When I complemented them on the red ribbon hanging in their window, "Betsy" (I've changed her name just in case the judges are reading this!) scowled and commented that it should have been a blue ribbon. "Hmm, what's the judging criteria?" I inquired as I gazed around a neighborhood full of lawns that I would've awarded blue ribbons to. "Well, may I bring to your attention to the house across the street?" she asks. I look across the street at a well manicured lawn lacking flora but for a lone potted plant on the stoop. She prompts me with "What do you see?" "Well, I see a blue house" I tell her. "AHA, that's exactly right!" she exclaims triumphantly. "A blue house owned by a woman who is very active in the Coronado community; it's all political." Wow, such drama right on my own street, who would've known?!

I chatted for a bit longer then continued on the floral tour of my street. I've often heard coworkers joke that Coronado is a kind of utopia. Perfectly manicured lawns, no crime to speak of, everything within walking distance and surrounded by beaches. It's easy to see what they're talking about as spring blooms on this little oasis in Southern California.