YAY! The car dilemma has been solved by the purchase of a 2010 blue Honda Fit which seems perfect for the needs of a small-time gardener. I'd thought about trucks but they really aren't that comfortable and the vast majority of my needs (potted plants, bags of compost, a couple of cinder blocks) can be accommodated by a roomy interior and the Fit has about 20 ways to make just the roomy interior I want.

So now I can spend tomorrow working on the patio.

This is where I am with it--most of the patio stone laid but the low wall and firepit still to be done. I'd love to finish the paving by the end of next week so I can get on with building the wall, but I suspect it'll take longer than that. The space is big enough to useful even now so that's a plus.

One of the great things about living where we do is all the little plants that pop up. for example down by the stream this small orchid, probably Platanthera (= Habenaria in Newcomb's Wildflower Guide) clavellata, is doing quite nicely. Not a rare plant, but still fun to have, and a reminder that land less tilled is more interesting land.

This is where it is (red circle) in relationship to the land and the stream.