Scarlet begonias

I’ve gotten all caught up in my causes and my concerns and my career lately, and somehow in the midst of all that, I forgot I was a fun-loving hippie with an embarrassingly easy life.

I was sitting here sinking into a funk and feeling very sorry for myself Friday night when it occurred to me that all I really needed was to settle in with a cup of Red Zinger and some Grateful Dead tunes.

I made myself a cup of tea and realized abruptly that somehow my entire Dead collection consisted of a beat-up copy of Skeletons from the Closet on vinyl (which I’d bought for 99 cents last time I was at Vintage Vinyl in St. Louis) and an MP3 of “Truckin’” that I’d downloaded from iTunes.

Thanks to the magic of iTunes, I was able to remedy this situation pretty efficiently, and my instincts proved correct: It’s impossible to be depressed when you’re singing along with “Scarlet Begonias.”

I’ve been tentatively planning next year’s garden, and I’ve decided to turn at least one flowerbed into a sort of hippie garden. Now I’m trying to come up with a list of ’60s and ’70s songs that mention plants. So far, I’ve come up with:

Scarborough Fair (parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme)
Scarlet Begonias
Strawberry Fields Forever
Sugar Magnolia
Incense and Peppermints (my friend Mike’s suggestion; I think I’ll plant patchouli next to the peppermint)
China Cat Sunflower

And of course I’ll have to plant daisies in honor of the famous “Daisy” ad.

I’m sure there are a million more plants I haven’t thought of. Feel free to add any that occur to you. (And no, I will not be growing a separate garden under a special light in the closet….)

Emily

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