Okay, so it's not amazing. But still, there's a tiny shoot of this thyme plant that's marbled green and white, which is kind of cool. Also it smells nice..jpg)
It looks like the variegation is weak: one of the side shoots on the affected stem has reverted to all-green already (there was also one that was all-white). But still. Thyme was already my favorite herb, because there are better pun possibilities with it than any of the others (in fact, not too long ago I attended a Halloween party as a waste of thyme: two plastic containers of thyme, tied to a length of yarn and hung over my shoulders -- and at the end of the evening, I threw it all away.1, 2), so seeing the plant does interesting variegation stuff too only solidifies my appreciation.
The husband prefers basil. Whatever. Like you can make puns with the word "basil."
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1 It was kind of conceptual. Also I have never been able to get it together to make, buy or wear an actual Halloween costume of any kind, though in fairness that's at least somewhat because most years I have to work Halloween night and it wouldn't matter if I had a costume ready or not. So costumes, when I make the effort at all, tend to be extremely cheap and slapdash.
It is perhaps also worth noting that I have been heavily influenced by something a college friend told me once, that the only Halloween costumes worth wearing are those which can be rapidly shed in the event that one wants to dance, eat, go to the bathroom, look remotely dignified, flee a burning building, or any of the other things people sometimes need to do on short notice. Which seemed like a sensible rule, actually, but means that I wouldn't be inclined to get terribly elaborate with a costume even if I had the means and inspiration.
2 The original plan had been to pour glue on the backs of my hands and then sprinkle the glue with dried thyme before the glue dried. The name of this costume, obviously, being "guy with a lot of thyme/time on his hands." It was eventually ruled too messy, as were the plans to dress up as "a walking thyme/time bomb." Perhaps some year the husband and I can dress up as "Thyme/Time and Again," or a "thyme-line," "from thyme to thyme," "standard thyme," etc. The possibilities are nearly endless. I could sit here and list them until the end of thyme/time.
See?
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Random plant event: variegated Thymus vulgaris
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10 comments:
I like your reference/citation on the blog, now we know that a true gardener will wear home grown Halloween costume :-)
Mine is flowering heavily and is making such a compact layer that I can lift it to sweep under like a rug. So I suppose its the more wearable plant on my terrace too.
So how about some (non dignifying) photos of the costume? Hehe.
Ha!!! Too classic, Mr. S.! But come on, can't you do something with Daylight Savings Thyme?!! How about Greenwich Mean Thyme? Puns on basil, come on now: Perhaps the husband could dress as a basilica (Hagia Sophia comes to mind), a basilisk, or even Basil Rathbone! (And please don't tell me you pronounce the herb with a long "a." Please. Just say no. I can't stand it!) I am glad you didn't go for the glue option.
I like Rosemary - but I can only think of Rosemary's baby
I think the glue wouldn't have been too messy; I used glue and parsley on my face to make a beard-like effect once for a costume. (Actually, it was for a sketch, and the kind of sketch where people are far enough not to see parsley is growing on my face.) Maybe smelly, but not so messy..
I'm a fan of Greenwich Mean Thyme--affect an English accent and go around punching people. :-D
Or go as a Marigold--dress up like the virgin Mary and spraypaint yourself gold. Not easy in and out of costume, but damn! Sacrilige and plant related, makes it that much better of a costume!
Sacrilege does make it better - had a friend who went as a Priest to the Dallas Halloween Block Party - got hit on by more boys than ever. I said it was both interesting and disturbing both.
I'm a fan of Basil Fawlty. Affect a British accent and club a small car with an uprooted tree.
That's a cool thyme I had reading about your time. Wait. Switch that. Cool vareigation!
I warn against a costume that inspires others to sing (thyme after thyme). I went to an alphabet Halloween party one year as a lumberjack (having been assigned the letter L) and was treated to countless renditions of The Lumberjack Song. Good the first two times.... I would have been better off with my initial choice of lepedopterist and could have taken someone along as a butterfly.
I concur with your choice of thyme as offering the best punning opportunity, and expect an annual post from you at Halloween!
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