A Botanical Ramble

I know it's hard to believe we have seasons in southern cal but we do. And the changes are subtle, meaning you have to really pay attention but it's there to notice. Winter traditionally means more rain although with global warming, it seems the pattern has shifted a bit. Nonetheless, today we have a small storm blowing through town straight from the Pacific. Since we had lots of time this morning, we walked to school, trying to skip between the raindrops. Pittosporum, this nondescript bushy thing with a mouthful of a name, is in bloom this time of year. While it's blossoms are white, tiny, messy and blows off the trees everywhere, pittosporum blooms combined with rain smells incredibly fragrant. Husband thinks I'm batty but this is my time of year to go on walks at night, yes, even if it's raining. I can't get enough of pittosporum. And in a few weeks, the purple jacaranda trees will be in bloom. This is it, my favorite time of the year, with rain, pittosporum in the air, and jacaranda blooms.