Yesterday I was outside before the worst of the wind picked up. No, I wasn’t hunting Goblins, or doing Vampire shit, or anything like that. I was cleaning up my front yard, and planting roses.
After two hours in the yard, and a full green waste can, the wind came up to a loud and shrill howl. As I was dragging the green waste can into the back yard and fighting with the side gate, out of the corner of my eye I saw them.
Usually that means wild turkeys, or neighborhood dogs coming out to play with my dog. Yesterday it was two of the Ghosts who either only stare or make music. Yesterday they just stood in the street in front of my house and stared at me with empty dead eyes. Both of them passed on during the California Gold Rush, sometime in the 1850’s. One was from New York, and the other from Ireland. Both were in their twenties when they died but looked much older due to hard work, bad conditions, illness, and worry. I’m sure I could add broken hearts to the list.
So now they stand in the middle of a street in an upper middle class neighborhood staring at a Vampire cleaning up her yard. I’m the only one who can see them. My neighbors just see me as Juliette, who is sort of weird, and quiet, and plants loads of flowers. They don’t know I’m a Vampire. They don’t know there are ghosts who come up from the lake that used to be part of the American River.
I didn’t flip them off in case one of my neighbors saw me and thought I was extending the gesture to them. God knows some of them deserve it, but I try not to behave badly. My garden if my safe haven, and some people just don’t understand that.
Even Nigel the Ghost, as much as an asshole he is, doesn’t like the creepy lurking ghosts from the 19th Century.
Nigel and I are the same that way. Sometimes, well, most of the time, we just want to be left alone.
My garden is my haven. My plants are my joy. I watch them with love even when they aren’t blooming. I wait for bulbs to bloom like some people wait for holidays. I watch as the roses start to sprout leaves for the spring. Yesterday I planted three English roses.
A cold storm is coming in, despited the fact that my daffodils and iris and snowdrops have started to bloom. The nectarine tree is also putting out buds and has a few open blooms.
I hope that all who pass by will enjoy the explosion of blooms that starts in the spring and lasts through fall, and even into the early winter months.
Clanging a couple of shovels together, I scared off the sad Ghosts. I guess I should have let them stand in the street and watch me, but they’re just so creepy. I know tonight if I go out by the oak forest I’ll hear them playing their out of tune violin and mandolin.
In the meantime I’ll check outside one more time today to make sure everything is secure before tonight’s storm.
That includes making the dog and cat come inside before they are blown away.
Stay safe everyone. Talk to your kids. Check in on those who might need extra help or are alone. Hug your dogs and cats. And kiss a Vampire – you’ll thank me for it later.
~ Juliette aka Vampire Maman
Vampire Maman 