Happy Halloween!

In case anyone is interested, here's a shot of the costume I wore to work today. I was a dark angel (or, when being judged within the department theme, I was a dead borrower. Our theme was reasons that people default on mortgages).

Let me just say that I love these wings. I was eyeing them in the party store last Halloween, couldn't justify the purchase. This year I could! And everyone kept asking me if I made them myself (I probably could have, but no...I did not. I can just imagine the frenzy that would have whipped my cat into - me attempting to glue a bunch of feathers to wing forms? She would have totally been on the prowl, and I'd have been scooping feather bits out of her litter box for days.)

And here's a picture of the back (more black than the deep red on the backs of the wings). As cool as I thought the wings were, they just weren't made for an office job...so, once the rounds of the other departments were made, they (and the cheap-y halo that fell apart quickly) came off pretty quickly.
I was happily impressed by the office's participation this year. It was pretty dead (ha!) last year, with very few departments decorating or dressing up. I guess that the market changes that have cause my particular department to be so swamped have allowed for a little extra time in other areas of the business. (While great for job security for me and my co-workers, this tends to lead to layoffs on the production side.) Anyway, one of the departments across the hall did up their area as Snakes on a Plane. Flight attendants, air traffic controllers, dust masks hanging from the ceilings and floor lighting. It was pretty creative. They also scattered plastic snakes down the hallway leading to their main door (not so great for the woman down the hall with a deathly fear of snakes! Even fake ones creep her out. I think she barricaded herself in her office all day). Let's see, we also had Pirates of the Caribbean (only they were led by Captain Mortgage) - they set up pirate themed games and were playing Pirates of the Caribbean on the projector screen in the background. I think those were the most notable two.

I got word from my father that my baby brother had a ball trick or treating tonight, and didn't get scared at anything either. He sent cute pictures of Gino in his alligator costume (only Gino was calling it a dinosaur), but they're in a weird format, so I couldn't figure out how to save them as jpegs, or I'd have posted one.

I have to say that my biggest scare of the day; however, was when I saw the Christmas themed commercial for Sears. It's not even November yet!! But then again, I've already got most of Tony's Christmas gifts already...(believe me - that is NOT normal for me.)

Weekend Wrap-Up

So, in my last post I mentioned that I was going to Sacramento this weekend to attend a silent auction benefit for breast cancer... My little brother submitted 6 prints to the auction, with "metamorphosis" as the theme. (The theme was chosen by the coordinator of the event.) Tony worked really hard on this and produced some pretty awesome photos.

I wish that the "coordinator" had been a more effective planner. Hardly anyone showed up. Mostly family and friends of the coordinator and artists. (And actually, it was mostly my family and Tony's friends. I don't know that anyone from the other artist's circle came.) I think part of the problem may have been the location. It was in a back room of a church, though you couldn't tell from the address given that it was being held in a church. Once you got there, there were no signs to direct you to the correct room. (If Tony and his friends hadn't been standing outside when I got there, I wouldn't have had a clue where to go.)

So...we gather inside, and the coordinator (who had to be in her very early 20s), launched a presentation on breast cancer. It was like sitting through a health class presentation in college (or high school, as Kerri was thinking). I'll just say it involved an outdated video and posterboards with magazine cutouts propped up against the back wall (and not even used as a visual aid during the presentation). It just didn't seem very professional at all. The 2 speakers (breast cancer survivors) were fine. In fact, that was probably all that was really needed in the way of presentations. During the question & answer period, my mother, the RN and lactation consultant, was in her element, and was able to provide much better information on the issues. (I was thinking she could have run the thing herself with no problems!)

When she introduced the 2 artists, she went into this spiel about how she couldn't get a hold of the one photographer until a few weeks ago, so he had to throw his work together at the last minute and work really hard. I was kind of annoyed by that statement, as I thought it inadvertently belittled my brother's contribution, which he did put a lot of time into. Of course...and there's only a wee bit of bias here, you could really tell that Tony put a lot of himself into his work. In my opinion, he had a much better grasp of the theme (metamorphosis) and tied it into his work. He also did a much better presentation of his work as it related to the theme and breast cancer, when he introduced his work.

Unfortunately, there was only one bid on any of the artwork, and that was my mother's opening bid on one of Tony's photos. At the end of the "auction," the coordinator said she was going to put the pieces on Ebay to see if they'd bring in any money for the cause. I haven't heard anything else about that yet though, or I'd post a link. (She seemed rather flaky to me...)

Anyway, I feel kind of bad for Tony, since the auction didn't go better. Hopefully, one of these days he'll get a break!

(On a different note - Happy Halloween!)

Quick Post

This weekend I'm off to Sactown. My little brother has 6 of his photographic prints in a silent auction to benefit breast cancer research. The auction is tomorrow. I'm proud of the little guy (and if he hears me say that, he'd be annoyed that I referred to him as such...he's 25 and bigger than me). Anyway, I have high hopes for his success.

And speaking of pride, I'll leave you with this:

Your Pride Quotient: 41%

You have your proud moments, but you're also likely to be a little ashamed of them. Don't be too hard on yourself. It's normal to want to make a stellar impression.

How Much Pride Do You Have?

Comfort Food!

Today at work, as my boss was craving Taco Bell, we all got to talking about cheese. More specifically, about how we Americans seem to have an extra-special affinity for all things cheesy.

So, since that time, I had been craving some cheese myself. So I decided to make myself a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner. Now, this really is newsworthy in my book, because I actually came home and turned on my stove for once... (I don't do a whole lot of cooking anymore, and I'm not totally sure this even qualifies.)

So, my dinner was 2 slices whole grain white bread (thank you Sara Lee), 2 2% milk cheese singles, some shredded Parmesan/Romano/Reggiano blend and freshly ground Italian seasonings. Pretty darned good grilled cheese if I do say so myself. (And yes, I didn't have the best guage on the heat settings...as you can tell from the photo - but it wasn't burnt.)

I also finally busted out the Trader Joe's Roasted Corn and Pepper Soup, which I bought a while ago, and hadn't tried yet. It was good, but a bit spicy. I wasn't expecting the kick. You can really taste the roasted corn though.

Anyway, that was the excitement of my day... And aren't you all just burning with jealousy over my matching china? (I do have a matching set of the pfaltzgraff dishes, and matching glasses...but I felt a little more eclectic today.)

Wait! I lied! That wasn't the full extent of today's excitement. I actually ordered my first Christmas gift of the season today. What is wrong with me??!! It's only October! (I'll tell you what's wrong with me - I can't pass up a good sale - especially not on the perfect gift for my hard-to-shop-for-zombie-obsessed brother!) So...one of the e-mail newsletters that I subscribe to finally paid off. I should receive the items sometime next week. The hard part will be remembering that I have them once Christmas is closer. It was weird when I completed the transaction, because right now I can't even picture Christmas yet.

(And if anyone is interested, I bought the gift from this site, and have been trying to get this shirt for him for over a year! It's been sold out in his size every other time I've tried. (And I'm not too worried about him reading this blog - he never has before...) I also got him another one, but won't say which one, just on the off chance that he does pop in over here for a visit. He already knows about Zombie Donkey...I've been telling him about it for a while, and asked him for his size. The other zombie shirt on there that I liked was sold out already too.

Okay, now I'm really done here for the night. Um...Merry Christmas everyone!

Holy Dork-a-roo!

Yep, that's me... (Though Caitlin will argue that she's Dorkaroo, and I'm Nerdine...is that right?) Anyway...I am afraid I may have totally embarassed myself without realizing it (until too late) this weekend. And yes, I know. It wouldn't be the first time.

So here goes... Earlier this week I got a phone message from my local library stating I had books that are overdue and must be returned. Now, I could have sworn I had taken back all of the overdue books, as I tend to be pretty conscious about that kind of thing (and if I'm late, I already know it). In fact, it had already been part of my weekend plan to take back some books and DVDs that I had due on the 21st. I checked my account status online (LOVE that feature!), and saw which book was still out. I could have sworn that I had returned that one when I took back The Maltese Falcon. I had a pretty clear visual of the 2 items on my passenger seat from the last time I'd taken items back. But, since my first instinct is to always think I am at fault (what is that about anyway?), I searched the apartment to no avail, and called my mother's house wondering if I'd left it there. But, that visual memory was so strong, I just KNEW I'd already returned it...

I headed out of the house Saturday afternoon to hit the library, returning the stuff that was due, as planned. I figured I may as well check the shelves, just in case that other book wasn't logged back into their system when I returned it (as I had thought I had done...). Lo and behold, there it was, staring up at me from the New Arrivals section. So, I took it back to the desk and told the librarian the tale. Now, realize how jaded I am from working on defaulted and fraudulent loans every day. I am always prepared for the worst, and was just waiting to be accused of lying to get out of paying the late fee. I was pleasantly surprised when the librarian looked embarassed and was all apologies, clearing my account and removing the legitimate late fee that I was offering to pay (all of $0.20, but still). I'm sure it wasn't her fault either, because I hadn't seen her there before. But, my faith in people was restored a bit, and I realized that I do worry too much about things (it's connected in mind, believe me).

So, yeah, I know, nothing to embarass me yet. Keep reading, if you're not bored to tears yet.

I go to 5:30pm mass at my church, thinking about how I've been jaded in my job, and the world isn't as cynical and negative as I tend to think. I listen to the readings, sing along with gusto (church is one of the few places I can sing in front of others without feeling self-conscious. Yep, church and the car.), shake hands during the sign of the peace. I get up and take communion, kneel in my pew to pray, and stand up for the closing hymn. Gee, that's funny, these pants feel awfully loose...OH MY GOD!!! MY ZIPPER IS COMPLETELY UNDONE!! How long has it been this way? Was I running around the library in a state of undress?? Is that why the librarian looked embarassed? Was it down all through mass, while I shook hands with strangers, meeting their eyes with mine? Am I the crazy lady who exposes herself IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD?? Yes, all those thoughts went careening around my mind while I tried to inconspicuously zip up... Luckily, my shirt hem reached to about the starting point of the zipper, but I still don't know if underclothes were visible.

I am so ashamed...

UCLA Alums Should Know Better

So…I was even later to work today than usual…and now I must rant. (I meant to write and post this earlier in the day, but it just didn't happen.)

I woke up on time this morning, and proceded to hit the snooze button until later than my usual panic and get out of bed time. So, I missed my window of low-traffic opportunity. I knew I was going to be late, but was hoping that by some fluke, today would be different and there wouldn't be any slow-downs on Highway 37. All was fine until right before the 2 lanes merged into one, where it is usually a bit slow, because people can't seem to grasp the zipper fashion concept. (It's a miracle they can dress themselves, let alone operate heavy machinery!)

So, we're slow, but moving for a bit…then we all stop completely…for absolutely no reason whatsoever. There's no accident, there's no one stopped on the side of the road. The only different thing about this morning was that there was a colorful hot-air balloon hovering above highway 120. There was no reason that this should have had any effect on traffic, and yet it's the only explanation I can find.

At least I had something interesting to glance at while waiting for traffic to move. Not the guy in front of me though, driving the giant white Oldsmobile with the UCLA alumni sticker on it (I'll bet THEY'RE proud!), who whipped out his newspaper and proceeded to settle back and read behind the wheel…and continued to do so AFTER WE STARTED MOVING AGAIN! Crazy, I tell you. I watched the avid news hound weave from the center of the single lane over to the rumble strip, only to quickly correct the wheel and drift back into place - this happened several times before he seemed to have stopped reading. Now, if any of you have ever driven on Highway 37, you know that there is only about 2 feet of pavement (or so) after that rumble strip dividing you and your car from some nasty marsh-land goo off the side of the road. Seriously, I was just waiting for this guy to go over the side - he was close a few times.

Now, this was really irritating me to begin with, as in my opinion, this man should have his license revoked for being an irresponsible, unsafe driver. What was also killing me was that if I hit this guy, I'D end up at fault, as the one doing the rear-ending. Even though he was not paying attention to the road. I was quite tense, preparing to slam my brakes down if need be. It was irritating enough that I had to mention him to my boss when I called in telling her I was stuck on the highway.

Okay…I think I'm done ranting now…(I know I've had more heated rants…but I've been sitting on this one all day and am not as fired up about it as I was earlier.)

Time to go home and hope that I do not end up behind that same guy again. Ever.

Raise the Roof

This past weekend, I went out to San Andreas to help my father build a barn. Yep, you read that right, to build a barn.

The shot on the left is about halfway through Saturday's progress (after we'd realized that the panels were upside down and had to take half of the structure apart and reconfigure...).

Now, anyone who knows me knows that I'm not exactly a fan of exercise, let alone hard labor. But, my father asked for my help, so being the dutiful daughter that I am (translation : doormat), I agreed to come out and work. So, this weekend was spent hauling these giant steel panels around (admittedly, my Dad and brothers did do the bulk of the heavy lifting, but I did help haul a few around) and fastening them together. Still more strenuous activity than I am used to.

My father's goal was to get the whole steel structure up and together this weekend. The hardest part was the roof - which Dad finally decided to try hoisting up over the base using the tractor. It worked like a charm! (Beats having to have 3 people support the panel while walking up ladders, all the while jockeying it into position and trying not to fall to their deaths...)

Above are two shots of the structure after we finished up on Sunday. And after all my worries (or expectations, rather) of injuring myself somehow on the construction site...how do you suppose I hurt myself this weekend? Well...let me tell you a little story... Saturday night, after we finished up as much as we could before dark, we returned to my father's house where I blissfuly showered (don't think I've ever been so dirty before in my life!). We started watching Coach Carter in the living room, and I filled my dinner plate and headed back in there. My fork dropped off of the plate on my way, so I put down my food and removed the fork from the dog's mouth (okay, she was only licking it - it wasn't in her mouth), and walked into the kitchen to get a clean one. I then slipped on the tiled floor, my foot flying out from under me, and fell hard on my derriere, right on the bone at an angle...also smacking my elbow against the corner of the cabinet, before smacking it on the tile too, along with my outer wrist... I sat there stunned for a minute (or less), and then the pain hit. It hurt so bad that I almost couldn't breathe. But, as far as I know, nothing is broken. But, I do have a slowly emerging bruise on my elbow and tushie. It's just like me to put up a barn without hurting myself, only to cause injury at home. So, although my upper back/shoulders and arms are sore from the heavy lifting and from ratcheting the nuts and bolts tightly, I'm surprised that my lower back isn't acting up. (I'm not complaining about that part. And my left wrist and butt hurt from the fall. I'm a klutz!)

And it's weird for me to think that as nice as the weather was in San Andreas (sunny and slightly cool - perfect for working outside), my Aunt was housebound in Buffalo without power since late Thursday. I finally talked to her today, and she said she's been bundled up in at least 3 layers, and has put up blankets in the doorways to the dining room and hallway, living only in the kitchen and family room where it's slightly warmer. All of the lit candles help heat it up a bit, and she's been out in the yard and neighborhood picking up fallen branches and running the snowblower. She can see her breath in the other rooms of the house, when she's in them. Her street still is out of power today, though most of her friends have their electricity back (she did go over to a friend's house to do a load of laundry). (Sunday!! That's a long time without power, but she says she's getting used to it. She does have a generator that she borrowed.)

Seasons

I had a really busy weekend, helping my father put up a barn (really), so I'm pretty wiped out...and because of that, I'm posting this quiz. (More on the barn raising later.)

I liked these results.

You Are Fall!

Thoughtful Expressive Creative Poetic Smart

What Season Are You?

Just Another Random Wednesday

It's been a long week. Yes, I know it's only Wednesday. The stress level at work continues at a steady high, with vast amounts of work to do and ever shrinking amounts of time in which to do it. There seems to be a lot more data entry lately...which makes me feel like I'm not getting to the meat of my job, as I'm not reviewing as many loans... And there are plenty waiting for my prying eyes. At these times (mega-busy, too much to do) I really relish every tiny non-work-related e-mail that comes in. My life is so full (ha!). (That was a thinly veiled hint for all my friends who read this - keep the idle prattle coming! It keeps me sane-ish! Heck, I'll even take your forwards, as long as they don't suck.)

Sadly, I'm sure anyone who looks at me twice (or even once) can tell I've been stressed. I have totally broken out over my whole forehead, and my cheeks/chin. I feel like I look like a 15 year old. And the scary part is, when I was 15, I never had terrible breakouts, though I did breakout here and there. In any case, it's annoying. But, I know acne doesn't necessarily go away after puberty. I remember about 10 years (or more) ago, my mother complaining that she had thought she'd stop getting zits before she hit 40. (Okay, I'm paraphrasing there.)

Anyway, speaking of being 15, I have been thinking lately about how much I've grown and changed since high school (and jr. high, and elementary school). Yet, with all that change, sometimes I still feel like that insecure little girl. I don't think I radiate insecurity anymore, like I have a feeling I did back in my younger days, when I was quiet and subdued and pretty much convinced that no one knew who I was (my current friends can't believe I was like that, but I was. Ask my mom!). And, I do a lot more positive self-talk now than I used to. But, even now, when I feel like I've been left out of something, I go right back to that withdrawn teen who thinks she's not liked or wanted. And as much as I tell myself not to take things personally, it's difficult to do. I'm not sure I really have a point there, except that it's funny how our personas change over time, but our core is pretty constant.

And obviously, I'm going on and on again, and should really get myself off to bed. I'm already bound to be late tomorrow. It's inevitable, since I left my cell phone plugged in under my desk at work again. So, I'd better do my best to be on time, because Murphy's Law is definitely against me. (Darn you Murphy! And your stinkin' law, too!!)

Flight of Fancy

You are Superman.

You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.




Your Results:

Superman - 75%

Spider-Man - 65%

Robin - 65%

Supergirl - 55%

Wonder Woman - 55%

The Flash - 50%

Green Lantern - 45%

Iron Man - 45%

Batman - 40%

Catwoman - 35%

Hulk - 30%


Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

Cakes and Crafts

Thursday night I did something that I don't have much time to do anymore - I baked! Friday was my friend Christyn's birthday, and I had volunteered to bring a cake in to work. So, I whipped this little puppy up for her (side note - I do not condone the whipping of puppies). It's a taffy apple cake, with a bit of caramel sauce drizzled over the top. I actually got the recipe online (follow link above) about 6 years ago, when I made it for a potluck at my last job. I remembered it being a nice dense sweet cake.

It got a lot of compliments on Friday when gathered to publicly embarass Christyn in the company cafe. (Christyn - the singing was NOT my idea!!!) And apparently, people were impressed by the bundt pan shape. Someone in the hall whispered that it looked like a temple as we passed by, according to one of my coworkers.

Anyway, I actually thought it was a bit too sweet. I don't remember it being that sweet, so I wonder if this means that I've been watching my diet for so long that my tastes are changing. (Though I have by no means stopped eating sweets!) I do think it could use a few more apples in it - it called for 1 1/2 C chopped apple, and it makes enough batter to fill a 10" Bundt pan to the top edge (and yes, it raises way over the top of the pan as it bakes), so I don't know how you could add apples without having to use additional pans...

Because I wasn't too impressed with the cake this time, I wondered it everyone was just saying they liked it to be nice. Why do I always doubt myself?

I also made a scarf for Christyn using a simple mesh pattern in a bulky yarn. I can't remember the yarn type now (threw the labels out when I finished), but I think it was a Patons yarn. I know that it was an acrylic/alpaca/polyester blend. And very silky to the touch. I really like how this one turned out. (Yes, I'm patting myself on the back, just a little. Someone's got to do it!)

The Good Old Days

My mother's comment to my last post had me reminiscing about my childhood Halloween Memories. Here's part of what she had to say, for those of you who didn't catch it:

"And what happened to ghost and pirate costumes??? (the first Halloween costume I remember having was a nurse...) I like Halloween because I like to see all the little kids dressed up and trying to say "trick or treat",and the parents trying to get them to be polite and say thank you. As a child we used to go out two days in a row with different costumes on, and get homemade popcorn balls from our land lady - such fond memories. Every one would be excited and that is probably why I think Halloween is just plain fun!"

Well, that got me thinking that my Halloweens must not have been a whole lot different from those of my mother. (Except I don't think I ever dressed up as a nurse.) When we all still lived in NY, my family would all drive out to Grandma's house (my mother's parents lived about 15 minutes away from us) in West Seneca, where they trick-or-treated on the night before Halloween. They called it Beggar's Night. My youngest aunt would be recruited to take us 4 kids around the neighborhood (she was in her early 20's and was also always a fan of the holiday anyway).

Grandma's neighbor had a popcorn machine in her garage and gave out little baggies to all the kids. She would dress her dog up in costumes (before everyone was doing it, a la Paris Hilton), and no one was ever worried about possible popcorn contamination. My own grandmother would stretch fake spiderwebs across the front doorway and scatter those orange and black fake spider rings in it. She'd also toss a few in her blond hair, and I remember the neighborhood kids referring to her as "the spider lady." (Only at Halloween, of course.) I don't remember Grandpa being too involved in the Halloween celebration. I think he was probably in the living room watching baseball...Mom?

Then, on Halloween night, we'd dress up all over again and trick-or-treat around our own neighborhood. Now, I do remember trick-or-treating in the rain, and wearing our costumes over heavy coats and boots. I think it even snowed one year, but I'll let my mother confirm/deny that one. I do think we always had fun though.

Each night, after coming in with our full bags of candy (we usually just used paper grocery bags that we had decorated), we kids would sit in a circle on the family room floor and dump out our stashes, trading with each other (I always hated Charleston Chews and Bit-O-Honey and would trade them for anything). I remember always saving my favorites for last, snacking on the just okay stuff here and there until inevitably, sometime around Easter, I'd find a paper sack of my favorites in my hiding spot (had to keep the candy safe - my sister was not above snagging others' treats), where I'd forgotten about it completely.

Back then, mid '80s, the hot costume was to dress like a punk. I remember at least one year when my aunt and sister both did just that. Not sure if there's any photographic evidence though... I was a witch (nothing like the photo in the last post though) a few times, simply because I think I could never make up my mind about what to be. That, and we always had a good supply of black graduation robes in the closet, which always made for good costume garb. There were some other creative costumes in the family too - my father created a Ghostbusters costume for my sister (vacuum hoses, cardboard box, hardhat, and lots of silver spraypaint), my mom made a lion costume (I know there's a blackmail-worthy photo of my brother Joe in that one) and a Todd (from Fox & the Hound) costume.

Of course, now you don't hear much about parent's making costumes for the kids, or even letting them out in the neighborhood to go door-to-door. I wonder if it's as much fun for kids now as it was for us. Trick-or-treating in the mall, though safer, just doesn't sound as much fun to me.

Now...Mom? Any photos you need to share? (Dagny is demanding them. Yeah, I'll blame it on her!)

Happy October!

Now that it's finally October, it is starting to feel rather fall-like out here in California. (Or as close to fall as it tends to get here.) It's been chilly and overcast for the past few days, and I actually broke down and pulled out the cozy flannel pj's. (Part of why I love winter! Best jammy weather!)

Anyway, Halloween is just around the corner, and I don't have any plans yet. We haven't figured out what (if anything) our department is doing at work this year (we've done some pretty good interactive themes over the last few years). So, to help me with ideas (but mostly to waste time online), I took the following quiz

What Should Your Halloween Costume Be?

Your costume is a witch cosume!
Take this quiz!








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Okay, so I sort of cheated...I didn't like the first 3 answers I got for this (all of which were the same - slutty skank with batwing gloves...not me at all), so I changed my answers to alternates until I got something else slightly more me. Yeah, I can be a little dark and twisted...

What's Your Story Morning Glory?

Remember that morning glory I replanted back in July? At the time, it was 2 straggly looking vines. For good measure (and because I was afraid I'd probably ripped out too much of the existing root system of the original vines), I had added some additional seeds from the original packet (remember, this was a $1 Target grow kit).

Well, when I replanted, I had used some leftover Schultz Potting Soil Plus that had been sitting outside on my balcony for probably 2 years (since my last failed attempt at growing something). The top of the bag wasn't fully sealed anymore, so I figured that any fertilizer had probably leached out from the rain over the years. Apparently not. The additional seeds I added sprouted up amazingly fast and were thriving better than the 2 vines I'd replanted in the first place. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have still managed, in typical Tami fashion, to conveniently "forget" the plant existed here and there...even though it has a hard to miss spot on my kitchen table and I pass it at least twice every day. Due to this (or my total lack of growing skills), there are some dry dead looking bits that I didn't want to photograph for posting. I have inspected the plant, and was going to remove the twiggy bits, but it looks like the thriving vines are attached to it. (How can that be?)

Anyway, the thriving bits are suddenly budding all over the place. I'm excited by this (it doesn't take much, does it?) The shot above is a picture of a few buds taken Friday night (when I actually remembered to water the plant, and noticed the darling buds of...September).

The next picture is the larger bud as of this afternoon. It's a really deep fuschia color, and looks like it's going to be really pretty. I didn't think morning glories came in that color. I thought they were all blue with white in the centers. But, what do I know? (Oh, and I couldn't get any good shots of the purpley part.)