In my column today (see below for full text), I want to introduce you to Mary Norman, who lives at the end of Heard Avenue. She watches over one of five community gardens supported by the GrowMemphis program of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center, and is a wonderful gardener and inspiration for what a community garden can do. Read more about her in this month’s issue of skirt! magazine – click the button to your right to find out where to get your free copy.

And, as I promised in the column, here’s Mary’s all-organic “pesticide” recipe: Three teaspoons garlic oil, 3 quarts water, 3 drops dishwashing liquid. Mary says if you spray this on plant seedlings just as they sprout, the Japanese beetles won’t eat the tender leaves. 

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Even this mom-of-a-boy loved “The Princess Diaries,” and if you’ve got a teen or tween girl, you’re going to want to know about this: Justine magazine, the national magazine for teen girls published right here in Memphis, is bringing author Meg Cabot, who wrote “The Princess Diaries,” “Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls,” and all kinds of other great girl books, to town NEXT WEEK. On June 19, Meg will be the featured speaker at a luncheon and fashion show just for girls at the Memphis Hilton – click here for an invitation and to reserve your spot (seating is limited). Best of all, though, is that Meg’s visit is to celebrate the launch of a new nationwide online book club for teen girls, called Spark, that Justine is starting, just in time to give you and your girls a little extra push through those summer reading lists.

And, oh yeah, Macy’s will put on the fashion show at the luncheon … with prizes and goodies for all. Sounds like a pretty good way to spend a summer afternoon. 

Just got word that one of Memphis’s nicest guys, Thomas Boggs, died this morning. At 63, Thomas had done more living than most of us ever will, from his early rocker days with the Box Tops to his restaurant dynasty, which now includes the seven Huey’s locations, as well as partnerships in Folk’s Folly, Tsunami and the Half Shell. But the thing I’ll remember best about Thomas is how friendly and welcoming he was to a newbie Memphian back in the early 1990s, always willing to tell me who was connected to whom, how to reach them, and later, ready with a wave and a smile for my son whenever he saw us. I also admire him for sharing the wealth with his daughters, pictured here with him at Huey’s in a 2006 photo — (from left) Ashley Williams, Samantha Dean, and Lauren McHugh.

Godspeed, Thomas. We’ll miss you like hell.

Seems like that’s really the question in the flap about what should happen to the Cumberland Presbyterian Church archives and administration building at the corner of Union and Rembert. Chick-fil-A bought it in February, and now looks to be getting ready to bulldoze it and build a new restaurant. In fact, I got an urgent E-mail from Memphis Heritage this morning saying that the fast food company has applied for a demolition permit from Code Enforcement, without even meeting with representatives of Memphis Heritage, which seems pretty low to me. Though in The CA story I’ve linked above, the commercial real estate broker is quoted as saying they couldn’t sell this old, neglected building any other way, and wouldn’t it be better to have something there that was adding to the tax rolls?

Lots of things get me down about Memphis, even when the azaleas are blooming and the Redbirds are at AutoZone. But the idea that we can’t figure out how to save even some of the old buildings on our main streets is beyond depressing. As is yet another fast food restaurant on Union. To tell Chick-fil-A what you think of their plans, call 404.765.8000 TODAY.

My favorite season has always been Fall. (Remember that book Color Me Beautiful? I was totally a FALL.) But since I moved to Memphis back in the mid-80s, Spring sure is giving Fall a run for its money.

Memphis has beautiful Springs. Wow. The daffodils alone are enough to make even the most cynical of us stop and take notice. I love that house on North Parkway, right before you get to the Watson Street overpass, with daffodils flanking the long walkway from the street to the front door.

Dogwoods so soft and delicate. Azalea bushes such vibrant shades of pink you’d swear they were plugged in somewhere. Even the crepe myrtles, which tend to drive me crazy, snowing their tiny petals everywhere, add so much color to the landscape.

If you didn’t know it already, the Memphis Botanic Gardens over by Oak Court Mall has a gorgeous display of CHERRY BLOSSOMS this time of year. I know – you thought they were only in the nation’s capital, right? But Cherry Road is abounding in the soft signs of spring. I personally think we should organize a parade.

photo courtesy Lovely LAK flickr photostream