Nothing To Hide

When I invite people over to my place, I know that there are some things they would rather not see. So although I have learned to live with dirty clothes strewn over the carpet. dirty dishes in the sink, and a stovetop that looks like the floor of an ogre's cave, I wipe away the dirt and put the rest away. I do this not just to keep visitors from puking but to ensure that the next time I invite them they won't blanch and splutter about being out of town.

The gardeners at the Chinese Garden, however, are more laid back and don't mind baring all. How else to account for their removal and pruning of plants that previously hid their tool shed, utility corner, and trash area?

The utility corner resides on the corner of Everett and 2nd and can be seen from the street by looking through the leak windows in the wall. A potential visitor can see wheelbarrows, ladders, orange cones, shelving, tarps - all the things that a visitor would find ugly, which is why the Chinese designer planted deep green bamboos in back of the windows to keep people from seeing inside.

But that was rather uptight of her, wasn't it? Americans don't have anything to hide. You either like it or lump it. And if the utility corner doesn't need to be hidden, then the tool shed next to the waterfall doesn't need to be hidden. And if the tool shed doesn't need to be hidden, then the trash area doesn't either. So it's prune away the screening trees and bamboo to reveal the tool shed and utility area. And prune the camellia in the Phoenix Rest courtyard to reveal the trash and recycling area.

So to all you effetes who protest that this is ugly: Get Over It! This is America, even if it is called the Chinese Garden.