Solar Fountain - the adventure begins.

For her birthday, G wanted a solar fountain pump. So I shopped around and ordered something in plenty of time (allow for delivery). What I didn't factor in? Back-ordered supplies.

A month later, it finally arrived! And as with most things we touch, it seems to have brought us mysteries. Conundrums. Puzzles. Minor construction problems and major aesthetic dilemmas. So far, we have a small black plastic catch basin/ reservoir, an old black nylon stocking to protect the pump from detritus, a cement-sized plastic bag of 1-3" round river rock, a roll of hardware cloth, a terracotta Azalea pot to serve as a pump cover/ and general behind the scenes support, a 12" length of 1" copper plumbing pipe for a decorative spout, and 4 chunks of rubber and vinyl tubing of various diameters. We tentatively chose a spot. And we have been experimenting with pots (and stoppers for the pots so the vessel will fill and gurgle over in a soothing sing-song voice). My expert DIY buddy Kerry Renshaw says: a tube of silicon caulk. 1,001 uses. Hmm. And there is still the issue of how and where to mount the solar panel.

I know Gloria looks a little underwhelmed in the photos, but it really is just the intense afternoon light. Really.