Filth (I'm glad to say) is in the mind of the beholder

We had a beautifully sunny day today, and, as is our wont when the two of us have a day off together we enjoyed it in the gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers (despite the students next door and their noisy, smelly BBQ party) - today Madam Arcati planted a whole host of new Fuchsia hanging planters to add to our collection along the back fence and did the watering, while I cleared more spent soil from the planters (which we use as mulch on the beds) and sifted out the gravel to put back when we re-plant them, pruned the Iochroma australe and some potted Fuchsias, moved some Salvias and Verbena bonariensis, and planted out Penstemons, Night-scented Phlox, Virginia and Night-scented Stocks, Scilla peruviana, and some burgeoning seedlings of Orlaya grandiflora and the fabulously named Forking Larkspur (or, in German, Feldrittersporn)!

As per usual, our accompanying music was eclectic, veering from disco to Blossom Dearie to Celia Cruz to showtunes, but (surprisingly) nothing from today's birthday boy. Sharing his celebrations with house fave Robert Helpmann, Valerie Singleton (who, rather scarily, is 80 years old), Hugh Hefner, Carl Perkins, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Michael Learned, Hannah Gordon, Les Gray of 70s popsters Mud, Dennis Quaid and Marc Jacobs, we wish many happy returns to the comic genius that is Mr Tom Lehrer!

Here is the great man on a subject close to all our hearts...

Tom Lehrer - Smut

Thomas Andrew "Tom" Lehrer (born 9th April 1928)