image link

The first thing that comes to mind with the word Black is Eddie Vedder mournfully wailing about his lost love.  More about that later.

The next thing is soil.  Connected to yesterday’s prompt, neophyte, before I knew anything about gardening, my belief was that the blacker the soil was the better it was to grow things in.  Later, I learned that was indeed true; however the black soil must be blended with other types of materials in order to allow the soil to aerate for the growth of the roots.  Adding perlite or vermiculite lightens it up and gives space for the roots to move through.  Here is a link to a comparison of the two: comparison.  Peat Moss is great for holding water in the soil instead of it running straight through.  Another thing to remember is that most (all?) plants need to dry out between waterings.  The way I understand it, when the soil is wet, the roots take up the nutrients and when the soil is dry is when the roots grow.

Back to Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder, and Black.

If you haven’t heard the song, here are the lyrics first:

 

Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay

Were laid spread out before me as her body once did.

All five horizons revolved around her soul as the earth to the sun

Now the air I tasted and breathed has taken a turn

Ooh, and all I taught her was everything

Ooh, I know she gave me all that she wore

And now my bitter hands chafe beneath the clouds of what was everything.

Oh, the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed everything…

I take a walk outside, I’m surrounded by some kids at play

I can feel their laughter, so why do I sear?

Oh, and twisted thoughts that spin round my head, I’m spinning, oh,

I’m spinning, how quick the sun can drop away

 

And now my bitter hands cradle broken glass of what was everything

All the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed everything…

All the love gone bad turned my world to black

Tattooed all I see, all that I am, all I’ll be… yeah…

Uh huh… uh huh… ooh…

I know someday you’ll have a beautiful life,

I know you’ll be a star in somebody else’s sky,

But why, why, why can’t it be, can’t it be mine?

lyrics link

There are a million videos out there of PJ and Eddie performing this song.

This one is my favorite:

Please notice that the photo at the top has the drummer who was playing with them at the time in it.

the daily prompt — black