Grrrrrrr...Report from the Garden

I am so frustrated today.  After 3 days of rain (over 4 inches of water in the rain gauge), I headed out to the Way Back to see how our garden had fared.  Well, everything seems to have survived all the rain...tomatoes look taller; peppers are perky; zucchini seems to have grown a foot since I last looked.  But a couple of crops have succumbed to some varmint or other. 

I no longer have any peas on the vine...nor do I have any sweet potato slips either.  Something devoured all 18 (!) sweet potatoes...just sheared them off at ground level.  That photo is one I took last week, just after I'd planted the second row.  Hard to tell what it is, I realize.  Just trust me when I say, all you would see if I took the same shot today would be two empty, damp dirt rows in front of the stakes that are surrounding the strawberry patch.  At least the pea trellis will soon have new residents in the form of the new cucumber vines from those seeds that are pushing up through the soaked soil.

I've battled the bunnies before, never getting any green peas to grow in any previous gardens, so I was not so surprised to see the damage done on those veggie vines. You would think rabbits would be a bit cautious when setting up shop on the same property with a brace of hounds...but you would be wrong.  Anyway, I've never grown sweet potatoes before, so I checked all my gardening books (my library is growing weekly, I might add...:) only to discover a notation that deer like sweet potatoes.  I don't think deer visited our little neck of the NC woods...no tracks that I can see.  No, I still think it's rabbits.  Now, why it took "them" a whole week to discover a tasty patch of sweet potato vines is beyond me.  But, "they" sure have mowed 'em down now.  Sigh.  Maybe Home Depot still has some slips for sale?  I'll have to check...

Otherwise, we are enjoying a brief respite from the rains, when no work can be done on the weeds that have popped up in the last few days until the soil dries out a little.  Meanwhile, I've been repotting some of the indoor plants that N/M/E received for her birthday:  a dish garden with pothos, palms, and prayer plant; a peace lily; and an aglaonema "Silver King." 

And, because we had a wet weekend, Mr. T checked off one of his "Rainy Day" chores:  install a new light in the kitchen.  If you've been to our house, you know we struggle with the low level of lighting (the previous owners must have been bats...or otherwise light-sensitive...:)  -- lots of ceiling fans, not a lot of light from the inadequate fixtures.  The lighting in the kitchen was so poor that I couldn't read my cookbooks without walking into another room and using a table lamp. 

No more. 

Now, I can see everything!  I can see all those fingerprints on our cabinets...and on our new three-door refrigerator...yikes!  Yep, we got a new fridge (love it!) and a new dishwasher (love it, too!) a couple of weeks ago...thanks to an instant rebate program from the state of North Carolina on Energy Efficient appliances.  We weren't planning on getting replacements until we updated the kitchen in a couple of years, but what the heck?  Couldn't pass up 30% off from the store and a freebie extra 15% off from the state, now could we?  Certainly don't miss those mis-matched monsters that the previous owners left for us.  No sirree...I'm having way too much fun generating crushed ice.  Now, if I could just find an energy efficient stove, so I could replace the sad one that came with the house...no such thing, but doesn't stop me from wishing...!

OK, So Maybe I'm a Wee Bit Obsessed

It's just a garden.  And, really just the beginnings of a garden.  Only a year removed from being an unkempt patch of weeds, rocks, and rock-hard clay soil at the rear of our property.  But, slowly and surely, we are turning the area we call the Way Back into our garden.

Last year, since we didn't move in until the first week in June, we didn't get much of a start on our garden.  Just a few tomato and pepper plants purchased at the Farmer's Market and plopped into two recently-tilled rows.  Then, came both the unpacking process and Fall:  we covered a large area adjacent to those first tilled rows with the flattened moving boxes and all the leaves collected from our yard (...and we have loads of leaves...:).

Voila!  The boxes and leaves composted right on site (with the exception of that nasty, sticky packing tape), softening the soil, and allowing more rows to be tilled and added to the garden space.  More tomatoes and peppers planted (some purchased at Home Depot during the BOGO event, some started from seed inside) as you can see in the photo above (left)...which will serve as the "before" photo once all of the lovely plants begin to grow.  Added enough rows to accommodate several summer squash and zucchini plants, lotsa lettuces, some melons, and several sweet potato slips.  Oh yes...and onions!   Plenty of onions.  And all of this surrounded by border rows of marigolds, sunflowers, and zinnias...from seeds we saved from last year's flower crop...a whole bag-full!  Grow, babies, grow!

Then, earlier this week, I got out my hand cultivator and re-tilled three short rows for the Early Sunglow sweet corn.  Right over by the strawberry patch (11 plants lived out of the 18 planted earlier this Spring).  Next to the flower "holding bed," where the flowers we moved from MO are in temporary residence until they bloom and let us know which ones they are. [This beautiful iris bloomed recently, and we discovered that it was the Yosemite Star (violet and wisteria)...one of those we purchased at the Iris Sale at the STL Botanical Garden in 2008.]

And, just before I completely ran out of energy, I hauled 6-7 wheelbarrows-ful of leaf-mold (remember, we have LOADS of leaves in the Fall...:) to the newly-planted tomatoes for mulch.  I can't wait to see how it all turns out. 

I love it!  So what if I need two days for my back to recover for every day spent working in the garden...I still love it!  Frustrations?  Who can have that many frustrations when you are pouring all that energy into getting things to grow...and returning the land to good use?

When I need a little rest and a refreshing beverage?  I plop down into my camp chair next to my log-table, in front of my potting bench just inside of the garden fence...and take photos of the blue birds who have moved into the Blue Bird House that BFF AW gave N/M/E for her recent birthday...as you can see in that photo over there on the left...all the while slugging down an ice-cold orange Gatorade.  Yum!  Ready to go again in 15-20 minutes.

BTW, did I tell you that one of the weeds that's growing well in the Way Back is poison ivy?  Yeah.  Leaves of Three...beware of Thee.  It's everywhere, it's everywhere!  And, both of us have the rashes to prove it.  Oh well...that's what they invented cortisone cream for, right?  And, Benedryl.  Don't forget the Benedryl.

Obsessed?  Possibly.  Passionate?  Most definitely.  Now, I have to quit blogging so I can go see what's changed in the garden today.

Back Home After a Brief Pause

You know, it strikes me as funny.  When I was in Missouri, I mourned for my life in Georgia.  (Nevermind Florida...we weren't there long enough to know whether we liked it or not.)  Now that I'm back in North Carolina (it'll be a year later on this month, can you believe it?!), I grieve for neither MO nor GA.  I'm perfectly happy right where I am.  I don't want to be any place else.

However...

I do still enjoy my "real" job.  I know, I know...I haven't mentioned my work lately.  With good reason.  My coaching business has taken back seat to my caregiving activities, especially since the summer of 2004; then, came all of the move-related activities of last year...and then the 90th birthday party activities of early 2010.  But, my job...as a leadership development coach and consultant...requires me to make a few trips back to ATL each year.  Until '09, each one of those trips was hard to complete, since I just wanted to stay instead of getting on that return flight to STL.  Now...I hop in Lillie Pearl, point her south on Interstate 85, and pop in my latest Audible.com downloads.  Usually, after a week, I've touched base with my clients, taken care of some personal care details, did a little retail therapy, completed a few books and a knitting project or two, and am ready to return to HPNC with joy in my heart.  Happy to be back on the road home again.  The little break helps remind me of what I love to do...and gives me renewed energy to do what I am committed to doing "at home:"  ensuring that N/M/E's final years are comfortable and as easy as possible.

But, the trips are getting harder and harder to complete as planned.  Try as I might, I can't seem to anticipate all that might happen while I am away.  This time, even though strong support was in place (thanks, AW!), a nasty stomach virus still slipped through the de-fence and found a home with Mom.  We're still trying to get that under control.  Sigh. 

Ah well.  I did get to finish a few books enroute to-and-from.  Love my iPod!  I had downloaded Agatha Christie's The Third Girl, read by Hugh Frasier; Knitting by Anne Bartlett; and Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton.  Finished two of the three.  May have to wait for an upcoming jaunt to Raleigh to finish the third.

And, I was able to complete a scarf (dropped stitch pattern) and get started on a pair of socks (chasing cables pattern) while away.  I'll download some photos next time.  I'm currently on battery power, sitting outside on the deck; missing my camera and its cable for downloading the pix.  Love my wireless connection!

And, best of all, Mr. T motored down from working in Columbia, SC, to join me for the brief pause in our lives.  Yes, we needed that bit of a pause.

Out here in the sunshine, with all the roses starting to bloom, it's difficult to imagine all the devastation that's happening to friends and relatives in TN.  As far as I know, all are safe...although not all have power restored yet.  I'm glad to see that the Red Cross has made it easy for us to donate toward the assistance folks will need to restore their lives to normal.  If you can, be sure to take the easy way:  using your cellphone, text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help with the flood disaster.  You'll be glad you did!

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

It was a gorgeous weekend here in HPNC.  Cooler temps...sunshine...blue skies.  Perfect for working out in the yard.  We had 12 new rose bushes that needed to get in the ground, so that set the tone for our To Do List on Saturday.  I know, I know...I said I didn't want another To Do list, didn't I?  Truth-be-told, I operate better when I have some sort of plan.

Anyway, we started the day off with a trip to Ilderton Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep in downtown High Point to get Lillie Pearl her 20K check-up:  oil, filter, tire rotation, and new wiperblades.  If you come in for service on Saturdays, they give you a car wash for free.  Since everything around here is covered in pollen dust, a bath sounded like a great idea.  Of course, if I'd thought about what date it was, I might have thought twice about going through DT HPNC on this particular Saturday:  opening day of the Spring Furniture Market.  What are all these dressed-up people doing here?  Oh well, it all worked out OK...and Lillie Pearl looks so shiny and healthy, too!

Next to Sam's Club for hamburgers and buns for our cook-out supper...perfect after an afternoon of gardening, right?  Check!  However, when we got home, we had a call from BFF Amelia W., saying she had our pies.  Pies, you ask?  Yessiree.  The Deep River Friends Meeting makes the most marvelous chicken pies for their Annual Chicken Pie Supper (a fund raiser), and we were treated to 3 of them!  Have I told you lately how thankful and glad I am to be back in NC????  Changed our plans:  popped a pie in the oven to stay warm til supper; moved the hamburger cook-out to Sunday.

While AW and daughter CW were over, Gus and Duchess pinned one of their favs down on the sofa...lap dogs that they are.  Thought you might enjoy the picture (left).

OK...on to the yardwork.  While Mr. T and Gus dug the holes for the roses, I potted up some flowers for the deck and the little patio near the swing.  I also added some Wave Petunias to the pots out front, next to the bench (which Mr. T painted a couple of weekends ago).  I thought you'd like to see the guys at work (right).

The twelve new rose bushes are:  Proud Land, Mister Lincoln, and Chrysler Imperial (red ones); Pink Peace, Miss All-American Beauty, and Nearly Wild (pink ones); John F. Kennedy (2) (white ones); Angel Face (lavender); Kordes Perfecta (mix of pink and yellow); and New Day and OreGold (yellow ones).  Whew!  Of course, we have just a spot for a climber, so we are still looking for a Queen Elizabeth climber for it.

After all that work, you know those burgers tasted goooooood...as did those Sam Adams Lights!

The Big Day

This is it.  N/M/E turns 90 today!  She said this morning that it was almost anticlimactic, since she's been celebrating The Big Day for almost a week now.  Still...reaching this milestone is truly something special.

Kith and kin began to arrive last Thursday.  By Friday night, we had a gathering of 22 for pizza at the local Donato's (a fav of Missy M and Mom's since our Ohio days).  The winners of the "longest drive" were the AZ nieces/cousins and their DHs, followed by my own DH's sister and BIL from TX.  Other states represented included KY, IL, TN, and NC.  It was a lively bunch!

N/M/E looked beautiful on Saturday as you can see in that photo (above, left).  She was ready to welcome all who came to help her make a wonderful memory of the weekend.  We had everyone sign the Guest Book, then took their pictures right then and there.  When we get those photos developed, we'll put them in the book beside their signature and well-wishes.  We had seven states represented on Saturday.

AZ Cousin Ann is way ahead of us.  She got all her photos developed, then popped them in an album for N/M/E to begin enjoying the memories right away.  You go, girl!  I'm not there yet, but keep watching over there in the left column...eventually I'll get an online album published.

Since some of the folks stayed in town, we headed to the Crafts Show at the Greensboro Coliseum on Sunday.  Then, we got together for lunch at the Bistro 150 on Monday.  And, had by-special-request pancake brunch and a nice visit here at home on Tuesday.  Today seems so quiet and calm after all the activity!

I'm taking a rest from doing taxes (yes, it's THAT time of the year again...:), so that I can give my brain a break.  And, after tomorrow's 15th deadline, I hope to return to normal, whatever that may be.  In no particular order:

• I want to work in the garden...
• I want to get those photos of the party developed and in the album...
• I want to sit on the deck...or the screened porch...or the front porch...or in the swing...and do absolutely nothing.  No "To Do" List(s).  Just enjoy the flowers in bloom (like that iris over there on the right) and veg out.

Update on the dogs:  Elmo had his 3-week follow-up visit on Monday with his ophthalmologist, Wonderful Dr. Nasisse.  His pressures are down to 8 in both eyes, so that confirms that he's pain-free from the glaucoma.  Remarkable!  Even better...he's adapted to being blind, with very few problems that we've noticed. He's still the skittish one of the bunch, but he seemed to be more comfortable around all the people than he's ever been.  Amazing!!

And, Duchess is doing better, too.  We had a wonderful report from loving, caring Dr. Heidi:  those tissue samples she sent off for testing?  All were benign.  Follicular cysts, I believe she called them.  Common in Golden Retrievers and Basset Hounds.  Joy.  She gets her stitches (of which she has what appears to be thousands...) out on Friday.  Then she can get back to making more cysts.  We should start saving money for the next round of removal, right?

Don't worry.  I haven't stopped knitting completely.  I tried to stay true to my resolution in March:  either finish it or frog it.  I resolved most of my WIP's:  finished the Entwined Shawl for N/M/E's Easter present and the belt for Missy M's Easter basket.  Frogged the Clara baby dress; the cotton cashmere yarn was just too heavy for the delicate patterning.  Worked on the blue baby blanket I've been crocheting for-ev-er...will hopefully finsh it sooner rather than later.  That leaves one other crochet baby blanket and the Handmaiden Sea Cell scarf in the works.  Oh, and the dress for the Bunny I knit for Missy M's basket (right now, the Bunny is in the buff, shall we say?)

The strange thing is that I'm stalled at what I want to start next on the needles!  I've organized all my stash yarn that was moved...and I realized how much fibre I have in the house.  S-c-a-r-y.  But, now that I've resolved several projects, I don't know what I want to work on.  So, I keep going back to what's left:  blue baby blanket and/or the scarf (which may or may not get frogged, since I've found a shawl pattern I like better than what I've got going now).  Sigh.

OK...back to the taxes.  Just 31 more hours to file.  And pay.  Don't forget the "pay" part.  Oh yeah, it's gonna be one of those years unfortunately.  Seems like every time we have a moving year, we have a paying year on the following April 15th.

Maybe I'll just have a cupcake instead...

Wacky Weather, Wacky Week Altogether

Folks, I've got to admit it.  I've been one of the worst complainers about the long, cold Winter we had.  Snow after snow after snow blanketed the Piedmont, and it got to be old after the first couple of them.  Would Spring ever arrive?

Uh...yeah.

I must have blinked, because we seem to have gone from Winter right into Summer...forget Spring.  We hit 96 here today (a record high)...warmer than it was in Phoenix, AZ, which is always my test of whether it's hot here...or anywhere, for that matter.  The tree pollen count is so high that they can't even chart the number in a graph without some distortion on TV.  It feels like we are all going to choke on the yellow dust that covers everything in sight.  Cough, cough...wheeze, wheeze...pass the Allegra-D, please.

N/M/E asked me if I'd taken a photo (above, left) of the pink dogwood that grows in front of our front porch yet...that I'd better do it quickly, 'cause it might not have any flowers on it at all tomorrow.  One day is had tiny buds...the next day, it had beautiful pink blossoms...and then the leaves popped out overnight.  Yikes!  Everything seems to be happening so fast.  All the daffodils are bloomed and gone...and this morning, I noticed both daylily buds forming and some iris blossoms about to open.  Daylilies?  Iris?  The first week of April??  How odd...

Supposedly, we've got another day of high heat before we get some relief...both in lower temps and some much needed cleansing rains.  Maybe that will wash the pollen dust away by the weekend.

Taking a break from the long To Do list of chores to get ready for the upcoming weekend Birthday Celebration for N/M/E, I took advantage of the glorious sunny day and worked outside most of Monday, repotting some plants that survived the winter indoors.  My lemon tree...started from saved seed a few years ago in MO...had outgrown the confines of its pot last year, but I just didn't have energy last Fall.  Ditto the beautiful Mandevilla vine that Realtor Sue sent us as a housewarming gift...poor thing, it never made it out of the plastic "grower's" pot that it came to us in...as well as a hearty bunch of chives that have miraculously survived two winters and a move. Now, they are all hap-hap-happy out on the deck, in new soil and pots.  I also potted up some herbs (oregano, parsley, rosemary, lavender, and basil) and a Super Sweet 100 Cherry Tomato for the deck garden. 

I took a short cut on the flowers for the porches this year:  I got "already potted" groupings of flowers called Container Replacements from Lowe's...you just pop them in your pots and add water.  I did sneak in some beautiful purple petunias to the white geranium and spiky green foliage (is it artemisia?) of one.  I also found some pretty potted-up coreopsis at Walmart which followed me home and are now gracing the front steps.  Those last ones did get a make-over when I added three Hot Pink vincas to each of the bright yellow coreopsis pots...just like we had read about doing in the gardening section of the paper on Sunday.  Like I said about the weather...instant Summer!

Most of this dolling-up of the homeplace is in preparation of our guests for N/M/E's 90th Birthday celebration this Saturday.  Fingers crossed...toes, too...that we can make it happen.  Health issues have sprung up just like Summer weeds...we get one managed and along comes another one.  I've been battling a nasty virus that just won't let go...I was down for the count for about a week...then, I think I've got it licked, but back comes the cough.  And, now N/M/E has developed this odd foot malady of sharp, stabbing heal pain (akin to her gout? not sure...) that kept her from joining us at Easter services at Covenant UMC and then the yummy buffet at the Proxity Hotel in Greensboro.  Speaking of being "dolled-up," check out Mr. T in his Easter finery.  (What you can't tell in that photo to the right is just how much yellow pollen dust is coating that black courtesy car.)

And, the health issues are not just for us humans either.  Duchess got to come home today following her surgery on Monday to remove 7 cysts, two of which had ruptured, one being infected...that's the one we've been trying to deal with for more than a month now.  She was a real trooper, Dr. Heidi said...amazing actually.  For a 10-year-old dog "with a good bit of extra padding," she came through the 2-plus hour surgery with flying colors.  No fever...none, even after the recovery period.  Now, it's all about the healing.  They sent her home in this flexible E-collar thingie (pic to the left; see all her shaved patches, one of which is holding Elmo's interest) to keep her from tearing out her stitches, but that lasted about 20 minutes.  Mr. T removed it because he said she looked miserable...and because it was driving Gus nuts to see her in the thing.  Woo woo!  Still and all, we are ever so happy to have her home and feeling better.  Having had two dogs with major health problems in two months is, well, two too many.  Hopefully, things will settle down for them...and for us.

Time to get to bed for the night.  Lots to do on the To Do List tomorrow!

Yes, It Really Does Sound Like a Freight Train

If you've been tuned into the news and/or weather channel(s) this week, you've probably heard our city's name a few times.  High Point was hit by an EF-3 tornado on Sunday night during a wave of severe thunderstorms that dumped nearly 2.5 inches of rain on us during the evening hours.  What a night!

We are among the fortunate.  The worst strike was in area about a half-mile from us, where houses were damaged in several neighborhoods, including Blairwood.  (If you know where we live, you will know how close we are to that area.)  We were watching the constant weather reports (thank goodness we still had electricity), trying to figure out where the danger was, when both Mr. T and I heard the proverbial freight train sound, roaring through the back yard.  We have Duke Energy transmission lines going through the back, so we surmise that the leveled ground...no trees...allowed the sound to be magnified.  Anyway, we hustled N/M/E and the three dogs into the laundry room to wait out the warning...which brought a couple of thoughts to the surface:

1. I never thought I'd say it, but I miss my MO basement.  Basements are rare in this area (although we did have one in our former HPNC home, oddly enough).  But, in the "be thankful for small mercies" category, I'm glad our laundry room is as "large" as it is (relatively speaking, of course) because many who were interviewed on TV reported taking cover in their pantries...or under a stairwell. We had already discussed what we would do in case of a tornado, and the laundry room had been designated as our refuge.
2. I'm glad we no longer are facing tornado activity in the Midwest.  There, with everything being so flat, you have danger all around you for 20-30 minutes or more, after the tornado sirens sound.  Here, it was over almost before we knew it.  Swoop!  The tornado spun out of the thunderstorm, did its destruction, and was gone again.  No more than 5 minutes (for that one).  Of course, this means that you'd better know where the counties and communities are around you...when they mention that a tornado has been confirmed in Welcome, NC, for instance...you need to know how close that is to you...cause it will be on top of you before you have time to look at a map.  Trust me on that last point.

Anyway, yesterday was a day of discovery.  We got the first pictures of the destruction...and were shocked at what we saw.  As we are under a State of Emergency here, and they have asked that we not go into any of the areas just to "take a look," we haven't seen Ground Zero yet.  But, as we were leaving our neighborhood to head to the vet (for Duchess), I snapped this blurry shot across the lake near the intersection of Skeet Club, Waterview, and Kendale...where there was a constant traffic jam caused by the redirected traffic.  The blue tarp on the roof of this house and the raw wood on the tree trunks are a visual indicator of how much destruction can occur in just a heartbeat.

Yes, very fortunate indeed.