Morning Glories, 7/19/2015
Today I was looking around the garden. Some things are wilting – nothing terribly INTERESTING was happening. I’m between projects – trying to slowly clean up the yard. As of today I’m 23rd in line for my new fence. I still need to order the flooring for the laundry room – it likely won’t get to me until September. I’m losing interest and steam in doing the interim things, though I know they need to get done. Because it’s hot…and because I’m a little burned out. As I’m taking pictures, I’m thinking – I need a change of scenery. Not permanently, but…a vacation.
So I guess it’s good that I have a vacation coming up. In the meantime, I’m just going to have to keep my head down and keep getting shit done.
And I guess keep trying new angles with these photos because, to be honest – it feels like I’m taking pictures of the same thing over and over again…& although that’s kind of the point – to show progress.
Toilet Garden
Slow and Steady.
Limber Hawk the Chicken
Sometimes too slow and too steady.
Toilet Garden
In the meantime, in my inner world, I am also observing slow and steady. Intentionally slow and steady. I’m about to welcome the Tao of Bird home again. I’m sure he will resume his surly teenager bit and will vaguely grunt hello, if he even acknowledges me when he returns. I’m kind of bracing myself for that. Neither of my kids is particularly affectionate. The Tao of Bird has had his phases. I’m looking forward to seeing where he is now.
Sweet Card from the Vet.
Not looking forward to telling him about Lion…but maybe he’ll be in apathetic teen mode and won’t care. Or will pretend to not care, only to have it dredged up when he’s in his mid-30’s and in therapy.
Chef Vordivask with the Mexican Honeysuckle
The chickens seemed to have a case of the pox recently. I was most concerned about Bear, as she had a big old warty looking pock right on her nostril. I read up on it and it sounded like it wasn’t something that would be fruitful to worry about. Mostly it’s the secondary infections you need to worry about, so the advice is to keep the birds as healthy as possible, and they’ll be able to ward that shit off. It looks like the outward physical evidence of the illness has passed, and everyone still seems really healthy, though a bit overheated.
And…this happened. I was late to the march, but was glad to witness it. What can you say? What can I say? If I type the words SANDRA BLAND in capital letters today…tomorrow I will just have to type SAMUEL DUBOSE. I’m proud to stand with people in honor of the murdered, but I’d rather there be no more murders. No more abuses of authority.
Phones Up! #blacklivesmatter #sandystillspeaks
I have such a difficult time writing about this stuff. It feels like it’s already been said. A million times over…by people who are far better at saying things than me. I have no idea how I used to write several political blog posts a day. Now I just want to link to a slew or articles and signal boost. So, I’ll do that…
Of Lions and Men: Mourning Samuel DuBose and Cecil the Lion
#alllionsmatter Twitter hashtag search: https://twitter.com/search?q=%23AllLionsMatter&src=tyah
VIDEO: Body Cam Contradicts Official Story in Police Shooting of Samuel DuBose
http://theantimedia.org/body-cam-contradicts-official-story-in-police-shooting-of-samuel-dubose/
A Lawyer Gave Us the Blunt Truth About Sandra Bland’s Arrest
http://www.attn.com/stories/2498/sandra-bland-arrest-lawful
Fancy New Journals from Shinola
I want those journals pictured above – one lined, one unlined – to be sacred. I want to write amazing things in them – even if I have to quote other people. I don’t want there to be a single complaint about the dog, or the children, or…really anything unless it’s written in verse or prose. I want to see beautiful things and transcribe them in language fully worthy of the honor of transcription.
Gardens 7/31/2015
There are so. many. distractions in my life. I need to be patient with myself. I need to redirect my creative energy into things that aren’t as easy to distract from. short paragraphs, quick sketches, and gardening. Still. But soon, one child will be gone and the other in school all day, and I will have full days off with no other human in the house. I can’t say I’m looking FORWARD to it exactly, as I’m going to miss those boogers…but then again, I’m looking forward to it, because I’m me. I’m a hermit. And I fear my inability to ever be really alone in my house is making me more of a hermit somehow.
Skunk the Chicken looking like a badass.
I also need to remind myself that the reason I’ve been such a homebody is because I have been working on the yard. On the garden. On the chickens. And just working. And vacation won’t be the end of that, but it will provide a good respite from it.
Moon Garden – 7/27/2015
I have two days left to book the most expensive part of my trip. I’m not sure why I’m procrastinating, but I’m totally procrastinating.
Morning Glories and Laundry Line
Other than the 2 Sundays of my vacation, tomorrow is the last Sunday I will have off in awhile. I’m losing my weekend off day in this new schedule coming up. I have mixed feelings about it, but it’s fun to change things up, and it’s only for 3 months. I traded shifts with someone so I could work closing, so I’ll have mornings free to take care of things that it gets too hot to take care of by noon.
Lulu Head and Bottle Border – 7/21/2015
Garden report: I think I lost two of the four artichokes that bloomed earlier. I don’t think I cut them back quickly enough. The other two are doing great. Strange that the two that didn’t seem to come back were both globes and the hardy ones were the purple artichokes. I’ll probably freshen up those beds with some real soil and mulch and a border of some sort. I want to add asparagus and probably echinacea and maybe some sort of fern.
Same-ish view – 7/21/2014
The tomato plants both kicked, but I left one in the dirt because it was sprouting a sucker and I just want to see what happens with it. I put some pumpkin and “red, warty thing” (The Tao of Bird picked that one out because it sounds and looks like an STD.) in the bed with the lone tomato from springtime…sprinkled in some oregano and other things. I don’t have my notes with me, but damn do freaking pumpkins and gourds grow fast. It’s amazing how quickly they are springing up.
Can you find the two perfect hen-shaped dustbaths?
There are 3 remaining squash plants, and I’m not sure what, if anything, I can do to keep them alive. I might have to write the bed they are in off as a vegetable bed in summer. It’s just too much sun too much of the time. Even a shade cloth doesn’t appear to provide relief. It’s just. too. hot. So I’m not sure what I’m going to do with it. I might throw some carrots in there. maybe start my winter greens…
I love those morning glories. hahaha.
Something was shearing the leaves off of all of my pepper plants, so I planted more and dusted the bed with diatomaceous earth. We’ll see how that goes. The basil in that bed is finally growing. That bed has just enough shade that I really think the peppers still have plenty of chance to bear fruit even if I continue to plant them…if I can figure out what’s tearing them up and put an end to that shit!
The cukes have pretty much had it. I put some tomato plants in that bed. More greens, plz!
Future Toilet Garden overlooking Future Moon Garden – 7/30/2014
And the sweet potatoes are kicking ass. Hard to believe I ordered those slips through the mail and they arrived wrapped in newspaper and plastic. I threw some tomatoes in the bed with them & we’ll see how that goes. I’m hoping that bed is shaded enough for those fucking prima donna tomatoes, but some of them are already wilting. UGH. WHY DO I KEEP TRYING TO PLANT TOMATOES WHEN I AM CLEARLY NOT CUT OUT FOR IT.
This is my “before” shot to encourage myself to clean this area this weekend.
I put some sweet basil in the front bed along with the Thai basil that’s already there…and I feel like I’m running out of beds to plant things in! I need to spend some time on the three beds outside the fence – mulching around them and adding more soil for fall gardens.
After Shot – West side of garage
I kind of almost want them to leave the fence pickets with me when they tear down my fence. Sure they are old and rickety and very very weathered, but I feel like I can still turn them into great garden beds! I’m just not sure where I would store them while waiting to transmogrify them into squares.
Hawk the Chicken
❤ ❤ ❤
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