It's Alive...

The sun's been pretty lazy here lately.  It barely peeks it's head up till after 6:30 am. 

Oh Joy!  Here come the dark days... 

The dogs don't care about sunshine though.  I swear they know what time it is from the grumbling of their bellies.  It's no wonder that I'm snoozing on the sofa by 8 pm.  With the "Triple-Threat Doggie Alarm Clock" sounding off my day starts off by 5 am every day (if not sooner).

Except on rainy days.  Oh, they still get me up all right, it's just that they cluster at the back door looking at me pointing at them saying "Go outside" with disbelief in their eyes.  "You expect me to go out in THAT?" their eyes say.  Then they turn around and go lay back down, thoughts of food and frolicking far from their mind.  Those are the days that I can "go lay back down" too.

But those days are rare.  Few and far between.  Most days I have no choice in the matter. 

Bellies must be fed.

SM on the other hand...

If I'm asleep on the couch by 8 pm, SM is usually up till midnight.  Most days he gets up by 7am though.  Just enough time for me to give him a sleepy, warm hug and a quick kiss before I hit the road to head into work.

I'm off on most Mondays though. 

This past Monday morning, I'm busy with my usual morning routine and I feel like writing some posts so I get on the computer and start blogging.  After awhile I get up and notice that it's already past 9am and SM is still not up yet. 

Hm...

I creep up to the bedroom door and open it quietly.

There he is sleeping. 

Or at least I think he's sleeping. 

His face is turned away from me so I can't tell if he's dead or alive. 

(So we've finally reached the age where I need to wonder about THAT. Great...)

I take a step closer and eyeball the bed covers looking for movement.

Nothing.

Another step and I'm leaning over him.

Nothing.

I lean closer and tilt my ear towards him.

There it is. 



Whew...He's still breathing.

I tippy-toe back out of the bedroom and head back to blog some more.

After about another 1/2 hour, I hear rustling and SM stumbles out into the world, smushy faced and sleepy eyed.

"Wow...What happen to you?"  I ask gently.  It's never a good policy to approach SM with difficult questions before his second cup of joe.

"Sleeping pill..." He mumbles, grabbing a coffee cup out of the cupboard.  (He hadn't been sleeping very well with the cold he's had this past week so he took a pill.)

"I was wondering if you were dead or alive."  I told him giving him a brief hug. 

Is this what happens as you get older?  Checking each other for a pulse?  Watching for signs of life?  Will I be lifting eyelids before too long?

Hello?  Anybody home?

Flower Power

Flowers have been on my mind a lot lately.

I've been gardening long enough to learn that it's one thing to feed your belly but it's another thing to feed your soul.

And flowers do that don't they? 

I can look at a bouquet of flowers on someones desk and just feel the tension go out of me.  I love to see flowers inside the house or office.  Just LOVE it.  But I'm too cheap to buy them for myself.  Cut flowers are freaking expensive!  (I tried bringing in some cut crepe myrtle blooms once.  What a mess!)

And while I do have some flowers outside the house, the majority of those are annuals like Petunias and Geraniums and Knock-Out Roses.  They look nice but "Hey" they're still outside!  So I started thinking that maybe I should start to grow flowers that I can cut and bring INSIDE the house.

Perhaps it's just the natural order of things when you start to garden. 

You start off small.  One day you're playing in the dirt with a couple of tomato plants and some zucchini and then the next thing you know, you're planting fruit trees.  Then you want to expand your garden because it's not just a hobby now.  This stuff tastes good.  Real good.  Better than good, in fact it tastes SO good you want to expand your garden so you can grow more of this great stuff.

But then you notice that not every bit of dirt is occupied 24-7.  There are seasons for certain things.  Some of your plants failed to thrive and you're left looking at a sad little patch of dirt just crying out for some roots to call it home.

And also because you're a girl.  Let's face it.  Girls like things pretty.  And while a garden starts off looking pretty with all these neat little rows and baby plants and not a weed in sight, well...It doesn't stay that way does it?

Like a teenager with a bad case of acne, my garden is looking quite frightening right now.  Grass and weeds everywhere!

Except for one little 3x4 foot patch where I planted my first flowers.

That's right!  This Spring I planted some Dahlia bulbs in the garden.  I'd been thinking that I'd like to add more flowers to the garden to attract more bees.  I always have marigolds in the garden.  So easy to grow and they look good too but I wanted to try something else so when I spotted the Dahlia bulbs I said "what the heck" and tossed them into my shopping cart.

Now I know nothing about growing Dahlias.  Most of them are flopped over and laying on the ground.  I walked past some this morning and thought "What the heck are you doing, Tami?  You're always wanting flowers for the house and these are just laying there looking pretty for who?"  So I trimmed the heavy blooms off and brought them in the house.

My first cut flowers!

Aw...Aren't they pretty?

So now I'm on a mission. 

Yes, I am!

I want to start to grow flowers in my garden for me to create pretty bouquets inside my house if I want.

So I need suggestions.

Nothing high maintenance please and lets think all seasons.  From tulips to sunflowers, toss em at me.

What's your favorite flowers to grow and why. 

Not all of them need to be for cutting.  I'm happy to leave them outside too.  Just nothing "fussy" please.  

I've got enough to do with the teenager out in my backyard...@;)

Hinting At Fall

This past week we've had wonderful weather.  We got some rain last week...which we need...but it's the temperatures that are amazing.  It's been a very "un-august" like August.  As in highs around 80-85 with lows around 60.  We seem to be running about 10 degrees cooler than normal.  SM thinks we're in for an early Fall.  Wouldn't THAT be lovely?

We're able to give our pocketbook a rest and leave the AC off for a change.  I'm back to sleeping with the windows open.  I blow out the house in the am, using the ceiling fans and box fans to bring in the cool morning air.  Then I button up the house, closing blinds and drapes, keeping the cool air in. 

Gosh it feels nice.

SM and I are hoping for a long, long Autumn.  It's simply our favorite time of the year.  SM has golfing and college football to look forward too.  I've always got my garden to tend to.

I went out Sunday morning and finished planting the fall raised bed.  I direct sowed the mustard greens and transplanted the broccoli and cauliflower.

The second batch of carrots all germinated (YEAH) so we'll have sweet carrots to munch on come January and February.  The turnips and snow peas are also up.

My late planting of yellow crookneck squash is maturing and appears to have some blooms that might pop this week.  What a treat that will be to be able to eat some summer squash later this fall as my winter squash crop appears to be questionable.

The pumpkin/winter squash patch is hanging in there still although I see some leaves browning out here and there.  No fruit yet.  Just male flowers.

SM went out and planted the hydrangea and blueberry bush.  He also mowed the lawn and also burned the debris pile this afternoon.

Speaking of SM...The poor guy picked up a head cold earlier this week that shifted down into his chest a bit.  He's been coughing and hacking this past week, although he said he felt better today.  (Hence the outdoor work.) 

Me?  I made enchiladas earlier this week and I also made him some chicken-noodle soup today.  (Better late than never I guess.)  Spaghetti with meat sauce from the last of the frozen tomatoes is on the agenda for tomorrow. 

Sure seems like Fall is here already with THAT menu.

Plants For Old Ladies

Heather, a co-worker of mine, has had the most lovely blooms on her desk the past few weeks 

It didn't shed. 

It didn't die until almost 2 weeks had gone by.

"Is that a Hydrangea bloom?"  I asked.  It was a lovely light blue color and easily the size of my two hands spread wide.

"Yeah.  I snuck out in the morning and snipped it from my neighbors yard."  She confessed.

I was in love.  "I need to plant me one of these."  I said, my wheels spinning.

A few days ago, I met up with Deb (my native Southern friend).  We were comparing garden notes when I mentioned my astonishment over the hydrangea.

"It was just the most beautiful thing!"  I exclaimed.

"Funny you should mention that."  Deb said.  "A co-worker who just passed away last week used to bring me hydrangea blooms.  I thought the same thing at the time and I wanted to plant one in memory of her."

"You know..."  I said frowning,  "I've always thought of hydrangea's and peonies as being "Old Lady" plants.

"Well, Tami...That's what we are, aren't we?  Old Ladies?"  Deb said with a big grin. 

I laughed.  She's right.  I'm officially an old lady!

Well, I got off work early Friday afternoon and made a bee-line for the local nursery hoping for some fall veggie starts. 

I picked up some broccoli and cauliflower plants and a packet of mustard green seed as Debbie said those are the best "stewed down".  I've never eaten "greens" before so I figured Live in the South?  Eat like a Southerner!

Anyway...When I went to check out the lady said that today was the first day of their 50% Off Sale.  I asked if they had any hydrangea's and she took me around out back and showed me 3 different varieties.  $25 dollars each.

"Well, Hot Damn."  I said to myself and hustled home to call Deb.

We piled back in her car and went back to the nursery and each bought a Merritts Supreme Hydrangea.  (I also snapped up the last blueberry bush they had, some bird netting and a pair of pruning snips.)

The plants are healthy and HUGE.  Not bad for $12.50

I looked it up on the Internet and take a peek.

Wow. 



I was told that these are pink but we can add aluminum sulfate to the plant in March and it will change blue.  How cool is that!

This old lady is gonna be very happy with her "Old Lady" plant when it blooms next year.

Now I just need to get SM to plant it!

All Washed Up?

Time to clean SM's ball caps.

We bought these little gizmo's at Walmart years ago.  Just put the caps in the top rack of an empty dishwasher along with the usual dishwasher soap and "Ta-Da" ...Clean caps!

Hopefully the Buckeye's won't be put through the "dishwasher" themselves this season@;)

Twinkie

Last week I worked with a real character...let's call him Jerry. 

Jerry is in his middle 60's and owns his own business so he's used to calling the shots. 

Jerry is fast-talking and forthright.  He looks you in the eye and calls it like he sees it.  He doesn't pull any punches as he tells it to you "like it is" with his deep Boston accent.

Down here in North Carolina, Jerry is what many Southerners would consider a real Yankee.

Now I'm a Yankee too in my way.  (SM and I both come from Ohio.  Ohio is kind of like a kissing-cousin to a real Yankee.  Real Yankee's hail from places like New Yawk, and Baawstin.)  

Anyway, when we first moved down here 14 years ago, I would often hear the comment "You ain't from around here are ya?"  (Little did I know that I gave myself away by my lack of chit-chat, my fast talking ways and my directness.)

You see, Southerners just don't go for that.  There's a protocol for speaking in the South.  You gotta warm up to a conversation with a Southerner.  Talk about the weather for a few minutes before you get to the point.  "How ya'll doing today?"  "Listen to them cicadas!"  "Damn it's hot!"  "How's your Mama doing?"

I've learned to slow it down a bit, to be more sociable and "tippy-toe" around an issue before getting into it with a Southerner.  

It's funny.  I haven't been called a Yankee in many, many years.  I guess I've been absorbed into culture.  Yankees can have their melting pot.  Southerners get slow roasted and Bar-B-Qued.

For all his year's living here in the Carolina's, Jerry still hasn't been "absorbed."  I bet Jerry gets called "Yankee" alot, and not just because of his accent.

"Before we get staaa-ted, I want to let you know what I will and won't do.  All you ladies ask me to do the same thing and I've got my own story of angst to tell."  Jerry comes at me right out of the shoot, eyes sparking and fingers pointing. 

(Angst.  Now that's not a word you hear every day:)

I laughed out loud. 

Swear to God I did. 

I couldn't help myself.  (Fortunately I didn't piss him off.) 

"Well, I tell ya Jerry, I've been married to a fellow for 26 years and he can let loose some "angst" of his own on me from time to time.  So go ahead...Spill."  I said with a smile as I sat back to hear his story of woe.

Jerry was here for a second opinion and told me his story straight up and in your face.  No tap dancing with Jerry.  I gave him my full attention and took notes.  And after we got through all the important stuff, I took some time to chit-chat with him.  (Like any good Southerner would.)

You see, I LIKED Jerry and I could tell by the way Jerry was laughing and smiling he liked me just fine too.  (Yankees always like me cause I understand them.  They feel comfortable with me.  I can fall back into my Yankee-ness with a snap of my fingers.) 

We sat back and talked about being Yankees in the South.  Traded war stories so to speak. 

And after Jerry left, some of my "Southern" co-workers came up to me and told me how glad they were that I took him back and worked him up. 

"Wasn't he mean?"  They asked.

"Naw...He's a Twinkie!"  (Twinkie is a term I use to describe someone who's all tough on the outside but once you get to know them they're a cream-filled sponge cake on the inside.  There's LOTS of Twinkies out there.)




"But he was so in your face."  Said another gal. 

"No...He's just direct.  That's how most Northerners are."  I explained.

"He intimidated me."  Says another, younger co-worker.  "Scared me to death."

"Aw...He's fine.  All bark, no bite."  I said with a wave of my hand.

"Well, you can work with him when he comes back in."  Was the general consensus.

"I'd be glad to."  I said with a big ole smile.

It's not everyday that you run into a real Yankee...@;)

Market Stroll

I was scheduled for post-ops Saturday morning and had mentioned to SM that we hadn't been to the Charlotte Farmers Market at all this year.  (I guess this is what happens when you grow your own.) 

I didn't really need anything from the market, but we thought that since it was close to work, it might be kinda nice to take a morning stroll around the vendors and see what's up.

So SM drove me into town, dropped me off and while I went into work, he went and had some waffles, eggs and bacon at a local favorite restaurant of his.  SM says the waffles were amazing with a shredded apple on top and real maple syrup.  (We use the sugar free stuff here at the house.  Gotta watch his sugar...)  Me?  Not into breakfast all that much so I just grabbed a yogurt out of the fridge in our lunchroom.

We got to the market about 9:30.  Boy, were they busy!

There are 4 "sheds".  One for plants and one for crafts.  We rarely go into those sheds.  That leaves 2 for food and of the two I like the more open air one best.  (The other shed offers larger "Distributor" businesses. What I mean by that, is that these businesses get their produce from everywhere (Fla, Georgia etc...)) 

Lots of new local vendors, many displaying signage with their thoughts on farming.  (LOL...What we Sale?  Or Sell?)

All ages and ethnicity's.

Look at that pile of garlic.

All the beautiful colors!

And of course the flowers!

Over all, we both thought that prices were pretty high for produce.  Now that might just be a reflection of the economy.  More likely the prices were up just because it was Saturday and the busiest day of the week for these vendors.

We didn't buy a thing.  Didn't see anything tempting enough except some Asian Pears for $2 a pound.  (I really need to consider planting a few Asian Pear trees.  The local nursery says they do better up in the mountains than they do here in the Piedmont, but how do you know unless you try?)

I hope you enjoyed strolling the market with us!

Ignorance Is Bliss

One of the weirder things that I've been doing lately is smiling.




That's right. 

Smiling. 

And it's making the people in my life a little nervous.

"Why are you smiling?"  SM asks eyeballing me from a safe distance.

"What's got you so happy?" My co-worker Teri asks as she walks in my office.

"What's the joke?"  The MD I work with inquires, (His eyebrows up to his hairline with curiosity.)

Geez. 

(Either I've been a Grumpy Gus for the last 20 years or the folks who know me best can smell a rat at 20 feet.)

You see, one of the more joyful side effects of peri (or full blown) menopause is that the girl you thought you knew so well has suddenly become a tad bit more...Well...Let's just say "sensitive."

I've never been the girl who's suffered from emotional mood swings.  PMS was never in my emotional vocabulary.  (Although I will admit to needing the occasional M&M - Frito Corn Chip combination of sweet and salty just to get through the day.  Go ahead.  Try it.  It's not as bad as you think.)

It's weird.  Truly weird that I can be humming along happy as a clam, going about my business, when I get this sudden feeling of sadness.  It's happened more than just a few times lately.  It doesn't last long.  But it hit's me and (like the good little clinician that I am) I wonder..."Where'd the heck that come from?" 

It's usually triggered by some external source.  TV, Radio, Internet.  I'll read a story, or hear an interview on NPR or (heaven forbid) see a political ad on TV.  There's so much fear and negativity out in the world today and I seem to be more sensitive to it than usual.  I think these moments of "sadness" are more noticeable to me because as a general rule, I'm a pretty happy person.  I live a pretty happy life.

So I've decided that ignorance is bliss.  I don't really need to know whats happening in the Sudan.   Or the back and forth bickering of the 2 kids who are running for school president.  (Is it just me or does this seem like a really negative  political campaign?)  Or the latest bacteria that's sweeping the nation making people sick.

So when I feel that sadness sneaking in...I smile. 





Does it feel forced? 

Right at first?  You bet it does.  But after smiling for awhile a strange thing starts to happen. 

The mood lightens. 

Other people start to smile too. 

Or I pounce on SM with my goofy, freaky little smile and he runs from me, making us both laugh. 

And then the next thing you know, that sadness is gone and forgotten and the day is shining and bright and full of promise.

My own personal little Prozac pill.





A smile.  Who knew?

Try, Try Again.

A couple of weeks ago I made my carrot seed mats and covered them up with a bit of dirt and my old faithful "Surfer Dude" beach towel in the hope that I could get them to stay moist enough to germinate in the 90 degree heat.  I went out to inspect them this past week and my germination rate sucks.  Only about 50% came up.  Old seed?  Too hot?  Too dry?

Likely all of the above.

But wait.  I had success germinating the same seed this Spring, so I made more seed mats and planted another batch in a different bed and watered them down. 

We'll see.  If this batch doesn't make it then I'll toss the seeds.

Then I thought, "What the heck."  And planted some left over summer squash seeds and even some snow peas that I had left over from this Spring.

I had bought a packet of turnips from BC.  I've never tried turnips.  SM turns his nose up at them but Baker Creek says that the Boule D'or turnip are sweeter and milder.  So that's my "something different" plant for this Fall. 





I was going to hold off on planting the lettuce till next month but with the cooler evenings we've been having, I went ahead and planted those too.  And I really think I'm going to try broccoli and cauliflower again.  I'll buy those from the nursery though.

Am I a glutton for punishment?  Maybe.  But this weather is just kooky enough that you never can tell what's going to happen. 

So you fail. 

But you just might succeed too.

You just never know.  That's what makes gardening fun.  Plus I've got my hoop house ready to go to try and extend this Fall's growing season. 

I'm really looking forward to fall and winter gardening.

Aw...who am I kidding.  I just want it cooler @;)
   

Our First Melons

I tried growing watermelon and cantaloupe last year but both failed.  (I had planted them in a shadier part of the garden and they just didn't do well.)

I hadn't planned on trying melons this year but I had gone into a local nursery hoping for some sweet potato slips back in June.  Nope.  Sold Out.  Since they were out, I felt that I should buy something.  I can't help myself.  This little nursery is directly across the street from a big box store.  I try to buy from them when I can, but I get the vibe that their days are numbered.  Anyway, I spotted some Ambrosia Cantaloupes starts and bought those instead and this time planted them in the raised beds. 

They've done really well.  They put out about 20 melons ranging in size from an orange to a grapefruit.  We waited for them to get bigger but they never did.  Then we waited for them to yellow up assuming that color would indicate ripeness.

Well, we lost about 4-5 melons that way.  They suddenly split and the bugs got them.  So we picked a green melon, took it in the house and split it. 

Ripe and wonderful all the way to the skin.  Tasted good too.  What a surprise!

So we've been picking one here and there and placing them on the counter to finish "ripening." 

Sunday morning I went and pulled the lot.  There was one that got chewed by the resident bunny that is so small he manages to come and go through my rabbit proof fence, and two others that had bug holes in them so they got tossed into the compost pile.  The rest are sitting on the counter waiting to be eaten.

It's funny...I was expecting to get these huge melons that you see at the store.  But when you buy the grocery melons they're already yellowish and you crack them open to discover they're not even ripe.  Plus no flavor.  Yuck.  (Seems like all store bought fruit is tasteless anymore.)

Home grown melons may be small and green on the outside but they're packed with flavor and juice.  And the smell! 

Live and learn.  I'm so pleased with these that I'll be planting Ambrosia again.  They've earned their place in my garden.

It's A Jungle Out There

Deb came over yesterday as I was unloading my weekly haul from the grocery store.

"Is it too early to start spinach for fall?"  She wanted to know.  (I might only have 2 years of gardening experience around here but I told her to "Go for it.") 

We chatted about direct sowing for Fall vs buying the starts from the nursery.  Deb didn't know that in about a month (mid September) all the local nursery's and big box stores will start carrying fall veggies.  Cole crops, greens...We got to talking about mustard greens (her favorite) compared to collard greens which are very popular around here.  She's bought her seed packets and was going to plant them today.

"I'd give it a shot.  If your direct sow stuff doesn't make it..."  I said with a shrug... "We can always run to the nursery and buy the plants there instead."

We chatted about her garden overall.  Not a lot of success for Deb's garden this first year and (like me) it was all about the soil prep.

Which got me to thinking that I hadn't been back in my own garden all week!

I unloaded the rest of the grocery's after Deb had left and noticed that I had about 6 cardboard boxes flattened in the Jeep.  (I grab the bigger boxes from work and toss them in the back to Jeep from time to time.)  I piled those boxes and, since they were big, balanced them on my head as I made my way back to the garden.  I knew exactly where these boxes were going.

Wow!  What a mess.

It's a jungle out there kids!  The weeds and grasses have established themselves firmly as the dominate crop in my garden.  We had some rain this week (YEAH!!) but not enough to soften the ground and pull these suckers up.  No biggie.  We'll get some soaking rains at some point and then it'll be easier to clean it all up.  Until then, the cardboard will help suppress them.

The pumpkins and winter squash are still hanging in there, tripled in size with the rain. 

Deb tells me that she too lost her squash to the SVB's.  Time will tell if the tinfoil deters them but for now I tossed all the cardboard on the weeds where the vines are heading.

SM came home and we strolled around the rest of the yard.  He noticed that the morning glory is choking a young apple tree.  All the bushes are overgrown  and back by the shed, (where I didn't get the landscape fabric and mulch placed this Spring), is looking down right scary.

Looks like SM and I will be out in the yard Sunday trying to tame this wild beast.

Oh Joy!  More bug bites!

At least it's not as hot.  We're forecast to be in the upper 80's with lows in the upper 60's. 

NICE!

Be Proud Of That Bdonkadonk

Need a laugh?

SM swears this is true.

And I feel more comfortable with my "fluffies" and "pizza dough belly" than I have in a long time. 



It's time to be proud of that "Bdonkadonk" girls!

Resistance Is Futile

Sunday morning finds SM and I taking a walk through the garden.  Everything is suffering.  Still no rain.

I'm watering the pumpkin patch and we're talking SVB's. 

"What do these SVB's things look like?" He asks.

"Well, you won't see them but you'll see the eggs.  Little dots on the leaves in a geometric pattern."

"Have you seen any yet?"  SM asks.

"Not yet.  But the last time I looked was a few days ago."  I replied.

"Is this it?"  SM points at one of the squash plants.  I lean over and look where he's pointing. 

"Crap!!  There they are."  I had really hoped that by planting the winter squash and pumpkins late that I might avoid the life cycle of the nasty little buggers but we're too warm.  We have too long of a season so we get multiple generations. 

"What are you going to do now?"  SM asks.

I sigh.  "Well, I haven't tried the tinfoil technique yet." 

Rumor has it that some gardeners can keep the plant alive by wrapping several inches of the stem above the root line which prevents the larvae from starting to munch away on the plant, killing it. 

Personally, I'm skeptical.  Nowhere looking online do I find any comments or articles that this technique actually works.  But I'm desperate to try anything so I grabbed the tinfoil and headed back outside.

First, I pushed back the dirt from roots and pinched off the lower leaves.

Then I gently but firmly wrapped the foil around several inches of the vine and then pushed some of the dirt back up and over the foil.

I'd also read about a "foil mulch" on some of the sites I'd researched so I loosely laid down a piece of foil where the vine touched the dirt.

I eyeballed for eggs as I went along and found a few that I scraped off with the edge of the scissors.  I then wiped them on a piece a foil and threw them in the trash.

Dag-nabitt!!!!  What else can you do?  Freakin SVB's are like just like The Borg.  "Resistance is futile."  (*Just a small Trekkie joke there for all you SciFi fans out there.)

So just what do the pumpkin farmers use?  There's a farm a few miles down the road and he always grows a few fields of pumpkins for October sales.  You know he's using pesticides because his crop doesn't fail.  Is this the only solution?

The utter irony here is that I planted several different varieties of winter squashes including Waltham Butternuts.  Guess which one didn't germinate?  Yep.  The Butternuts.  The only squash the SVB's don't like.

Next year, no pumpkins and ONLY Butternut varieties.  Life is too short for this aggrivation.  And that's OK.  It will leave me more room to try sweet potatoes. 

2013?  The year of the Sweet Potato.  Sounds good to me!

You and Me...Together

Continuing with the "musical theme" this weekend...It's been a really, really long time since SM and I took a vacation. 

As in NOT here. 

As in someplace else. 

As in anyplace else really.

SM is self employed so if he's not working he's not making money.

With my seniority at work I get about 4 weeks of vay-kay a year.  I spend most of those days off here at the house which is fine...but there's just not that disconnect that happens when you have NO responsibilities and NO obligations other than to wake up, look at each other and live the day as you wish it. 

How wonderful it is to explore a new place with the person you love.  It's almost like being a kid again.  Running away from everything.  Do whatever you want.  Fly by the seat of your pants.

The past few years SM and I have both hated the thought of spending money on a vacation.  For us, a true vacation means flying somewhere that we've never been and experience places that we've only read about.  Eat the local food, hike a trail, sit beside a river and watch the clouds go by.

And talk.

Ultimately that's the thing we like best about our time together on vacation.  Talking, holding hands.  We get to know each other all over again.

We're due.  Actually we're way overdue but that's OK.  This year it's gonna happen.  We're committed.  We're gonna make it happen.

So this weekend SM and I are going to do a little day dreaming.  Consider where we want to go, what we want to do.

We'll still keep it tight financially speaking.  As in we'll stay here in the States.  (I'd love to go to Europe someday but I'm not willing to fly all the way over there only to spend a few days.  When we (hopefully) go to Europe, we want to take a couple of months and explore it fully.  That's our hope anyway.  And we can't do that with 2 full time jobs, 3 dogs and a cat.  So THAT dream will sit on the back-burner for now.)

So where should we go?  After the Summer we've had we BOTH agree we want to go someplace that's NOT 100 degrees for sure.  Someplace cooler.

I'm leaning towards California either San Diego or San Fran.  SM is thinking Boston and the New England Coastline.

It's funny how we've decided to vacation on different coasts isn't it?  But somehow I think we'll come together and agree on the perfect place to reconnect.

We always do.

You and Me.  Together.

Roll With It Baby...

Yesterday morning as I was headed into work, I was driving along when...WHOOSH...I was suddenly engulfed in a spray of water, covering my entire windshield.

For a split second I thought to myself "Did I hit a water puddle?" and then I realized my radiator had burst.  Fortunately, by this time I was in the city and up ahead I spotted a car dealership and pulled the Jeep into their parking lot.

Steam rolling off the Jeep, I left it and wandered into their service department and asked if I could borrow a phone so I could call SM.  (I'm probably the last human being on earth without a cell phone but somehow I always manage to find a phone when needed.)

SM picks up, sounding confused as the caller ID must've shown him the dealerships name..."Hello?"  He asked.

"Hey, it's me.  I think I blew up the radiator."  I told him what happened and where I was.  I was about a 1/2 hour out from home so I had a bit of a wait.  The service department guy offered to take a look at it but I declined knowing that I'd pay twice as much through them than I would if I just let SM handle it.

So I went back out to the Jeep, turned it on and parked it so that a tow truck could come haul it off.  I rolled down the windows and doodled with some paperwork while I waited.

A few people wandered by as I realized I'd parked in the employee parking area and while a few people said "Good Morning" as they strolled by, nobody stopped. 

And then Cassie showed up.

Cassie was about my age with bright, dyed from the box red hair.  She came right up to my window, introduced herself, offered all the services I had earlier declined and then hung out to gab with me for a bit.  You could tell Cassie was a social butterfly.  Either that or she was really didn't want to head into work.

Anyway, Cassie and I fell into conversation easily, like long lost friends.  She had a long, black chin hair that waggled about as she talked.  I couldn't keep my eyes off it.  Boy, did I ever want to tweeze that thing.  (Made me wonder if I plucked some of my own chin hairs lately...)

This distraction aside, Cassie and I gabbed about my situation when she observed, "Wow..You're pretty calm about all this."

I laughed.  "Well, it took me 50 years to get here.  You might not think it but I've been a pretty up tight individual for most of my life." 

I shrugged.  "Now?  Eh...who cares?  Stuff happens.  I've learned to "roll with it."

"I really admire that."  Cassie said. 

"Does your husband work on cars?"  She asked.

""He works on mine!"  We laughed.  She seemed really reluctant to leave me sitting there but I assured her that SM was "incoming" and that I was fine.

SM showed up after a bit and after popping the hood seemed confused.  The reservoir still had water in it, water wasn't pouring out of the Jeep like he'd thought it would.  I turned it on and after a few minutes a smokey, steam started coming out of the radiator.  I turned it off.

"Well...let me get you to work first."  SM says.  "I'll call a tow and get this hauled to our local mechanic."

So now we're driving into work.  "Did you have plans today?"  I asked SM.

"Nothing that can't be put off for another day."  SM replied.

"Is this gonna cost a lot?"  I asked.

SM shrugged.  "A bit."

"Still, it's cheaper than a monthly car payment."  I replied.

"Ya got that right."  SM agreed.

Sometimes Ya just Got To Roll With It Baby.

Some Like It....NOT!

Was it only 2 weeks ago that I posted about having so much rain that I thought that I'd likely be growing mold on me if I stood still too long?  Lesson Number 1, Tami...Never bitch about a good thing.

It's been 2 weeks of "dry as a bone" around here and even trying to water from the hose to keep things alive seems to hardly make a dent in the dry arid soil. 

Looking at the garden last night with the thermostat hitting 98 again shows me that some plants are just TOUGH!

Some like it....

And some like it NOT...

Including little Scooter Boo who's panting double time after 10 minutes out in the heat.

Hey you...over there...

Yeah I'm talking to you!  Bring that nice little rain cloud over here would ya?  I promise I'll never complain again.