Adventures of the Garden Goddess 2011...June 24. update.

Nasturtiums from seed

Hello, My garden is still going strong. I get funny comments from the neighbors who come out and supervise while I am weeding, like: "well, its going better than I thought it would," or "you should plant..." or "looks good." Of note: I have the worst yard on the block. It's all brown and dried and lots of weeds. The neighbors hate it. They fight over who has the greenest, weedless yard and we all know its not me!!

Plus my garden has been a good excuse for the neighbors to get together to visit too. In fact the other day, while weeding, I think 4 or 5 neighbors came out and we all visited, mostly about my garden but other stuff too.

Plant trials and tribulations:

One cucumber is always wilted when I get home from work and is having a tough time. A suggestion was to put up a cardboard block because the plant must be having a tough time acclimatizing and the noonday sun is too much for it right now. I just tore off a small flap from a cardboard box I had and placed it in the ground about two inches deep so it won't blow away and this has been a successful fix. If you look closely at the picture you can see the cardboard.

I think my pear tomato is having issues so I put the wall-o-water back around it and one of my roma tomato plants won't flower but it has a ton of leaves. What's up with that???

I replanted radishes and carrots and a few lettuce. My neighbor across the street informed me that all I had to do was cut the lettuce leaves off and they would grow back again. So don't pull your lettuce up just cut the leaves off. I then fill my sink full of cold water to rinse the dust off the leaves, swish them around a bit, and then put them in the dish drainer to drain the water off. Putting them in water also seems to help with taste too. The butter crunch is a little bitter to my taste but when I do this it becomes more flavorful.

The nasturtiums that I planted from seed are happy and growing.
Happy Gardening!!! its still not too late to plant stuff.

Paraprosdokian...say what??? read on...

A paraprosdokian (pronounced /pærəprɒsˈdoʊki.ən/) is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or reinterpret the first part. It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect, sometimes producing an anticlimax.

1.. Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on my list.

3. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right - only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. Evening news is where they begin with 'Good Evening,' and then proceed to tell you why it isn't.

9. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research..

10. A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk, I have a work station.

11. I thought I wanted a career. Turns out I just wanted paychecks.

12. Whenever I fill out an application, in the part that says, 'In case of emergency, notify:' I put 'DOCTOR.'

13. I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you.

14. Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut, and still think they are sexy.

15. Behind every successful man is his woman. Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

16. A clear conscience is the sign of a fuzzy memory.

17. I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn't work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.

18. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

19. Money can't buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with.

20.. There's a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can't get away.

21. I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not so sure.

22. You're never too old to learn something stupid.

23. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and call whatever you hit the target.

24. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

25. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

26. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

27. A diplomat is someone who tells you to go to hell in such a way that you look forward to the trip.

28. Hospitality is making your guests feel at home even when you wish they were.

29. I always take life with a grain of salt. Plus a slice of lemon, and a shot of tequila.

30. When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that the Fire Department usually uses water.


Words of Wisdom
"The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese."
~ Jon Hammond

---Good Day!

Dance...Revisiting the Rumba.

I do so love to ballroom dance and went to a pay-as-you-go class last night. What a great work-out. For an hour we danced until we couldn't dance no more. It was great fun, great aerobic exercise and the rumba is an all-time favorite of mine. The instructor was happy to see me again and gave me a hug. I haven't been in nearly a year and a half.

Surprisingly enough it was like riding an old favored bicycle, and fun too.

I can sincerely recommend that you find a ballroom class near you, it is such fun and good exercise.

Happy Dancing!

No, the photo is not of me (me in my dreams maybe) It is a poster called the 'Last Dance'--pretty sensual, yes??---Thank you AllPosters.com for the photo.
Second Note: I have done the move in the photo and its not as easy as it looks. :)

Bible...1 Kings, Acts, Proverbs, Psalm.

I am currently in 1Kings22 and badness of people certainly have not changed. The kings for the time are not pleasant people. Ahab is the new king, these are continually changing, and married to Jezebel and boy was she MEAN too!!! Wow, the old saying about power and being corrupt certainly rings true here.

Acts 13 is an exciting time period and an enjoyable read.

As always you can count on Proverbs and currently I am in Chapter 17.

Here are just a few interesting verses from Proverbs 17:

7 Eloquent lips are unsuited to a godless fool—
how much worse lying lips to a ruler!

8 A bribe is seen as a charm by the one who gives it;
they think success will come at every turn.

9 Whoever would foster love covers over an offense,
but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.

10 A rebuke impresses a discerning person
more than a hundred lashes a fool.

11 Evildoers foster rebellion against God;
the messenger of death will be sent against them.

12 Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than a fool bent on folly.

13 Evil will never leave the house
of one who pays back evil for good.

14 Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;
so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.

15 Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent—
the LORD detests them both.

Psalm is a lovely read and am on Chapter 138.

Thank you BibleGateway.com for the links.
Good day,

Food safety...

This article makes you think more and more about growing your own food doesn't it. I am thankful that I usually bleach my sink once a month.

I don't mean to put a damper on things, just be careful what and where you eat.
Thank you Yahoo for the link.

Tata for now.

Progress...Anna.

I am happy to report that Anna is coming along quickly. I re-started at R154 (shhh--don't tell) and am now up to R247, which is half way. I don't remember what distracted me as this is such a lovely shawl. The yarn is Studio June yarn,also lovely, that has blended silver filament in it.

relaxing meal...

This picture exemplifies exactly what I enjoy doing. A lovely BBQ in my back yard. Too bad I was the one cooking as I burnt the chicken. :) On the plus side, I got to enjoy more harvest from my garden. This time lettuce, radishes and some herbs of chives, rosemary, and sage. Very yummy. Mix was waiting for cheese. She loves cheese.

and yes that table cloth is Tri-chem, painted by my dear, late grandmother. Does anyone do that anymore? She even won second place in a competition with it. I love having and using the things made by my family. Don't you?

Yep, Broncos fan too!!
Happy last day of Spring today!
Good day!

Question???

Is knitting while with others as rude as or the same as being on the cell phone and texting back and forth with someone else???

If not...why not??

Just asking...

A Few Things...

Live Music: RVZOO and the Sugar Spun Elephant band was TERRIFIC!!! I have seen few concerts better and this one was free!! I recommend that you check out the free live music venues in your area.

Crafting: I hopped over to the Mavs place and she had a link to this coolio Craf-Tee tote courtesy of the Brassy Apple. Guess what I'll be making this weekend. I actually thought to take one of DD old Ts and create it out of that for a gift. I also have a T that an Aunt of mine had air painted that's really cool too that would make a great tote (I still need to get to those flip-flops).

Gardening: BTW the snap-pea that I thought was a snap pea was something else. But I do have a snap-pea it just isn't the same plant in the picture that I posted. Boy, gardening's not so easy when you are trying to recognize plants when they are first coming up.

Knitting: I have been dying to state that I finally after a year and a half finished my 2010 Kalendar shawl. It is so, so Gorgeous!! I wanted to get some good pictures of it but had to block it, etc, etc. Will post a pic when I decide the proper venue for a picture. Plus I can barely let go of it when its in my hands. Just love 100% silk. On to finish Anna.

Enjoy life!

Adventures of the Garden Goddess 2011...First Harvest and garden updates.

My Garden - June 17
First Harvest-radishes-June 17
G5
G4
Favorite Garden1

Here are some garden pictures in my area for your enjoyment. I have provided a picture of my garden and what it looks like today; my favorite garden - G1, and two additional gardens G4 & G5 which are on my way to work when I ride my bike.

I am very excited to announce that I obtained my FIRST HARVEST today!!

They are radishes (see bragging photo above). I ate the small one and it was delish. Its still not too late to plant. I will be successive planting today and tomorrow. I put up my yarn trellis at midnight the other night (I think it needs more yarn--everything is better with more yarn). Why at midnight?? Because I can and besides that's when I got around to it and it was too hot and smokey to do before that.

Happy Friday everyone!!! and Happy Gardening!!
Good day!

Bible...Acts, Psalm, Proverbs

Paul formerly known as Saul, who persecuted and killed lots of Christians, has been converted and is now preaching for Christianity. On the way to Damascus he got hit by a lightning bolt. Its drastic, but it worked.

A couple of notes here about Paul, there is some discussion in the Christian community as to the 'thorn' in Paul's side (something is bothering him), one opine is that he is gay (I don't think so), another opine is that he cannot see very well (I guess so after being hit by a lightening bolt!!), and one other is that he is bothered by his previous actions of stoning Christians to death. I believe it to be the last. Paul is a very interesting and complicated man and has become a disciple after the Crucifixion of Jesus.

Psalm 127

and as always the lovely Proverbs. 17:1 today.

1 Better a dry crust with peace and quiet
than a house full of feasting, with strife. ---Think about it.

Thank you BibleGateway.com for the verse.

Good day.

live music...

Check out the fun I'll be having tonight. Is this the coolest poster eva or what??? I happen to know RVZOO. He's a pretty cool guy and an excellent musician. The venue should be fun and several different bands are in attendance.

It's towards the end of the week and we are on the downhill side of the slippery slope of work. I can recommend that you start tonight and make it fun and enjoyable by enjoying a live music venue somewhere near you. Even if you have to bang your own drum at home or make your kids do it.

Good day.

-I know, I'm dying to ask too, 'sugar spun elephants???'
-note the poster is copyrighted by RVZOO.

Menopause... mini update.

I have increased my exercise by riding my bicycle to work 2-3 days a week. This week it should be 5 times.

What I did to check what the culprit of the hot flashes were:

Week one: end all wine and spicy foods. consider it a cleansing time-period.
Week two: eat spicy foods but in small doses. no wine.
Week three: drink wine once during the week, no spicy foods.
Week four: wine and spicy foods.

Note: exercised for all four weeks. 2-3 times per week. 20 minute increments--once in the morning once in the evening.

Things I've noticed during each week:

Week one: no hot flashes and that's my goal.
week two: I have slowly increased my intake of spicy foods and not had a problem with hot flashes.
Week three: I drank wine only once during the week and noticed hot flashes--although they were not as intense as previous times.
Week four: I experienced hot flashes though not as intense.

I have noticed that the increase in exercise helps with not having hot flashes or not as intense. The intake of wine has been a culprit and since reducing this intake the hot flashes are nil except when there is an intake of said wine.

So the good news is: I get to EAT MORE SPICY FOODS!!! yeah me.
Drink less wine, yeah me. A win-win situation as I love spicy foods and wine can be expensive.

I believe one key item seems to be the exercise. I believe it helps the body to be able to better combat health issues and in this case its hot flashes.

Conclusion: I will...
Save money, have more clarity, exercise, and eat spicy foods.

Good day.

Movies...

I have finally come into the 21st century regarding my movie choices--at least when the movie was made. I obtained them through the library and once again no cell phones or computers in these movies.

The Duchess was interesting and well acted. I do like Kiera Knightley. This movie is based on Georgiana - the Duchess of Yorkshire's life. Its such an interesting time-period for women and what is occurring in the world.

Georgia O'Keefe is a movie also based on real-life. This movie is well-acted and gives you insight to a "young" Georgia O'Keefe--or younger anyway as I believe she did live into her 90s.

Both kept me watching with interest to see what would happen next. Well worth your time, if you like "period" type movies.

thank you Amazon.com for the pictures.

Good day.

Movies...

I've been watching some old movies in my collection lately.

The Indian in the Cupboard is one. Its a great story and also a book. It has some decent acting and I just love when the little boy in the story walks to school really, really slowly and his mom is looking at him very quizzically, as she has no idea why he is doing this. Its pretty funny and I can recall doing similar things as child and my mom looking at me the same way.

I totally enjoy that there are no computers, TV or cell phones in this movie. Its very refreshing.

I also watched Field of Dreams with Kevin Costner. It made me laugh and I followed it and had all the right emotions that the movie evokes at all the right times. I just love James Earl Jones, he is such a timeless actor.

This movie also does not have computers, TV or cell phones. Yeah, those things give me such a headache.

Have a good weekend everyone and watch some old movies!

Thank you Amazon.com for the pictures.

Bible...1 Kings.

As you may or may not know, Samuel was the last judge the Israelites had and Saul and David started the Kings for Israel. David has now past and Solomon his son is now king. I am certain you know the story of the two women and the baby. Solomon is the king who takes part in this famous story.

1Kings chapter 3 is a good read and contains the story.

I am enjoying Acts, and as always Proverbs currently chapter 16, and Psalm 119.

and in keeping with Solomon,

Proverbs 16:16

16 How much better to get wisdom than gold,
to get insight rather than silver!

this verse had me reflecting on my own desires, choices and wealth. My reflection is that I am very rich indeed and also very thankful for the choices I have made and the people who surround me. My wealth is not material. It seems the more I concentrate on the material the less I have of it. The less I concentrate on it, the more I have. Kinda funny, yes?

I hope to continue to make wise choices for the future and I hope that for you as well.

Thank you BibleGateway.com for the links.

Adventures of the Garden Goddess 2011...June 8

Lucky for me I waited for the snap peas and carrots and herbs to come up instead of planting something else. They all decided to take awhile and now they are peaking out of the ground. My garden is starting to look like a garden. Yeah me.

The tomatoes are happy in their tents, the bell pepper & habanero pepper is happy. The cucumber is wickedly happy. The lettuce is happy, beets and radishes and onions too. The carrots are finally happy too.

And all of it, as you can already guess, makes me super immensely happy.

I need to start thinking about successive planting, which means additional planting of carrots, radishes and lettuce so that I have additional plants coming up all through the summer and not just the one time and then I get to eat the plants I've grown all through the summer too.

Happy Gardening!!

-PS: It's still not to late to do some type of gardening. Even in a container.

crafting...

As I was catching up on my blog reading through Google Reader the other day, the Mavrick had a coolio post on how to make some coolio flip-flops or re-make them.

see this post for flip-flop makeover.

and Moda Bake Shop has been doing some fun things for the summer too. I just love this Summer Squares Quilt. It can be done in boy colours too.

How about over at the Purl Bee? This quick, cute, mini yo-yo quilt rocks!

Good day and happy crafting!

-- I'm headed to Hobby Lobby for some flip-flops myself.

2 years today... I miss you G.

Its been two years today and it still seems as though G will be walking through mom's door each time I go over to her home. Its still very painful for all of us. Our society has no clue about grief, and in my innocence this surprises me. You don't get over it. You move through it. Some are slow, some are fast. Neither way is right or wrong it just is.

Unfortunately our society is uncomfortable with death and all it encompasses. It's not something to be frightened of. Its also not something you can escape. Society has provided us with a viewpoint that if you are not happy all the time then something is wrong, which is certainly incorrect as its impossible to be happy all the time. We are all reaching for that extra "high" when we should all be reaching for a good life, not happy. A good life that includes the not so great stuff too. Maybe then society actually might be able to empathize instead of encouraging others to "quickly" get rid of, or quickly get over their grief. Maybe just listen instead of trying to fix.

Last week as I was reading Adventure's in Paradise post about writing a letter to yourself at 16. It made me think about the Brad Paisley country song "Letter to Me." It's a good song and it chooses the age of 17. Click the link to read all the words.

It made me think about what I would write to myself at the ages of 16 or 17. For me, the only thing would be "spend more time with your older brother because one day you will be older; and hug him A LOT," and that is all I would write.

What would you write? Think about it.

I still miss you G.

Good day.

-Thank you AZlyrics for the link.

Information...internet.

here's an interesting article about the internet.

Good day.

Bible...update.

Still in 2 Samuel, have started Acts, which can be trying but if you keep in mind that its an interesting story and a very exciting time-period in history its not so bad and no more Crucifixion to endure through another disciple's eyes. Acts begins the testimony of receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit and for people in the present and future who will now have to live by faith.

For a moment pause and think about the Crucifixion, these people had a man who committed NO crime, who was kind and helped people to see and walk again, raised them from the dead and cured their ailments and fed thousands of people at one time. His "crime" was that he sometimes did these things on the Sabbath. Because of this, what did they do?? They CRUCIFIED HIM!!! And before crucifying Him they beat him with a cat-o-nine tails Its actually very scary if you think about it. He was treated this way because the people in "power" were frightened that they were loosing their power over people so they got rid of Him.

It is interesting to note that Steven Hawking (sp??), considered one of the most brilliant minds on earth is an atheist, but believes in aliens from outer space. Say what??? And isn't being an atheist acknowledging there actually is a God to believe in. I just love conundrums don't you??

Good day! thank you Google for the links.

PS--who made the aliens??? uhmmm...just asking...

xeriscape trial...

Here's a shot at my xeriscape area that I started approximately 4 years ago now. It's pretty sad. Its more like a jungle and the guy-neighbor next door that likes to use pesticides cannot stand it. It amuses me and I like it even if it hasn't turned out the way I had planned it in my head. I didn't mean for them all to be crammed together they did that themselves.

I have a columbine, holly hocks, a blue iris, a balloon flower--that actually moved because it didn't like where it started out. I understand plants will do that occasionally when they have a strong desire to live. There's a climbing vine that I cannot get to climb. And lots of grass---the idea was to actually get rid of the grass but once I did this the grass decided to grow. Do you recognize all the plants??

I don't know what the tall purple flowers are but they are a fav and the lower purple flowers are a type of phlox that only bloom in spring once and the rest of the summer they are just green. The white rose is at the very left of the photo. I also have a white echinacea flower that doesn't like where its at. Hopefully it survives.

Its been interesting and fun. Some years are better than others, since I tend to forget to water. This year will be a good year since I have a garden that needs watered.

ta-ta for now.

Bible...2 Samuel.

I've been reading in 2 Samuel for awhile now. Absalom, David's son, has tried to take over as king and run a military coup on David, which failed, plus Absalom was killed. There's lots of deceit, manipulation and hatred going on -- and that's just in the people related to each other category. We certainly haven't learned anything from the past have we?

In John, Jesus has once again been sacrificed--only through John's eyes this time, and no one understands specific meanings or Jesus' post-humus appearances and instruction, including me.

Psalm and Proverbs 16 are always a relief to read. At this point in Psalm, I am able to relate some of King David's writing to the point in history in 2 Samuel on where he is at location wise, and possibly a little about what he may be thinking and feeling.

At least my confusion is only a little bit at a time as 10 minutes of reading per night isn't so difficult.

Good day.

Adventures of the Garden Goddess 2011...Wall-o-Water-round 2

I finally have my Wall-o-Water up and running again and this time I really do have a tomato plant inside of it. After attending a class at a local non-profit garden I noticed that they put in metal stakes about 2 1-2 feet long on two sides to keep theirs from blowing away. I didn't have any metal laying around but I did have an old trellis that the dog chewed up and was now in 2-3 foot lengths. After pounding the stakes in with a hammer they are just perfect for keeping my Wall-o-Water in place and from blowing away.

I also thought a progress shot of my lettuce and radishes would be fun. Sadly the herbs I planted from seed have refused to come up. Do I wait a little longer or plant something else?

Debt and finances... one man's story.

Here's and interesting story about how one man and his family cleared up their debt. Take a look. Would you be able to do this? Should you be doing this??

Think about it, and then do something about it. You actually have to do the action to be debt free. Good day.

Morning visitor...

This is a hummingbird moth (at least I believe that is what it is) to be more exact a white-lined sphinx hummingbird moth or hawk moth, and I had two the other morning on my porch. It only has 10-30 days to live. Wow, that's not long at all to get life's business done. What would you do if you only had 30 days to live??

Over the years I've only just had the one. This year there were two. Isn't it beautiful??? I think its just lovely and when it flies it sounds just like a hummingbird. It's also a good pollinator. It really surprises me that I have any good bugs at all as the neighbors on both sides of me love to use pesticides. I detest pesticides. In fact, I came home yesterday and found my neighbor spot-poisoning all my dandelions in my front yard. OMG, aren't people funny!!?? I didn't know if I should be offended or grateful.

here's the USGS link for more on moths.

Good day.

Adventures of the Garden Goddess 2011...Wall-o-Water.

Here's my Wall-o-Water getting ready to be hard at work and then...we had 20 to 50 mile per hour wind gusts and it didn't stand a chance. Thank goodness I read the directions and waited a day to plant the plant. The directions say to leave it a day to heat up for the plant and then put the plant in. I am re-grouping and thinking things over and asking others what they do. So will have it up again soon with a tomato plant in it the next time.

knitting... one more market bag!

Yep, here's another Ilene Market bag. I'm addicted.

Mix is helping.

This is Mix. She thinks she's helping me garden by watching from the porch. She knows her name and does not know what "kitty" means. She looks at people funny when they call her "kitty." She walks me to the neighbor's house and brings me home again. She did that with DD too. The neighbor's thought it funny when they noticed. She is funny and makes me smile.

Menopause... spicy update

The main recommendations of the article that I previously posted about are to cut out coffee, spicy foods and alcohol; and increase your exercise. See my post for the article. Turns out the hardest thing to give up has been the spicy foods. I luuve spicy foods. Even my chocolate has spice in it. I took a picture of all my spicy foods. I can finish the extra hot jalapenos in about 2 weeks---they go in everything: garden salad, my chicken salad, tuna salad, nachos, on cheese and crackers, on tomatoes, on their own. I eat a handful each night (I mean I used to). The dark spicy chocolate is so yummy frozen and I just break off a little square piece and nibble on it. mmm, so good. And my fav after the jalapenos is the spicy pickled garlic. Man, o-man, I can eat them like candy straight from the jar. yum, yum.

Update:
Its been 5 days for no alcohol, 8 days for coffee, and ahem, maybe two days for no spicy food (maybe not).

I have increased my exercise: golfed twice this past week and rode my bike to work two days so far. I feel better. I am also doing a little free-weights with my arms and I have increased my water intake, even though it was quite a lot anyway--now its more.

The hot flashes have diminished and are not as intense; I am more coherent and can actually understand conversations; I am not going from hot to cold all the time; my eyes no longer feel as though they are bugging out of my head; and my head no longer feels as though its going to explode off the top of my body; my veins in my arms no longer feel as though they are going to burn through my skin; and I get to sleep through the night. Yeah me. With all that going on I was thoroughly and completely exhausted.

My next step is to slowly increase my intake of...you guessed it-spicy foods. No more spice morning, noon & night. Maybe just night or just noon? and not so much? Maybe have the jalapenos last a month? or two?

Well, life is trial and error and so is health and wellness. Wish me luck.