Welcome to Gaia! ::

I made an upside-down planter (cucumber) to hang inside yesterday. It did well as a decorational plant the last time I tried in an apartment with no direct light, so at the very least I will get a pretty vine to look at.

I sprouted some mystery dried beans from the grocery store that didn't fit in the jar I got for them, a few did well, and then my cat ate the baby leaves off the best one. A few others are ok too though so I replanted one of those into a real container with actual dirt (I had been using wet paper towel, lol, keeps it cheap to test out if it will work) and it looks very cute. There probably isn't enough time to get any beans off of it, but I have pretty much given up hope on making food from this little patio garden.
I've gotten 7 or 8 not-ready pea pods so far, because they are drying up from too much light/heat, and my tiny tomatoes haven't changed at all in weeks.
I HAVE, however, used one lovely large perfect basil leaf in a pasta dish the other night. It was apparently great.

We are still in a horrendous drought. Much of my garden has died crying and without some relief much more will die. We are on watering restrictions- which means we can only water our yards/gardens twice a week. The heat has been close to 100F for weeks, so the plants crisp in the heat. It is really weird to drive around town and see all the landscapes made of dead orange plants. Nobody is replacing their dead plants because new ones wouldn't last. The landscape/ gardening industry is suffering since nobody is planting anything new. One of the retention ponds by my house is completely dry. There was a family standing in the middle of the basin yesterday flying large model planes. The bayous are very near the lowest level I have ever seen them. We may have to change our nick name xp I saw at least one dry drainage ditch yesterday. We have large ditches that are really more like canals that link to several of the bayous and carry excess water in case of flooding. I have never seen them dry before. We aren't expecting any rain this week. On a side note- I have seen a huge increase in litter here lately. Our garbage service has made some changes recently, but I don't think that is all of it. I have seen some very inconsiderate people throwing trash out of their cars. I can't help but wonder if we have more people littering, less people picking up trash, or less rain washing the litter off the streets and out of sight. It breaks my heart to think that if it rained all this garbage would end up in the Atlantic.

xp I always hated having to do forced summer reading. Don't get me wrong: I love to read; I especially love "classics". I just hated people choosing my books for me during the summer when I didn't have enough time to read my own choices during the school year.

What are you having shoved down your throat reading?

I baked bread. OMG YUM!

Yep- the bread was from scratch. It was a friends recipe.

@IileyahWithTheStars: How are you? My brother had Hodgkin's Disease when he was 11. Surgery and radiation were his treatment, and he did well, with the side effect of living his life like he was indestructible! The Count of Monte Cristo is actually a pretty good book.

@ Teh_plague: Congratulations! That must be quite an edge you put on that blade!

@ Dragon: Did the storm bring you rain? I know what you mean about the heat. We've had nearly 20 days of 100+ degree heat here, and the entire week next week looks like more of the same. We average 3 days like this a year! So this is unusual, but not unprecedented---hottest year on record here is 1954, followed by 1980. I don't remember the first one, but I do remember the second one. It was awful.

I finally picked my first tomato 2 days ago, half the size it should be, with some beans, squash, peppers-----it is too hot for most crops to set fruit right now, so what is hanging on the plants is taking about 3 weeks to ripen. Crazy! Since the flooding rain after the tornado, there has been nothing. We went from above average rainfall to over 6 inches less than usual. Lots of watering going on, just to try to hang onto what is here. Corn tasselled at 3', and has tiny little ears, but it's hanging in there. Sunflowers, okra, sweet potatoes are trying to grow. There's some lettuce hiding in between the beans, but it's really having a rough time, even with the shade. Still there, though.

I watched all the shuttle business with great sadness, myself. I would always see when it was visible in the sky here during orbits, and go out to watch. I will miss that.

So----tornado cleanup has progressed to the point that residential rebuilding has been allowed to begin everywhere! This is big news---the damage path in the city is 3/4 to 1 mile wide, and over 6 miles long. That's a lot of houses! Businesses are rebuilding, and they are preparing the new spaces for schools to open mid-August. Volunteers have come from all over the world to help in the most terrible heat, and donations also. It is just wonderful what people can accomplish when they work together and don't give up! It is hard to believe that just over 2 months ago an unimaginable disaster happened here. Progress is everywhere you look!

Personal life was totally crazy last week. Picked up my husband at the airport Saturday night---he was out of town for a week. Sunday night, there is a phone call---can we take 2 llamas? Owners are moving to Michigan on Friday, they are afraid to trailer them in this heat, HELP! Two girls, so we have to build a pen, and ground requires a pick to make holes for fenceposts, have to borrow a truck and rent a trailer, but we say yes. The next morning, another call---how about 2 boys, too? OMGosh! That's 2 trips, 2 pens----what the heck, we never sleep or do anything else (like work), right? so we say yes. Tuesday night, first trip to get the girls---they have never left the farm, never been in a trailer, but we finally get them in, get them home, open up the trailer and they jump into the pen---and one goes right over the fence! Finally get her back in and head out to get the boys, easy trip, get in bed about 12:30 a.m., alarms set for 3:30. We actually heard them! Next night, she jumps out again, finally get her in, and decide the fence just has to be higher. Next night, we replace 1 section of fence (now 6' high), and I'm clearing poison ivy and blackberries when I feel something sting me? bite me? Didn't see it, so into the house I go to wash my hands, and I discover I've been bitten by a snake! (My own fault.) To the hospital, and after an hour I realize that I'm not dying, so I signed myself out and came home. Saturday---itching, swelling, OMGosh it's the poison ivy, and it's everywhere since I didn't wash anything except my hands before the hospital trip, and the shower that night was hours later. So I've been taking Prednisone and have avoided looking like the Elephant Man (been there, done that many years ago!) and I will be glad when I'm done. I should be asleep right now.

I've crocheted 5 triangle shawls in the past two weeks, and given two away. Bought some yarn on sale for some more. Best recent purchase? Leather gloves! rofl Better late than never.

@ Teh_plague: Sounds like he was doing a little breaking and entering with that blade! Sounds like it's better than new, now.

Llamas are for fiber. I have bags of fiber here, need to build a wheel. Drop spindles are just too tempting to the cats! I do just have a thing for animals with long necks, though. Missed out on some angora goats last summer, and on an older fiber flock just north of here when the tornado hit. Just not the right time for them yet, I guess.

Summer has just been really busy. I'm looking forward to fall. Hopefully, the garden will kick into high gear when it cools down some. Nothing to store yet, and I like that food storage. Never know what will happen in this world!


Oh, how I wish you could all see the mimosa tree! It is full of hummingbirds and at least 4 different varieties of butterflies!

The master gardeners here are working together to start trees for those who are rebuilding. I have mimosas, cottonless cottonwoods, maples----everyone has something different, and there are lots of dogwoods and redbuds, oaks and maples, since they are native here. We have a huge list for people to look at to find some new---free---trees when their houses are rebuilt. Flowers, too. And help to plant everything.