So the squash and zucchini plants died, which isn't the worst thing in the world, because the plants were taking over the whole garden, dwarfing the peppers and eggplants, and producing little fruit. My plan for next year is to plant them in separate containers. Have you ever grown squash & zucchini plants? Those suckers SPRAWL. The tomatoes are really taking off, and I have tons of little green ones on the vine - just waiting for them to ripen. I'm toying with the idea of replanting my lettuces, since we go through a ton of that here, and Maryland stays pretty warm through the fall, so it will probably grow through Thanksgiving.
We've lived here for years, and we've tried very hard to grow grass in the front yard, but we get nothing but clover. I'm going drastic. The plan is to kill the whole front yard, and Operation Kill the Weeds is well under way. I'm mixing together vinegar, salt, and dish soap and spraying the lawn down with it, and it is pretty effective, which is great since I didn't want to spray poison on the lawn - with with the children and all. I'll rake up the dead stuff once it is all dried out, put down soil and grass seed, and see if I can't finally grow some grass out there.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Read Anything Good Lately?
I know what you're thinking: She hasn't posted in MONTHS, and she's just going to jump right in? No explanation, no nothing? That's right. Nothing. I'm pretending I can't hear you.
Right now I'm reading Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. What a wonderful opening sentence: "Last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again." I haven't gotten much past that point, but the book goes back to the library in 3 weeks, so I'll try to take time off from watching back episodes of Dr. Who to finish it up. Do you think that when Daphne du Maurier's parents named her they were all "when this kid grows up she is going to RULE the gothic romantic novel genre?" because I'm pretty sure that with a name like Daphne du Maurier, that's what you were intended to do.
Notice that Dr. Who reference? That's right. I'm a Sci-Fi geek. Battlestar Galactica, Dr. Who, Stargates Atlantis & Universe (never much got into the original), The Stars (both War & Trek) Buffy, Angel...really anything Joss Whedon has ever done, and OMG Neil Gaiman, who is such a rock star and who is set to write his second episode of Dr. Who.
Speaking of NG, I spent a couple of weeks this summer re-reading all of the Sandman graphic novels. Totally brilliant. I had to hide them from El-D because he's fascinated with comics and can't understand how something can be both cartoon and inappropriate for 6 year olds at the same time. I sort of get his point.
Since we spent our vacation in Ithaca, I also re-read Fool on the Hill by Matt Ruff while I was there, for nostalgia's sake. Fun read, nothing life changing. Definitely a bit on the immature side (written by a Cornell undergrad), and read by me originally when I was an Ithaca undergrad).
Did I mention that I read Stephen King's 11/22/63? I can't remember exactly what I have and haven't read since I last posted, but that was a good one, and despite being epic in length, was actually an entertaining, quick read. I haven't read Stephen King in YEARS (like since junior high, I think), and all of a sudden, I realized that my nerd cred was incomplete because I haven't gotten to the Dark Tower series, so I cruised through the first book in that series and plan to get to the others...eventually.
There's more, but I need to look at my Kindle to see what I've read this summer, but I've basically blown my "read a book a month" resolution out of the water, so I'm pretty happy - especially since other resolutions are not going as swimmingly.
Right now I'm reading Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. What a wonderful opening sentence: "Last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again." I haven't gotten much past that point, but the book goes back to the library in 3 weeks, so I'll try to take time off from watching back episodes of Dr. Who to finish it up. Do you think that when Daphne du Maurier's parents named her they were all "when this kid grows up she is going to RULE the gothic romantic novel genre?" because I'm pretty sure that with a name like Daphne du Maurier, that's what you were intended to do.
Notice that Dr. Who reference? That's right. I'm a Sci-Fi geek. Battlestar Galactica, Dr. Who, Stargates Atlantis & Universe (never much got into the original), The Stars (both War & Trek) Buffy, Angel...really anything Joss Whedon has ever done, and OMG Neil Gaiman, who is such a rock star and who is set to write his second episode of Dr. Who.
Speaking of NG, I spent a couple of weeks this summer re-reading all of the Sandman graphic novels. Totally brilliant. I had to hide them from El-D because he's fascinated with comics and can't understand how something can be both cartoon and inappropriate for 6 year olds at the same time. I sort of get his point.
Since we spent our vacation in Ithaca, I also re-read Fool on the Hill by Matt Ruff while I was there, for nostalgia's sake. Fun read, nothing life changing. Definitely a bit on the immature side (written by a Cornell undergrad), and read by me originally when I was an Ithaca undergrad).
Did I mention that I read Stephen King's 11/22/63? I can't remember exactly what I have and haven't read since I last posted, but that was a good one, and despite being epic in length, was actually an entertaining, quick read. I haven't read Stephen King in YEARS (like since junior high, I think), and all of a sudden, I realized that my nerd cred was incomplete because I haven't gotten to the Dark Tower series, so I cruised through the first book in that series and plan to get to the others...eventually.
There's more, but I need to look at my Kindle to see what I've read this summer, but I've basically blown my "read a book a month" resolution out of the water, so I'm pretty happy - especially since other resolutions are not going as swimmingly.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Life on the farm
Pretty, pretty
1. Buy pots. Those are from Goodwill - they had a jillion of them, and they were $1 each. Drawback: no drainage holes
2. Go to store to buy drill bit to drill holes in ceramic pots. Buy the masonry bit that the salesman suggests
3. Realize a masonry drill bit won't do the job
4. Let a few weeks lapse
5. Return to store, and buy ceramic & tile drill bit, along with a roll of the metal strip stuff you use to clamp your pipes to your laundry room wall
6. Start drilling holes in pots, and realize it will take FOREVER. The project lasts 2 days. Only one minor burn on fingers (drill bits get HOT)
7. Plant flowers in pots and let them sit on table in back yard for several weeks because you need a tool to cut the metal strip stuff
8. Finally make it back to store, buy metal strip cutter. Keep wits about self when the gentleman suggests a hacksaw for the job, then tries to talk you into an expensive metal snipper. Cheap'll do ya.
9. Choose the hottest day EVER to drill into back fence and screw metal stripping into place. Do all of this while swearing a lot and sweating profusely, because of course your measurements will look wonky once everything is hung, and you'll keep dropping the damned screws
10. Resign yourself to the fact that it isn't 100% straight, and that some of the brackets aren't tight enough, and you couldn't get all of the screws flush with the planks from the fence, but feel happy that the project is FINALLY finished, and that if you take a step or two back, it looks pretty darned good.
And that's it! Simple, right?
The wagon? I can't even see it from here.
ZOMG. My resolutions aren't going well. I'll start with my WORST transgression. You see, I go to the library once a week, because Nathan & I take a baby class together every Wednesday morning. The problem is that there's been no class for a month, so I'm off of my schedule, and clearly this isn't my fault, because videos, when they are returned late, are $1 a day, and we rent a lot of videos because El-D likes variety. So the damage was $17.40, but I bargained with the library lady and talked her down to $12.40, but only if I paid all at once, instead of in teensy installments to take it down below $10 so I can still library online. I even had to write a check, because who carries THAT MUCH cash around? So I told Chad that I'd paid off my debt, and he's all like "How much did you owe?" and I'm all like "How much do you think I owed? Here's a hint: IT WAS A LOT", and he's all like "I dunno $9?" and I'm all like "STOP JUDGING ME". So I finally told him that it was $12, and he's all like "Yeah, I owe $1", and I still left off the last 40 cents, so now I'm lying to my husband about my library spending habits again.
So there's that. THEN I was doing really well and watching everything I ate, but the past few days I've been eating like a trucker. I don't really know how truckers eat, but what I'm implying here is that I'm not eating like I'm a delicate flower.
Plus I threw away a brand new package of turkey meat today because the "use or freeze" date passed a week ago, and I forgot it was in the fridge.
And patience with El-D? So get this - he didn't have school last week, and we had playdates and lots of plans all week long - tons of fun stuff. We had a blast, but by Thursday we were on each other's nerves. Here's something I've learned about myself: too much auditory input makes me crazy - I seriously can't handle it. Typically, the baby is shrieking about something, El-D is conducting a running monologue that is always directed right at me, and Chad is asking me where something is, and smoke just starts to come out of my ears, because I can't handle that much at once. Not a multitasker, I.
Obviously, I've neglected my blogging, I've done nothing significantly crafty in Hades knows how long, and I'm just in this shame spiral here! Someone throw me a line.
What I HAVE done is read - voraciously. A Tale of Two Cities, Fifty Shades of Gray, Good Omens, some Kindle Daily Deal book I can't remember the title of, Life of Pi, and now the first book in Stephen King's The Dark Tower series, because I need to solidify my nerd cred.
And there you have it! I feel much better now that I've gotten that off my chest. Whew!
So there's that. THEN I was doing really well and watching everything I ate, but the past few days I've been eating like a trucker. I don't really know how truckers eat, but what I'm implying here is that I'm not eating like I'm a delicate flower.
Plus I threw away a brand new package of turkey meat today because the "use or freeze" date passed a week ago, and I forgot it was in the fridge.
And patience with El-D? So get this - he didn't have school last week, and we had playdates and lots of plans all week long - tons of fun stuff. We had a blast, but by Thursday we were on each other's nerves. Here's something I've learned about myself: too much auditory input makes me crazy - I seriously can't handle it. Typically, the baby is shrieking about something, El-D is conducting a running monologue that is always directed right at me, and Chad is asking me where something is, and smoke just starts to come out of my ears, because I can't handle that much at once. Not a multitasker, I.
Obviously, I've neglected my blogging, I've done nothing significantly crafty in Hades knows how long, and I'm just in this shame spiral here! Someone throw me a line.
What I HAVE done is read - voraciously. A Tale of Two Cities, Fifty Shades of Gray, Good Omens, some Kindle Daily Deal book I can't remember the title of, Life of Pi, and now the first book in Stephen King's The Dark Tower series, because I need to solidify my nerd cred.
And there you have it! I feel much better now that I've gotten that off my chest. Whew!
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
May Reading - DONE and DONE
I polished off A Tale of Two Cities a couple of days into May, which is fine because I'm already a book ahead in my book-a-month plan anyway. Stockpiling, if you will. Once I got past the very beginning where Mr. Lorry is trudging up that interminable hill, and I felt like I was trudging up it with him, I really liked the book. Something I like about Dickens is how he ties it all together in the end. No scene is a throwaway, and you'd better pay attention because that minor character is really a key plot point in the end.
As of today, I also completed Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. This one was kicking around my "to read" list for the better part of a decade, because I'm a fan of NG from way back - since his Sandman days. I even had a Sandman t-shirt back in the mid-90's, and I don't think I'm going to forgive myself for getting rid of it, because I'd totally rock it with skinny jeans, flats, and a scarf. Sigh. Never listen to the experts who say to get rid of anything in your closet that you haven't worn for a year. That's the worst advice ever.
Anyway, Good Omens was a totally fast, fun read about the apocalypse.
I can't believe I'm publicly admitting it, but I'm reading Fifty Shades of Gray next. I have 3 reasons why:
1. Both my mother and my sister read it, and I can't stand to let them have a thing together without me
2. I want to be part of the pop culture moment
3. I'm expecting to get through it quickly, which will put me another book ahead in my "read a book a month" resolution
I'll let you know how it goes!
As of today, I also completed Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. This one was kicking around my "to read" list for the better part of a decade, because I'm a fan of NG from way back - since his Sandman days. I even had a Sandman t-shirt back in the mid-90's, and I don't think I'm going to forgive myself for getting rid of it, because I'd totally rock it with skinny jeans, flats, and a scarf. Sigh. Never listen to the experts who say to get rid of anything in your closet that you haven't worn for a year. That's the worst advice ever.
Anyway, Good Omens was a totally fast, fun read about the apocalypse.
I can't believe I'm publicly admitting it, but I'm reading Fifty Shades of Gray next. I have 3 reasons why:
1. Both my mother and my sister read it, and I can't stand to let them have a thing together without me
2. I want to be part of the pop culture moment
3. I'm expecting to get through it quickly, which will put me another book ahead in my "read a book a month" resolution
I'll let you know how it goes!
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Parenting FAIL
Ok. So in my defense, I got almost NO SLEEP on Tuesday night, making me a teensy bit grumpy on Wednesday morning. El-D was his usual self on Wednesday. You know, not listening, arguing, and pretty much driving me nuts before school. Usually I manage it, but as I said, I was grumpy.
Then, on our way out the door, he asked why I yell at him all the time. I. Felt. Aw. Ful. I immediately apologized, and on the way to school told him that I'd stop yelling at him, and that I'd appreciate it if he'd listen to me and stop arguing with me all the time, and that we'd be nicer to each other. Then I asked him if I hurt his feelings when I was yelling at him, and he said "Is it ok if I say yes?". Holy Hades. The kid was worried about telling me the truth. I almost turned the car around then and there and bought him a puppy.
Here's the thing - I really want El-D to feel like he can always talk to me. He isn't very communicative about his feelings, being more a man of action, but if there's ever something really bothering him, I want him to always know he can come to me. Maybe getting no sleep and yelling at him over the course of an entire morning isn't the best way to achieve that.
Then, on our way out the door, he asked why I yell at him all the time. I. Felt. Aw. Ful. I immediately apologized, and on the way to school told him that I'd stop yelling at him, and that I'd appreciate it if he'd listen to me and stop arguing with me all the time, and that we'd be nicer to each other. Then I asked him if I hurt his feelings when I was yelling at him, and he said "Is it ok if I say yes?". Holy Hades. The kid was worried about telling me the truth. I almost turned the car around then and there and bought him a puppy.
Here's the thing - I really want El-D to feel like he can always talk to me. He isn't very communicative about his feelings, being more a man of action, but if there's ever something really bothering him, I want him to always know he can come to me. Maybe getting no sleep and yelling at him over the course of an entire morning isn't the best way to achieve that.
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