Thought I'd put out a quick post. It seems a lot of bloggers are talking about having nothing to say. I think the reason we blog is to make connections, and it's fine to just say, hi, I'm here, how was your day? It doesn't have to be anything profound. We've made some good friends, and I love that. When I talk about Bonnie or Karen or Brad or Fiwa or Andrew, or Elizabeth or Soul, or Mary or...I could go on and on, and I don't mean to exclude anyone (the list was just getting long), but you know what I mean? We know each other. We shouldn't worry about being boring.

I'll probably write more in the morning. I want to get back to my book now. Later!

Today kicked my butt. I think I've been overdoing it with the exercising, and made myself stay in after work instead of walking. It was so nice out, so I did sit on the porch with my laptop. My porch with no birds. When Emily and her friend came home last night I told them what happened with the bird. Right then, another bird flew/fell out of the nest. We check a while later and there was a lone bird left. This morning the nest was deserted. I spent a good while watering my garden, with no signs of any of the baby birds. I got on my chair and looked at the nest to make sure the mom hadn't come back and laid new eggs. Nope. Empty. I took the nest down and threw it away. It was fascinating seeing the whole process, but I want my porch back. Hey Robin, find someone else's light to build your nest on, OK?

Tomorrow's coffee day...yeah! I can't wait. I actually went to Borders today and had a decaf coffee and read part of my book. It's just not the same without caffeine.

So...I got to Karen's house just as she was putting the finishing touches on shining up her red Corvette for our drive to the townhouse model. Yes, it was a thrill to be in that car. We met Bonnie in her red Mini Cooper. The construction workers must have thought we were all that! The house is wonderful! Everything about it is nice and I can't wait to see how Karen meshes her collections in the house's many crooks and crannies. After touring the house, we walked to a nearby restaurant for an outdoor lunch. It was another brilliantly beautiful day. We ordered three dishes and split them. I'd go back tomorrow if I could, that's how great the food was. I think we each had a different favorite. We parted ways with Bonnie, then Karen and I took the back roads home. I trusted her with going fast on the curves, although Karen? I did close my eyes at times. I got home right before Emily, which I like to do, then went to the pool. Karen lent me the serial, The Green Mile, and I read the first book while I was there. It was so hot, but the water was too cold. Still, it was good to just relax and read. We had leftover pizza for dinner on the deck, then I was off for my walk, then my bike ride. Whew. I just came in from sitting on the front porch. The momma robin was complaining the whole time, but I ignored her. Finally she flew to her nest to feed her very large birds. After she left, one fell out! It walked over and into my garden area. I didn't know what to do, so I went inside so the momma could come back. I just looked out, and don't see the baby anywhere. I guess this is what happens. I was thinking they'd be out of the nest any day now. I'm amazed that 4 big birds even fit in it. They really don't...that's why the one fell out. I just hope I don't find a dead bird in my garden tomorrow.

I got a jump-up and get started morning. What else is new? They only thing that held me back from getting out earlier was that daughter overslept and I had to wait for her to get ready, then make the drive to school. I'm at Panera's, at my usual table, the one I was at when I lost my phone. I'll always associate this place with that event, but it doesn't take away from my love of it. I'm eating a cinnamon crunch bagel with lite hazelnut creme cheese, along with a caramel latte, which just burnt my tongue. I'll stay here for a while, then meet up with Karen and Bonnie. We're touring Karen's model home, then going out to lunch.

This is all I'm writing for now. I'm here to catch up on you!

The weekend is over, and although it felt longer than usual, it seemed like it should go on and on and be a vacation instead of just a few days. And the funny thing? It was only my regular weekend. I'm always off on Mondays.

A strange thing happened with Blogger. I couldn't sign on last night. I repeatedly got the same error message: your E-mail address and password do not match. Nothing changed on my part, but this morning I reset my password to a new one and it's working perfectly. Go figure. So, I'll do a little catching up here.

The cook-out was wonderful. The weather couldn't have been any better. Really. It was in the mid-70's with no humidity and a breeze. We ate on the deck, which has the afternoon shade. The food was wonderful, and everyone had a great time.





Yesterday was another brilliantly sunny day. I went to the pool with my mom for a while and met up with Kit and some other friends from my book club. I came home and went to my community pool for a while. It was a day of reading People magazine. Then the night went by too soon. I wanted to read on the deck, go for a walk and sit on the porch with my laptop. I wanted it to be 7:00 for hours. Alas, I did the deck and the porch (without the laptop=no blogger), and came in to put the day to rest.

I forgot to mention that my neighbor found a great handyman for us! He and his crew came on Saturday morning and cleaned my gutters. Yesterday they power washed the side of my house. Look at this image and picture me on that ladder. Not on your life! Finally that eyesore of algae or whatever it was is gone.


It's a cloudy and drizzly day. I've made lunches, done a few loads of wash, and need to clean my wood floors...least favorite job. Maybe I'll have time for the Wii before work. If I put this down now.

Have a great Tuesday!

Thought I'd do a quick update. I started thinking about that almond apple cheesecake this morning. Then I thought if I invited some people over for a cookout I'd have a reason to make the cake. So...cheesecake is baked and chilled. So is Fumi salad. Ditto with brownies. Steak teriyaki sauce is made and ready to be heated. Flatiron steaks are marinated. Limes are cut for the Corinitas. There will be 11 of us, with the others bringing something. It's a good thing I'm close to my neighbor Kelly. I brought over a recipe for garlicky oven fries and asked her to make it!

The babies

Why, oh why, did I have to wake up at 4:15 AM? Why not 6, or 7? I stayed in bed till 5:15, then gave up. I spent some time trying to get nail polish off of Em's carpet (grrr), and have been on the 'net since then. Feeling lazy. Between last night and this morning I did catch up on my Google Reader list. Nothing new to read!

Yesterday was a short one at work. 9:30-1:30. Was that great or what? I worked out on the Wii before work. I didn't do any stretching, and I'm paying for it today. I'll be sure to do it the right way this morning. BTW, I was researching the Fit and read that the Westin hotel chain will have Wii Fits in their hotel rooms. Pretty amazing, huh?

Here's something else I found interesting: the gmaps pedometer. It's easy to use, you can map your walking route, and it gives you the distance you travel. Click on usage instructions to learn how to 'use' it. Whatever you do, I hope it's great.

I don't know what's in store for this day, but I'm ready to get it started. The weather is going to be gorgeous. I'm ready to be outside.

Another rushing morning. That's because I spent about an hour with our new Wii Fit system doing aerobics. So far, Emily's been the one using it and I've been watching. Not a great way to get fit! She's been concentrating on yoga. I'm going to have a hard time with that...it takes a lot of balance. I'll keep trying because anyone should be able to do it. Today was my time, and I knew I could do aerobics. What fun!
Some of the choices

Emily doing yoga

That's my Mii and the calendar showing the two days I worked out


You know I'm way behind on my reading. Not much is going on this weekend, so I'll catch up. Have a great Friday. I hope the sun is shining for you!

I'm gonna see how fast I can write this. Where does the time go? Things to do before I leave for work, and I want this to be one of them.

I watched a segment on the Today show about Google's contest for a logo for today's search page. Check it out!

Yesterday was just great. I only get to see my sister Ilene about twice a year, and my niece much less often, so we spent the day together, along with my mother, yesterday. They came to my house in the morning and we headed over to my salon. I did my sister's color and cut and my nieces haircut. We went to Columbia Mall after that, and started with lunch at Panera's. We spent time at Nordstrom's, Macy's, Restoration Hardware and LL Bean. Next was a stop to Trader Joe's, then on to my house. Emily joined us for the next part of the visit which was to G&M's restaurant, a place famous for their enormous Maryland crabcakes. I knew there would be a wait, and sent Emily and Sarah ahead to put our name on the list. We got my mother in, and there was really no place to sit and it was confusing. I found the hostess and asked her if there was a place for my handicapped mother to sit and wait. She asked if we had a reservation, and I told her I didn't know you could do that. She told us to hold on and in a minute, we had a table. I found Emily and Sarah and told them we had a table and they were shocked. They were told we had a 45-1 hour wait. How amazing was that? The meal was fabulous, and my GA family was very impressed with the crabcakes. We got home just in time to see a rainbow, and said our good-byes before American Idol started. BTW...I'm so excited that David Cook won!

Here's some pics from the day
Sarah and Grandma

Ema nd Sarah

Me with Ilene and Sarah

I've got to run. I'll write more about Wii Fit that we got yesterday. Simply amazing.

Happy day!

I'd love to be camping next to this stream. I used to camp when I was married, but now I don't have anyone to camp with. I have all the stuff. We always picked a spot next to a stream and this picture brings back a lot of memories. Anyone want to go camping?

I stayed home all day. Amazing, huh? I wasted a lot of time, though I got a lot done. I cleaned my hardwood floors. Why do I dislike that job so much? I vacuum, then spray a cleaner, then use a micro-fiber-headed mop to clean it. I guess it's all the elbow 'grease' because the mop doesn't slide well at all. I always feel like I've accomplished a lot whenever I do it, which isn't often enough. I vacuumed the carpet, cleaned the counters with Softscrub, and cleaned one bathroom. Then I finished cleaning my car. I started it yesterday, and it's spic and span on the inside. Yeah! I walked around my garden many times, and picked the stray sprout that was here and there. That's the only kind of work I want to do out there. It's been a cool and windy day and I don't know if it even made it out of the high 50's. My plan was to work on pressure washing the side of my house, but not today. Kelly, my neighbor, came over last night to help me with the issues I've had getting her pressure washer started. I think I can handle it now. Also, I borrowed her ladder, and we figured out how to set it up on my hill. In the meantime, Kelly got a lot done while she was demonstrating her technique. When I tried it, my arm hurt after a few minutes. It wasn't nearly as fun as it looked.


The robin's been letting me get very close to her nest. I tried to see into it today when she was gone, but my chair wasn't high enough. I'm not sure if the babies are hatched or not. It seems like they are, because it's been looking like she's feeding them, but I don't hear or see anything.


I had to get on the phone with Dell today due to a continuing error message. Smart me had backed everything up and once again, I had to reinstall the operating system. I'm getting to be a pro at it. I just need help getting all my bookmarks back in the right place. Bonnie...I need you.

My Georgia sister and niece made a surprise visit to my mom today. She was SO surprised! They're only here till Thursday, and I switched my next day off so we can spend Wednesday together. I'm so excited!

It's been an emotional few days. It's amazing how moods can change in an instant. Saturday was just great. Yesterday was going great. I shopped at Sam's Club. Hung out at another Panera. Got a phone call. The end of the good times. That's all I can say. All will be well again. For a while. Change is what you can count on, right?

I'm sitting in the dark now. I think I'll put an end to this little post and come and visit you, my online buds.

"What a single girl does on a Saturday night out"
I'll warn you....this is pretty much a run-on sentence kind of post. Just so you know...Work was hard because I was so busy and I was tired and I'd worked so hard all week and I'm still so sore from Thursday's gardening. Before I left for work I counted on my fingers how many hours till I could have coffee. 8. So, I worked hard and it was a good day and eventually it was quitting time and Border's time. While waiting to order my drink, I watched the same 'new' guy I saw there last week who's obviously retraining the staff. He was explaining to one of the 'workers' that after wiping down the back counter with a wet cloth, it should be followed up with a dry cloth so as not to leave the stainless surface spotty. Boy was I impressed. He was ON. I love efficiency. I love a place that is neat and clean and impressive to a client. I'd love to be that person in my salon, but...it wouldn't work. Anyway, I've read that Border's is struggling. Not necessarily my Borders, but the chain in general. Too much competition from the big box retailers like Sam's, Costco and BJ's, along with Amazon. Stores are going to have to go out of their way to make people want to come in and stay and buy. That's what I think this 'new' guy at Border's was about...making the Seattle's Best Cafe the best. Now if only they had free wi-fi... but I digress. That spiel just happened on it's own. I stopped by my library on the way home to drop off the food that's been in my car that my postal worker didn't pick up on Stamp Out Hunger Day. The library has a bin for a nearby shelter, Sarah's House. I passed Emily and her friend in the community and stopped by the curb to bring them home. We hung out for a while until I drove them to the mall. It's the thing to do, and I don't love the idea, but know it's normal. I really like the friends Emily has, so I feel OK about it. They were going to the movies, and I said I'd pick up. So, I went to Walmart. I wanted to see if they had my mulch, but they didn't and I got a basil plant. Then they closed the garden center so I had to go though the store and when that happens, I shop. $25 later, I was out of there. I couldn't believe as I was leaving how many people were coming and going. I was tempted to hang out by a post and just people watch, but I moved on. Em would have been mortified had she been with me. Next up was dinner at Baja Fresh. I love, love, love that place. Is there one by you? I brought the new People magazine in, and read as I ate. It's a vibrant place, and I felt comfortable to be there alone. Especially with a magazine. I thought of going into Starbucks next, but there was a creepy guy inside that was in Baja, so I skipped it. I walked by Panera's and saw that the one and only table with an outlet was taken by a family, and I knew I didn't have much battery. I went to Pier 1, then drove my car close to Panera's. I checked and saw the outlet family leaving, and in I went. And here I am. A single girl alone, but not alone, on a Saturday night out.

I tried to post this last night but Blogger just wasn't cooperating. So it's a little late, but here it is.

Two posts in one day! This will count as tomorrow's, OK? Cause I'm always beat on Friday nights. I'm beat tonight. I was set to walk after dinner, but made an executive decision that I was waaaaay too sore to even change into my walking clothes. It's all the gardening. I went plant shopping today to fill in what was missing, then got everything in the ground and mulched. I thought the 23 bags of mulch I had would be enough, but I'm about 5 short. I put down the last 5 bags from under my deck today. I'm really looking forward to all the hard work being over, and I'm almost there. Soon I'll be able to just enjoy looking and picking the occasional weed. And cursing at the moles and voles that plague the garden and mess up my hard work. But that's for another post. I'm just praying the groundhog doesn't come back.

I love garden 'creatures'. I was so tempted to buy a set of two dancing frogs at BJ's today, but they were expensive. I'll probably go back for them. Here's some pics of what I do have:












The rain is starting up again tonight. There's a flood watch. I'm hoping my channel holds.

Note: I'm still so sore! Every time I turned over in bed I oohed and aahed in pain. I guess it's just age showing. I started the morning with Motrin. I feel much better as long as I'm standing. It's a good thing that's what I'll be doing all day today.

It's raining, so all my plants are getting watered in. Perfect! The basement is dry.

Happy Friday!

I woke up at the crack of dawn and decided to just get ready and leave the house along with Emily at 6:42 AM. Why not? I'm a morning person, and have a full agenda today. Emily is staying after school so I don't have to be home till about 4:00. It's not that I need to be home; I like to be home. I'm at Panera's as planned. I've been reading blogs and commenting, but barely made a dent and my mother is anxiously awaiting my arrival, so my time here is about over. Boo hoo for me. I did enjoy a free large caramel latte, extra shot, woohoo! After your 6th espresso drink, the next one is free. This was my next one. Border's has a new frequent drink card too. Buy five drinks and your sixth one is free. I have three down. Starbucks used to have a program like that at Safeway, but then I guess they decided they didn't need any incentives. I think they might need to change their minds about that. Lots of competition.

I just saw that McDonald's is unveiling their new chicken menu and today is the day that they're giving away free sandwiches. Just saying...if you're in the neighborhood.

That said, it's time for a free coloring and cut. Have a great Thursday. I'll catch up with you tonight.

I've been sitting here watching a National Geographic show about giant reticulated snakes. Too much information! There's a mini-series starting on Sunday about people who were inside the World Trade Centers when the planes hit. I want to watch that. Did I ever mention I bought every magazine that came out about 9/11? And I've got them all under my bed? That's got to be really bad feng shui. I've always meant to put them in a box.

So...here it is, Wednesday night. It was a busy day at work, as usual, thank goodness. I ran on time and finished on time. I did the hair of one of my clients who had breast cancer. It's been a year since she lost her hair and as usual after chemo, it came in curly. Much to her chagrin, the hair on top had only grown a little over an inch long. The hair in back was a few inches long; too bad it wasn't reversed. She was so pleased I could make her hair look good...she just thought I'd shape it up and then she'd put her wig back on. I was glad I could do that for her. She and her husband travel the world and I love to hear about her trips. This summer she's going to Alaska, and in April they're joining an in-progress around the world cruise for a 27-day segment of it. They're starting in Dubai. How cool is that? Can you imagine having the funds to travel like that a few times a year? I wish she'd ask to take me along as her hairdresser. I'd love to find a way to make that happen.

So tomorrow's my day off and it's a Mom day. My plan is to get an very early start and head to the Panera's by my parent's house for some 'me' time. Then I'll go to the old homestead and cut and color my mother's hair. We'll probably go out to lunch afterwards. I'm ready for my favorite Chinese restaurant. I hope to buy the rest of my annuals on the way home, cause it's time to finish up the planting. There's still a lot of work to do. I'm ready.

PS...the dryer is working! I was so relieved when I started washing towels yesterday. I should do some research, because who knows when the washer and dryer will go out. How do you know what to buy?

I should have written yesterday with an update. First of all, the sun came out! Here's a picture from my bathroom window. I love this window!


The basement stayed dry! Thank goodness it's an unfinished basement with concrete floors. It would have been a disaster if it were 'finished'. The yard in the back is a big mess after what I did, but I don't care.


Here's a picture of where my French drain from the sump pump empties out in my wooded area. When the water cycles out, it gushes out, like a fountain.


The water table is very high where I live, and there's an underground stream under my house, at least I think so. I'm having a handyman out here on the 24th to clean my gutters. I also want to see if he can build a drain around the side and back of my house. This problem needs to be taken care of, the right way.

Well, I'm off for work. Have a great Wednesday! I'll be back to check out your blogs tonight.

This rain has got to end. I've been a slave to my basement all day! Here's the routine: lay down rolled up towels on the floor under the basement window. Check on them after a half hour or so. Wring them out into the sump well, then put them in a plastic bag and lay down dry towels. Wait till I have 4-5 soaked ones, then carry that very heavy load of them upstairs and put them in the washing machine on the spin cycle, then into the dryer. Vacuum out dirt from the washer and dryer in-between loads. Every now and then go out in the rain with a bucket and bail out the 'lake' in the back yard that the sump pump empties out to. Can I say WAHHH?


I thought the big problem was that the gutters above the window were overflowing. It just might be that the ground is so saturated that the water has no place else to go. Or, it might have to do with waterproofing of the foundation. I don't know...not my area of expertise. All I know is that I'm tired of doing this, but don't know what else to do. I decided to spin the last load of towels twice through the cycle. The dryer made a terrible noise, and when I lifted the lid, the barrel wasn't spinning. I'm so afraid my almost 15-year-old dryer might be broken. I'll be switching out the towels soon, so I'll see.

Update: I just came up from a *hopefully* successful mission. I brought my shovel and gardening gloves outside. I shoveled the dirt and grass away from the foundation, and lo and behold, the water filled up the space. I decided to shovel a channel from the corner of the house out to the yard, and the water was channeled away from the house! I lined the channel with garden edging. The water stopped coming into the basement immediately. I just set up a fan to try to dry that area. I'm so hopeful! I took all the towels away and I'll go down in a minute or two to check.

Here's my handiwork. The grass is torn up, butI think it's working!

I laid down 14 towels just to be on the safe side. I'll check on it first thing in the morning. Then I'll check the dryer. For now, I'm going to bed!

A little this and that.

My postal carrier never picked up the large bag of food I left at my mailbox on Saturday. So much for my good intentions. I'll put the food in the box that's always at my local library.

I got these beautiful flowers delivered from Emily for Mother's Day

We've had a lot of rain, flooding and power outages since the rain started yesterday. School was delayed for 2 hours this morning, much to Emily's delight. I went to the basement in the morning, and water was in the basement. Fortunately, the sump pump opening is close to the door, and I wrung out towels into the hole, then spun them out in the washer and dried them while setting down dry towels. I've done this a few times. The rain has lightened up for now, but it's supposed to get bad again. I'm thinking I need to stay home to keep an eye on the basement. It's all because of the clogged gutter overhead. I've put in an inquiry about getting it cleaned out.

I was on the phone looking out the window and saw a bird I've never seen before. I went for my camera but it was gone. After some research, I found it's a scarlet tanager. It was beautiful.


I feel like a couch potato. I've been sitting around for hours! I think I'll take a shower to wake up. Happy day!

Last night I told Emily I'd take her shopping after we'd had breakfast with my parents. She was surprised I'd want to shop on Mother's Day but I thought it would be a good way for us to spend time together and she needs summer clothes. She was really happy. I'll admit I thought she would have more patience than usual because of it being Mother's Day. Bob Evans was packed, but we expected the 40 minutes wait, and my parents arrived just about 10 minutes before they called our name so it worked out pretty perfect. We had a really nice meal together, then went on our way. I'm not much of a shopper, but Emily loves it. We started with bathing suits and finally agreed on one suit out of all she tried on. She wasn't happy about the ones I vetoed, and I can't blame her. I was just happy we found one. Emily took my 'no's' to the rest of the clothes that I thought were too tight or too short pretty gracefully. She didn't get a bad attitude. She wound up getting many tops, shorts and pj's. Emily got a pair of jeans from a new store called Garage. The interior was really unique and I took some pictures. I loved the dressing rooms. Each one had different wallpaper with a unique chandelier.







We went out for pizza afterwards. We got home just in time for the gloomy day to turn into a very rainy one. It's been pouring for hours. There's flood watches in many parts of the region, and the edge of my basement floor around the door is wet. It's from the rain pouring over the clogged gutters. I really do need to take care of that. Anyway, I've spent the remainder of the day and night watching TV and doing laundry. It's been nice!

My plan for tomorrow? To go to the movies with some of my co-workers. I'm not sure what I'll do before or after, but something is bound to come up. I think it's supposed to rain. Again. That's OK...we need it. We also need a warm sunny day before we get too depressed.

I hope your Sunday was a great one.

Mother's Day plans anyone? Emily and I will be going out to breakfast with my parents. Good old Bob Evans. We've done that for the last few years, but we've always been a crowd. This year there will only be 4 of us. I'm not sure what we'll be doing afterwards. Maybe some shopping?

It was another long day at work, but like all the others, it had a beginning and an end. I hung out at Borders for a while after work, then went to the library before heading home. The first thing I did was to clear out the downspout by my garage. My gutters have been overflowing. I'm not crazy about ladders, but got up on one and used a hose to clear out the blockage. It was full of the stems that held the berries that recently fell off the pear tree. I have other gutters that need cleaning, but this is the only one I'll brave. I hate having to pay for help, but I really need to find a handyman.

I went on another long walk. I think it's time to find my pedometer again, now that it seems like I'll stick with it. I used Em's iTouch and it was kind of nice listening to music as I walked. I always chew gum too, and I think I chew in sync with my strides. I'm sick of the gum by the time I get home! We don't have any paths in my neighborhood so everyone uses the sidewalks. It really is great to see all the people out and about.

I'll end here for now.

Happy Mother's Day, mothers.

Saturday! The day I wait for all week, and it's here. It's nasty outside...dark and raining and it's the second day like that in a row. It's time for work...I don't feel like I recovered from yesterday yet. It was a day of being behind and trying to catch up. One of my clients had enough hair for 2-3 people, and wanted a complicated new style that took me over an hour in a half-hour slot. There was nothing I could do but do it. It came out stunning, but was painful for me to do. The next client was easy...it all balances out. So, I'm off to do it again, but before I know it I'll be you know where doing you know what. Till later, adios.

Update...

The day got better. I decided to do some shopping. I'm not a clothes shopper; if someone could shop for me I'd be happy. I like 'stuff.' I went to the garden center at Walmart, but didn't find anything. I went to Sam's Club and walked the isles. I found stuff. I went to Kohl's and bought a pair of capri's and all new drinking glasses. I've had a mishmash of cups and glasses forever. I bought clear acrylic glasses in two sizes. I'm clearing out all the rest. I came home, and read, organized, etc. I had a good talk with my daughter after she came home. All is well. It's been drizzling on and off, but I'm still going to try to walk.

Here's something I thought I'd share...I read about this in the Washington Post and thought it was worthy of passing along. Saturday is the 16th annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. Letter carriers will be collecting food donations left out next to our mailboxes. Here's the link with more information. I called to make sure my post office was participating. It seems all but the rural routes are taking part, but you might want to verify. It's a good time to clean out our pantries for a good cause.

How's your Thursday?

There's times I wish I could say exactly what I want here, but not doing so keeps me from whining. I complain a lot in my mind, and get tired of hearing myself. Will I survive teenager-hood? I know I'm not alone, but that doesn't make it any easier.

It's cloudy. It's rainy. For the first time in over a week. It will keep me from doing any work outside, and that's actually a good thing. I plan to do something unusual this morning: I'm going to catch up on episodes of Lost and Brothers and Sisters. I have a DVR now and I've been recording my shows. It's so much better than a VCR. I really don't know what I'll be doing today. We'll see.

I've had a constant companion on my porch. I tried to keep her from making a nest, but while I was in NY she made a big one and immediately laid eggs. At least I can still sit on my porch. She just flies away when I go outside.


I'm in a totally blah and bummed out mood. I've been on the couch for over two and a half hours. I'm not really going to watch TV. What was I thinking? The sun has come out; I guess the rain won't start back up for hours, and when it does, it's supposed to be hard and last for over 48 hours. Yuck. I think the best thing for me would be to change clothes and go for a walk. I'll really try to write again later.

Bring it on, Mr. Squirrel


I foresee many entertaining moments in the future, and you know how easily I'm amused. Emily said, "Mom, you know the squirrel's always going to be smarter than you." Unfortunately, she may be right.

I'm a voyeur in my own backyard. Here in my hammock, the birds and squirrels think I'm part of the scenery.

It's hard to keep up with writing now that we're in the midst of Springtime and there's so much to do in the garden. That's mainly what's kept me away. In a week or two everything will be in place and I'll have more leisure time. Right? Well, we'll see.

It was supposed to be a rainy weekend, but it's been beautiful! I went to Border's after work yesterday, then went looking for annuals and a certain hard to find tomato cage. Not the standard round metal kind, but a three sided green coated one. I'm trying to design some sort of squirrel-proof fence for my potted tomato plants. Anyone remember how the squirrels stole all my green tomatoes last year and half buried them around my yard? I really want to grow tomatoes on my deck, so I'm going to try to outsmart the squirrels. Is that possible? Anyway, I came home and finished mulching the big garden. I had a delicious Lean Cuisine dinner and then went for a long walk. It was a good day with lots of outdoor time.

I met Kit this morning at Panera's for coffee...without my laptop. I think that's a first. I went to my parent's house afterwards for a visit, and took my mother to McDonald's for breakfast. I went to Lowe's and Home Depot looking for my tomato cage but no luck. On my way home I stopped at K-Mart and finally, I found what I was looking for. Yes! My plan is to join 3 cages and cover them with chicken wire. And make a removable lid. It does seem like a lot of work for two plants. I'll run this all by my neighbor Kelly. She'll know if it's a good idea.

I planted some annuals when I got home, and trenched another garden. That's it for work today, and it's only 3:30. It's so pleasant here on my hammock. The sunlight is dappled through the trees. The chimes are singing. Two pairs of cardinals just put on a show right in front of me. Two females were fighting and one of the males was trying to break it up. A squirrel is about four yards from me on his hind legs, looking around. A pair of morning doves are hanging out on the deck edge, and the feeders are covered with goldfinches, house finches, cowbirds, and redwinged-blackbirds. To see a hummingbird on my new feeder would really make my day.

Anyway, that's my update. I hope it feels like Spring in your neck of the woods and that it's been a good weekend.

I'm so tired because....it was my day off and you know how I am. Right? I started with a trip to Panera's and met Bonnie there. That was great! I'll spare you the details of my whole day, but I did a lot of mulching. I think I only have 3 or 4 more bags to put down in my biggest garden. Two years ago a neighbor bought way too many bags of Scott's Nature Scape black mulch. Last year she decided to go with shredded pine mulch and offered to give me the Scott's. I carried 23 bags of it and stacked it under my deck. It's so nice not to have to buy any this year. I started buying annuals and perennials today. I have a lot more buying to do, but I won't start planting for at least another week. I like to wait till the frost date passes. Oh, here's a picture of my garden cart. I've been carting two 40 lb. bags at a time with it.



I'm going to cut this short and go up to bed. That means I'll be getting behind on your blogs. I'll make sure to catch up this weekend. Till then...