I had a bright idea...

 I had a bright idea.

It was a simple idea really.

One I often have this time of year.

Add to my garden's evolution.

Those three masses of day lilies sit on one side of a "mound".

I was recently told by my MIL that said mound was made of loam.

"Rich, friable (crumbly) soil with nearly equal parts of sand and silt, and somewhat less clay."

It seemed easy enough to get in there and dig some holes in that rich crumbly soil.

Pop in some nice perennials and wha-lah!

Lovely flowers.

 

It seems that loam, 

when ignored for years under weed fabric

and bark dust...

bakes into a hard rocky adobe like material.

Naturally, I attacked it with my toy shovel.

 Yes, the kind of toy garden shovel you buy a six year old to use while helping in the garden.

I like them.

The handle is not too long...

I am short.

The area that a toy shovel digs out is the size of a 6" plant pot.

A shovel full of dirt is not very heavy.

I will not bore  you with the details of the day's effort.

5 holes were dug...

5 plants

(3 Shasta Daisy, 1 English lavender and 1 Coreopsis)

were successfully installed into the ground.

It took me 

ALL DAY LONG.

There were some amusing moments. 

Recently Randy bought me two "Pocket Hoses".

These are a marvelous invention!

They expand in length as the hose fills.

Cool beans!

This not only amuses you to watch,

but makes for a nice, light weight hose.

 

 

I decided to help the soil loosen by setting up a sprinkler.

I unscrewed the nozzle and attached the little metal star shaped sprinkler head.

I carefully dropped the sprinkler upside down and ran to turn on the hose.

The hose did not expand the way it does with a nozzle.

Too little pressure.

Fine.

I got my second hose and attached the 2 so that they would reach the area I needed watered.

Once more I dropped the sprinkler upside down and ran to turn on the water.

Success!

I hurried over to flip the sprinkler over and it went insane!

It was like holding onto a frantic snake that sprayed water.

By the time I got the darned thing on the ground where I wanted it...

I was soaked.

I was soaked again later when I needed to move it.

At least they helped to keep me cool as I amended the soil, 

weeded and shoveled bark dust around.

I am telling myself that I know Shasta Daisy 

and that these three little bunches

will indeed become lovely large plantings...

until they blend together for one large mass.

Right?  Right?

Right?

 

 

Tomorrow I have more to plant.

Sigh.

Another Lavender, 2 Blanket Flower, 4 Black Eyed Suzies

and a big Sweet William.

More of my "bright idea".

I will say this for gardening.

It is something I can lose myself in entirely.

Put on my MP3 and get lost as I pull or dig or snip.

Best of all...

at the end of my day,

I sleep like a rock and wake refreshed.

Oh.

I got a sunburn too.

Haven't had one of those for a long time.

Fortunately I am one of the lucky who turn tan overnight.

I hope you all are having a great weekend.

The SSS posts made me hungry.

But then, most things do.

=:]

 

THROW THE DUCK!

Someone never tires of the game "Throw the Duck!"

In fact, if you are busy weeding or some sort of outside activity...

unavailable to throw the duck...

Roxie will throw the duck herself and then chase it.

But only if you are in the yard and giving applause.

Tomorrow is my return to work.

I actually got primo hours.

When I walked in to be "re-activated"

I got a hug from my shift manager who told me how glad he was to have me back.

Nice.

I am told that things did not go as smoothly as they do when I am there.

Um... how about a raise?

I'm pretty much ready.

The man is well stocked with food he likes.

I made myself a big pot of red beans and rice.

One of my favorite dishes that happens to be cheap and will feed me all week.

(Buying food at work is a budget killer.)

The hardest part will be getting up early again.

Funny how the sleep time creeps later and later when you don't have to be anywhere.

Or

Getting my feet used to standing on them all day long again.

I must admit to some excitement.

I have not been out much since Randy's stroke.

My time has revolved almost completely around him...

because I wanted it to.

Squeaky can and has watched out for him and he will do so daily now.

Gotta keep the man safe!

My work life, 

suck as it does,

 is mine.

We all need our time in pursuit of separate experiences.

That gives us something to talk about.

Removes boredom.

Opens doors.

Gets us OUT.

And I am sure that the man is ready for a bit more...

 eh-hem!

"silence".

hee hee

Have a glorious Monday!

I know... meh Monday.

But each day is a gift,

 may as well open it with gratitude.

=:]

BACK TO THE GRIND

Bottom of Multnomah Falls as it runs away to the Columbia.

 

 

Wow. 

 Seems like ages since I was last down here.  

I guess it kind of is.

 

For an update:

 

The man came home on May 2.

He walked into the house without the aide of a can or walker.

Yay!

 

 There have been wins and losses.

Randy cannot drive now.

He has "neglect" on the left side.

This means that though he may actually see something,

the brain acts as if it does not see it.

It has made reading and math difficult.

And like Randy says, 

he cannot afford to "not see" a child running into the street.

Now he relies on me or Squeaky to help him out with 

those things.

He has outpatient therapy to help correct these losses.

It goes slow.

They say 6 months to a year before he can learn what will or won't come back.

Meanwhile we have jumped through the hoops of obtaining 

disability.

And we are still jumping through more hoops.

To talk to him, 

you would not notice a difference.

His thinking is fine.

His speech is softer and bit more husky.

But he is thinner and he is less outgoing.

He slept a lot at first, but less as time goes by.

 

 

He is not working in the shop.

This makes me sad...

it really is one of the major joys he has in life.

He has to wait until they are sure that he is safe out there.

sigh.

 

 Squeaky came to be the Randy wrangler/ house help while I work.

I find out on Saturday when I will work.

Part of me is happy to go back.

The part that wants to have money again.

The part that gets bored being home all the time.

 

I hate to leave Randy...

even if Squeaky is with him.

I'm sure I will call on my lunch.

 When I get home I will have things to talk about.

So will Randy. 

Another step toward "normal".

=:]