A Few Notes

Dear Readers,

Yesterday while I was writing to you about blackberries at Rosebud, the electricity started to flicker. We had quite the storm blow in. The wind was so strong it made the house shake, and it was cold in here even with the fire going. Our electricity went off and on a few times, but we woke up with power. It seems that we got another inch and a half of rain over night. We are well over our average for the year.

Today it is dreary, but not much rain. I started my walking program back up – it had been on a week or more break. I used to hike straight up the mountain 6 – 10 miles and back down again, carrying a knapsack with water, lunch, and snacks for myself and three dogs. But that was before the accident. Now a mile with no baggage does me in.

I took a few root cuttings on my walk – mugwort, horsetail, flag, and meliot. We shall see how they do. I also brought home two small flat rocks, one dark slate and one white quartz. The dark one is about palm sized and the quartz is a bit smaller. I saw a cairn in a magazine as garden art – and I really liked it. I can’t do anything as large as what was in the magazine – so maybe I will go for miniature.

I also brought home two curved sticks. I have been making a small collection of interesting arched sticks. I am installing them as a sort of low ornamental fence along one side of my yard. I have also been collecting some moss, and started collecting some straight sticks with moss and lichen growing on them. All this is getting installed in my garden. In the corner where I have begin working from there is also a small ceramic pot designed to look like a green rubber garden clog. (Looks almost identical to my garden clogs . . .) It is now planted with moss and has the core from a small pinecone for decoration. Anyway it is starting to look like someone cares for that corner.

I also started organizing and packaging winter squash seeds today. I ran out of envelopes – but I got 7 varieties ready to send off to seed banks and round robins. (I have two or three more varieties to go.) I am saving out what I need, and also saving a big jumble bag to package up to give away on Halloween. I think I will have a few of a few kinds left to give away in conjunction with an up coming article on pumpkins and winter squash . . .

But man, I am beat. And aches and pains? Oh man, don’t even get me started . . . Somehow I lucked out, and my son decided to cook dinner . . . I am lucky! I think in the future I shouldn’t walk till the dinner thing is handled – cause I am trying to get myself worked around a cholesterol lowering scheme. And that means high fiber and low fat and sugar. Did you know that sugar could raise your cholesterol? Anyway . . .

I will tell you my thoughts on the blackberries tomorrow . . .

You all be good now, ya hear!

Harvest