Tuesday, July 08, 2014

A Few Things I Have Learned About Myself (As I Get Older)

It's funny to think about all the times in my 20's and early-30's I'd heard women say things about how they couldn't do certain things anymore, which things upset their stomach, "I can't lay on the floor or I'll never get up" etc.

I found it odd and couldn't relate, because nothing seemed to bother my stomach, give me black circles under my eyes, throw my back out... nothing was 'off limits' (other than staying up all night drinking... but even then it was a matter of staying in bed a few extra hours, a couple of Advil and a round of McD's to cure what ailed me). I always wondered if someday I would get to that point where my stomach couldn't handle things, I couldn't lift certain things for fear of throwing out my back, couldn't stay up all hours and just sleep it off the next day.

The answer is: YES. Getting (a little) older does do certain things to you. Now, I know if I ate a little better and exercised more (*cough* some *cough*) these things wouldn't as as much of an issue. Thing is, it sortof sneaks up on you, and you DON'T need to exercise or eat particularly well in your 20's and early 30's in order to feel okay. You just don't -- youth seems to take care of things for you. And even though I heard it 100 times or more, I really just didn't see this coming.

Anyway, I've learned a few things about myself lately. I know there will probably be plenty more to discover about myself as the years march on and things change, within and around me... but I thought it worth mentioning these new-found discoveries, for posterity if nothing else. How many more weird and wonderful things await me??

Thursday, July 03, 2014

Garden Update! Terrified of what's headed our way...

There was a point where I thought this year's garden was going to be a 'no go'. Almost all of the transplanted dudes were looking sad, limp, and pathetic. The seeds I sowed didn't' seem to be doing much of anything. I sighed and started thinking about heading to the garden centre and starting over from scratch.

But then... time, heat, sun and water (and a little bit of picking off bugs, pruning suckers, dusting with diatomaceous earth, spraying with epsom salt water, adding bonemeal, replanting plants pulled out by toddler hands...) worked their magic and lo and behold, a garden -- a real life garden -- emerged. Waa Laa!! 
End of June - lots of lettuce, peas just starting to shoot up (they now have mesh to climb)

Everything growing!
Things started to grow! The transplants bounced back! Well, all except the peppers, all the leaves fell off the pepper plants... not sure what happened there. But the tomato plants are miraculously all thriving! The lettuce went berserk, the peas shot up about 6" in a matter of days. Amazing :)


I can now see loads of little green tomatoes all over the plants, we've been enjoying romaine and leaf lettuce and green onions galore, and even some mystery greens that came as part of a mix and are delicious. I had my first sugar snap pea yesterday... incredible. I've picked a bunch of slugs out (and catapulted them into the woods), as well as a few weird grasshopper-looking dudes, but besides that things are rolling along. Things are happening, and it's good.

HOWEVER...

It couldn't have been that easy. No no no.

Now, just when we have all the lovely little baby veggies peeking their little heads out -- we're getting THIS nonsense:


A freaking hurricane.

I am literally sick to my stomach worrying about what this is going to do to my garden. I know there are so many other (valid) things to worry about and this really should not be one of them... but I will be so, so upset if we lose the garden after all this work, seeing these plants go from seed to huge plants to wilting and nearly dying after transplant to coming back in full force. All those little baby veggies just wanting to live and be FREE! And get EATEN! :)

Really though -- I don't know what to do about this. I don't know how to protect them. If I can manage it I will throw some plastic over the hoops and attach them as best I can but with gale-force winds and 50+ mm of rain, I'm not sure there's anything I CAN do.

I am going to cry.