A Vegetable Garden For us, Another For The Furry Thieves

 

My blog service is giving me grief these last two weeks and I could scream.

Nothing is working correctly, primarily formatting and trying to upload images. My last entry was not easy and the result was it was shorter than my usual. In the end I had resigned myself that Google would sort itself out, yet as of my attempting this blog post the problems are still ongoing. Thus far I have tried other browsers, other devices, but get the same unpleasant error. I really do not want to have to move an entire blog to a new platform, but if the problems persist what else can one do? Fingers crossed it’s a temporary speed bump.

With that said, we are in the thick of putting in the garden goodies. We got a late start no thanks to a long rain duration lasting near two weeks off and on. The small plot my husband is working on is a new area at the back of our yard near trees. It’s a bit of a stretch for watering, but the ground is ripe and had been a mulch area years so the soil is in perfect planting shape. While he works on his hobby vegetable garden I’m keeping busy on our week off putting in some outdoor flower pots. Years ago I planted them straight into the ground but they never seem to do well in the small space I have. A couple of years ago I began using outdoor pots instead and it’s worked much better. The only drawback is when it gets too warm the plants need constant attention if potted or they can overheat and cook in the pots. 

At one point we were waging a garden war with the yard wildlife but as can happen with age and experience, we decided the effort wasn’t worth it. Instead of going mad trying to deter the rabbits and other thieves, we began planting a second edible garden. The definition is we have our own that is fenced, and another that is not. It is a learned experience from our bird feeding. The squirrels were always raiding the bird feeders so we gave them their own feeder with great success. The same idea for a vegetable garden has carried over. Animals will often go to the most accessible food source and an unprotected smaller vegetable garden away from ours fits the purpose. We have our garden and they have the spare.

Last week we were more than busy bees at work. May is the end of the company tax year and it’s always a distribution center warehouse shit show. The job of "picking and packing" becomes a month long tsunami of never ending work. The goal is they want to sell off as much stock as possible prior to the tax deadline. This week the hours are mandatory extra long and a six day work week but it’s good money. Luckily hub and myself are also off this week, and we will need it to gear up for our return. My arthritis has been challenging me these last two months but with the recent help of our family doctor I should be able to get through my shift successfully. I am a stubborn old gal yes. 

I started a new medication last week that made it possible to complete my two required days, and work two more. That is a milestone for my body. I seriously wanted to hug my doctor by Friday. I’m not pain free by miles but it’s bearable, I will always be in pain. I want nothing more than to be able to work full time, as in the full five days every week though I am technically part time. I am allowed to work full time hours if I choose to because there is always work needing doing but less help to do it. I also love stashing a 40+ hour paycheck straight into the savings, the more hours the better before I start Social Security Retirement, whenever that may be. When picking at work, the whole belt in the photo below is full with boxes needing to be packed with stock, hand scanned, and pushed to shipping and receiving. The work area is three floors high with no air conditioning, and you have to fill the boxes at a brisk pace. This is my fourth year and my husband is in his tenth. What keeps people here is not just the pay, but if hired by the parent company as my spouse was, the benefits are generous. 

Mother’s Day was bitter sweet. My resident oldest son gifted me a wonderful pink Orchid. It’s a tradition he began a few years ago and I love it. I don’t have much luck keeping them alive sadly. I have read books and watched videos but still they don’t last. I love anything that is unique and a challenge, here’s hoping this beautiful bloom will survive me. My other two children acknowledged Mother’s Day by texting my phone. Don’t even get me started on the digital texting instead of phone calls. I wasn’t raised that way and my adult children were not either, you phoned loved ones on holidays and special occasions or visited. A card is always a nice gesture. Texting to me equates dropping a distant relative or friend a postcard. I like to call people I care for but sadly it seems communication doesn’t work that way these days, if at all. 

Today I choose to focus on my blessings. I’m still here, I can still function, my husband and myself still have our health and a home. My flowers are blooming and the hummingbirds have returned, a sure sign of our short lived summer approaching. Life itself is short and it is unpredictable. We may have today but we might not see tomorrow. Not far from here the local law enforcement in both Maine and New Hampshire  are waging a battle on stopping individuals from  plummeting off the now infamous Piscataqua River Bridge that is becoming more frequent. The link provided to the recent story details the ongoing crisis.

There is a lot to be upset about in the world, but there is also much good if we look harder. I choose to focus more on the positive and less on the negative. I wasn’t always this way. Sometimes I wish I could reach out and touch those upset or having a bad day around me to comfort them. All I can do is acknowledge the person, make an effort to understand more, and judge less. One act of kindness or a smile can change someone’s whole day. We all need more of that. 

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