Random

Thoughts

Over the past two weeks, since the official arrival of spring, I have worked in my front and back yards.  Worked, hard work, really, really, really hard work.  Every single day for 3-5 hours.  Digging up weeds, moving plants (which included digging large holes in the earth), enlarging flower beds (that means digging out grass – ick, ick, ick), weeding, finding places for new plants, putting out all the seedlings I started over the winter, pulling weeds, and this year, repositioning all the flowerbed borders (and, yes, I use what I’ve got – it’s all about recycling).  For some reason, it seems that the dirt pushed the bordering material out of the ground - grrrrr.  And, by the end of the work time, I have to make 75 trips from one side of the yard to the other to dump everything pulled out (like weeds) or cut down onto the trash heap. 

Random Thought:  This is good exercise – walking, bending, stretching, twisting, lifting, stepping (like step on the shovel, lift out the dirt, dump, repeat).  I am building muscles.  Yes!

In my part of the universe, I have March, April, and most of May to get done outside everything I need to do, want to do, to have a yard I enjoy.  Why you ask?  That would be because come June 1, it is hot and humid and mosquito-ey, and hot and humid.

Random Thought:  Oh ugh – mosquito time is coming.  My yard is already full of fire ants and feisty spiders.

You may remember from past posts, my commenting on the large amount of rain we received in October, November, December, January, February.  Remember I said I wasn’t really complaining, just commenting?  Well, evidently, the three-year-old that controls the rain has turned it off, completely.  Digging in the yard is likened to digging in cement.  Hard and it comes up in big chunks that takes a hammer to break up.

Random Thought:  Muscles – building muscles, if I had circles to close, they’d all be done by 11AM.

Most mornings I have a little routine – put away the clean dishes from yesterday, do a 10-minute pick up around the house, wind clocks, open blinds, have breakfast, and finally sit at the computer and see what’s happening in the news.  Some days – I skip that last part.  Honestly, the world, in general, is going to hell in a hand basket. 

  

Random Thought:  The humans running everything are not adults they are, I swear, hormonal thirteen-year-olds – tantrums, denials, boasting, bullying, the silent treatment, door slamming, crying, ignoring the adults (that's you and me) -- drama queens.

Several months ago, I injured my foot.  As does most of the world, I went to the computer for a self-diagnosis and treatment plan.  Okay – ice (check), exercises to stretch the tendon (check), over the counter shoe insert (check).  No, it didn’t get any better.  So, off I went to see the podiatrist.  He prescribed a custom made orthotic.  A very expensive orthotic that 1. Does not fix the problem; does not even somewhat relieve the discomfort, 2. Is very uncomfortable; you try walking on a piece of hard plastic, 3. Does not fit in any shoes except my athletic shoes which I am not planning to wear 24/7.  Arrggghhh.

Random Thought:  #$@%&^%*(!!!!! 

I have read a couple of good books lately –

White Plague by James Abel

“In the remote, frozen waters of the Arctic Ocean, the high-powered and technically advanced submarine U.S.S. Montana is in peril. Adrift and in flames, the boat—and the entire crew—could be lost. The only team close enough to get to them in time is led by Marine doctor and bio-terror expert Joe Rush.”  It’s a good story – not exactly an end of the world as we know it type but could be close. 

King’s Deception by Steve Berry

The story is about a CIA operation to find the answer is a long-buried secret.  A secret that calls into question the legitimacy of the entire forty-five-year reign of Elizabeth I, the last Tudor monarch.  There are assassins, traitors, spies, and dangerous disciples of a secret society along with modern geopolitical crisis’, diplomatic showdowns, and one over-all-save-the-day hero.  Also, a good story.

Random Thought:  Hmmmmm – my current book (Jane Seymour, The Haunted Queen by Alison Weir) is calling me so I have to quit now.

26 Mar 2019