Let's Get Dirty

Following up on the March planting challenge and wondering if anyone else is enjoying the fruits of their labor.? 

I am.  Swiss chard, zucchini (the vegetable gardeners largest weed), carrots, and hopefully my rhubarb will make one pie for James.  Everyone said I could not grow it here, but it is growing, a little scrawny, but hopefully enough for the one pie he requested.

I have put fish net over the garden because in about 3-4 weeks the giant grasshoppers come and devour everything. I am bound and determined to fight these pesky creatures off my future meals.  

By the way, the swiss chard is amazing and sauteed in a hint of olive oil, grated garlic and a tinge of salt, nothing better. Try it!

I have moved on, though, to a vertical garden.  I am not done yet, I will be in 2-3 days, but this is the next challenge. Actually easier than you might think.  Find a sturdy wall, maybe brick, or even on a strong fence.  Fill the pots with good soil, not too much sun, and you are will have a green thumb before you know it.  I will take pictures for the next blog post.

Gardening is so therapeutic for the soul.  Of course, you might say you don't have  time, but literally I have about 4 hours into this so far, and should be done with about 2 more hours, only because I want it to be esthetically pleasing to the eye. Then, as a neighbor pointed out,  find a chair, a good book and that is close to perfection.

The whole idea is don't be afraid of trying something new.  You have time to take care of things of interest to you.  I am guilty of putting everything in front of my needs, no more.  This is my time, my life and I invite you to find something that makes you feel juicy.

Let me know!

For those of us who do not have the best gardening history, it is time to redefine yourself this spring and jump in!

I for one am thinking about the cost of fresh veges and fruits, the pesticides, freshness, etc.  

I should really go to my sister first and check with her, or my good friend Cat before I take on this endeavor, but here I go!!

I didn't have an area, so I took 2 by 12s and outlined an area, turned over the very difficult soil, which was hard as a rock.  I went to a local nursery that I trust and bought really good soil filled with mulch, etc.  Of course I ran home and put it in the garden beds immediately.  Not enough, so I ran back.  Now I am ready.

I had to be strategic about this.  Gardening here is very difficult as we have bad soil  and giant grasshoppers.  I truly mean giant.  Some of the heads are so big that I can actually make out their gross little faces.  I saw a baby one the other day so they are soon to arrive. The netting will go up soon.  

I am planning to outsmart them though, and plant marigolds completely around the perimeter of the garden, as apparently they don't like the aroma.  I love  marigolds even more now that I heard that it discourages their delicates noses from entering in my garden.  I will still put the netting up!  No more mini prehistoric monsters eating at our house.

I soaked seeds, prepared the soil carefully, and planted my array of goodies.  I am trying rhubarb for the first time as everyone says you can't grow it here.  I absolutely love a once a year rhubarb pie, so I will cross my fingers.

Approximately two weeks from putting the seeds in, I have carrots, zucchini, sunflowers, eggplant and zucchini coming up,  Tomorrow I am going to cheat and go to a great indoor nursery for the tomatoes.  Oh well.

I will keep you posted as to how it is going.  

Cross your fingers.

In the meantime think about a garden, even ever so small.  It is therapeutic and the watering and weeding feels great if you are having a bad day.

So, the project is done.  I was like, I can do this, no problem. 

I love challenges and difficult projects.  So I thought.

Too big and too time consuming.  I put probably 50 plus hours in this project, on a roof at 85 degrees.  The Smurf blue first two coats were difficult as they were rubberized. If I stepped on it wrong, it stuck to my feet as rubber will do.  BUT, that was not the hardest part.

The hardest part was the 6 more layers of white paint to cover the blue, Smurf blue.  Most of the time James was busy either working as a Therapist 2 days per week, with me cursing him under my breath for picking this project, or he was laying two rooms with tile.  He really helped with some of this, too, though.  The rubber coats were very difficult and stuck to our shoes.

You see, we are both a bit manic, but no more.  I told him I need a 4 month moratorium on projects.  

I learned that I want to enjoy my retirement, friends, family, personal "indoor" small projects and maybe even have time to read.  Yessss!!!  

There are chapters in our lives that require a lot of effort and this was one.  

This may or may not be a little burnout.  Just be sure when you speak up and agree with your partner husband, etc, consider the consequences.  Really make sure it inspires you, floats your boat, etc.

Life is short, play more.

**I will check back in 4 months to see if I stuck to it, lol.

I realized it had been a while since I got really dirty, probably 6 months ago landscaping our backyard.

I need to try and be a role model for "getting dirty" and just jumping in, lol.

We have a flat roof on our house with 3 ft parapet type walls.  The roof leaked a lot this last year with the tropical storms moving though.  James and I decided we had to do something about it to improve the security of the roof but also to improve my mental health.

James is a researcher. He found this rubberized product from the US, had it shipped and 16 hours later we rubberized our roof.  I don't remember ever being quite so dirty, but, isn't that what I promote as a good thing?

We still have two more coats, in white, thank God as the house is now known as Casa de Smurf.

We could have hired someone for a ton of money, but we decided to take on the challenge. 

You will see the images of the house on FB.

Don't be afraid to take projects on.  It is only time and a few muscle aches, but we are proud of ourselves that we accepted the challenge.

I read an article the other day about improving ourselves one percent per day.

I loved it.

When was the last time you tried to do that, or at least changed the rhythm of your life?

I know I bring this subject or ones that are similar, up frequently but I so strongly believe it is one of the keys to happiness.  Or, are you that person who is content with the way things have been for years and don't see a need to challenge yourself?  

Is life looking a bit grey, not so colorful anymore?  Have you and your partner, if you have one, just "doing the do"?

One percent, that is all.   One percent of your 24 hour day is about 14 minutes.  Now you see what i am talking about.  Minimal.

What could you do?  Read, walk, call a friend, see a neighbor, write a post in a diary, meditate, yoga, breathing exercises, quiet, talk to your partner re: a dream, look up positive ideas on the internet, not look at the news, etc, etc.  You get the idea. Tomorrow you will add one minute to this plan, and each day after that.

The whole idea is to make changes.  Good changes in your life.  If you think you are old, well, maybe you are acting old, but to begin a 14 minute challenge is worth it.

We live in very troubling times, so, let's turn that around and start the CHALLENGE.

The CHALLENGE is you challenging yourself.

This area is dedicated to people who want to explore.

Explore what?

Your capabilities.

My friend in BonAire is crafty, curious and frequently does artful things that I never thought of.  She just joined a group online that specializes in refurbishing items. New for her.  No fear!

When is the last time you tried something new?

Another good friend, Sis, sends me something two to three times per week that she creates.  Sometimes food, sometimes craft, sometimes she has torn her kitchen apart to make it new, refreshed. This gal has no limits and I have learned so much from her.  I love her for it!

If you are bored, please let me suggest you go to Pinterest, other crafty sites or stir up your friends to get ideas and try something new.

When do we stop growing?  Never!  Because that is a short trip to getting old.  If you like that idea, maybe consider re-energizing yourself. The more self-energy you create the more people will want to be around you as your energy is contagious.  

My husband is really wanting me to open a pie shop!  Oh geez was my first reaction.  "You can open it" I told him.  But then I had to challenge my own beliefs that I was too old, not interested, etc. The more I thought about it, I thought, why wouldn't I?  There are a thousand reasons why I wouldn't, but I at least have to check in with myself to see why I so quickly said no.  

Fresh ideas are great for us.  This may not require getting dirty, but do something!

What ideas have you had, whether they came to fruition or not?  Let's share!