Thoughts on Proximity

Proximity is a funny thing, isn’t it? And there are so many interesting places we could go with this discussion. Proximity

Dictionary.com: prox·im·i·ty [prok-sim-i-tee], noun. nearness in place, time, order, occurrence, or relation.

Sometimes proximity is a wonderful thing. I enjoy close proximity with some of my good friends which is wonderful! I love that I can pop over there for an evening or ride my bike over. Close proximity to Dairy Queen could be a dangerous thing (although in my case, I manage to limit my visits there to about once a year, in spite of its close proximity).  It is great to be in relatively close proximity to my parish, a lot of my family, and many friends.

Here’s the proximity biting me in the tush right now:

This is my side yard. To the right you can see my veggie garden, where I love to spend hours and hours of time, spring, summer, and fall. To the left you can see the neighbor’s carport, grill, and smoking chair, where he likes to spend hours and hours of time, during every season, as far as I can tell.

Notice just how close those two are in proximity to each other. Yeah. That’s the new excitement around these parts (as if the chickens weren’t excitement enough!).  Gardening with an audience. And man is it AWKWARD!! Saturday the neighbor started grilling around 11, so I thought I’d give him plenty of time to finish his grilling and move on to other activities. So I headed out for some gardening around 2 pm. Still grilling. Sitting in his white chair in the carport with his cigarettes, Bud Light, loud music, and grilling away. For two hours. Watching me garden. AWKWARD! I decided to avoid eye contact because that made it even more awkward. I also thought that perhaps he would find it awkward and go inside. Nope. He finds it so not-awkward he even sang along to the music, with me there gardening 4 feet away. And had a very loud phone conversation, where he mentioned grilling ALL DAY at least 7 times, because hey, you’ve got it made when you can just move the grill under the carport in case of rain.

All of this close proximity is making me think this:

And this:

And this:

In spite of my little, tiny hedge I started planting, I’m thinking I may not be patient enough to endure this for a few years before going the direction of a privacy fence.

And then I have to decide which fence to get (probably the most affordable one) and whether or not to have a gate to close it in at the front or just leave it open. So many decisions…

This post has been brought to you by: Proximity. And Really Loud Music. Have a nice day!

Dirt as therapy

I like it when science proves what I already know: Dirt is good for you. Today is a good therapy day. I slept in late. Drank coffee and unloaded the dishwasher. And have spent a couple hours outside in the garden. Lots of work left, but I've got the front beds cleared of leaves, debris, and a bunch of grass poking up. Everything is poking out of the dirt- even the stuff that is usually much later in the season. I suppose everything is thrilled with this 70 degree weather and just assumes it is time. Sigh of contentment. I LOVE SPRING!!

Today the first of my hyacinths are blooming and the forsythia is beginning to bloom. I LOVE IT! The crocuses have been blooming for a couple weeks now and continue. The tulips and daffodils are tall but not in bloom yet. All of the bushes have buds growing. I love spring! It makes me feel so alive!

On another note, the neighbors... the girl across the street (there are two little girls who used to just keep to themselves but now that Elijah is around, they spend a lot of time together and more time in the street than they used to). Anyway, the girl who looks to be around 8 asked if she could shoot hoops on my basketball hoop. Of course, no problem. Moments later Elijah was over as well. And then dad yelling to Elijah (across me basically since I was in my front flower bed) to see if he had asked to use it and to not hit my car. Eye roll. Then there was some altercation I was trying to ignore that resulted in a lot of yelling in the house- dad at Elijah. Then a kid from a few blocks over came by to ask if Elijah could go to the park-no. Then more yelling at Elijah. Sigh. People, your windows and doors are open, the whole neighborhood doesn't need to hear it. And the lady on her hands and knees in the garden was really hoping for some peace and quiet while digging in the dirt!

Still waiting for me- the dreaded winter clean up of the backyard. Not my favorite task, but it must happen. And if I do that today, tomorrow I can plant lettuce and spinach (sabbath appropriate tasks-- no matter how you slice it, I can't justify dog clean up as not work).

Also, a previous coworker of mine stopped in yesterday to drop off some stuff. He has a dozen 4' Rose of Sharon bushes that keep cropping up in his yard and I had mentioned that I want a hedge between my vegetable garden and my dear neighbors. So he offered to have me come pick them up in the next week or two! Imagine that! A nice 4' hedge of Rose of Sharon bushes hiding my garden from the world and giving me at least some semblance of privacy for my therapy haven. I may also see if I can scavenge some forsythia shoots from people so I can intersperse them.

Last but not least, my brother Brendan gave me a chicken kit for Christmas -- feeders, an egg holder, a gift card to buy the supplies and chicks, and the promise of a Saturday when he'd come over with Geno (and their tools) and we'd get my old craigslist coop into working order. I'm kind of excited and kind of wondering if I am insane for even considering a couple backyard chickens... it is probably insane... stay tuned. This may indeed be the year for Operation Chicken at the Nichols Homestead.

Happy St. Patrick's day friends! And Happy Spring!

Glimpses of Spring

We are having unseasonably warm weather this winter.  There was a lot of hype over how hard the winter was going to be and now there’s a lot of hype over how much this indicates a frightening climate change. Ah well. Whatever it is or is not, I am not opposed to a lighter winter than usual and spring arriving a month early. 

Also, spring makes me feel like a person again. No matter how much other stuff I am contending with right now (and there is certainly stuff to contend with), spring and the return of green and growing and sunshine and an excuse to be outside… ahhhhh. sigh of contentment.  This wanna-be-farmer is very, very happy (and yes, I still want sheep). 

Today spring means flowers… gardens to uncover… and the patio door open so the dogs can come in and out… and fresh air… and sunshine… I LOVE SPRING!

In other random news

I love late in the season flowers in general, and roses specifically. I moved this rosebush that has been unhappy for years (in the far away corner of the vegetable garden) to the opposite side of the front door from the crazy happy rosebush, hoping some of the happy vibes (and frequent coffee grounds) would revive it. It has done much better this year than any other time in all the years since I planted it.

Today there are 6 buds and one fully bloomed rose on it. Beautiful!! Nothing quite so great as flowers blooming right when everything else seems to be winding down for the season.

so beautiful

Tada!!

Tomato season has officially begun around here (okay so there have been four yellow pear tomatoes ripe so far...). Hooray!!

The cilantro is flowering and popping up everywhere. The lettuce is plentiful and hasn't scorched yet. Beans, peas, cucumbers, and peppers are all flowering and putting out little veggies. Loving the garden.

And in other news, they put my next door neighbor's house on the market. Keep in mind my huge veggie garden is in the side yard outside their carport. So I'm rather glad that I mulched, that the stella d'oro daylilies are so beautiful, and it's on the market now while the garden looks almost picturesque. Anyone know anyone in the market for a 3 bedroom ranch, with really awesome neighbors? Maybe you know a nice single man who should move in there...

Homegrown is the best

I made a salad using all my own lettuce this weekend and cilantro. Of course nothing else is ready yet, but the lettuce is ready for eating and it is delicious. Mmmm. And there was one tomato showing just a touch of color yesterday. My mouth is already watering. Tomato season. Mmmmm. Bring it on!!

Baby steps...

Last year I surgery this time of the year and was out of commission for that critical part of spring/summer where you reign in the jungles and get things done. So I just let everything go.... so this year, it is quite clear I have my work cut out for me!! And I should mention how INCREDIBLY thankful I am to not be having surgery right now! I'm thankful for the time (ish) and energy to do a lot of work in my gardens. Whew. God is good! Back to the gardens...

First I tilled and planted the vegetable garden. So far I've got: lettuce, sugar snap peas, beans, cilantro, rosemary, basil, cucumbers, tomatoes (lots), peppers (lots), onions... and probably something else I'm forgetting. Still need to add mulch to this whole area and get some more compost in and do some grading.

And then I planted some snapdragons and weeded the front flower bed and the side of the garage bed. And then weeded and fixed up the lilac hedge (too many weeds and sunflowers in there and a lilac bush that needed to move).

Next was the berry corner, I had my handymen (Emmet and Joe P) rip ot the falling apart garden edging boards and put in new ones. Much better. Then I ripped out everything except the raspberry bushes and the rhubarb, rototilled, and replanted what I wanted. I know it was a little late in the season to do it, so my strawberries will probably suffer, but there were soooo many weeds and so much to do, it was easier to dig it up and start fresh. It looks great now and all I need to do now is add mulch! The berry corner includes: 4 raspberry bushes, strawberries, rhubarb, and some flowers. Some day I want my own little mini u-pick farm... but for now I'll settle for the berry corner. Note to self: put out netting so the birds don't get all the berries!

Then there's that middle jungle... good heavens. A few years ago I planted these cool looking sunflower flowers, that, while pretty, literally TAKE OVER everything in sight. Last year it was simply the middle of the yard jungle. (Note Maggie sitting in her castle just to see over the jungle... or maybe she's just up there exercising her superiority complex)

The few things still alive after years of neglect weren't doing well and it was time! I started the project and then my awesome homie Jenny needed a project and spent a day ripping it all out (except the peony bush and the unidentifiable bush). Now I'm slowly moving, splitting other plants, and adding plants to make this area. Still need to do some new edging and add more plants, but it is progress and already looks SOOO much better already. (Stay tuned for done photos of that in a week or two...)

I got a load of mulch delivered on Tuesday and have begun the arduous task of hauling it to all the garden areas to spread it. So far I managed to mulch the lilac hedge and the side of the garage garden. Such an improvement. And a great comfort to know having the mulch will cut down on the watering and the weeding. Clearly a win win (if only I can find the time to haul it).

So that's what is happening at the homestead lately... lots of playing in the dirt, appreciating the June color explosion, filling vase upon vase in the house with flowers, and hauling mulch. Happy gardening!

My love affair with dirt

I've spent two days in the dirt and am finally beginning to feel human again. My mind is off my job and onto the last garden jungle I want to tackle tomorrow. I don't know why working in the dirt is so theraputic, I just know that it is. Somehow, hands and knees in soil draws closer to the One who makes it all possible. Rooting out weeds makes me ponder sin and the need to be ruthless and vigilant, like I haven't been about my weeding. Flowers to remind me of God's love for me, the gift of the beauty He surrounds me with. The crazy dog that continues to drop the ball in front of me, begging for another round of her favorite game, and yet content to sit next to me while I dig in the dirt, reminds me that I am loved on a much more basic level. Ahhh I love it all!!

Not to mention I have actually made some visible progress on SOMETHING in my life, which is encouraging. In the last two days, I've managed to:
- Buy veggie plants at the Farmer's Markets, and some flowers for good measure.
- Clean up, weed, transplant a bush or two in the lilac hedge
- Dig up everything in the berry garden, till it, replant what I want in a cleaned up, weed free bed. (We won't discuss how Maggie decided to lay in the freshly replanted strawberries b/c the dirt was nice and cool... grrrr)
- Weed, till, plant the vegetable garden (still need to buy cuke, bean, and pea seeds and plant them)
- Started digging up the middle of the backyard jungle, but only a small start.... must get to the rest of that tomorrow. That's the bed that needs complete rennovation. Also need to dig up any plants I want to save, rip everything else out, till, and then replant. I've got other plants to move from other places to fill it in too-- kind of a project but it will be SO nice when it's done.
- Plant snapdragons in the front bed for a splash of color
- Trim pine tree branches
- Sleep in
- Visit with the Homies a bit

Still left:
- mow and rake yard
- middle of the backyard garden rennovation
- split and transplant some flowers
- move a little lilac bush
- clean the house
- laundry
- make dinner for some friends
- BBQ and game night with friends

Loving loving loving the long weekend and all the dirt. Gaining a bit more perspective. God is good!

Loving the sunshine

We have had two more weeks of rain around here... so the yard is atrocious!! I had spent all that time taming the jungle 2 weeks ago, only to have it either too wet or too dark anytime I was home to deal with it. So today I left work early (after a scant 48 hour, completely mentally exhausting work week)... and came home to face the music. The front is at least done- had to mow over it twice. Still need to weed whack. I even weeded the front flower bed and moved a couple plants. Then on to the back... about half done. RIDICULOUS. The grass is either really thick back there or non-existant and overrun with dandelions. Not a pretty sigh. And yet... gosh I love being outside, and sunny days, and a yard to cut. And even the dandelions looked beautiful reflecting in the setting sun. It's great to be home and in my yard...even if it seems like I'm losing the battle to the weeds right now.

And now, for the list of things that need my attention outside:
1. Weed vegetable garden and prep for planting
2. Move some flowers from vegetable garden to elsewhere
3. New garden bed boundaries for berry garden. Weed. Add compost. Move some plants.
4. Weed lilac border garden. Get rid of sunflower things taking over the whole area. Take time to smell the lilacs.
5. Middle of backyard garden box... Ugh. New boundaries. Dig up most of it and completely rennovate. Add compost. Weed.
6. Try not to mow over and kill clematis again (like the last 3 years).
7. Redeck playstructure.
8. Decide on Operation Backyard Chicken...
9. Side garden bed - weed. Get rid of bishop's weed trying to creep in. Harness lemon balm or get rid of it altogether.
10. Weed whack edges of everything.
11. Plant vegetable garden.
12. Not to mention cutting down the 6 huge pine trees of much loathing, ripping out and replacing the patio and driveway, and regrading the entire yard....

Baby steps, Reenie, baby steps.

Guess what I found???

Yeah, practically peeing my pants in excitement over here... SPRING!!!!

On recovery... and patience...

So... I must say, this recovery thing is still not my cup of tea, despite good progress as far as I can tell. Here's the thing, the inability to be super productive (particularly on Saturdays) really does kill me. Kills. Me. I am still trying very hard to be good because I really don't want to drag this out any longer than necessary, but wow, it is definitely a lesson in patience. I assume all my mommy friends out there know this - I know you've experienced this in lots of ways, that everything takes 12 times longer than it should. However, there is one notable difference, you all have really cute (and needy) reasons for this. Me? I've got a 6" incision in my stomach. Not nearly so cute. I am ready to walk at my ridiculously productive pace again, work as long as I decide to, and just get back to my full energy insanity. aaahhhh. Patience. Still working on the patience thing. One day at a time.

On a positive note, today I weeded a lot, probably 3 hours total, with breaks in between, and I'm finally beginning to see progress (and yes, I am sore right now). I also watered the poor parched garden and managed to thread my soaker hoses through the tomato half of the garden to give them a good drink too. I think I can say I've gotten about 75% of the vegetable garden at least under control. Not perfect. Not weed free, but at least to the point that you can see what is actually growing there. Just 25% to go and then weaving soaker hoses through the rest of the garden and putting down straw for mulch. Though it wasn't nearly what I'd like to have accomplished, I think it was a decent amount for a three weeks post-surgery Reenie. I also managed to grocery shop, talk to my BFF on the phone for an hour, look up chicken coop plans (on one of those between weeding breaks), and am considering a shower at some point. I know. Look at me go :)

And now it is time to end this very trivial blog post.

Off to a good start?

By the time I finally left work on Friday, an hour after I'd started leaving, I didn't think the long weekend was going well. I missed my hair appointment. I was sore from being at work all day. I was kind of cranky. And traffic was bad. Sigh.

But sometimes the little things have an amazing ability to turn things around. I sat on the patio and read the town newsletter with my feet up in this fabulous chair that I don't typically spend much time actually sitting in (thanks Kara). I made a batch of sangria (yay for summer sangria). I threw the ball for an attention-starved, ball-starved mutt. I wandered to the berry corner and found a whole bowl full of ripe raspberries!! This is my third year with the raspberries bushes and the first time I've found more than 6 ripe at the same time. True, it is a tiny bowl, but these little jewels definitely made my day.

Then Jenny Pink came over and we drank some sangria together. And she's just terrific in general and fun to hang out with. Definitely a kindred spirit. And she's thinking about moving in, which I'm very excited for. Better yet, the move in conditions include finishing the cabinet doors (covering her bedroom to be) and painting the bedroom! Two projects I desperately want to finish but, thanks to this whole recovery thing, have made no progress on. Woo hoo!!

I would have to say, I did get off to a good start after all, even after the work and haircut fiasco. Today I slept in, visited with Susy (a friend who is visiting for the weekend and making it very confusing having a dog by the same name), drank some great coffee, and now I'm determined to make some progress on that weed patch that has some vegetables hiding in it somewhere. Maybe before it gets horribly hot....

Happy Independence Day, friends. Happy long weekend. Happy July!

More Babies

I have been sitting more in the last few days than I can ever remember doing. It may kill me yet, but I am trying to be good... anyway, the other night, while sitting on the patio enjoying the gorgeous evening, I noticed a bird sitting under one of the pine trees, on a log, perfectly still and not going anywhere. I watched him for awhile and finally decided I should go warn him about the dogs and their um... attachment to eating small things. I walked right up to him- a gorgeous baby robin, clearly fresh out of a nest (the pine trees house lots of birds nests every year). Naturally I ran for the camera... and then encouraged him to go through the fence and he hopped down the road happily and very much still alive. It sure feels good to save something's life.

Then today I found this... sigh... I guess you can't save them all.

Learning Patience and the Garden

I am not a very patient person. Not necessarily impatient with other people, but mostly impatient with myself. I always want to accomplish more than is possible in any given time. I want my house to be perfect, to finish my kitchen, to plant my garden, to pray enough, exercise enough, work enough, socialize enough... sigh... I am not good at balance. And I am really bad at being told to "take it easy"... this ovarian cyst is already proving to be a stretch to my patience- and we've barely gotten started!!

Saturday I woke up in a fair amount of pain and the pain killers really did very little for me. Never one to be stopped by some pain, I went to Farmer's Market and picked up my pepper and tomato plants for the garden. I rested when I got home (like a good girl) and then eventually went out to plant. In my defense, the hard part was already done- I'd tilled, weeded, and spread compost. All that needed to happen was putting those plants and some seeds into the ground.

My housemate, sweetheart that she is, volunteered to mow the grass. And then helped me plant the garden. (Mind you, the homie doesn't actually like doing any of these things- but was worried about me apparently). I was in a lot of pain for the acutal planting- but was taking it easy, scooting around on my butt, taking it slow, and not overdoing it. And I feel great having gotten it all planted and in, hurray!!

Here's what I've got planted:
Onions
Sugar snap peas
Beans
Carrots
Lettuce
Cilantro
Rosemary
Basil
Tomatoes
Bell peppers
Jalepeno peppers
Tomatillo

I can't wait!!

Location, location, location

A few days ago when I walked out the front door and a robin fluttered up right in front of me, leaving a trail of sticks and garden scraps, I noticed he/she was building a nest. Right in my rose bush. Right outside my front door!! Not the quiet, peaceful place I would have chosen, though the rose bush is lovely. Today I peeked into the nest and saw she's laid eggs in there. We're going to have baby birdies right outside my door!

In the meantime, every time my housemate gets home from work, the robin flutters out of the nest practically into her face and makes her jump.



I'm just hoping this robin is smart enough to avoid the dogs in the backyard... they are much too quick, even for you winged creatures. For the sake of your babies, AVOID THE BACKYARD!

Dirt Therapy

After a rather disappointing Monday and a crummy Tuesday, Karen came over tonight and we split plants and got dirty. Sigh of contentment. Somehow I can work hard all day, and see no progress (especially in a job where there are no major landmarks, projects, marks of progress). Then I can come home, put on bum clothes, get out my magical shovel, and make things happen. Not to mention doing a project in the dirt with a good friend, I mean, I really don't think it gets better than that. My love languages are Quality Time and Acts of Service, but particularly Quality Time in the form of working on something together. Tonight hit the spot. We split and dug up plants from my yard, then headed to Karen's to plant, yay! I am blessed. Thanks Karen for taking time for the perfect evening for me anyway :)

Happy Spring! (again and again and again)

Eeek... the forsythia is blooming today... and the crocuses are pretty well done and the Chionodoxa (yes, I had to look up the name) are blooming. And the daffodils. And the hyacinths (note to self: plant more daffodils and hyacinths, you need more of them around). Happy Spring!!


And now before bed, I need to sew a couple sashes for tomorrow's Living Stations of the Cross.

Happy Triduum.

Stuff that I love...

'tis the season...

Dogs: 1
Rabbits: 1
Tulips: 0
Reenie: -2

My tulips have been coming up so nicely in the garden, with some hair scattered around to keep the rabbits away. I think in the wind yesterday, the hair blew away, and this morning I noticed one tulip clump had been chewed. "Those wascally wabbits!" I said to myself, determined to keep my tulips from further chewing. I swept the house, scattered more dog hair around said tulips and went around back for a game of ball with the dogs. It was then I saw more evidence of chewing... but chewing of a more grotesque nature. Yeah, there in my back yard was one of those wascally wabbits (perhaps the very one who ate my tulips) quite chewed. Gag. I actually had to cover it with a rag in order to clean it up without throwing up as it's midsection was chewed most of the way through and oh so gross. Nonetheless, the rabbit is now cleaned up. The tulips are surrounded by dog hair, and I am almost ready to pull out that chicken for dinner...

The moral of the story: Spring has truly arrived at the Nichols homestead and the massacre has begun.