“If at first you don’t succeed…

…try, try again!!” I’ll attempt–one more time–to successfully grow tomatoes.

Veggie plants are growing poorly in the smaller containers. Perhaps the “giant climbing tomato” will do better in a larger planter?? We’ll see. The burlap-bag tomato planter was an impulse purchase at Tractor Supply. It’s cute–and large!! Two bags of planter soil “large”!!

Temperature at ten

Preparing to transplant

Transplanted tomato

Unique tomato planter

Planter full of soil

Newly planted tomato

Tomato plant variety

Adding another pepper plant

Added another pepper plantPepper plant is sickly so I’ll get another one started.

Temperature at twelve

Temperature at two

Temperature at fiveWe will have rain off-and-on all weekend. Such sweet relief from the heat!!

Call me crazy!? I just checked the Old Farmer’s Almanac for planting information according to the moon. Maybe that will help me, and my garden??

Too little closet space, too many clothes !!

Yesterday, I spent time and energy on an “indoor” project. I wanted the summer-weight long skirts stored under the bed. The top of the bed had to be unloaded before it could be lifted (and, intentionally, no picture of the clutter). All the closet organizers, and clothes, had to be removed from the pole. A lapse of several hours between start and finish. First: Lunch in Livingston with Escapees RV Club Chapter Ten. Second: Root-beer float and socializing in the CARE Dining Room 2:30 and following. Third: A one-on-one visit with a friend recently returned from travels. Finally: Return the closet organizers, and clothes, to the pole. Whew!! A lot of work!! Now, most Winter items are under the bed. Eventually: Seriously reduce my large wardrobe!!

Winter items under bed

RVing T-shirts

The bed without clutter

Pole before adding organizers

Added one organizer

Added another organizer

Square dance vest with badges

Clothes added to pole

Small closet

Summer long skirts

Four favorite long skirts

The Magic Bank Account

The Magic Bank Account

Imagine that you had won the following *PRIZE* in a contest:
Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400 in your private account for your personal use.

However, this prize has rules.  The set of rules are as follow:

  1. Everything that you don’t spend each day will be taken away from you.
  2. You may not simply transfer money into some other account.
  3. You may only spend it.
  4. Each morning,  upon awakening, the bank opens your account with another $86,400 for the new day.
  5. The bank can end the game without warning; at any time it can say,“Game Over!”   It can close the account and you will not receive a new one.

What would you personally do with your prize?

You would buy anything and everything you wanted right? Not only for yourself, but for all the people you love and care for. Even for people you don’t know, because you couldn’t possibly spend it all on yourself, right?   You would try to spend every penny, and use it all, because you knew money would be replenished in the morning, right?

Actually, THIS GAME IS REAL.  Shocked ? Yes!   Each of us is already a winner of a much more valuable *PRIZE*.   We just don’t seem to realize it.

The prize is *TIME*

  1. Each morning we awaken to receive 86,400 seconds as a gift of life.
  2. And when we go to sleep at night, any remaining time is NOT credited to us.
  3. What we haven’t used up that day is forever lost.
  4. Yesterday is forever gone.
  5. Each morning the account is refilled, but the bank can dissolve your account at any time WITHOUT WARNING.

So, WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH YOUR 86,400 seconds today?

Those seconds are worth much, much more than the same amount in dollars.  Think about it and remember to enjoy every second of your life, because time races by so much quicker than you think.

So take care of yourself, be happy, love deeply and enjoy life!  Here’s wishing you a wonderful and beautiful day. Start “spending” your valuable *PRIZE* wisely.

Magic Bank Account dollar bill

Seriously ?!

“Yes,” seriously!! A special trip to Tractor Supply (yesterday) for squirrel food. (OK, squirrel food and a few other things.) This little corner of the world is the “Garden of Eat-in.” (The critters love me?!) I could spend my entire day taking pictures of critters. Right now, looking out my living room window, I see a brown gecko on a brown-gold wind-chime, and a red Cardinal on the feeder. Yesterday, a frog hopped out from under a planter on the patio. Wildlife come and go. Remember the rabbit that visits morning and evening (earlier pictures)?? ~~ If you are curious about a feeder bolted to a cute little chair: In North Carolina, raccoons would get into the squirrel feeder at night. Bringing the chair/feeder into the apartment at night, I outwitted the raccoons!!

Squirrel on feeder

Squirrel on feeder (2)

Bluejay

Squirrel feeder May 2014

Squirrel food

Pesky moleThe moles are my enemy and I’ve made it difficult for them to dig in my immediate yard area. This past year, I’ve covered the surface with more than one-hundred cement paving blocks. Checking back, I see the cement block project started eleven months ago with A New Project. It rained…, the kids did not arrive to assist…; it has been a one-woman-project. Seriously!!

In a groove, …

Temperature at three-thirty…broken record. You know, the old 78 RPM vinyl disks we used to play on the phonograph? That kind of “broken record.” Well, it’s an analogy: I’m comparing it to my monotonous repetitious mention of the weather and the heat.

Pepper plant with very few leavesI had every intention to work on projects inside my trailer. However, I went shopping at Tractor Supply, and Lowe’s, for garden items and several more plants. Specifically, I want to get another green pepper plant started before the present plant dies.

Periwinkle bloomSweat was pouring off me as I foolishly worked (briefly) in the yard mid-afternoon. To my surprise, and delight, I saw my first Periwinkle bloom. Thriving plants make me happy; stricken plants make me sad.Smiley face emotion sad cropped

5:18 PM temperature per Houston NBC-TV news: “96 degrees in Livingston and ‘feels like 103′.” ~~ If it is cool where you live, count your blessings!!

Watching them grow !!

You have my permission to skip past this blog message if you have no interest in my garden. I may be the only person interested in watching–and documenting–the growth of some of my plants. Some… were nurtured through the Winter but were hard-hit by our last deep freeze. Some… have failed to push out new growth. But I am hopeful they will recover

Begonia from North Carolina

All came from North Carolina.

Begonia from North Carolina

Begonia in Smiley Face planter

Begonia from North Carolina

Begonia in Smiley face planter

Begonia from North Carolina

Begonias from last year

Last years Begonias

Begonias May thirteen

Begonias

Blue Geranium (mail order from garden catalog)

Blue Geranium

Blue Geranium May fifteen

Geranium better than sister plant

Rest in peace

Blue Geranium (mail order from garden catalog)

Blue Geranium has taken root

Blue Geraniums

Blue Geranium May fourteen

Blue Geranium

Rest in peace

Boston Fern

Close up of Boston Fern

Boston Ferns

Butterfly Bush (mail order from garden catalog)

Fertilizer for plants

Butterfly bush

Butterfly bush May thirteen

Butterfly bush thirty inches May fifteenth

Butterfly Bush bloom

Butterfly bush

Lots of blooms in the near future

Butterfly bush bloom

Butterfly bush

Cape Honeysuckle from previous year

Cape Honeysuckle

Cape Honeysuckle May thirteen

Cape Honeysuckle

Cucumber seeds to plants and vines

Cucumber plants

Cucumber

Cucumber with elephant size leaves

Cucumber May thirteen

Cucumber flowers May fifteenth

Cucumber

Cucumber plant is dying

Rest in peace

Hummingbird-Trumpet Vines (mail order from garden catalog)

Hummingbird Trumpet Vine (2)

Hummingbird vine

Hummingbird-Trumpet Vines (1)

Hummingbird-Trumpet Vines (2)

Hummingbird vine May thirteen

Starting to climb the tree

Training the vine

Trumpet vine close up

Larkspur

Plant stand and Larkspur

Mandevilla from previous year… replaced…

Mandevilla (1)

Rest in peace

New Mandevilla

Mandevilla

Mandevilla from previous year

Mandevilla (2)

Rest in peace

Mosquito plant (mail order from garden catalog)

Mail order Mosquito plant

Mosquito plant appears to be dying

Rest in peace

Mosquito plant (mail order from garden catalog)

Mosquito plant looks good

Mail order Mosquito plant (2)

Mail order mosquito plant

Mosquito plant from previous year

Mosquito plant from last year

Rest in peace

Mosquito plant from Livingston farm and garden supply store

New Mosquito plant

Mosquito plant replaced one from last year

Pepper (nursery potted plant from Lowe’s)

Pepper

See the peppers? May fifteenth

Pepper plant

Pepper plant with very few leaves

Petunias

Hanging planters with Petunias

Petunias in hanging baskets

Petunia is dying

Salvia plant from previous year

Salvia from last year

Salvia with bloom

Salvia

Strawberry plants (mail order from garden catalog)

Strawberry plants

Strawberry plants

Strawberry bloom

My first strawberry

Strawberry plant in black planter

Strawberry plant in tan planter

Two Strawberry planters

Strawberry

Tomato plant from Livingston Lowe’s

Tomato plant needs to be planted

Tomato plant from Lowe's

Recently planted tomato from Lowe's

Lowe's tomato plant May thirteen

Dead or dying

Yellow tomatoes, sick plant

Tomato plant is almost dead

Tomato plant(s) from seeds

Giant tomato plants from seeds

Tomato plants from seeds

Tomatoes from seeds

Zucchini

Pepper and zucchuni

Zucchini

Zucchini

Zucchini with bloom

See Mary. Mary, quite contraryand Trying to get organized. ~~ See this blog message about saving “Tommy” tomato plant, and this one showing his current appearance.

Back-lit Butterfly Bush

Smiley face with camera

Butterfly bush (1)

Butterfly bush (2)A photographer, I’m not!! But I scrutinize the scene (for every picture) and “pose” the subject. I loved the appearance of the back-lit Butterfly bush. After I took the first picture, I saw leaves on the ground, in the background. So I picked up the leaves–in 95 degrees, “feels like 104” degrees heat. (Official temp per Houston NBC-TV meteorologist.)

I love the Internet!! I wanted a link for Butterfly Bush and found an article that challenges the gardener to **NOT** plant the invasive” plant. I didn’t know!!

Shepherd's Hooks with wind chimes

Three Blue JayPostscript, Sunday, June 14, 2015 (Flag Day), 7:30 AM: (Repeat) A photographer, I’m not!! However, the Canon camera is always nearby. I’ve never seen more than one Blue Jay at a time. That picture is truly a “point and shoot”inside my trailer, two feet from the window. (Afterthought: Perhaps it was a mistake to put Shepherd’s Hooks, with wind chimes, between that feeder and my view?! My “eyes” [and ears] approve but a detractor in pictures.)