“Compost tea” is liquid gold. It collects in the bottom of the Garden Tower and has the nutrients from organic soil, decomposing vegetable scraps, and earthworm poop. I climb the ladder and pour the “tea” into the upside-down Topsy-Turvy tomato planter. Some… runs through… and I collect in the pan. I can’t have the Bell Pepper plant directly under the tomato plant because each one needs its own space. ~~ “Obsessive-compulsive”; I can’t stop.

When it gets too hot and humid, this old lady comes back indoors and turns on the air-conditioner. Time for lunch, and time to relax with my blog. I’ve used all my miscellaneous containers and question whether I want to put veggies in the simulated whiskey barrel planters.

.

Those were “flower planters” in North Carolina, and Livingston, Texas. “Veggies” are more valuable than flowers!!  Several residents of this RV Park are planning for salad lunches every weekday—group participation, at the clubhouse. We want to get our dear owner-manager healthy!! I’m praying for a “bumper crop” of homegrown veggies.

The plant was not growing. I speculated all the growth energy was going into the two tomatoes. I’ve never previously tasted “fried green tomatoes” but (obviously) I wanted to “save” this fresh vegetable. It tasted good.

This morning, the collapsed table—and all the things piled on it—spurred this old lady to search for something to remedy the disaster. Gratefully, among my overabundance of possessions, I have this plastic table. Until the “downsizing” is complete, I need this “work surface.”

.
.

2:40 PM and I’m hot and tired. When I get started—whatever the project—there’s never a stopping point. I limped indoors, turned on the air-conditioner, and swallowed an Aleve. Picture-taking and blog-making are relaxing. (Grammarly just corrected me. I thought: Picture-taking is… and blog-making is…; why am I supposed to use “are”?)

I’m compulsive about gardening now. I needed (wanted) more planter soil so headed for The Home Depot. At the corner where I turn, there is a Dollar Tree. I planned to buy some gardening items because—in the past—always a big variety. None at this store but I bought some brand-name canned vegetables and brand-name soup. (Soup is so expensive at the market; have you noticed?) At the register, my credit card was rejected. I was so embarrassed!! Fortunately, I had a “never-used” debit card in my wallet (with my Waco bank).  ~~I contacted my credit card company last week because I was concerned about email messages indicating my Norton-360 had been renewed (almost $600.00). I don’t have Norton-360. I had requested that my card be “unlocked” but, obviously, my request was ignored.

…how do we label “impatience”?

I started the GEDCOM about sixteen hours ago–and it is still “uploading.” Truthfully, I went to bed about 2:00 so I wasn’t “wiggling” the mouse. I don’t know when it stopped… but it has been “doing” since I restarted it at 7:30 AM. So… I’ve been extremely close to the desktop computer hoping (and praying) I’ll eventually see the family tree—and FamilyTreeDNA subscribers will also see the tree.  I’m impatient!! (I’m impatient–and sleepy.)

Being at the computers is a good thing. I’m using the laptop computer for this blog message, and for email messages. I’ve sent several long, newsy email messages; I’ve visited my bank’s website and reconciled my check register.

I had an unexpected road trip. Remember, Lorraine has not done much driving during the past fourteen months. “Mr. Red” came to see my garden—and almost collapsed. I begged him “don’t fall, I can’t pick you up.” He would have driven himself home but another resident and I insisted on driving him home. The “other resident” drove Mr. Red’s truck and I followed along and brought “other resident” home. (Yup, you guessed correctly: The GEDCOM stopped and I had to restart it.)

OMG, using the laptop computer is taxing. My eyes are getting so bad and everything seems to arrive in tiny print. I’m exhausted from trying to read the tiny print, I’m sleepy… and I’m impatient. More details later.

Going to bed at a decent time was my intention!! HONESTLY!! I made the mistake of checking to see if we have the results from a Big-Y-DNA test. “No” it is still being tested. So I checked to see what I could do on the Family Tree DNA website (our account). I didn’t want to manually start a tree “from scratch”—I’d do a GEDCOM. First, I had to question Ancestry.com about how to create a GEDCOM. I jotted down the instructions and tried the experience several times. OK, finally I had a GEDCOM. I went back to FamilyTreeDNA and fumbled around several times trying to upload the file. Really a comedy of errors!! It’s one o’clock in the morning and I can’t walk away from the desktop computer because it “goes to sleep” after ten minutes–and the GEDCOM is still uploading. Here I am, at my laptop computer, watching the progress, and wiggling the mouse every few minutes. “Addition”  to Ancestry made me do it.

This is DNA for ‘Mr. Red,”—the owner–manager of this RV Park. I mentioned in an earlier blog message that “I hit a wall” regarding his great-grandfather. I did extensive searches (repeatedly) and the great-grandfather and his wife are a mystery. “Big-Y-DNA” traces the male lineage–and there are groups for the various surnames. I’m confident we will have an answer—and I’m eager to work with the information from the DNA test.

I’m eager because “Mr. Red” is convalescing after a week in the hospital. He loves the information I’ve already provided and the “link” to his early ancestors will bring joy.

Believe it or not, I’ve used the four bags of planter soil and need to buy more

“New tune in June.”  Before I write about my doings, I suggest you check for the Today Show story with Harry Smith’s interview with the author of  We Are What We Eat.

.

Yesterday, I ventured out (all by myself) to purchase more garden soil at The Home Depot. Then to Walmart for a few items. Gratefully, I got home before an extremely hard rain drenched my yard. I hope, and pray, it didn’t damage my veggie garden.

I think my peculiar footrest is helping my feet and legs problem. Yesterday: Limited pain. ~~ When I shared my perceived health problem with a friend, she said: “Maybe your socks and shoes are too tight.”  BINGO!! I think she had accessed the problem correctly. I had noticed my “wear-them-all-the-time shoes” seemed too tight. She questioned if I had elastic socks. “Yes?” Quite possibly, tight socks and tight shoes contributed to the swollen feet, ankles, and legs? Blood not circulating back to my heart? ~~ In Walmart, I searched the aisles and believe I found an ideal pair of shoes. They are “not too snug,” and almost feel like going barefoot. However, I’ve added Nikken magnets that may (furthermore) alleviate my feet, ankles, and leg problems. (I was a Nikken distributor for many years and believe in the benefit of magnets.)  ~~ I searched for cotton socks or footletts and found none. In the men’s socks aisle, I found “not so stretchy socks.” ~~ Even before I made my purchases, I have been wearing “knobby” sandals (part-time) because it massages the bottom of my feet. It’s a fact: Massaging the bottom of the foot massages every organ of the body. ~~ This past year, I have ignored my health; I have neglected doing the things I’ve practiced for many years. “New tune in June.” ~~ FYI: I’ve had my “knobby sandals” for many years and was surprised (horrified) when I saw the price—when I searched for the Internet link. Forgive me, we should not put a price tag on our health! Honestly, I am probably as healthy as I am (at 86) because I’ve practiced a “holist” lifestyle for half my lifetime.