2026, My year of Garden Narcissism

[ducks4you]

My Weeds are pretty...
We three were gonna mow tomorrow. I don't think so. It's been steadily raining last night through today.
We.are.soaked.
Since I bought stuff for three good meals, I am hoping to persuade DD's to do inside sports at my house tomorrow.
I bought them 2 more bags of weed and feed. The others are hiding behind the brickwork on their cement/brick porch. I also brought them over my grass spreader. I have tried to make it to so that, between the 2 households, we only have ONE of any items that aren't used that often, like the grass spreader, the Bissell, flat floor, low nap rug cleaner--stuff like that that moves back and forth.
I went shopping at Harbor Freight. I asked for help and I bought the cheapest battery operated drill that they had. I intend to drill holes in tree of paradise and raspberry AND maple saplings that I want to kill and pour poison directly into them from above. Don't mind stumps, just the forests of volunteers.
Eldest DD was looking for clamps. Harbor Freight had some very nice and heavy metal clamps,

MUCH better than those plasticky orange ones. I bought 4 of them.

 

[ducks4you]

Did you stay at the brewery for all that time?

I hope there was additional entertainment.

No, sweet @digitS' .
I took it Home with me and enjoyed it for four.straight.hours.

 

[ducks4you]

Some stores are very knowledgeable and helpful, others...not so much.
Menards is one of those places where you often have to help your Self. I have learned that you grab a clerk to ask where in the store something generally is, like materials for a clothes line, then you grab a clerk working in that area to be more specific.

I have this green plastic clothesline, probably bought it over 10 years ago FOR a new clothes line, decided that nowhere on the house acreage could I avoid birds messing on my sheets, so I stored it.
When I painted my new grape vine metal fencing, all 8 of them, I wondered How I could afix this To the vertical posts.
A clerk found me These, and although I thought he grabbed 8, he really grabbed 9 of them. There are designed to connect the clothesline to itself and tighten it. I watched a video about this, and That guy said to attach and stretch it. Also, should it sag, I can loosen up the screws, pull some more clothesline through it and re tighten.
I decided to store these 9 pieces in the box with my new tow wagon bolts, washers and nuts.
I also took a clean yogurt container for the hooks to hold the wires on the inner vertical metal fenceposts. They are similar if not Identical to those that we used when we moved here and had to constantly repair sections of old cattle fencing, except I dunno what happened to those.

 

[ducks4you]

Sorry to tease without pictures, but when DD took our hike on Sunday we came upon numerous small stands of invasive bamboo. I'll ask her to send me the pictures.

 

[flowerbug]

those clamps are very useful for doing things with boards and oddly shaped furniture and ...

i don't have a woodworking shop or much room for storing things (including tools) here but i do have a few clamps like those on the shelves in my closet for times when i need to glue a chair or some boards together or ...

 

[ducks4you]

Harbor Freight has cheaper products BUT I never did care for those long orange clampy...thingy's..
They always looked a little bit flimsy. THESE clamps are heavy and metal.
We will probably go back and get more of them.
Generally, though, 4 clamps is usually enough for any glueing job.
UNLESS, your are Olaf

home - Olaf Grawert Violin Studio

What services I offer

olafgrawertviolinstudio.com

 

[ducks4you]

Yesterday my 2 DD's totally blessed me! We used the tractor and my God mower to mow the 3 acre north pasture, And the 1/2 acre south pasture and youngest DD used my push mower to get the trim...EVERYWHERE!!
This was our plan, although we all didn't have the energy to do Everything on the plan.
Youngest DD got around ALL of the fruit trees in the Inner Sanctum (fenced in area in front of my barn,) and we burned Almost all of it.
No worries--we moved the undone jobs to Friday night.
I found a too-big-to-manually-haul limb in the south pasture and we dragged it with my tractor. COULD have dragged it with my God mower, but I really ask that machine to do So Much...
I want to go back to the south pasture this afternoon and pick up any burnables and take them to my fire pit for another fire. HEAVY rain expected tomorrow, so good timing.
I planned out all 3 meals yesterday and wrote them on my chalk board.
Doesn't Everybody have a chalk board in their kitchen?!?

 

[ducks4you]

Eldest DD loved the clamps and has them under the Victrola in her LR, so she won't lose them before the next project.
SOOOO many calls to make:
1) Crummy car repair shop, that my insurance insSISted I give a 2nd chance for my 2012 White Avalon to "make it right," even though those words were never Spoken by the guy in charge of the repairs, OR, "I'm sorry.";
2) Garbage company, who have double billed me, EVEN THOUGH DD paid them in December for January-March--when I was Village President we had problems with them. The girl who does billing is an idiot;
3) Bank. I have to double check that they will accept my new SS payments for May and June. Grace period ran out in April, I spoke to them Friday, haven't heard back, didn't KNOW in February that I could change the account# online. Right now the next payment to my new account will be in July, and I figure if it doesn't go through they will assume i am DEAD and I will have to jump through hoops.

I have an appt with MY garage to have the oil changed in my 2012 White Avalon right after I get dropped off to pick it up tomorrow morning. My garage understands that I want a Thorough checkup bc they know I want to sell it. Could be done fast OR it could take all day. Who knows?!?!?
I arranged for a friend to be available to pick me up from my garage if it needs to stay, otherwise we will meet and lunch is on ME.
This is what happens when you lose your partner...

 

[ducks4you]

Tarps are my new friend. I completely covered all of the 4' wide stone edging between the house and south and turning east sidewalk in 2025 bc I was tired of the weedfest there, and it has really helped me. I used saved and damaged plastic tablecloths and a few old tarps, and you cannot see them from the street, but they do their job well.
Earlier this week I bought two 8'x10' light duty tarps at Rural King--Better price than Harbor Freight, ironically.
They will soon be put down and secured between the tool shed and the horse trailer, aNOTHER weed fest and hard to mow. Although bricks are great to hold them down, I have some old and long 4" and 6" tall wood, formally bordering raised beds, and I think this will do better bc of the trim mowing near them.
About to head out to try to do some of my "to do list".
I will report back later.

 

[ducks4you]

My silly little town is full of people whose Hobby is to mow. Neighbor mows this strip that is My property, but was never fenced in, but sits behind His property, simply bc he likes to mow it. A few years ago DD rode my mare and we took a video there. She dropped some manure on it, neighbor mowed it once afterwards, was horrified that his mower kicked up horse manure and stopped mowing it for 1/2 a season in protest, then went back to it.
Don't worry about "adverse possession." DD, atty assures me that he has No claims.