2026, My year of Garden Narcissism

[digitS']

This is what happens

 

[ducks4you]

@digitS'

 

[ducks4you]

The crummy garage towed my White Avalon yesterday, mid day. I called at 4:30PM to see if it would be ready today.
NOPE. They still have to check it out.

It was Supposed to be ready a week ago when I picked it up.
I am honoring the insurance company bc they are picking up the tab.
Still, I really hope that they drop their recommendation for this garage.
Anyway, it is Not convenient for me to get this car for another week. I had a friend lined up today to pick me up. She is not available again until next Thursday. I have had to cancel my appt. for My garage to change the oil and check the bad work. They are very accommodating.
Also I heard about cafe car standards for 2027 that all new cars have an apparatus to check your impairment and will stop your car.
GREAT!!

You are driving along and your car Stops and the guy behind you crashes into you.

As I understand it, JUST LIKE wind farms, the technology isn't there yet.
Ask the silly people in my town when we had a 3 day power outage bc of a mid June derechio.
We had breezes but wind farms turbines didn't spin, the town received NO power from them or the power company.
Wind farm advocates had egg on their faces.
There should be more information coming out about this car mandate.
DD says that a SA can order an apparatus be installed on a car driven by a DUI felon, where the driver must blow into it, but THAT only prevents your car from starting.
May I remind everyone that this stupid car law was voted on in 2021, the year we had to:
1) wear a mask to shop and be social
2) get a series of injections with a spike protein
3) carry a signed card to Prove that you were injected and that card could be checked by a law enforcement officer

 

[ducks4you]

My Red Avalon has Features that help you drive Better.
ALL are manually turned on and manually turned off.
One of them slows you down while on cruise control if the car in front of you is slower, and you are kept about 3-4 car lengths behind.
Another will stop your car if you are distracted.
Another beeps when you cross over the center line and yet another beeps and warns you if you have a car passing from behind and you are pulling out in front of them.
Again, ALL can be turned ON and turned OFF.

 

[ducks4you]

Back to gardening...
I need to get all of the strawberries in their strawberry pot--many have red flowers on them, but straight water won't cut it for long.
Don't think the upcoming frosts should bother them much.
Recovering from a minor sniffly cold, so nothing done yesterday or the previous evening, Except I cut off the flowering stem of the grape scented iris that I bought a couple of years ago. It didn't flower in 2025, but there are 2 stalks this year. I grapped a couple of large canning screw tops in the bin for metal recycling bc they were rusted, and carefully dropped them over the 2 stalks so that I will be able to find them again in a few months to harvest and replant.
"Blooms smell exactly like sweet grape soda – violet blue bearded iris in spring"
Yep, they do.
I gave the stalk to youngest DD. Her birthday is Monday, but we are celebrating, "May the Fourth be with you" this weekend and she likes to cut flowers from her yard.
The iris is small and the stalks are very low, compare to my black iris, ginormous by comparison.

Pallida Variagata Gold Iris

Beautiful violet - blue blooms have the classic iris form and delicious, grape - soda like fragrance! Striking sword like leaves are green, with golden stripes.

www.brecks.com

Gosh, the price has Doubled!!

 

[heirloomgal]

The crummy garage towed my White Avalon yesterday, mid day. I called at 4:30PM to see if it would be ready today.
NOPE. They still have to check it out.

It was Supposed to be ready a week ago when I picked it up.
I am honoring the insurance company bc they are picking up the tab.
Still, I really hope that they drop their recommendation for this garage.
Anyway, it is Not convenient for me to get this car for another week. I had a friend lined up today to pick me up. She is not available again until next Thursday. I have had to cancel my appt. for My garage to change the oil and check the bad work. They are very accommodating.
Also I heard about cafe car standards for 2027 that all new cars have an apparatus to check your impairment and will stop your car.
GREAT!!

You are driving along and your car Stops and the guy behind you crashes into you.

As I understand it, JUST LIKE wind farms, the technology isn't there yet.
Ask the silly people in my town when we had a 3 day power outage bc of a mid June derechio.
We had breezes but wind farms turbines didn't spin, the town received NO power from them or the power company.
Wind farm advocates had egg on their faces.
There should be more information coming out about this car mandate.
DD says that a SA can order an apparatus be installed on a car driven by a DUI felon, where the driver must blow into it, but THAT only prevents your car from starting.
May I remind everyone that this stupid car law was voted on in 2021, the year we had to:
1) wear a mask to shop and be social
2) get a series of injections with a spike protein
3) carry a signed card to Prove that you were injected and that card could be checked by a law enforcement officer

I've lost count how many people in my life orbit that have passed away from blood clots, and other related injuries. So sad.

 

[ducks4you]

Sorry to drag you down!!
DD took this picture of the Grape Soda iris.

 

[heirloomgal]

Sorry to drag you down!!
DD took this picture of the Grape Soda iris.View attachment 80875

Quite the opposite ducks, you always bring me up

 

[ducks4you]

All over the property and in the house I have to fight.
Save the ponies from the pastures--don't let them on it too soon in the Spring in order to avoid grass founder.
Save the pastures from the ponies--don't let them graze down too much, except for the Inner Sanctum, which won't see them until after August apple picking.
Save the cats from dangers--try to see them ALL inside at night.
Save the plants and seeds from the cats, who are noTORIOUS for gleefully digging them out of their pots if within reach.
This is why I am growing herbs on top of my fridge--no cats.
My seed starting area is such a mess right now that I started tomato and pepper seeds on the porch.
It's still cool. I have a slightly damaged red baking pan with two heat mats underneath and I started 6 yogurt containers which have no holes, but I planted seeds inside saved 4"x4" (or oval equivalent) inside. I used stones and whatever to raise them up, been watering from above, but the clear tops condensate.
Bear in mind that ALL of the seeds are old. FINALLY, after 2 weeks I have the first emergence, some 3yo tomato seeds! I keep watering them every day or so,
I learned years ago that older seeds are viable, but germination takes longer.
I don't mind that they are starting this late. We have had COLD Memorial Days in our neck of the woods.
Don't mind if I am planting in June bc the ground should be warm enough by them.
I will play the game of early tomato harvest NEXT YEAR, after I have cleaned/organized better down in the basement and found/set up my 4' tall mini greenhouse in the south 2nd floor bedroom window.

 

[heirloomgal]

All over the property and in the house I have to fight.
Save the ponies from the pastures--don't let them on it too soon in the Spring in order to avoid grass founder.
Save the pastures from the ponies--don't let them graze down too much, except for the Inner Sanctum, which won't see them until after August apple picking.
Save the cats from dangers--try to see them ALL inside at night.
Save the plants and seeds from the cats, who are noTORIOUS for gleefully digging them out of their pots if within reach.
This is why I am growing herbs on top of my fridge--no cats.
My seed starting area is such a mess right now that I started tomato and pepper seeds on the porch.
It's still cool. I have a slightly damaged red baking pan with two heat mats underneath and I started 6 yogurt containers which have no holes, but I planted seeds inside saved 4"x4" (or oval equivalent) inside. I used stones and whatever to raise them up, been watering from above, but the clear tops condensate.
Bear in mind that ALL of the seeds are old. FINALLY, after 2 weeks I have the first emergence, some 3yo tomato seeds! I keep watering them every day or so,
I learned years ago that older seeds are viable, but germination takes longer.
I don't mind that they are starting this late. We have had COLD Memorial Days in our neck of the woods.
Don't mind if I am planting in June bc the ground should be warm enough by them.
I will play the game of early tomato harvest NEXT YEAR, after I have cleaned/organized better down in the basement and found/set up my 4' tall mini greenhouse in the south 2nd floor bedroom window.View attachment 80915

Love to see people saving seeds!