Dratted deer!
grump. The lilac bushes were all leafy and pretty and then Sunday morning I went out to find all the new growth chomped to the nub; deer see my poor darlings as a salad bar. It didn't help the new growth that we had a thunder storm on Monday, followed by enough hailstones to coat the deck. Yesterday's intermittent sun melted the dregs of the hail, and we expect more summery weather by the end of the week. Sheesh.
I am now trying the recs of the locals who swear by Liquid Fence for deer and rabbits, a charming combination of "putrefied eggs" and some other natural but unpleasantly scented ingredients. I just did the first spray now that we're in for the night. I suspect the cat will run like hell in the other direction.
One of the apple trees (all anonymous and not very fruitful) is a mass of blossoms this week while the other three are tentatively budding out, even after the late pruning. And since we had to remove a dead Japanese maple in front of my window earlier this month, I splurged on a replacement red one that's all leafed out and happy looking. The little green maple and newly planted dwarf Korean lilac in pots on the deck have been joined by a lovely Lady Banks climbing rose, already trying to bloom. All of these survived the hail nicely after being yanked under the eaves mid-storm.
And I am here to boast about achieving a new record -- eight days in a row of one or another yoga routines! Mostly Rodney Yee for Beginners, but if nothing else, it helps me get a little more flexible. I don't think I've ever managed three days in a row before, so I've been very cautious about my pride in the accomplishment.
Bedtime reading this week includes a selection of Robert Louis Stevenson's New Arabian Nights stories and a more recent translation of Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth; before bed, though, I'm finally working my way (in order) through the delightful Investigations and Acquisitions series by the even more delightful
ljs. ::Sighs happily for 9 more chapters still to enjoy::
I have not knit a stitch so far this month. I am a bad, bad knitter.
The blue jays have apparently been in courtship mode, swooping in ones and twos back and forth in front of my window.
An additional ten boxes of books have been unpacked and reshelved (and some even entered into the database) this week.
And in conclusion, I've arranged for an upgrade to a larger, HD DVR (aka TiFaux [tm
nwhepcat]) without considering how we're going to watch all the eps of Heroes, Rome and BSG that we desperately need to watch so we can converse intelligently with the rest of the world. Since the new hardware will be installed on Friday afternoon (after my new crown gets installed), I've been scanning the web madly looking for suggestions. Now, just kinda hoping we can keep watching stuff on the old TiVo(tm) until we've cleared it off while starting to fill up the new DVR.
Hmm. I need some new icons.
::Toasts you all with orange spice green tea::
I am now trying the recs of the locals who swear by Liquid Fence for deer and rabbits, a charming combination of "putrefied eggs" and some other natural but unpleasantly scented ingredients. I just did the first spray now that we're in for the night. I suspect the cat will run like hell in the other direction.
One of the apple trees (all anonymous and not very fruitful) is a mass of blossoms this week while the other three are tentatively budding out, even after the late pruning. And since we had to remove a dead Japanese maple in front of my window earlier this month, I splurged on a replacement red one that's all leafed out and happy looking. The little green maple and newly planted dwarf Korean lilac in pots on the deck have been joined by a lovely Lady Banks climbing rose, already trying to bloom. All of these survived the hail nicely after being yanked under the eaves mid-storm.
And I am here to boast about achieving a new record -- eight days in a row of one or another yoga routines! Mostly Rodney Yee for Beginners, but if nothing else, it helps me get a little more flexible. I don't think I've ever managed three days in a row before, so I've been very cautious about my pride in the accomplishment.
Bedtime reading this week includes a selection of Robert Louis Stevenson's New Arabian Nights stories and a more recent translation of Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth; before bed, though, I'm finally working my way (in order) through the delightful Investigations and Acquisitions series by the even more delightful
ljs. ::Sighs happily for 9 more chapters still to enjoy::
I have not knit a stitch so far this month. I am a bad, bad knitter.
The blue jays have apparently been in courtship mode, swooping in ones and twos back and forth in front of my window.
An additional ten boxes of books have been unpacked and reshelved (and some even entered into the database) this week.
And in conclusion, I've arranged for an upgrade to a larger, HD DVR (aka TiFaux [tm
nwhepcat]) without considering how we're going to watch all the eps of Heroes, Rome and BSG that we desperately need to watch so we can converse intelligently with the rest of the world. Since the new hardware will be installed on Friday afternoon (after my new crown gets installed), I've been scanning the web madly looking for suggestions. Now, just kinda hoping we can keep watching stuff on the old TiVo(tm) until we've cleared it off while starting to fill up the new DVR.
Hmm. I need some new icons.
::Toasts you all with orange spice green tea::