Looks like it is time to start a new thread.
Come and join us. We are various people across the states with different health issues but share the same love of gardening and looking for the best way to go about getting things done, and to share our ups and downs. To cheer each other on and to pick each other up.
We came from here.
http://davesgarden.com/comunity/forums/t/1140511
This message was edited Jan 20, 2011 7:44 AM
Compassion For Physically Challanged Gardeners #14
Let's try it again. We came from here:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1140511/
Hey, Debra, are you feeling any better?
I got to do my favorite thing today, demolish things. Kay wanted me to break down some ornate wroght iron furniture into pieces she could use for other projects. She says the chair arms are going to be made into an iron butterfly for the garden. Can't wait to see that. lol. I was into a heavy metal rock band called Iron Butterfly when I was a teenager. (Jim)
Could I just mention something which, as a writer has been on my mind -- we're not physically challanged, we're physically challenged, with an E after the LL.
Vickie is never going to let me forget when I made us physically "phallanged." :-) (Jim)
Neither is Kay. Phallanged sounded like something truly dreadful. But, out of respect for your professional sensibilities, Carrie, we will behave and let him slide. "Challenged" it will be, henceforth.
BTW: I'm making a DRAGONfly, with the chair arms. Jim must have been caught up in remembering his misspent youth.
Is Tony better, Katiebear? Kay*
Thanks Kay. Sorry Carrie.Durn Right Jim.
Carrie, Can't we give Jim a little bit of a hard time?
It was my southern accent that caused that E to turn into an A.Course my double e,s turn into E-E-E-E-E-E as in Halloweeeeeen.
We want to see that dragonfly. Forget that! I just want to see Amargia.
Does anyone want any extra snow? I've got some to spare.
I think it should ether be "phallanged" or "challenged." One makes us sound truly needy, though,
Yes, Kay, men should almost always be given a hard time, to make up for hundreds of thousands of years of disenfranchisement! I'm sure cavemen didn't consult long with their cavewomen before they stayed out late hunting or clubbing each other. "Sorry dear, I'll be a little late tonight. After the normal mastodon-over-a-cliff deal, we're planning to club Gog to death for fun." I just don't see it.
LOL!!!!!!!!!!
I mean, Vickie, do you? That would make a good cartoon.
lol. Carrie, I'll have to see if I can make that one visual.
Vickie, while I was looking for something I half-way remembered from a Lewis Carroll book. I came across this one. It may give you a new way of looking at all that snow.
"I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says "Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes! Lewis Carroll
Prayers for Mama Kay’s sister, Arlene. She is a terrible lesson on not taking extreme weight loss methods lightly, no matter how common they’ve become. She had lap band surgery done. She called it her Christmas present to herself. We received a call that she is in the hospital and the doctors aren’t sure if she will make it or not. Some sort of surgical complication. There were times when I stepped on a scale I considered having the procedure. The extra weight I’m carrying around would have to be a serious threat to my health before I would even think about it now.
Kay is on pins and needles waiting for phone calls from Texas with news of her sister’s condition. In case I need to make the drive, I had better get on Google maps and find out where Bouie, TX is. ~Nadine~
Nadene and Kay, I'm so sorry. Prayers go out for you and your aunt.
You'll probably take I-20 Thru Miss and La. If you get that far and have trouble,Call me. I can be there within 5 hours.
Be careful and take care.
Vickie
Thanks, Vickie. Another of Mama Kay’s sisters is driving up from Houston to assess the situation. They want to make sure Arlene’s step-son isn’t just panicking before they all show up on the doorstep. MK says once you hit a certain age there are bound to be some close calls and she and her siblings have all reached that “certain age.”
I’m going to make sure MK goes to see her sister soon even if she does recover fully. I feel a little responsible she didn’t make it out there last summer. I think paying my college tuition was part of why they canceled the planned trip. There was a lot of info in MK’s Bookmarks on Lake Dardanelle State Park so I gather they were planning to stop by and see you. That is near you, isn’t it? I know it’s on the Arkansas River and I don’t think MK has family living in AR anymore.
You didn't really go walking in the snow, did you? ~Nadine~
Kay's sister pulled through. She had to have the lap band removed and she will be in the hospital for awhile, but she is on the mend.
Nadine's only met this sister of Kay's twice, but a misunderstanding made them close. K. set up the recliner for Arlene to sleep in when she visited us. That offended N's sense of southern hospitality. This particular sister was disinherited by Kay's father and was persona non grata while he lived. N. thought K. was slighting her sister because of that. Arlene has breathing problems if she is laying flat, she ASKED if she could sleep in the La-Z-Boy while she was visiting. She slept in her recliner most nights at home. Arlene got a kick out of Nadine's willingness to do battle with Kay over her comfort.
Photo: Tiny signs of Spring. Fragrant tea olive blossoms.
Missed a lot last few days, sounds like you guys have all been busy. :-)
Kay, I am thankful your sister is better. Am I allowed to be a bit selfishly disappointed that you all aren't making the trip? Bowie, TX is an easy 90 minute drive from me. :-p
Jim, I may have to look more closely at getting a tea olive.
Nadine, if they did cancel because of tuition, I'd bet a maple tree they say it is worth every penny.
Vicki, I'd take some weekend snow if you want to send it down. Just no ice and not during the work week. LOL
Carrie, Spring is coming, I promise. See?
I'm glad Kay,s sister is better and pulling thru. Also glad they're not doing the surgery.Hope she forgets about it.
Dardanelle is close by.Has 2 nice parks. One on a mountain the other on the river.
I really did go for a walk in the snow. It was so nice. Need to walk some more. I told DD when i left and got back. OH AND 70LB Dillen went with me, Cricket could'nt manuver in the snow.
Will see what i can do about sending snow to Dallas. I should have some crocus coming up soon. Yes! Hope is on the way.
Nadine, when you get Kay down this way, let me know. I would love to drive up to Bowie to meet you all. :-)
I don't promise, But i'd sure like to try meeting up also.
Vickie
If you are feeling up to it and you think your heart is strong enough to stand up to Nadine's driving, we would love to swing by and collect you. If I'm going to make that trip at my leisure, I'm going to do it right. Big Sis lives on a lake. I bet there are lots of cool rocks and nice plants we could appropriate. :-)
Jim and Nadine are talking about selling off Jim's comic book collections to fund our trip. lol. I'm touched.....and (dare I admit it) thrilled with the idea.. We are talking boxes, and boxes and boxes of comic books. They don't read them or anything. They are backboarded and stay in protective plastic sleeves in boxes specifically designed to hold comic books. (Jim still has them from when he was 8. He considers them an "investment.") )We are talking one entire closet stuffed floor to ceiling with boxes of comic books. (Well, I think there is one or two boxes of Star Trek memorabilia.) But, we are talking the best closet in the house here! Well, I guess I'd better get off my bum and make some money quickly or I'll never stop hearing about the unselfish sacrifices they made for me by parting with that junk. :-) It sure is tempting though.
Debra, I was just looking at a coral bell called 'Firefly." It doesn't have the showy foliage, but is allegedly fragrant. Jim is a foliage fiend. I think he just found a new favorite plant family. Maybe, I can talk him into selling the collectibles and buying all the different heucheras? Now, there is a form of collecting I can actually understand. Kay*
Kay, I think you might be surprised by the appraisal on those boxes. Will keep my fingers crossed they have the right mix to get you here AND fund the foliage. :-)
Debra
Thank you, Debra!!! They aren't JUNK! Papa Jim's REALLY are valuable. Mine, not so much. Of course, the first thing we would sell will be that signed card from George Takei (Sulu-Star Trek) that belongs to Kay. lol. She has a thing for George Takei. :-)
BTW, I think they shoot you for appropriating plants in Texas! :-)
The central heat thermostat got re-set somehow last night and it got down into the 20's last night. Fenny must of got cold sleeping on the floor. Papa Jim padded and upholstered the top of a dresser to use as a changing table when the there were babies around. Fenny found a new bed.
Kay tells me she didn't say she and Vickie "would" appropriate any plants or rocks, she said they COULD, and that's a different thing. You sure you want to chance hangin' with those two, Debra? They might be a bad influence. :-)
Fenny is usually pretty good about staying off the furniture. When the floors get cold, it seems all bets are off. I would have thought that was too high up for her. but she springs up there like a cat.
I saw a great deal today on a Regency van that I could easily modify for my w/c. It would be great for a trip. Not familiar with the Regency model though. Need to do some research. The last van I owned was a real headache. (Jim)
I think it would be wondermous terrific great fun if you all came this way.
Nadene, It is against the law in Texas to dig roadside plants. But nowhere is there the mention of gathering seeds. I know cause i asked the statepolice back in my plant stealing days.
We had a Ford station wagon in the 60,s and a GM van in the 70,s Loved them.
I agree ..........What Debra said.
If you follow the etiquette set by the Texas Rose Russlers you should be okay. .
http://www.texasroserustlers.com/
I once read a wince-as-you-laugh sort of funny “High Ground” article in Horticulture Magazine about rudely “appropriating” plants. Someone took a man’s entire bonsai collection from his front porch. (A plainly illegal appropriation of plants, but I wonder how seriously the police took any complaint he made.) He started growing large cactus in large pots on his porch instead. lol. The writer told about two women taking a garden tour. One was wearing a fashionable and expensive raincoat with Ziploc baggies attached to the inside for stashing the cuttings the other woman took. (That was just sad and truly bizarre.) But, there is a funny garden tradition the writer didn’t mention so I am wondering if it is peculiar to the deep south. Instead of asking another gardener if you can have a cutting, seeds or offshoot, you are supposed to TELL them you are going to “steal” it. I don’t know how such a thing got started, but in the deep south you’ll hear conversations like:
“JoAnn, I’m going to steal a baby burro’s tail out of that hanging basket. There are some little starts.”
JoAnn replies: “Okay, and being such a tall and basically considerate plant thief I just know you’ll pull out those blades of grass that have started coming up in it. They’re hard for me to reach.”
Jim still laughs when he hears this type of conversation. (I thought he was going to hurt himself laughing when I asked a policeman if I could “steal” a rose cutting from a bush in the police station parking lot.) He does that eye roll plus head shake thing and mutters, “Only in the south.” I’m curious. Is it? Do gardeners do this in other parts of the country or is this really just one of those things southern gardeners of a certain age do? Kay*
That was funny, But i did the same once. Also asked my bank for Dandelion seeds. I think gardeners are a breed apart,anywhere they happen to be. I was visiting an aunt in CAL. Once she stopped at this mans house and asked him for a start of a rose. Before she left she had starts of everything he had, at his insistance. Guess we're a brotherhood not unlike the Masons.LOL
Taking starts from a cemetary can be a good thing.If you're pruning a rose back some.
Mike told me once the tradition of "stealing" your friend's plants dates all the way back to when people believed in sympathetic magic. If you took a cutting and got it to thrive, it was supposed to bring a blessing of bounty to the garden or house from where the seeds or cuttings were taken. For a house or garden blessing to bring about the desired effect, it was supposed to be done without the household being blessed knowing what you were about. You told the householder you were stealing the plant so that evil spirits didn't interfere with your blessing. Mike said that was why he had such a beautiful rose garden in such an unlikely place, he was blessed by everyone from miles around. lol.
Even though I know the story behind the tradition,, it still sounds funny to me when people say it. (Jim)
Jim, I like that version. I need all the good blessings i can get.
I keep dream catchers around for good luck and to keep my dreams on the good side.
Hopefully some warm weather coming next week.
Fried some potatoes,onions and hotlinks for supper.Not a good thing.
sounds good to me, vicki. the hot links would have talked back to me later, but it still sounds really good. i might have to make that for supper myself tonight.
Now I'm REALLY bloomsick! My only amaryllis is listing badly and I can't trot out to the back yard to get a stick to prop it up. I'm gonna use that sweet olive picture in my next article, if you don't mind. MEETING, like a round-up in nowhere, TX? Warm nowhere, TX, though...
Debra, we would be DELIGHTED to send some snow your way. Unfortunately
a. it doesn't melt
b. it comes with ice, hail, slush, etc.
c. I can almost guarantee it will ruin either a work day,a weekend, or both
d. can I interest you in the -3 temps we had the other day?
We went to Atlanta to meet my newest grandchild (via my DH). I'll see if I can attach a pic. No, I have to go get it from FB first. Back soon - unless some other snow melodrama unfolds first.
Carrie, next time you're in Atlanta you'll have to give me a heads-up. We can do the Atlanta Botanical Garden. I love that place. They usually have an awesome collection of garden art. They also have a good collection of carnivorus plants. Your GS will get a kick out of those when he's a little older and going through that gruesome stage all little boys seem to go through. Pj says you are welcome to the osmanthus pic.
Yeah, Vickie. I know what you mean. It isn't good for the waistline, but I crave those kind of comfort foods when the weather is cold and gloomy. ~Nadine~
How about things like potato-leek soup? Split pea soup? Those are comfort foods for me, but nobody will cook them! Or eat them if I cook them.
Nadine, is Atlanta actually close to you? We didn't decide to go until Sat. night and caught a 5 am Sun. flight. Stayed until Monday at noon. (DH had a date with a storm.) So much for the heads up - I didn't even get one!
Note: my teeth are not this white. My step-son whitens almost everyone's teeth with Photoshop or something.
This message was edited Jan 26, 2011 6:28 PM
I have a few other DG friends in GA it would have been nice to try to see, but I didn't think of it until I got back.
Potato-leek soup! Nummy!!!
What a gorgeous grandson. :-)
:) none of my genetic material but a LOT of my emotional material. I used to say of my DSS that I was his favorite parent (rather than either his father or his witch mother). Now I think the balance has shifted back to dad.
Love the picture of Fenny. I've been sleeping sideways in my double bed to allow for two dogs on each side of me. Although I have to keep my knees bent they are better than an electricx blanket on these chilly nights.
Tony and I are going to Santa Rosalia today for me to see a doctor about my ear. It's been bothering me since just before Christmas. There's very little pain now but something is not right with it. It's only a 35 mile trip but takes about an hour on Mexican roads.
There are lots of birds around these days. I think many of them are probably headed north so spring might actually be on the way.
hugs, katie
Carrie, Atlanta is a 2 or 3 hour drive depending on the traffic. We usually fly into and out of the Atlanta airport when we need to fly. Nearby Dothan has an airport, but it is small and the majority of flights are routed through Atlanta anyway. The Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport opened last year near Panama City. That is closer, but none of us have used it yet. Their northerly flights are probably routed through Atlanta also. lol.
Katiebear, Mama Kay suggests that you tug at your outer ear. If it hurts, you have an external ear canal infection. Remedies for a fungal infection (“Swimmer’s Ear”) will give you relief. If tugging on the outer ear doesn’t hurt, it is probably a middle ear infection. If it is worse at night, it is a safe bet it is a middle ear infection. Home remedies for fungal infections (like warm white vinegar), can actually make things worse if it is a bacterial infection. Problems with a tooth or your throat can first show themselves as an earache. The doctor is an EXCELLENT idea. MK is hard-of-hearing due to repeated ear infections. She says to tell you VERY LOUDLY that your hearing is too valuable to mess around with.
I had tubes put in my ears when I was small because of ear infections that did not respond well to antibiotics. If it hurts at times, try putting a cup or so of rice in a clean sock. Tie it off and put it in the microwave for about a minute. Put the warm pad on your ear. Heat usually gives some relief. When the pain is acute, I get relief from the blow-dryer set on warm, held about a foot from my ear and aimed down the ear canal. The sound of the rushing air drives some people up the wall though. I hope the doctor can diagnose and treat it soon.
Tater-dog snores loudly. Fenny has nightmares in which she whines, churns her legs and even barks in a muffled sort of way. I wouldn’t get any sleep with them in the bed. (I wonder what dogs have nightmares about.) ~Nadine~
I drove close to Atlanta but was too much of a coward to drive thru it.I was a big Brave fan then.
Kay,s remedys sounds good. So does a doctor. We've never had ear issues.Just throat and stomach aches.
The warm rice and socks are also good for Arthritis and other aches and pains. Dogs are definately best for cold feet,and even better for lonliness.
Dillen seldom snores and Cricket never does. Vonne says Cricket walks all over me at night and never wakes me. The cats come and spend brief moments mostly.
Vickie
The doctor looked in my ears and diagnosed an inner ear infection. I have two antibiotics and drops. Slept a lot last night and this morning (went to bed at 6 pm actually). I'm not sure if I ever had ear infections as a child - I don't remember any so I probably didn't. This is the first I've had as an adult. I agree hearing is too important to mess around with. The doctor seemed very good. Had a wand with a light on the end and a computer that showed what the wand was seeing. He checked my blood pressure and the other vital signs and everything else is good.
I think having the ear infection since just before Christmas is part of what has me so tired. I hape to have some energy soon.
Tony went with me to the doctor and helped translate and among the three of us we were able to communicate well. Then Tony and I did errands like getting propane tanks filled. Also found a replacement jar for my blender. I visited a woman who has a small fruit and vegatable store and got some good tangerines.
Think I will just read and watch DVD's for a day or two. I am really relieved that the ear problem is not more serious and I thank Nadine for the suggestions. I have a heating pad I was using but it is now being used as a propagation mat. I do have socks and rice but there is little pain now, more a feeling like my ear has cotton in it.
I think dogs have nightmares about being chased by cats. I've known dogs who had nightmares but the four I have now all generally sleep peacefully.
hugs all around, katie
I'm afraid what I feared most has happened. My rheumatoid arthritis in both of my shoulders have reached their limit pertaining to medication and injections. The disintergration of my bone structures have left me in severe pain wheras before the injections use to leave me pain free for almost three months or so. I still had discomfort raising my arms and was told not to lift any weight but what am I supposed to do carrying my groceries especially milk? Oh well! Grin and bear it....