#21 Practical Matters for Phsically Challenged Gardeners

Oh, Jacqueline, we could go on and on about Hilly and Trump. True, the debacle over her emails is not enough to "throw the book at her". I'm a realist, so can see her only "indiscretion" over the emails was that she just got caught! My central problem with her comes as her documented job performance and her testimony before the Senate about Bengazi. Either clueless or incompetent....pick one.

Trump is a joke. Enough said.

Today, my garden helper is going to take some pics for me...you asked for 'mater porn!! So no comments about my two conjoined tomatoes!!!

Check back this evening (remember I'm on EST) for a healthy dose of 'mater pics. .

Looking forward to them mater pics. YIPPEE.

As for Hilly...nah. She's neither incompetent or clueless. She just got caught doing what all of us who had anything to do with our nation's security and secrets do. From the lowest peon (Me) to the highest echelon (the President regardless of the D or R after their name). She had to come up with some viable excuse for following orders as Secretary of State. Best viable option was 'incompetent' or 'clueless'. I don't run the government. *Shrug* goes back to following orders. The President doesn't run the government or the Secretary of state. The FBI and the CIA run our government. People have short memories when it comes to security scandals. Go back to Oliver North and the Iran Contra hearings and even Nixon and Watergate. Nothing new. Nothing different. She just got caught.

As for Trump. Flabbergasted. Every time I think he can stoop to new lows he exceeds my expectations.

Who really left me slack jawed more than Trump was the Rep from Iowa, Mr. Chris Hayes. Pull up his you tube or MSNBC or whatever media and listen to his rousing opinion on white people's superior and only contributions to Western Civilization and Christianity and that all these 'groups of other people' are sub par and did not contribute. YES He said 'sub par' and 'these ...people'.
Of course this Einstein punctuated his speech with, "....if you're looking at the ledger of Western civilization in every flourishing democracy you've got Hitler and Stalin as well so there's a lot on both sides" (referring to white people as the contributors to Western civilization and Christianity.)

Whole bunch of in-between comments most interesting too.

I'll send him an e.-mail letting him know J.C. Penny's is having a white sale (intended) and he can pick up a new set of sheets for his next convention and rally. I'm sure his church will let him borrow a cross for the parade.

Like I said, if you ever had a chance to serve or occasion to be at Ft. H. your eyes would pop out of your head. You could reach in our Recycle bin and pull out national security classified and secret documents. Bedazzled me but I followed orders and left things out, open and unlocked. Staggers the imagination. Frightening also.

Reason why I mentioned a few posts back if you ever want to find out true information about someone don't break into their home. Go through their garbage.

I can tell you how much money you make based on the amount and type of food you throw away, the wrappers and prices on them and the plastic grocery bags they come in, or how many generic verses brand name things you use. How much take out food containers and from where? What does your grocery store circulars look like?

I can tell you about your lifestyle by looking at magazines and catalogs and the prices of the stuff in it. I can tell you what you 'think and feel' based on your newspaper (liberal, conservative, neutral). What charities send you 'beg' letters? R or D? Humane Society, churches (again another clue as to what you think), Pro Life-Pro Choice, Citizens United or Americans' for Prosperity versus Clean Elections Campaign and Minority groups.

Is your recycle bin fuller than your trash? Then you lean more green-eco rather than I don't give a crap and support business. I can tell you how many people live in your house and what their ages are. Get AARP, Better Homes and Gardens, Good House Keeping, Highlights (popular little kids magazine), Seventeen, Sports Illustrated, Travel and Leisure, Sunset, Food and Wine, etc.

Diapers? (baby) Tampon boxes (young woman/teen age girl). Condom wrappers or over the counter female birth control products/boxes?

Empty shampoo and deodorant bottles and make up stuff. Gives me a clue to your race/ethnicity. Also tells me more about your income. Color your hair at home? Then what color?

Are you throwing away empty MAC and Lancôme compacts or Maybelline and Wet and Wild stuff when its empty. Nail polish bottles? Obviously you do your nails and can afford to take care of them even if it is just at home. Panty hose and packaging? Then you dress for work or go to events that require you to dress. Price tags and labels from clothes? Again all how much you spend, how you look, what size you are (health/vanity/etc.), income, whether or not you are required to 'dress' for some reason like work and if so what type of work.

Credit card offer junk mail thrown out? No numbers on it just those junk advertisements that say we'll give you 'X" amount of credit if you switch. (Just told me you already have a credit card.). What's the limit they're offering you? Is it $2,000 or $10,000 (big difference based on your income and credit score). What is the A.P.R. they're offering? Is it 22% or 13.9% ? (Difference between bad and good credit or that you don't know you can negotiate your credit rate down 1 time a year every year. Hmm...).

Offers to switch cable companies (tells me you already got cable and can afford it. ), offers for life insurance (you're middle age/elderly and not in good health), offers for car insurance ( you obviously own a car that is worth insuring).
Empty plastic pill bottles and if so how many in the recycle. (I'm hoping you peel the labels off them).

Now based on this information I've got more than enough info to piece together who and what you are on most levels. With your name and address available to me via your 'junk mail' and a little computer savvy I can punch in your address and name and state and get your phone off of Google. I can then go to "Been Verified" or some other such company and run a complete back ground check on you, get your phone number, credit and financial (limited), residential (how many times and places you lived in the last 7-10 years), crime history, relatives, places of work, etc.

With that information and a little more computer savvy skills I can then begin hacking away or stealing your identity. :D

Trash is treasure! So much for national security right? I worry more about my own. Reason why I BURN everything weekly, tear labels off the back of my old magazines and catalogs drop them off at Dr.s offices and hair salons. and take my other recycle stuff to the plant myself. As for garbage I destroy the labels when I open things, and make sure the receipts are not readable. No body needs to know if I paid cash, debit, credit, check or food stamp.

I do not pay any bill on line. No body needs access to my bank account especially if I owe them money. They get checks. Duplicates are receipts. I have one account solely for bill paying, one for saving and one 'checking' for checks I write personally or debit card use. Charities I send money orders. They cost a whole .50 cents.

Things I order on EBay or Amazon I have one credit card specifically dedicated to that only. Every time I shop and use the other credit card I call and tell them. "I'm going to the mall. I am shopping. So you know the activity on the card is me look for numerous repeated small purchases at various clothing and mall retailers and restaurants totaling approximately 'X" amount of dollars more or less." (We all know how much we have to spend more or less at the mall and for lunch).

Like I said, so much for national security on any level. Janitors are the true safe keepers.

So looking forward to them 'maters!!! :D

have a good day all.

LOL. I'll take your word for it, Carrie. Tumblr isn't exactly known for accuracy.
Politics is a safe subject at Amargia because we can all agree on one thing. The system has stuck us with choosing the lesser of two evils. I was hoping they would nail Hillary so there would be a do-over and the Dems would run Elizabeth Warren instead.

The AF is solid when it comes to protecting new tech from leaking. A seriously mentally challenged girl who enjoyed putting paper through the shredder started a company with the help of her mother. She shreds documents for tech research companies and the government. My bosses thought that was a clever idea. Kay says blind people could do that also. She went wild with my shredder for a while turning paper into compost material. We had a cross cut shredder like the AF uses.
My records were among those stolen a few years ago. I received a letter from the DOD informing me of the fact. No one has to convince me government security and intelligence has become a joke. I want to see that changed! Hillary obviously isn't the person to do that.
Bets, s, I think Kay is jealous of my Naked Ladies. That she would snap two flowering scapes off while weeding is suspicious and the only real evidence I have that the third was snapped by a deer is a white lily missing some foliage. I only have Nadi's word there were tracks. She could easily be an accomplice. She has said my using the common name "naked Ladies" offends her feminist sensibilities. Naked Ladies is the only common name for Lycoris squamigera that isn't also the common name for another plant. Several other plants are called Surprise Lily and Hurricane Lily. Kay insist that Spiderlily refers to Lycoris radiata so that one is out. Naked Ladies is the only common name that is unique to this particular flower.
How lilies became a symbol of purity is beyond me. They are downright precocious. lol.
I planted 'Crackerjack' marigolds one year and a French type another year. There are marigold forms and colors in the bed I don't recall seeing on the fronts of seed packets, but, of course, one expects that kind of behavior from marigolds. I mean, you can tell they're party girls.
Are the landscape Nazis giving you a hard time over the way the lilies and marigolds are behaving?
Photo: No "deer" or "dear" was able to stop this Lady. Lycoris squamigera (a.k.a. Magic lily, Surprise Lily, Hurricane Lily, Resurrection Lily, Spiderlily, Naked Lady.

Jim, the landscape Nazis have been strangely quiet. . . I wonder what they''re plotting!!!

My original garden helper had an elephant ear plant in front of one of his living room windows; of course, the leaves were gi-normous and covered his window completely. One of the most obnoxious Nazis pounded on his door one day and demanded he get rid of that plant. . .NOW!. . . stood over him (glowering) as my friend cut the plant down and disposed of . . . every. . .bit. . in the garbage can.. . . THEN the Nazi insisted my friend get a shovel and DIG UP THE ROOTS!!! So it is with a good deal of perverse glee as I drive past where my friend used to live and see. . .that elephant ear plant covering the living room window and then some: it's almost covered half the front wall and goes as high as the roof!! hehehehe

the following content is rated MA for Mature Audiences. [Something] is advised. (pics taken after daily harvest)

my Tomato Jungle v. 2016
Siletz, a parthenogenic variety (born pregnant, like Tribbles!,lol)
Jasper, the only indeterminant: copious daily yields of half-inch cherry tomatoes
Defiant (Left) and Legend (Right)

Mountain Merit (Right: note the red, ripening conjoined fruit) and Celebrity (Left)
Mountain Merit
the conjoined tomato and its cluster of one-slice-covers-a-slice-of-bread siblings: no wonder there wasn't enough room for 4 individual tomatoes!

a second Defiant (for direct comparison of containers: Earthbucket versus this shop bucket)
Cyril's Choice (a dwarf heirloom from England)

These are my plants. When that humongous conjoined 'mater is ready to be picked and eaten (by ME!!!) I'll take more pics

All this talk of Naked Ladies and randy marigolds got me thinking about this article.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/4367

I don't think calling a plant "Naked Ladies" should offend feminist. You're not saying "ladies are only interesting when they're naked" or "ladies should get paid less than gentlemen," you're just saying "Lycoris squamigera, also known as Naked Ladies."

Carrie, I was in such a huff because there was no naked man lily. Equality and all that. Then I found out about Orchis Italica, also known as the Italian Orchid. Or the Naked Man Orchid for...ahem...obvious reasons.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchis_italica

Oh my, with all of these naughty plant pictures am I old enough to be on this site?


This message was edited Jul 20, 2016 4:39 PM

Eep! covers eyes mater porn mater porn! :-)

I too "did the kit" and as I only have one working hand, the bathroom looked like a crime scene from CSI. The colour was good though... enjoying the compliments.
Back to gardening, I'm currently stuck with just houseplants and miss terribly my poor garden. You can't leave it for four years without demon weeds taking over. One of my favourite shrubs is a dappled willow. Needs no care & survives -25C in winter and plus 30 in summer. It can become too large but stick a pruned bit in the ground by a low spot or pond & presto change-oh you have another one! I like foliage and bees and butterflies enjoy the pale pink blossoms.
I was hoping to find tips from others who are physically challenged but will hunt around some more.

Ohhhhhhhhhh Ahhhhhhhhhh

'Mater porn. Send it to Porn Hub (actual website and free if anyone cares) and start a new category of 'mater money shots'! LOL. Maybe I'll get vegetable pop ups on my computer and kinky advertisements involving eggplants. :D

Got an interesting pop up (in more than one way) this morning.

Funny story on how I know about Porn Hub and your morning laugh:

Have a Swedish-Russian friend with a very Nordic name. Problem with his name is that it is the EXACT SAME name of a German citizen but Nordic born gay, male porn star who is rather notorious for extreme and outrageous acts! ROFL.

My friend said his e.-mails were getting clogged with 'movie' and 'script' offers and 'pictures' of his would be costars. He had to constantly e.-mail them back telling them he was NOT the same guy as the middle initial is different and NO he is not interested in making movies but thank you for the offer.

My response was, "Well why not consider spending all kinds of money to fly to Germany*? Although your assets would be spread thin you could still make ends meet from the money you bent over backwards to earn." (Think about it....it's gay porn!) ROFL POUND FISTS LAUGH TILL STOMACH HURTS.
Also I asked if he suddenly "developed some outrageous craving for Weiner schnitzel and Swedish meatballs." ROFL!!!

(* Germany has no issue with porn and a great deal is made and comes from there and Eastern Europe)

Of course since curiosity kills this cat had to check this 'star' out. I won't make comments about his person but in terms of the things he does......HOLLLLLY COW.. Uh pretty extreme hardcore stuff. Not just gay porn but the guy is a real freak beyond all human measure (unintended) with some of the things he does and has done to him!

Even Dave shook his head and went, "That just aint right".

I get some very interesting 'pop ups' (unintended) on the computer every now and then. Told Dave there's one or two pictures I just may save of this guy and use as screen savers. Perhaps I can multi post pictures and split my screen between the 'mater image and Mr. porn star. :D LOL

Hey at least every day I can be surprised, awed and amazed by Mr. super freak and have a good tickle from the 'maters. Hey something has got to go up on that screen since the RNC will be ending its circus soon. Presently have a real picture of a billboard up. It is Ted Cruz (known homophobe) and Trump in an embrace kissing. Caption reads "Love Trumps Hate." ROFL POUND FISTS.

Here's my rant for the day:

Did anyone see Mr. Trump finally got his wall built? It was built around his star on Sunset Blvd (walk of fame) complete with barbed wire on top, and words like 'get out' and 'unwelcome to America' on the wall. ROFL POUND FISTS. (Unwelcome to America is a jab as when you enter America it says 'Bienvenidos al Mexico'. Welcome to Mexico).

Speaking of which I never understood why that wall isn't being built across the Canadian border. You know...the place where the 7 terrorists who bombed the World Trade Center came in to our country. Yeah...that place up north that also supplies us with the largest amount of heroine in this country.

BTW they also own half of the real estate here in AZ which they leave vacant for 6 months at a time in every neighborhood and don't keep up the yards or the houses so nobody can buy houses or have their property values go up. Better yet they rent them out and make money that goes to them in Canada where they spend in Canada. Or they'll just flip the house for a profit and sell them out from under the people who are renting there giving the residents only 60 days notice or evict them.

Exact predicament my neighbors across the street are in. I am presently helping them with boxes, and a garage sale this weekend and house hunting and gave them the name of my real estate agent that helped us move. So I won't be around this weekend.

Oh these outstanding citizens from Canada also screwed Dave and I when we sold our house. They gave away a $175,000.00 house for $88, 000.00 simply to dump it and another one who 'vacationed' next door to us put theirs up as a HUD home. Subsequently these things drove the value of our home down by over $30,000.00 and we made less than $10,000.00 profit instead of $60,000.00
Well after that down payment on our new house (smaller and cheaper) and paying the realtor and moving we made less than $1,800.00

Thank you Canada.

Don't know what the laws are where you live but in AZ you are not permitted to sell a house for more than the 'average' property value of the homes in your subdivision even if you have someone willing to buy it at that price. Since we didn't own our home we couldn't do a 'for sale by owner' asking for the full amount of the home's actual worth in cash.

I say build the wall across Canada/US border and keep these disgusting parasites out of America as they are destroying our housing market, housing values, turning good neighborhoods into ghettos and are spending American money in Canada.

Pure and simple trash and I avoid them when they're here. I'm as rude as I can possibly be and try to discourage every one of those pieces of garbage from coming here by letting them know just how unwelcome they are and what I think of them.

I also never forget to thank them for letting those terrorists into the country due to their concern over national security. We should be dropping bombs on these people. I say build that wall across Canada and throw their asses over it. Set them on fire first. Maybe the whole country will burn.

Another good reason to hate them is 12 miles from my old house in Florence they own the rights to land and copper and are trying to open the Florence Copper Project. Well the parent company is guess what...Canadian! Taseko mines currently operating a few up there. Go to the NASDAQ REAL TIME STOCK QUOTES and look up the symbol TGB. Penny stock currently worth .62 cents a share.

Why is it worth .62 cents a share? Well 7 years ago it was small cap stock worth almost $6.00. Since these brilliant conservative job creators here in AZ who want to make America great again refuses to let them open (despite 3 out of 4 EPA, and AZ dept. of water and land control permission and grants and go aheads) and pitched a bitch over imaginary water concerns* over 1,000 ARIZONANS are NOT EMPLOYED in one of the biggest industries in this state. That being copper mining. (Our five 'c's: copper, cattle, cotton, citrus and canyon (grand canyon). So thank you conservative job creators!

Once again bravo on that job creation, way to go on creating tax revenue for schools (we rank 43 in the nation out of 50 btw) raising property values, getting people off of public assistance, letting them buy and own stock in a company, and bringing new industry to our state.

* Mr. Johnson owner of Johnson utilities owns the land and water rights in Florence and is at liberty to jack up your water bill arbitrarily according to his whim. He also does not live in Florence. He lives in Paradise Valley in an $8,000,000.00 home. Oh, he has also been cited with several millions of dollars of fines repeatedly by AZ dept of water and land and the EPA for polluting water, aquifers and ground reserves of water, destroying Saguaros and native plants that are nationally protected and Indian artifacts.)

Yep....can look all this stuff up on line. All facts. Oh...Casa Grande is not associated with Johnson Utilities so we're not being raped by him for substandard and dangerous water.

And we're worried about some Mexican pot dealers? (roll eyes). Since it is used here medicinally and state by state it is becoming legal for recreational use I don't understand why we don't establish trade with them.

What a booming cash crop, way to eliminate illegal drug trafficking, not clog up our prison system, discourage illegal immigrants as they would all have jobs as 'growers' in their country, and both their and our economy and GDP would be off the charts.

Think of how many people pay thousands of dollars to go to Amsterdam for this privilege. What a loss of American tourism money, airline money and American hospitality worker money and depleting our economy of jobs, taxes and wages. Instead we rather outsource these things to the Netherlands. Great job on that job creation and bringing new industry to America. Bravo to those big business job creators right?

Naaaaah. Will never happen. That's this stuff is too intelligent and too liberal. I forget. I live in AZ. They're conservatives. They're job creators. They most certainly are going to make America great again.

Which brings me to the last thing. Major announcement:

I am going to Mexico in September. I am investigating living there in all earnestness in T.J., Ensenada, Rosarita, or Nogales. Same thing as America with American doctors, dentists, Taco Bell and KFC, people who speak Spanish and English, sell drugs, and commit crime. Just like home!!! Except Mexico's beaches are cleaner and their ocean and coral reef area is protected. And you can walk to San Diego. A post office box in America lets me keep dual citizenship. Perfect.

Dave does not care for this idea. I don't care. My best friend of 28 years said she's in. I will be scouting in earnest in September for places to live, requirements, job stuff, etc. etc. I want out of here even if it means the end of my marriage.

I'm opting to go once I can figure everything out. He doesn't seem the least bit concerned or take me seriously. Oh well. His problem. I don't threaten. I do.

Besides I'm sick of my family and his. Can't get far enough away from these people. Reason why I live 2 time zones away to begin with. (Could rant forever about that but few posts back Bets got a good idea. Tip of the ice burg).

I'll miss Zoe. :( . My little Arhart. That one will hurt. I'll miss Wise Cactus too.

I have a friend down there in San Ysidro, Baja CA, MX though who can help me a bit. I can speak, read and write Spanish quite well and got no problem picking vegetables. I'm sure I'll be just fine. Tonisha my best friend has opened and ran several businesses of her own and she and I can get something easy and low key going in San Diego. She had a cash only janitorial service and undercut the competition and snapped up all the local contracts. :D :D I have a business and marketing degree. I am also able to teach English in MX. Looked up the qualifications. :D

See one problem down. Can scratch employment off the list.

As for the AF and security again hate to disappoint you. Our national security is a joke manufactured by the hyper industrial military complex to keep us perpetually at war and to fuel the big commodities and fossil fuel industries and make the Koch Brothers richer. Oh wait...is that possible. They already own everything including America.

Route 79. That was 15 miles from my home in Florence. It was also the Rd that Florence Correctional Center was on (prison where I worked.) I had to drive up Hunt Hwy. When Hunt ended it "T"d. You could only go left or right on Rt. 79. Right at the intersection was guess what? YUMA PROVING GROUND. The place where they develop, test and fly all the experimental air craft for the AF.

At the T in the road there is nothing but a swing gate like you'd see on a farm. About 3 feet tall and with a lower and top bar and a lower bar and a middle bar. Pretty much looked like a metal split rail fence. Said YUMA in the middle. Had a rusted pad lock on it. LOL

No signs or warnings posted. No barb wire. No guard tower. No patrol. No cameras. No people. If you can get over a split rail fence then you can get over the gate.

I used to go there regularly to do photos of the plants, Saguaros and mountains. Walked around for hours toting a camera. Saw the base. I know they saw me. They could care less. Made many trips there. They could care less. Ignored me completely as I roamed around shooting photos.

Don't believe me? Come for a visit. I'll give you a tour of the Yuma Proving Grounds. Maybe if we ask real nice they'll show us what they're working on.

I am also done on DG. Puzzled as to why my subscription is still running on all these other forums. Guess they gave it to me for free? *shrug*

So if everyone wants to hang here fine. If not lets all coral and go to ATP.

Songs for the day: I'm on a Mexican Radio by Wall of Voodoo
And in honor of politics: Ship of Fools by World Party.

re emigration (look it up! it's the opposite of immigration!). .

Funny, isn't it how politicians et al trumpet & carry on about closing our borders (meaning the one with Mexico) . Back in the 50's, the Canadian border officer refused even to let my teenaged mother to take a picture of him and the border crossing! Seems the Canadian border functions only one way: restricting who/what they let in but letting anything/body OUT!!

My experience (80's & 90's): Canada has a very strict immigration policy: no foreigner is allowed in (legally) unless they have documented proof of a job with a Canadian company. Then they get a work visa, good only as long as they maintain that job. . . it's illegal for Canadian businesses to hire foreigners already in the country (unless they're attempting to hire away someone already employed!). A foreigner may visit, of course, but don't even think of getting in first, job second: the penalties and scrutiny is so strict for Canadian businesses re new hires. . that it don't happen...except at very low jobs with *@$#% pay, no benefits etc (a foreighner without gainful employment is either a tourist, leaving soom. . .. or an illegal and deported Sooner!! Canada doesn't have an illegal immigrant problem!).

As for Mexico, it's a bit more lax. But (again from experience) the border cities are notorious for rampant criminal activity and squalid barrios ( shacks/homes without city utilities, paved streets etc). The interior is just the opposite: low crime, friendly people. . . One pays a price (in quality and length of life) for all the "civilized" amenities of living in a large-ish border town. One can live in the interior and STILL retain dual citizenship.

Living outside the U.S. means giving up some social programs; one is still entitled to continue receiving their Social Security benefits and other retirements that are based on their employment.

Personally, I wouldn't emigrate to either Canada or Mexico: one is too cold and the otther is too hot, for growing my precious tomatoes!

Which reminds me, time for another 'mater sammy!!

Will get with you guys soon. Gotta help the neighbors. :[

Gosh they're such nice, nice people and now they only have until October to find a new place. Grrrrrrrrrr!!!
Bringing some boxes over today and helping pack up non-essentials. You know the photos, knick=knack stuff, decorative pillows, etc.

Plan on going to see the new Star Trek movie with Dave and for some dinner early evening as he has been looking forward to the movie for awhile now. Then going back over the neighbor's tonight with a fist full of Trulia and Zillow stuff I found on line for them. Also hoping they'll contact the realtor that helped us when we had to move.

Think I'll bring them a bottle of wine. Looks like they can use it. I'll bring all 4 of the kids a happy meal. Looks like they can use it.

Natalie is a young widow in her early 30's. Had 3 boys with her first husband. Remarried a man named Angel. She and Angel have 1 little girl together.

So I'll be busy this weekend. Get with you guys all on Monday.

WANT THAT 'MATER PORN!!!!

Peace. Out.
AG

This message was edited Jul 22, 2016 10:21 AM

Exciting, Jacqueline! I want to hear all about it, because I love Mexico (and I am kind of over New England). Every time we go to Cancun, I look at all the condos being built and think seriously. I guess we always decide to stay in the US because of my doctors, his grandchildren and my mother. So you can be my virtual Mexican emigration. Do you remember katiebear? I think she is at ATP, but she lives in Mexico, Baja California I think.

Next question, I hope you have your finances separate from his. Do you get SSDI? A. you should be able to get it, B. doesn't matter where you live, as long as you paid taxes into the Social Security system, C. much cheaper to live in Mexico. We have some relatives (family of 5 + mother-in-law) who live in Tijuana and work in San Diego. It is possible, people do it all the time. In fact, I bet lots of people are thinking about emigrating somewhere, anywhere after this presidential election nonsense.

I think when I talk about moving to Mexico, I am thinking of a Mexico where there is maid service and it's all-inclusive.

Still jealous of Bet's tomatoes. It is really hot here. Of course it's nothing by AZ standards, but then again, I don't live there. If I did, I would have house plants and never go outside.

Speaking of plants, our agastache is fabulous this year. We have a pair of hummingbirds who love it and the crocosmia. I have tried at least 4 times to plant agastache before, but this time I put it on a hill, so the water cannot pool. I looked up our annual rainfall, 43 inches. The water that agastache can tolerate (according to High Country Gardens where we bought it), under 30 inches. 30-40" requires extreme care. So we did it! We found a spot that qualifies as "extreme care." I feel good now.

Good Morning, :D

Very tired. You guessed it. *eye roll*. Dave was home with me so no collateral damage. Just a goose egg on the head and a bit of a stiff neck. Slept 9.5 hours last night but not restful. Goose egg and neck prevented that. Will probably forgo 90% of what needs done around the house for laying around (what I call playing Greyhound) and just sleeping off and on. Guess I had been over due for one as I had been well for quite awhile. Did manage to give the neighbors a hand though for awhile prior to this.

Also got to go to the new Star Trek movie. Good stuff. Not a sci-fi fan but always liked the ST Next Generation and Deep Space 9 more because they focus on humanitarian issues and personalities than science stuff. This one was heavier into sci-fi but was surprisingly good. I didn't think I'd like it but I did. Costumes and makeup were great, Computer generated graphics amazing and story was good. Wasn't pleased with the ending but worth a look see. Oh and Chris Pine is not hard to look at. :D

Bets...them 'maters. Ohhh...they're looking good. Awesome specimens. Conjoined one has me drooling. Lucky you. I don't think I'd mind doing all the work for those yummy 'maters.

Bummer about your neighbor's elephant ear plant. Those are gorgeous. At least I always liked them. The green is amazing as is the sheer size of the leaves and the shade they provide. Saw lots of them when I was in FL. Wish I could grow something like that here. Don't understand what your landscape Nazis are on about. I mean it isn't like that thing was an unkempt mess getting into other people's yards. So what if the neighbor wanted a little privacy and shade in front of his window. I mean what's the big deal? HOAs are such a PIA.

All....................................

As for Canada..... nope we're not welcome. I looked into the requirements.
---- To move there you must be a child born there of Canadian citizens. You can't be a Canadian just because you were born in Canada and thus granted automatic citizenship even if your parents aren't citizens. All being born in Canada to non citizens parents means is just that. You're not an anchor baby.

OR ---- You have to be able to pay $800,000.00 to the government right off the bat. Yes some things can be bought.

OR----You have to possess a skill so unique and/or in demand that they will warrant a special reason to make you a citizen. Example: performing brain surgery, while playing the flute and writing a thesis on your cure for cancer.

----You're married to a Canadian citizen.
This isn't as 'easy' as it sounds. Even if you get one of them to marry you, you have to be able to read, write and speak French fluently, not work for 4 years (unless employed by a Canadian company prior and you met someone on business), can't own your own business, or receive any of their benefits from social programs.

Most likely will have to repeat your college education. Technically our 2 or 4 year degree is equivalent to their High School diploma. Also the political science, government, legal and business laws are different, Canadian History, Civics, French, etc.

Hope that Canadian spouse you found is nice and rich and willing to support you. :D

So I kind of laugh when people say, "I'll move to Canada." Uh...nope. Try Bienvenidos al Mexico.

Yes, I'd love to move to Mexico. Thought about it since the Reagan/Bush era. Thin about it all the more since we have crooked Hillary (*eye roll*) the neo con versus crooked Trump the con man. Whatever. Whatever. Whatever. I'm not rich or poor so it benefits me in neither way. The only thing that's going to happen is I will subsequently get poorer.

Also my other motivating factor is it seems 2 time zones away is not enough to escape my insane and obnoxious family. Moving to a different country definitely will as I no longer have the patience for everyone to just drop dead and leave me alone. I look terrible in orange and I'm too much of a food snob so poisoning them all is out of the question also.
Although it bears some consideration as the medical care is excellent and far superior to what you and I presently receive but only if you are lucky enough to get into a private as opposed to state prison. I am not often blessed with luck so I don't gamble. Reason why Vegas bores me.

And YES...Last two fiancess have taught me the imperative of keeping money separate. Learned the hard way. Grrrrrrr. So Dave and I have separate everything. He pays certain bills. I pay certain bills. There are certain things we split and daily-weekly-whatever expenses we share or take turns on. And YES we actually pay each other back for 'loans' made or if the other person covers something financially for us.

Gifts of course are not in these categories. They're just that...gifts.

Most people see this as bizarre but I don't care. I see it as a way to prevent fights and resentment. Also nobody can say, "Well why'd you buy that when we owe..." Nope. "We don't owe anything" as "I don't 'owe anything". My bills are paid. I'm buying what I feel like even if you can't so shut up. I don't need your permission or o.k.

Mexico's heat is no different than ours. A lot of places it is cooler believe it or not. As for border towns and shanties ever see some of what the Indian reservations and trailer parks look like? Read the newspapers and crime reports and neighborhood theft and drug arrests daily? Watch the news and the fact that everyone can get a gun? The housing reminds me of Detroit, Pittsburgh and Youngstown. No different just better climate, nicer people and no guns. Same stuff different location.

I'm not worried about dual citizenship. Still have 4 friends I've know for a minimum of 15 years that would be all too happy to let me...ahem, "live" with them. Closet full of clothes and shoes from Good Will. Photos about the place. Grooming items in the bathroom. Bedspread on the bed (Good Will again) and curtains on the window. I just have to 'live there'. Nobody said I had to be there. I get my mail at a P.O. box. So what?

Pop in for a day or two every few weeks to 'live there'. See I DO live there.

Emigrating to Mexico is more and more appealing all the time.

As for maid service and what not it is nice if you can afford to pay for it. Just because it is cheap doesn't mean it is free. Just like here you have to live within your means and decide what you can afford and where you can afford to live. True you get a lot more bang for the buck but a buck is a buck is a buck is a buck. On SSDI that is an all too painful reality no matter where you live.

Any place is cheaper than CA regardless of income! Reason why I couldn't stay in CA despite a $60K a year job as a single woman with no children who owned her own extremely used car and had no mortgage and lived in an apartment in Korea Town in a reasonable apartment which included the electric and water.

Not much going on in my garden as it is simply struggling. What hasn't rotted from the rain is getting fried from the sun. Can't water incessantly as that only serves to rot roots but does nothing for sun burn. Kind of a catch 22 out here in the desert. It is the shade that is most needed and unfortunately my yard is not blessed with that. Even under the best circumstances and ideal weather this has been an immense challenge for me and a source of great garden woes and complaints.

As for pornographic plants they do leave a lot to the imagination be they 'maters or naked ladies and men. Let's try some pornographic Echinopsis and pole cacti for the obvious reasons! :D

Jim...didn't forget about the Eve's Needles. Will get to it. I promise. Just been preoccupied with a bunch of other stuff and busy with small things. Sorry.

Peace. Out.
TTC

Song for the day: "Here Comes the Sun" by the Beetles.

Hi out there,


Everyone o.k.?
AG

Hey, we're fine. We went to TX (did I mention we were going to TX?) and got stuck an extra day because the flight Mon night canceled which meant the Tuesday flight was too full and we had to fly home on Wed instead. Sometimes I get grumpy about how much extra we're paying for an extra night of hotel and an extra day of rental car, but all the time we're getting free airfare, so no complaining.

So smart to keep your finances separate! We have a pre-nup. I have un-earned income and he had lots of earned income, so we don't have separate "his" money, just "her" money and "our" money. "His" money is his Social Security retirement which goes into "our" ank account.

That started years ago when I was managing the house stuff online and he was paying alimony to his ex by sending her postal money orders....and naturally, she sued him for not paying her alimony, and he didn't have the receipts. So he paid again and I took over the alimony payments. She stopped calling and he started sleeping! I am a terrible record keeper but online, I have perfect records. (I know, I know.) So the bank reminded me when it was time to stop the payments (which surprised her to no end) and that was that.

Being gone for 4 days i July is bad because everything needs water and we miss the crocosmia. Being gone in May, sometimes w miss the irises, and in June we might miss the poppies. Really, we need to be home April-September, to see everything! We should travel more in the fall and winter, although recently he has been in school.

It was sad to miss any crocosmia days because their foliage is so arresting, all spring/early summer it's all you can think about. It reminds me of iris foliage, it is similarly commanding and architectural. So you're thinking about them all spring and then finally they explode into bloom. Worth the wait! But we were sorry that we missed some days this year.

Crocosmia and hummingbirds. There are a lot of pictures just exactly like these.

Pollinators (wasps, bees, butterflies, birds etc) are all fat, drunk and stupid (not really stupid but it sounds good) out there. They missed us!

Y'all must think all I do is grow 'maters; this reminds me to take some pics of my flowers. Meanwhile, remember that conjoined 'mater?

my potted flowers, waiting to be transplanted into my garden

Geranium 'Dragon Heart'
asiatic lily 'Red Joy'. . . x2
oriental lily 'Stargazer'
mislabel Geum 'Mrs. J Bradshaw' (a gift from a friend: does anyone know what it REALLY is?????)

Good Morning :D

Been both busy and tired the last few days so I'm sorry I haven't gotten back sooner.
Still tired. LOL. Then again when aren't I tired?

Couldn't remember if you had mentioned you were going to TX or not. Most likely did but with my memory par for the course I most likely forgot. Airlines and flight delays, forced lay overs and mess ups (being polite and not using 'f' word alliterations there.) *sigh* Thank goodness for the TSA and the fact they screen for handguns right?

Never was a fan of pre-nups unless they were mutually drafted together by both parties. Otherwise it seems to me if one person drew it up and expects the other person to sign then they are making specific demands and considering only their assets and covering their ass regardless of the other person.

Had a friend that had married a rather wealthy man that made her sign one. She was on a 'vesting' schedule. If they divorced depending solely upon how many years they were married she would get only a certain percentage of his assets. He had it set at 10% for every 5 years of marriage! Seriously???

So basically he could behave as he pleased, do as he wanted, treat her as he felt like or abuse her and if for any reason she left she got virtually nothing. Why she agreed to this let alone married him was beyond my comprehension. Me personally I would have taken all the expensive gifts and the outrageous 6 carat diamond ring he gave her and pawned everything and beat happy feet. Lost track of her as I had many of my friends who live in L.A. Would have been interesting to know what happened.

All I know is the person with the gold has the control and I DON'T like being controlled. I'll be poor and independent thank you.

Not an excuse, however, to not do ones part, contribute or provide in good times or bad. I just rather keep everything separate. We have agreed to who pays what exactly, how much we both contribute jointly, how much we each save (he has his checking/saving and I have my checking/saving) per month and what 'emergencies' each person is required to cover should they arise.

We are also weird in that if you don't have the money to meet the obligations you agreed to then ask your family for it, work some over time or in my case do without it. If this doesn't work and you need to 'borrow' from the other then an I.O.U. is issued and you are expected to pay it back or assume more of the other persons financial burden/obligations in equal value to the I.O.U. when you do have the money!

Husband did not like this initially but my reaction was, "Oh well. " Ex-fiancé cleaned my clock so bad the last time due to his irresponsible and childish spending that when I decided to leave all I had left was $50.00 in my bank account! Had to take out a consolidation loan to pay my bills and credit cards, sell everything I own and move home with my parents who btw paid for it and to support me. AND I NEV-VER heard the end of it. Still don't 24 years later. (Yet one more reason why I live across the country. Know my mother is afraid to fly and won't no matter what *cheese grin*)

So thus my accounting system.

Sorry to hear Jim got slammed twice with the alimony. God that just sucks!!! Grrrrrr!!! I always took to heart what my very first boss and best friend of 29 years told me when I was learning how to do my first management job, deal with unfair treatment from the higher ups, conversations with difficult customers, and when it came time to justify reasons to fire employees....THE POWER OF DOCUMENTATION!!!

Buy a notebook, write, write, write the days, dates, times, names of people, describe the incidents, the who/what/where/when/how's and why's. Make copies and keep PAPER receipts and file it away. You can't argue with documents that have signatures on them, company logos, etc. Always use duplicate checks for the obvious reason when making a purchase or paying a bill less someone claim you didn't.

Best piece of advice I ever got in all matters financial. Still do it to this day. Has kept me from being fired because I could prove my bosses were lying, kept utility companies and landlords from saying I owed them money, etc. Also was able to prove I was over charged, charged interest unfairly, etc. and got reimbursed for a lot of it. I do not pay bills on line. Nobody I 'owe' money too gets free access to bank account or credit card numbers on line. I review my bill in detail and send them a check. They have to take it. It is legal U.S. tender and if they refuse it even if the money is there and the check is in full and sent in timely then I am not obligated to pay by law. Only exception to this is if they have a written statement that says they do not accept checks. As for money orders I photocopy them and the receipt from where I purchased them before I send them. (*grin*). Can't say they didn't get it. I usually send stuff like that registered mail where they have to sign for it. (*bigger grin*).

And in familial, friend or spousal relationships nobody can claim I 'owe' them or didn't pay my fair share, etc.

Paranoia and suspicion is never good but I found it has:
A.) kept me and my credit out of trouble;
B.) kept me from being taken advantage of;
C.) kept me from being dependent or 'owing' anyone or being obligated and having to hear it and hear it and hear it and the 'Well, I did this for you." and the "I pay this..." and the "You don't pay your part" blah, blah, blah.
D.) taught me how to be sharp, diligent, an excellent book and record keeper and responsible in how I budget myself and in being diligent in how I handle my financial obligations.
E.) kept the fights over money out of my marriage!

Did you know the 5 things couples fight about and most likely are to lead to divorce are:
money, kids, family, sex and work (be it outside or inside the home). Obviously I've eliminated most of these. :D

As for gardens your pictures are just spectacular!!! :D :D Absolutely beautiful. Not sure how you got those busy birds captured in a photo so well but you did a most excellent job. The Crocosmia are lovely. They remind me of our Aloe Hesperaloe or officially known as the red yucca that the humming birds favor so much. Hysterical thing about that plant is that the "Red Yucca" is neither red nor an aloe. LOL The real "Red Yucca" actually has yellow flowers.

I hope you don't miss the poppies. Love them and would enjoy seeing them. One of my favorite wild flowers. So pretty with their long stems, vivid red-orange and delicate tissue paper like petals. The center is fascinating also.

Reproduction I did of Georgia O'Keefe's famous red poppy painting. First painting I ever sold!!!
A picture of some young wild poppies that were growing in Wise Cactus's neighborhood.
will look for the pics of the Red Yucca...presently can't find them.

Peace. Out.
TTC

Beautiful, TTC!

Heard in the front garden:

Come for the crocosmia, stay for the agastache.

Eat at Joe's. No, I heard is name was Ray. OK, eat at Ray's.

(Spoken by a drunk and sloppy bee) lemme sheee the desshert menu!

Yes, Jacqueline, my mother (who hasn't had a paying job since 1961) advocates a similar system. The reason we had a pre-nup is that we knew I would inherit some money when my father died. My husband didn't want anybody (my ex, my mother, my siblings, his ex, kids or siblings) to be able to say he married me for the money. That's why we have a pre-nup. I guess our system is similar except it incorporates many "in-kind" contributions. Definitely communist though: from each according to his or her abilities, to each according to his or her needs.

Ray took the hummingbird pictures so I could see them (I was inside when he spotted them). I don't know how he got those pictures, except by taking a whole bunch and only keeping the ones that looked good. That's an example: he takes the pictures and I throw away the blurry ones.

Bets, do you think you could FedEX me tomato sandwich? Why do you think those are not Geum 'Mrs. Bradshaw'? It's not the Geum we have which is not 'Mrs. Bradshaw', if that's any help.

This message was edited Jul 30, 2016 1:14 PM

Good morning gang !

Get with you soon as Dave has the weekend off: Sat, Sun and Mon. Of course that means dragging my butt around to tend to errands, appointments and trying to squeeze a little 'us' time in. No rest for the weary right? *sigh*.

Yeah...get you on the money. Understand your pre-nup thing. Mine isn't lack of charity, generosity or unwillingness to share so much as paranoia and hard earned wisdom gained and due diligence.

A fool and their money are soon parted. No fool like an old fool. And fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me. I don't like being made a fool of or thought of being one.

Yes Bets...I'm waiting for some more 'mater porn!!! Makes a great screen saver. :D

Also will tell you guys about the tremendous storm---both dust and rain, we had yesterday. Wow!

And no Jim, did not forget about sending you that Eve's Needle. Will get to it this weekend.

Peace. Out.
TTC

So how's everyone doing? :D

I (for one) am doing great. I got my hair cut, which is always good. Ray planted roses while I was gone.

There is a vine called Porcelain Berry Vine which we did not plant. People in Plant Files report it being scenic and easy. It showed up in our yard probably 10-15 years ago. We used to pull some up every year. But while we were in Texas, it just grew and grew and grew. It almost totally ate the dogwood tree we planted in 2012, In our yard it is out of control. Ever since Oct. 2014, we have been digging up this vine. This summer, it has been one of Ray's main occupations,

Here he is with today's section of root. It is as thick as my thumb! I took a whole bunch of pictures with my thumb in them, in fact, by mistake.

This message was edited Aug 2, 2016 3:42 PM

Hi folks,
Get with you in a day or two. Feel fine. All is well. Just busy. Hope everyone is happy and well.
Have a good day.
J.

Hey J, AKA TTC, AKA AGG. Glad you're doing OK. (I am having fun with caps today.) My daughter is here from Texas, so I am pretty busy, For a few days, then it will be a lot of nothing again.

We had my daughter from Boston over for shish kebabs last night. So it was both daughters, best husband and a charcoal grill. I made a marinade out of 1 part pineapple juice, 1 part soy sauce and 1 part peanut oil, a few herbs and spices and marinate for 30 minutes. Yum. Ray has this new thing where he wraps food in tinfoil and then puts it on the grill, but that is boiling or braising or something, not grilling My grilled chicken was super!

Good Morning all :D

I am having problems with inertia despite the fact that things need done *sigh*. Where's that cattle prod when needed? LOL. You guys ever get like that? Wise Cactus and I have been hanging out anxiously awaiting for the Ancient Aliens to come and take us on vacation as we are both in need.

Although, Wise Cactus has decided we should plan our trip after the cool weather subsides and we go back to shake and bake temps. Coming soon to a desert near you...I mean me. LOL. Temps going back up to the 103-109 area but nothing in the 110+ range so I still consider this cool.

Never thought I'd see the day that I would say 93-110 is 'cool'. Then again never thought I'd see the day where my thermometer read 115-122 either!!!

Rain has been nice but I think my plants have had enough now. Lost 2 more to root rot/over absorption of water they can't hold. Thankfully they were small, little 'bargain bin' things that grow quick and can be replaced but still was very fond of the little guys. All the other plants are just loving that humidity and sucking it up. They're plump, green-ish-er and have had a major growth spurt. YIPPEE. Repotted and moved a few that have grown and made Spring 'plans' in regards to planting new ones.

Also potted some that I feel I need to keep a special 'look-see' eye on and put those on the plant rack and patio in the back yard. I have more control there as to how much rain/water and sun they receive as I can move them around as needed and they are easier to cover in the winter.

As for our dust and wind and rain storm it was quite interesting. Perfectly calm day and then out of nowhere a 60mph (no joke) wind that blew tons of dust through the area creating a 'brown out'. Remember...desert, no to little 'dense' vegetation or trees and hard, dry dirt so it wasn't surprising. Then we had a torrential downpour that created major flash flooding in the mountainous areas or areas of AZ farther up north or in the more desert areas that carved out big chunks of 'land/dirt' creating mini raging rivers that rolled downhill into streets, created some flooding and mud slides in the streets and in the yards of homes getting into peoples' homes as well as pulling up several trees and telephone poles.

Did damage to homes and buildings as well as trees fell on them and the wind tore parts of the roofs of. Weird thing was all this damage was done in about 40 minutes. The storm ended and it was a nice sunny day again. Later we got some mild rain that night and off and on the next day but nothing more.

Happens every year out here. And of course there was the three idiots that had to be rescued because they were trapped hiking and had to be airlifted off the mountain and the one person who died in the desert. They are STILL looking for this individual's body.

Do you guys see now why we have a stupid tourist law? And of course these weren't tourists...they were stupid natives as they are every year. Can't wait to see their bills for the rescue and what the state charged them for their stupidity. Every year same thing. You think they'd learn by now out here *sigh...eye roll*

Carrie...

Happy to hear you are well and doing great. * thumbs up* Also nice to have gotten your hair cut. I've always found that no matter what my mood or day there's nothing like taking care of one's self to make you feel good.

Wonderful that your girls have come to visit. :D
Always great to have visits and to spend time with relatives you actually 'like'. LOL.
Shrimp sounds yummy! Will have to make some that way. Well...husband will as he is the grill nut. He makes us a grilled tilapia dish in which he marinates the fillets in cilantro, lime zest, garlic, and a small bit of tequila and grills it. Does your shrimp marinade work on chicken too? I look at it this way...no matter what they make you don't have to 'wash the grill or the dishes'. Tinfoil is easy to throw away!!! :D

That's also quite the root!!! What a mess and a pest that plant must be. Quite the project to get rid of and I can understand why it is Ray's main occupation and obsession to be rid of it, especially if it is choking out a Dogwood tree. I love Dogwoods and would much rather have that beauty in my yard. :D

As for taking pictures with your thumb in them if it makes you feel better I got one with my toes in it. LOL. At least they're painted and look reasonably decent although I am well over due for a pedicure. I'll post it so you can have a good chuckle. I was photographing my plant (some kind of NOID Trichocereus). Had this thing over a year now and it has got 2/3rds bigger than when I purchased it. Also found a little friend for it. For the first time they have flower buds. Not sure if they'll open but they are there!.

Bets....
How you feeling girl? What's new with you and them 'maters and granny?

Jim and Kay...
*sigh* you can yell at me. Once again forget to mail that darn plant. At least I remember you want it. I promise I will send it!!!

Have a great day.
TTC

Let me send post and then pictures as I'm afraid I'll lose post if I don't do it this way.

O.K. picture of my tootsie so you can all laugh and some other fun things I got. :D

#1 & 2: says it all
#3. Trichocereus and toosies
#4 New arms on my pole cacti. These have grown from little walnut sized nubs in May to this!!! Last picture was July 29th. YIKES right? Lookin' good. I've been photo documenting the growth and next time will have to post the progression.

#5 The 'crab cactus' I have is now about 7" tall and very thick around and has grown into a major clump and keeps spreading. Happy about this as I can make more of it. Also an overview of the Eve's Needle and Cow's tongue p.pear right behind it and my Octopus Agaves to the right. Growth on everything has been exponential.

**sigh** I'm ALOMOST envios of y'all gals with a grilling guy...those recipes for marinating, grilling w/o all the clean-up hassle. . . brings back some memories:

backyard bbq with friends in CA...the men took control of the grill,'natch, as women sat around in the shade sippin' "whatever" n chatting (read gossiping) n watching the chillun run around in the sun . . .

Or in TX, teaching my son how to grill. . . then how to lay the coals n finally how to start them! The first time I watched n let him start the fire. . . let's just say the firemen putting out the blazing tree out in the parking lot put on a show the neighbors (and I) will NEVER forget!

My 'maters are keeping me busy. . . demanding things!! It's ALWAYS something! It seems like3 every time I get rested up from going out n tending them: it's time to go do it agai n!! Water 3x a day, make up solutions, spray this, treat for that, fertilize, inspect & monitor, prune etc.....BUT then there's the harvesting of all those ruby red gems and the scrumptious 'mater sammies in my air-conditioned comfort of my kitchen!!

And of course, there's granny, ke3eping me hopping! She4 gets older so I have to do more for her (without being too conspicous doing it) LFor example, last week she wanted to go to our favorite Chinese restaurant; she was rather vague on where it was so I remined her, but decided it would be best for her just to follow me there. . that way IB OTHof us would be sure we were at the right place!! Not one of us waiting in another parking lot for the pother!! (Yes, it has happened. While I carry my cell phone all the time so she can reach me whenever, she . . . "DECLINES" to also have a cell phone - even if I GAVE her one, she says she doesn't want one, won't have one and, wouldn't use it!! ggggrrr!) She insists on driving her car (a 25-yr old 8 cylinder sports car that's ~ 6 imches off the ground and has NEVER had the shocks replaced. . the inside is so cramped, one is either shorter & smaller than average OR has to bend, fold & scrunch down to get in or ride, , , I can no longer do it, so I drive my truck.. . . she HATES my dr iving - "Watch out for that car!!!!" " Oh, that one that's in the other lane a block away?" and yet *I* hav3e nevr had a speeding ticket or lost control of my car & wrappedd it around a bridge abutment!!!)

Anywho. . . (Where was I?? She's just rattled my cage agaqin for the day.) so THIS week, she calls & wants to go out to lunch at ANOTHER of our favorite restaurants. . . and asks if she can follow me there, as she can't remember how to get ther!! (R3emember that this is a small town and there are only 5 restaurants - out of ~8 - that we go to & have for the past 10 yrs!!)

She's so stubborn and aggravating at times!! Then at others. . . .

Time to go do my 2nd watering & 'mater tending ofnthe day! (Winter. . break time!! But not so much this year, , I'm gonna have that knee that buckled on me replaced. Oh, joy!! Reminds me of that sayinmg "Be careful of what you wish for. . . you just might get it!!")

And how's everyone elses day??

Hooooolllly Crap!!!! Gasp...pant!
IT'S HOT OUT THERE! Under 109 my butt. Thermometer reads 113. Grrrrrrr. Doesn't sound like much of a difference but truly when it gets to 110+ that is when you feel it. Anything below is 'do-able' to quite comfortable. Not to mention it is 'sticky-steamy' hot for us. Our humidity is about 35-40%. Outrageous considering our 'norm' is 2-7% and 'moderate' is 10-20 % and 'high' is anything over it. OHMG I'm frying and melting into a sweaty pile at the same time. Grrrrrr.

Had to go water the plants *grimmace* and check on my neighbor and her plants. I'll save pulling up the shade tents for first thing tomorrow morning. I'm tired! Thankfully all I have to do today is my kitchen and living room floor. Probably won't get done until the sun sets about 7:00p.m.

Sooo....now that I whined....

Bets, yeah it is kind of nice to have a guy that can grill and virtually no clean up. I'm not allowed to play with fire (* gee...can't imagine why Epileptic Jacqueline isn't. Can you? Tee-Hee!). So I enjoy kicking back and letting Dave cook. Makes him feel 'important' and he has a ball doing it.

I just babysit now. I may be Epileptic and a menace to myself but I never set the BBQ grill on fire!!! ROFL...pound fists. Yes, dearest Dave did this. Forgot to clean/change out the drip tray full of grease under the mini Weber-Q then heated that sucker up and hit the grill with a can of Non-Stick spray and WHOOOOSH. Up in flames.

I was inside at the time so I didn't know. I hear him poke his head in the kitchen and go..."Uhm, honey? Do you know where the fire extinguisher is? Uh...can I have it?" I thought he was joking until I looked out back. Needless to say we went out for dinner, got a new grill and a new fire extinguisher.

Also called the police/fire dept. prior to leaving the house. Had to let them know and explain why there was no need to rush out despite the billowing clouds of smoke and the smell of 'burning' whatever pouring from our back yard and filling up the neighborhood.

Never heard a dispatcher laugh so hard in my life. Took me a minute to convinced them I wasn't pulling their leg as any minute now they most likely would start getting calls from our neighbors and people on our street about this 'fire' as soon as we get off the phone with them. ROFL. (Found out the next day several of our neighbors had called in!!!)

You got us beat though Bets. Never set any public property on fire, started a forest fire or had to involve the fire department for real! Sure hope you weren't drinking a cold one because that would have been all the more funny as you explained why the tree is on fire and you're perplexed as to how that happened.

Needless to say husband is much more diligent about cleaning the grill and buys little tin, disposable pans that he throws away after every cook out. *cheese grin*

Just grateful it wasn't the propane tank that went up. Ohhhhhh, that could have been scary.

"Maters...'maters and more 'maters. Sigh. I almost feel sorry for you. Where's those bone idle neighborhood kids who always want to make some spending money? Round them up and let them water those 'maters 3x's a day for you. Then you can just do the fertilizing, spraying and supervising. Let them know if they're good you will let them take home a bunch of 'maters to mom and dad. They'll make brownie points with mom and dad for that.

As for granny she sounds a delight and her memory is no worse than my own and I'm way more than half her age. (shut up...). Don't forget if you want to be truly evil you can hide her keys. Ooops they got lost *whistle*. We'll find them in a day if we hunt around. Throw them in the washer or dryer and say she left them in the pocket of something she wore and you had just washed them. You found them because you were going to start up a load of something new.

As for getting to and fro and knowing whether you are coming or going I kind of empathize with granny. My husband and I both have CRS syndrome. (Can't Remember S***). Wal-Mart is the worse. We park in aisle 8. No matter what state we visit or what Wal-Mart we go to here we park in aisle 8. Don't care if aisle 3 has a front row spot. We park in aisle 8. Know why? Because we know no matter what the car IS in aisle 8 even if we have to walk all the way to the end of it almost to the street.

I swear we spent 1/2 an hour and almost called the police thinking our car was stolen because we could not remember where our car was parked once. So for now on and forever we park in aisle 8. If forced to park elsewhere I always have pens and Sharpies in my purse. Out it comes and the aisle number gets written on the back of my hand real big!

We're just as bad shopping. If we don't write it down we forget it. We do write it down and we still forget it.

Can't wait to see what we're like when we're granny's age. Oh well, at least we'll have an excuse to blame everyone else for driving us crazy. Better yet to be mean, cranky and to drive everyone crazy because we won't be able how to remember to drive ourselves crazy or how we got there. *Tee-Hee*

Glad you're going to have that knee of yours replaced. Not fun but necessary. Stock up the liquor cabinet first so granny doesn't have you hopping around and you can tune her out a lot easier.

Hugs to all.
Going to drink some water, take a cold shower (yes...they serve more than one purpose) and hang out with Zoe. She says "Hi" btw. Here's some recent pics. Caught her trying to get at an itch. Teeth! YIKES. Glad she's my baby and not my enemy.

Also food and a grill Dave did not set on fire: Rum and brown sugar pineapple with chili and hot pepper seasoned shrimp.

Peace. Out.
TTC

Oh, J! mmmmmmmm! (and just to be clear, my SON set the tree on fire! I was teaching him how to grill from A to Z and was just monitoring - an arm's reach away.)

And you making me drool over those grilling pics . . . either I'm gonna go buy a grill OR (better choice for now). . here's my latest 'mater porn Just for YOU! (evil grin mmmmwaaaaahhh)

a slice for a 'mater sammie
one morning's harvest
my "ugly" tomatoes (plant is Siletz) I'll NEVER grow it again, I don't care HOW they taste!

Good Morning gang,

Yeah, yeah Bets. Sure. Blame the kid. What's that about 'parental supervision' and letting kids play with fire. (*grin*). Now you know the reason why I'm not allowed to play with fire. I DO set things on fire. Like myself. Tee-Hee. (O.K. not on fire just cook up my hand by stirring boiling pot of chili with it.)

I do like to set potholders on though!!!

New house so new oven. Now most ovens have the broiler on the bottom and the oven on top right? I am sure I'm not unusual with this type of stove set up. I'm also sure I'm not unusual in that I keep things in the broiler when not in use. You know things like cast iron skillet, cookie sheets, rolling pin and of course pot holders. My grandmother and mother did this and I know lots of other people who do this and use the broiler as their handy-dandy storage space.

So new house has new oven. There's 2. The big one on the bottom and a small narrow oven/broiler on top. (Hate this set up as I find it dangerous to bend way down or kneel down on the floor to lift big roaster or pots out of the oven.) Anyway two settings on the panel for oven. Accidentally turned on the wrong one on top. It was the small narrow one. You guessed it. Set the pot holders on fire. LOL

Couldn't figure out what was smoldering and stinking. Didn't think it was my spaghetti sauce I had in a big pot in the oven. Thought maybe something was off with the heating element inside. (Electric stove...hate them!). Nope. Bottom oven hadn't even been turned on. Top one, however, was toasting my pot holders!

Opened the door and could see they were getting all black and glowing red (just about ready to start flaming) and ewwwwwh did they stink. They were also smoking. Had to get long metal salad tongs and pick them out one by one from around the cookie sheets and cast iron skillet and put in the sink and then douse them with water! Whole house filled up with smoke when I did that. ROFL

Despite the open doors and every ceiling fan and two floor fans running and the copious use of 2 cans of Lysol and Fabreeze it took 3 days to get that smell out of the house.

Husband came home. Sighed. Told me I wasn't allowed to play with the oven unless he was home to supervise me. Hugely ironic though as he set the grill ON FIRE two weeks later. ROFL. Teased him for the longest time. Whenever he went out to grill I would sit in a chair on the patio with the fire extinguisher!

Thankfully we're both real good about cleaning the lint filter on the dryer and even get the vacuum attachments and kind of suction it out a bit and get behind it best he can (He's the one who is 6'6" with the monkey arms). I always wanted to know though how on Earth does dog food kibble get all the way across the room from where the bowls are, and not only under the dryer but behind it as well? I never have to buy new hangers either as I know where most of them wind up. They keep the kibble company. *eye roll*

'MATER PORN! Ohhhhh...Ahhhhh...yeah, baby! There is no such thing as an ugly tomato! They 'taste' like a tomato should taste and that's all that counts in my book! You don't want them send the little darlings my way. Ugly 'maters is the new gorgeous in my kitchen. If you do, I'll send you some home made spaghetti sauce in return.

Gotta go start the day. Nothing special. Dave is off and I think he wants to play with fire. Too hot for me to go out and supervise. I stay inside and drink wine. *grin* Going to go get my mani-pedi. YIPPEE. Trim down the claws. They are real! Everyone thinks they're fake. Take a look-see at the plants as I watered yesterday and pulled back the shade tents. Temps creeping up again, sun getting like a laser beam, and it is still humid.

Carrie................

Exciting news for you! September V.P. Joe Biden will be appearing on Law and Order S.V.U. No joke. Prior to being a V.P. was always an advocate in regards to 'doing' something about rape victim's rape kits that go untested for years, get thrown out as evidence due to expired statue of limitations, won't be returned to the victims (should they keep the baby so that the victim can i.d. the 'father' and pursue child support and/or other legal actions). He'll be filling this kind of role on the show in his appearance. Exciting stuff. I will be checking it out myself. Looking forward to it. Check your local time and listing for September for it and mark it on your calendar.

Dave is off the next 2 days so I may pop in and out. If not talk to you all soon.

Peace.Out.
TTC

My claws! Have to 'even' them out. Pet peeve of mine. Hate that 7 long, 1 medium 2 broken thing. Have to be all the same length! I broke one and cut and filed it so I need to get the rest even. In another week will be as long as they are in the picture. I don't like them longer. They become impractical and get in the way. Not to mention everything in the world gets under them. Ewwwww! Have a nail brush at every sink!






This message was edited Aug 8, 2016 8:41 AM

Hahhahaha you and Ray! He is your opposite in many ways but the two of you and fire.....we have gas everything (hate electric) so his favorite trick is to put the pot holder on the stove and then turn on the wrong burner and light the pot holder. And he worries about ME in the kitchen.

We're off to physical therapy today.

Good Morning. :D

Yep. Potholders. Glad to know I'm not the only one. My preference is gas stoves for cooking also but here in AZ you don't have a choice. Hate cooking on electric as it is so difficult to modify and regulate the temps. I could complain about that all day but won't. Exercise in futility. After awhile you just learn how to utilize it effectively and make other things in crockpots, electric skillets (thoroughly underrated and underappreciated in my opinion) or on the grill.

Not much occasion to use the oven anyway due to the heat. Great for winter and cooler evenings. Also on weekends as the oven uses huuuuge amounts of electricity. We do things on the 'off peak' hours such as vacuuming, using oven, washing and drying clothes, and cranking the air/heat, etc. either before noon or after 7:00 p.m. which are all off peak hours. Weekend is off peak also. We go a little nutzo then.

Really cool thing is we cut our electric bill by 37% doing this. Now that it has been a year we are on a budget where they charge us the same amount for electricity every month based on our last years usage. This year we are lower yet. Me and my frugality. I leave lights off as long as possible. We have tons of daylight here. Since I am always cold half the time I run the air less often or a lot less colder than Dave likes. Works well since I'm home all day during the peak hours. :D

Have Magic Jack at $47.00 a year!!! Less than 4 dollars a month. Love the thing. Does what it says, says what it does. We have had no problems with it.

We have all this bundled so we're doing well.

I use a flip phone. Refuse to text. A phone is a phone. If you want to talk to me you talk! I do not respond to texts. Husband has a nicer phone. Combined we find it impossible to use up our minutes, gigabytes, whatever you call it. Combined phone bill for both Dave and I is $60.00.

We use Cricket. They use AT & T cell towers so why pay AT & T? I know people with cell phone bills over $150.00 a month and they have a home phone!!! How is this humanly possible?

Also got a long range antenna (small black ones not those metal monstrosities like in the 70s ) ad get all of our local and surrounding channels free now. Have a Roku streamer so we watch direct streaming t.v./NetFlix and whatever else we choose. Cut the cord and the cable bill by $89.00

We have one car (used) with two drivers (although I don't use it) and cheap insurance. Home and car get us multi discount.

So why am I still poor??? LOL...Sigh.

Jim, feel like a horse's ass. Keep forgetting to put that plant in the mail for you. If it is any consolation I keep forgetting to get stamps too despite the stack of bills reminding me I need too. I promise I will get to it.

Hugs to all.
Peace. Out.
TTC

Our electric rate is lowered because of having Masshealth. There is a big push for solar, although seriously, why a state like AZ doesn't have solar and MA is pushing for it doesn't make sense to me. Here, there are some days when the warmth of the sun doesn't warm things, like the inside of your car parked in the sun, whereas in Arizona, there is NEVER a time when stuff in your car doesn't warm up. Like you can go to the grocery store BEFORE you go to the Registry of Motor Vehicles in the winter beause the car is cold enough to refrigerate the milk etc. In the summer, of course, you can't leave ANYTHING in the car, because it will melt.

So anyway, ever since we got home in 2014, people have been trying to get us to sign up for solar. But our electricity rate is probably 30% lower than normal, I mean our discount is 30% off what normal people pay, so it's not worth it to us to pay for switching to solar. The big thing back here is the electric company buys power from you when you have a lot and you buy it back when you need it. Seems to me, that in a sunny state, there would never be a time when you need to buy power.

Yes you would think that common sense would dictate that when one lives in a state that has 289 sunny days out of 365 solar would be a no brainer. That is until one remembers that they live in or are talking about a state that is ranked #43 in the country for education, thinks Sara Palin has something intelligent to say and still has Trump ahead in the poles by 4% for President.

So hopefully that clears up why AZ doesn't have solar ad well as the reasons why AZ can not figure out the answers to a lot of questions Bonzo the chimp can answer using sign language.

Sun versus snow was such an easy choice prior to living here. The longer I live here the more the scales teeter between sun vs. snow and only moderately mentally challenged people.

As for me, I follow Wise Cactus's advice in regards to survival in the desert.
" Agave, you can put sugar on shit but that won't make it a donut. Don't eat donuts. A tastier alternative is to go outside, enjoy the sun, be happy and play with plants instead."

As for saving more money I also joined Dollar Shave Club over a year ago. Good stuff and dirt cheap. Look them up on line. I get the 3 blade razor blades and have never had a problem . Blade lasts me a full week just like my other more pricey ones did. Service is great too! They save me about $40.00 or more a month.

Now saving money on the air as ----gasp----I've periodically turned it off and just opened the doors and left the ceiling fans on especially in the evening. If I do run it the indoor temp is set at 80 or 81 as opposed to 78 or 79. This little penny pinching measure wasn't on purpose but just because it is what is comfortable even if I had millions in the bank.

Kudos to you though for that outstanding discount on the electric bill. Good job. I don't care the weather or where you live that bill is always a killer. Grrrrr. Really glad you're getting a break on it. You guys deserve it with all you go through.

Have to admit I've been enjoying our weather. Unbelievably cool for here. Low 90s with a high of 107 MAX for the whole week. That is ridiculously cool for August. Seems as though August and June flip-flopped. We also have no rain in the forecast.

Plants are enjoying it also. :D Sucking up that humidity, growing exponentially, nice and green and happy. I am pleased with them despite the few casualties from this summer.Expected it as I do every summer but that kind of goes with the desert. Kind of like when you guys lose things to frost or critters.

For the most part doing gangbusters. I have a pole cactus that is just off the hook and almost creepy with the way it grows. I don't know what kind of cacti candy it is on but it has been sharing it with a lot of the other plants nearby. I'm happy they are all saying 'yes' instead of 'no'.

Zoe has been loving on the weather too. We're getting out for afternoon walks again as opposed to 6:00a.m. ones. YIPPEE because that means mommy can sleep until 7:00. now. Bliss. She and I believe we have pretty much made it over the weather hump here. Temps should be mild now in the low 100s through upper 80s from now through September. May get another freak blast but I think that would only last a few days not a week or more. I do think we are coasting into fall. YIPPEE.

Also in terms of weather we have been taking in the meteor shower. Saw the start of it last night and will catch the rest of it tonight. A real plus to living out here. Although we are very suburban there are not many bright lights, tall buildings, bill boards, etc that block out the view. Plenty of wide open expanses and the nights have been cloudless. Great viewing. Saw some amazing meteors yesterday. Just awesome. Watched from 10:00p.m. to about 12:30a.m. Dave was home about 11:45p.m. so he sat out and watched too. Tonight is the last night so I'll see what I can see once more.

Anyway hope you all have a great day and I'll talk to you soon.
Peace. Out.
TTC

5/29 new growth starting on pole cacti
6/26 cacti growth
8/9 growth.
last 2 pics just some plants that have literally tripled in size in approximately 1 year to 8 months. :D

At my house, if you go outside at night, what you see is street lights! Plus of course, trees.

We have really been enjoying birds and butterflies, this summer. That is to say, the pair of ruby-throated hummingbirds we saw a few weeks ago and the three or four different kinds of butterflies. I *think* what we are seeing is .... well, I have no idea. There are little ones the size of a nickel which are brown and yellow, there are white ones the size of a silver dollar, and big ones the size of a dollar bill, only ever one of those big ones at a time. The white ones have many together and I think the littlest ones do too. They're hard to see, those littlest ones, and when you focus on the tiny butterfly you can't see what is next to it, if anything.

Once a while ago we had a Painted Lady (I wrote an article about it) but we've never seen her again. We see the big one (I think it might be a swallowtail) and hen the medium white ones and the little tiny ones. But that's a lot more fauna than we've ever seen in the past!

http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/874

I think the big one we're seeing is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail.
http://www.naba.org/chapters/nabambc/construct-species-page.asp?sp=Papilio-glaucus

This message was edited Aug 14, 2016 3:11 PM