February 28th addendum

Mother Aloe

She's had several babies so far and

now she's about to bloom!

Can't wait to see the color of the flowers.

They range from yellows and oranges to reds.

This plant was a rescue.

We specialize in Lazarus plants.

You'd be surprised what stores and people

discard, thinking the plant died.

This is our paperwhite lilies.

Aren't they beautiful?

 

 

Citronella

We've got several of these.

Two flank the front door and

a couple are near the patio.

Its our natural mosquito repellant.

Smells just like the candles.

You can break off a leaf, rub it on yourself

and it is a natural bug repellant.

They can grow really large,

but if they are trimmed periodically,

the bush they become is very pretty.

I love the shape of their leaves.

 

Just wanted to share a few more garden picks.

Thanks to all who

take the time to

read my musings.

I love ya!

 

February 28th

It's been rainy most of the month but,

a couple of mornings ago,

when the early morning sun

 was streaming in the kitchen window,

I noticed how the light enhanced the bowl of pears.

Since I got a new phone that takes better pictures,

I couldn't help but snap this shot.

 

Well,

now I'll address what bugs me about this month.

The way the name of it is spelled and pronounced.

It would roll off the tongue better if

spelled 'Feb-u-ary'.

But,

it's not an English word, it's Latin.

Back in Roman times, they decided to name

this month after the term

"februum",

It means purification.

They did these purification rituals on the full

moon in this month to prepare for spring,

the new beginning.

And because of that,

it used to be the last month in the year

so they could add another day if needed, for leap year.

But, in 450BC they decided to make it the second month

because......

Emperor Pompilius added January and February.

These 60 or so days were previously unnamed because,

Romans considered winter a monthless, desolate period.

Dontcha love learning something new!

 

*******************************

This is not a chicken egg.

It is an orphaned Mallard egg.

One of our neighbors found it in his backyard

and gave it to us.

The CEO and I thought the girls might jump

on the idea of hatching an egg.

They originally did sit on it for a bit,

taking turns, but eventually gave up on the idea.

Hens will usually "mother" other species,

especially if they have a brood of chicks,

which sadly, our girls never had.

But, our girls get "broody" at times

and that's what we were hoping for.

A Mallard egg typically hatches in 28 days,

a chicken egg is usually 21 days.

Sadly, we had to throw the egg away.

The embryo isn't viable if it isn't kept warm.

A mama duck lays her egg clutch in "installments".

A few at a time. Same as a hen.

She'll leave only for food and water then she's back to sit.

So, the fertilized egg could be left in the cold

for a day or so, but not this long.

This 'cross species' experiment failed.

Maybe next time.....

 

***************************

I don't know if this problem is only me or is universal,

but I can't open things!

Why can't manufacturers make easy open items???

Just this past week I couldn't get the top off a pickle jar,

a cap off a bottle of water and this carton opened.

I hadda jam a butter knife into it to get my

fingers in there and then I ripped the opening!

Now, I'm sporting a cut on my finger.

Annnnd, since I can't re-close the damned box,

the Goldfish are in a plastic container!

C'mon....

we put a man on the moon.

We put remote vehicles on Mars.

(well, they kinda broke down, but still!)

They make gadgets that help you open things,

and videos about hacks to assist with opening,

but wouldn't it be easier to just make

the cockadoodie items simpler to open??

I feel like a Neanderthal when I'm sweating

and grunting trying to twist a cap

or using my teeth to rip open the

"easy open", "reclosable" packages.

That's why we have opposable thumbs!

Then, I saw an octopus opening a jar.

Seriously?

How did that slippery animal do that?

He doesn't even have hands!

I have hands!

I have thumbs!

But,

they don't work like the 'Manufacturer' said.

 

**************************

And...

We are all so happy for my granddaughter

and grandniece!

Their basketball team won the championship in an

undefeated season.

It is their last year in grade school

and how fitting that

they'll go on to high school

with this wonderful memory.

Love them to pieces!

 

 

 

February 16th

A few marigolds are blooming.

 

 

Today is National Do A Grouch A Favor Day.
What's that you ask?
I had no idea......
Turns out its just basically doing a good deed for a grouchy person,
that'll make them less grouchy.
That's a great idea unless the grouchy person is me.
In which case I might prefer to remain grouchy, who knows?
There are many times I can identify with Oscar.
Today, however, isn't one of those times.
February is also National Bird Feeding Month.
In northern states this is a tough time for the birds that have
to eat when their food supplies are dwindling,
but in the south, its not as big of a problem.
The wild birds near us are live the high life.
They eat the chicken feed left overs.
As soon as the hens get their fill, the sparrows, wrens and
mourning doves fly in for second breakfast.
We haven't seen the owls or hawks recently, but
I'm reasonably sure they are there circling around.

Hens are messy eaters, as are all birds.

They pick out the tasty morsels first and

push the rest out of the way. They usually

come back to munch on the rest later on, but

that's when the wild birds swoop down to eat.

The girls tolerate them for the most part.

This is Nugget. She was digging in the garden

dirt for worms till I walked out of the door.

Now all she wants to do was grab a selfie.

Nugget, Ethel, Pepper and Hazel

just love to get their picture taken.

 

Getting the garden ready for spring.

It's a bit harder than normal trying to till

around curious hens.

We have 5 blueberry bushes.

Not sure if it is obvious, but this one

is covered in small buds.

We've been eating salad from this small garden,

for a few weeks now. 

Cabbage and Broccoli

Broccoli.

We should have harvested last week because

the florets are beginning to blossom.

That's the small yellow flowers.

They are still edible though.

It may become part of a salad or a side dish tonight.

 

*********************

A couple observations.....

I was watching Dr. Pimple Popper.

A man came in with a lump.

Not a normal small lump,

but an incredibly LARGE lump on his arm!

When questioned, he'd had it for 20 years.

Yes, 20 years!

That's beyond comprehension.

Why would he ignore it for that long???

Then he says that its caused him embarrassment.

Then why in hell wait half his life to remove it???

I have questions....

Did he wait for his 5 minutes of fame?

Did it "grow" on him,

(pun intended) or is he just a couple

beads short of a rosary??

Why, when right handed people try to write

with their left hand, does it look as though

a chimpanzee took a pen an is attempting

to compose a letter?

Inquiring minds want to know!

 

*************

Geraniums

 

And remember,

Always hugs!

 

 

Groundhog Day February 2nd

I can never remember if the ground hog sees his shadow,

is winter 6 weeks longer or shorter??

So, I looked it up.

Seems, that this year, good old Punxsutawney Phil

wasn't able to see his shadow so the

prediction is for an early spring.

I think that's probably good news if anyone has

experienced 2019's polar vortex.

As for me, my Groundhog Day formal education

is solely limited to the movie with Bill Murray.

And as you can guess, it's on several channels today.

In the deep south, the groundhogs' predictions don't

hold much in the way of tradition.

As a matter of fact, our local predictor,

T-Boy the Audubon Park nutria,

did see his shadow.

So in deference to his cousin in the north,

he disagreed with his prediction.

Personally, I don't mind the southern winters.

It certainly beats the oppressive humidity and heat of the summer!

Thank goodness for our mild winters and

wonderful springs and autumns!

 

The CEO and I have been going to the gym

at least 3 times per week.

Hopefully, we both keep this up.

The good thing is that we both go.

(and he's very competitive!)

The selling point of that gym was the

large amounts of "seniors".

My "Baby Boomer" generation is quite formidable.

Yay, us!

 

**************************

The egg production is doing just fine.

Every one of the girls is all in.

Finally!

Pepper is still laying her eggs on the bag of

hay outside the coop.

No idea why.

Hazel is the first to lay her egg in the morning.

Henny, Sandy, Ethel, Lucy and Nugget lay

theirs later in the morning.

But,

we still average 4or 5 eggs per day.

As I type this, I'm watching the girls patrol the yard.

They maintain the flock patrol.

By that, I mean, they stay together while looking

for bugs and tidbits in the grass.

 

While the CEO and I were driving past our local park

which has ducks, birds, rabbits and chickens,

we noticed how thin the chickens were.

Our girls are plump, healthy and very well fed.

And.....

they are pampered pets!

 

************************************

A general commentary...

The state of our country is in turmoil.

Really, the state of the world is in turmoil.

We, as adults, have lived through times such as these

many times before.

We have to make sure that this chaos doesn't

affect our children.

We need to make sure they have coping skills

to deal with the injustices in this world.

We need to love more, have faith in people and God,

have more patience and realize that

no matter what you do,

you can't change someone's mind

but you can change yourself

and how you react to others.

In essence just live by the Golden Rule.

and don't forget to smell the roses!

 

Just a few observations from me....

 

 

Thanks to my loving friends and family

who read my musings.

💋

 

(the picture is of my New Orleans courtyard painting on slate)