They stepped up the work on the house demolition and it will be completely gone by the end of this week. I went up last night and purloined a couple of concrete blocks that were destined for the landfill – everybody needs a few blocks around, don’t they? The pic was taken last night.

About 2 weeks ago Nancy gave me a 28oz can of frozen grease drippings. I put it in the freezer intending to add it to the trash when I rolled it out for pickup Monday morning. Out of sight, out of mind and I totally forgot. I caught it this week and put it in the container right away. Bad move. I set it up so it couldn’t spill when it melted but wasn’t thinking of it as a bear lure. The can was turned over last night and the grease can was sitting near by, neatly scooped out. So putting it in a ziplock bag doesn’t seal the fumes in.

Picked the first zucchini from the August planting. The seeds went in the ground Aug 8 so seed to table in about 6 weeks, about 2 weeks earlier than predicted. Of the 4 plants that germinated, 3 survived. The other is a dependable variety so it wasn’t an experimental choice. It fell victim to little green caterpillars. It was side by side with the other plants and that one was the only one eaten. I yanked out the carcass last night and put in crook neck squash seeds. If we have a warmer than usual fall, we should be eating little crook necks by mid November. I’ve never tried this particular variety so it’s a bit of a crap shoot. If it works and likes Barberville, I’ll plant more in the spring.

Got much of the winter stuff going now – where going means planting seeds. That includes kale, collard greens, cabbage, cauliflower, kohlrabi, lettuce and broccoli. These items will literally be put in the garden by mid October. Still to go: spinach, chard, beets, another kale variety, peas, radishes and more lettuce varieties. I’m also going to try turnips again. I tried them very early in my Florida gardening efforts and got absolutely nothing so it’s time to try again. I’m going to really focus this year on spreading out the plantings so I have a continuous flow of goodies and good variety. That sounds easy but I invariably end up with loads of X and not so much Y.
The rain has persisted and the lake is now at the peak for the year. We’re just about through the rainy season and have more than enough to carry us through the winter. When I plant in the garden and dig down a foot or so, it’s mushy wet.

No nose bleeds for a full week so I’m calling it fixed. I finally, today, got an appointment with an ENT for next Friday. The only reason for keeping the appointment is to get all the information regarding the nose sprays first prescribed. When do I stop taking them? and do I need a renewable prescription or is there some over the counter med that does the same thing?
Nancy is winging her way to Bermuda by way of NY.

We’re still getting more than enough rain – 1/2” plus almost everyday with a few real downpours. Part of the garden is lovin’ it; part, not so much. The pole beans and cucumbers are crawling their way up the trellis, the butternuts are a few feet long and one of the zucchini bushes has a 2” fruit started. The tomatoes are looking pretty funky. I think with them it’s the heat and humidity, not the water directly. I put in a patch of carrot seed but not sure how that will work out. It’s really early but supposedly this variety can handle heat. We’ll see. Another item that’s actually looking positive is the tetrogonia aka New Zealand spinach. I tried some last season and had zero luck – never could get any seeds to germinate – but at the same time Joey did really well with his and said it provided good greens throughout the summer. I got a couple seeds to germinate which is actually all you need. The seed pods are clusters so if it does germinate, there will be multiple plants. That’s the same as beets and chard so I guess they’re somehow related. Anyway, it’s a bushy plant that you just cut and eat as you want so just a few plants will get the job done for a long season.

If they greet you by your first name at the Emergency Room are you there too often? I made two visits last week for the same thing – spontaneous, persistent nose bleeds. After the first visit two Saturday’s ago I tried in vain to get in to see an ENT guy. I called the closest one, highly recommended, and told them I was referred from the Emergency Room. I later learned that’s the wrong thing to say. Doc’s don’t like emergency room kind of patients so never returned my calls. They were always courteous and said they’d pass the info along to the doc and he would call and set something up. I learned that after the second trip last Thursday. I asked them for the name of a local ENT and they included that info with my discharge papers. I called and said I was referred by the Emergency room and the nurse gave me the same story – we’ll tell the doc and he’ll get back with you to set something up. I asked the nurse if it would be easier if my regular doctor did the referral and she said it would be much, much easier – less paperwork. I interpreted that to mean they really don’t won’t to deal with people who use the emergency room and I can understand that. I also interpreted the delay to mean they needed to run a credit check or something. I called my regular doc and they said they’d take care of the referral so if I’m right, I’ll probably get a call Monday setting up an appointment. The good news is that the nosebleeds have stopped for four days now – the longest stretch in a couple of months. They cauterized it which is not the most pleasant experience but it seems to have worked.

The other good news is that they checked my blood level and I have plenty.
Nancy heads off to Bermuda this week. Somebody has to stay at the farm. I was concerned that a tropical storm might interrupt the cruise but doesn’t look like it. One way I can tell is by looking in the fridge and seeing the containers of future dinners building up.

The house up the end of the driveway is history. They started about 7AM this morning and by 4 it was torn down. It’s destined to be part of a pasture for cattle – much mo bette. The place was a bit of an eyesore and temporary housing for lots of immigrant fern workers.

The workers told me it would be about a week before all signs of the old place are gone.

The storms became much about nothing. We really didn’t even get much rain and no wind to mention. A couple of good lightning storms but that was it. Some areas of the state did pick up substantial rainfall but not us. The lake is full but not overfull but we still have two months of the rainy season ahead of us. September and October are classically higher likelihood of tropical storms but right now there doesn’t seem to be anything in the offing. Nancy and Joey are going on a cruise to Bermuda later this month so maybe that will stir up the Atlantic.

I’ve started transplanting a few plants that I started in July into the garden. They include a few tomatoes, a few peppers, and a pair of egg plants. If they hold up for a week to 10 days, I’ll transplant a few more with the expectation that they would all be in by the end of this month. I planted squash, cucumbers, and pole beans a month or so back and they are all doing well. I’m expecting eatable results from those by the middle of October. Starting the winter plant seeds in a day or so – cabbage, broccoli, kale etc etc etc. We had house guests this past week or I would have started those then.

Sorry this posting was delayed. Computer issues for the past few days. All fixed.