Bogieblog

Rose Bed Pictures

In early July I decided I didn't like a flowerbed that was next to the house and decided to re-do it. Below the fold are pictures of the process.

Bird Cam

PSNH (our local power company) has an osprey cam up at the Ayers Island Hydro Plant. Go watch the 3 youngsters. There is also a gallery of photos for those of us that are up when the sun isn't.

WS is a Sicko

WS is still sick. He has been sick since last March. He gets better for a while, but never is completely free of the crud, then he gets worse again. He has been in the "worse again" stage for the last two weeks. That is why I am up at this time of night.

He is up coughing and hacking and blowing his nose. He has literally been thru 3 large boxes of Puffs in 1 week. He is hacking up huge globs of crud throughout the day. He has had no sense of smell and hasn't been able to taste anything since March.

He went to the doc again last Tuesday and they could come up with nothing useful. Once again they reccommended allergy medicine (OTC). He has been taking allergy medicine for months - trying different stuff, of which none work. The also gave him antibiotics - the same antibiotics they started him on in March. The same antibiotics that did nothing, as did the next batch of antibiotics that they tried. They also gave him a nasal saline spray, which seems to do nothing.

I told WS last month that he should ask to be referred to an Eye, Ear and Throat specialist. He hasn't done so. He says he will do so this week. I sure hope so because as much as it is keeping me up at night, it is doing a worse number on him.

Of Cats and Cheeseburgers

Most of my readers are cat lovers, so go over to Drumwasters and get a load of this.

Scott and Ellen from AMCGLTD always have some good ones too.

Then there is the ICanHasCheeseburger site (scroll down a bit) from which those featured above, as well as others can be seen.

Then of course, is the place that started it all (I think anyway) - LOLCats.

Hodge-Podge of Doings

I picked the first tomatoes of the season on Friday. None of them were truly ripe, but I wasn't going to wait for chipmunks to do any taste-testing. I also picked 3 green peppers. Wow, that is an increase of approximately 10001% over what I have picked in previous years (remember, I had already picked a couple last week).

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I spent yesterday in flea-fighting mode. Prince got a fleabath and dip (he went for a run earlier in the day and got muddy). Missy got a good brushing (she is shedding horribly, then got some of the stuff you put on their backs. After Prince dried off, he also got the same stuff. The whole house got sprayed too (cats and dogs were out and Birdie was locked away in the back room.)

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Birdie probably thought he was being punished. The back room is still full of boxes of books and other stuff from the den. The only place to put Birdie's cage was on the floor, so he couldn't even look out the windows.

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I am slowly working on getting things put to rights in the den. I cleaned out the front bedroom Friday night (some of which was plant stuff - it got put in the lean-to) so that work-outs can be done in more than a 4 square ft area. I also got one box of books placed in the new book case. I started on another box, but the a lot of series got split up, so I have to find the mates to the books before they can be put away. Oh yeah, in my copious free time I will be doing that.

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Friday I signed up for two classes; Circuit Analysis and Elementary Functions (a math class that is a co-requisite). I will be at class from 5:30 until 10:30 on Mondays and Wednesdays starting the week of Labor Day (Monday class doesn't start till the next week) until December 19. I am still unsure how I am going to get all the tomatoes canned while taking classes, but I am sure I will find a way.

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Yesterday the local Agway had shrubs and trees on sale for 30% off. I got some Viburnums to replace a couple of plants I ripped out last weekend from the shrub garden I put in last year. Those shrubs were not really liking the part shade, so I put them in pots and will figure out what to do with them next year. Perennials were at 20% off (which I had been waiting for) so I got a bunch of hostas to place in an area that WS is working on. They will probably also be overwintered in their pots. Hey, and the Agway Manager gave me 40% off the shrubs and 30% off the hostas instead of the posted discounts (we practically support an employee so he gives us discounts on darn near everything anyway).

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I got 3 more roses planted late yesterday afternoon; Oklahoma, Honor and Soaring Spirits were placed in their permanent homes. I only have two more full-sized roses to get in the ground. I also have several minis, a climber and two rugosas to plant, but I am getting there.

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And that folks, is pretty much all the exciting new I have for this week.

Gardening Update

You can tell we are in the dog days of summer; Tory is just skin and bone, right on schedule for his vet appointment in two weeks. Other than that, not so much. We did have several days in the high 80's and low-mid 90's (temp and humidity). Then it was back down in the low 60's on Friday (I think we topped out at 63). Yesterday was nice and sunny, in the 70's and little humidity.

I have harvested green beans and peas a couple of times. Friday I picked 3 green peppers - yippee! The 4th, and largest, green pepper (that I should have picked last weekend but didn't) was full of insect holes and when I picked it a spider came dashing out of one of the holes. I decided that I wasn't really interested in what else may be inside!

The tomatoes should be starting to ripen soon. WS is trying to decide if he will bet on me or the chipmunk for being the first to get to one huge tomato. In my favor is that tomato is off the ground as the plants are supported by cages. In the chipmunks favor is a will to see a bite taken out of every ripe tomato - and the time to watch until the tomatoes ripen. Only time will tell who the winner will be.

For the last month the roses have been decimated by Japanese Beetles. I tried getting JB traps, but only 4 have fallen for them (we either have extremely smart or extremely stupid JB's - I haven't decided which). I've tried milky spore in the past, but that doesn't seem to do much, if any good, either. Their favorite rose is Night Owl. They like that plant so much that they eat more than the blooms (which is their usual M.O.). They are chompling the leaves too. Their second favorite is rugosas and then Arizona (of which they stay primarily witht he developing buds and blooms). The lighter colored roses (Peace, Honor etc.) are not their favorites so I can occasionally get a bud inside so it can open up without any huge holes in the petals. I have taken to shaking the beetles into a bucket of water and letting them drown slowly, but surely. Of course that only works for a very short while, then more Japnese Beetles are chomping away.

Other than that, I have been busy planting in various parts of the yard. WS has been working on a project that should send rain run-off around back of the house, and into the woods on the far side, indstead of straight down the driveway. We didn't get driveway damage during the floods, but each successive rain created some problems (and people's lack of driving skills have caused more problems) that he is fixing. Hopefully he is averting future problems too.

In short, we are keeping busy as usual.

AS-HFA Quiz

I scored 36.

Scores over 32 are generally taken to indicate Asperger's Syndrome or high-functioning autism, with more than 34 an "extreme" score.

Gotta go do some research (and collect useless information as is my wont).

Hmm, according to Wikipedia (not the best resource, but quick to find), AS is usually differentiated from HFA by when one begins to talk. I started late, so must be HFA. i always knew there was something wrong with me!

Quiz found thru Rita - thanks a bunch LOL.

Vegie Garden - It's Alive

The vegetable garden is going great this year. It was a slow start where every couple of days we had severe thunderstorms, with the obligatory downpours that flatten plants, and hail that punches holes thru leaves and breaks stems. Then there were the bugs and wildlife eating stuff to the ground or eating all but the veins of leaves.

Finally, everything is growing well. We have had green beans twice. Peas will be harvested today (don't let people tell you peas won't produce in 90 degree weather - they are doing just fine). The tomato plants are getting loaded (with fruit - you wise acres).

The winter squash looks like it just might try to give me some gourds; that would be a first as I never could grow pumpkins, squash or any type of melon. However, at this point the plants are just flowering, but they are huge compared to what I normally get, so I am hopefull. Another first - I may actually get some sweet peppers that are larger than peas. There is at least one that is about 1/2 the size of my fist. I'll have to check it out today and see if it is time to bring it in.

The corn may not give us anything. I should have started watering it sooner. Plus, it probably gets more shade than it likes. But, we have never had luck with corn, so it won't be any great disappointment if we get none (except maybe for WS since he is the one that planted it).

The garden is doing so well, I might have to take pictures so I can prove that I had one year that it actually did very well!

Cool Slide Show

So, I opened up my email this morning and found a link to My Beautiful America from SIL. The slideshow is awesome. The email said to turn on the sound, but I don't have speakers attached to the computer (one of these days I will get everything from the back room put back in the den).

No Getting Rich When I'm Gone

stolen from Matty:

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