It has been so dreary here today. It's rained on and off and I think we may be getting rain fairly constantly from now until tomorrow and then, perhaps more. It has not been cold today, just gray and wet. As you can see from my weather widget we do have a chance of snow on Tuesday or Wednesday or, as I think they are calling it, at least some sort of frozen precipitation. As you can only imagine, this is quite rare for our little part of the world and it's been front page news for days. You'd think we were looking at four feet of snow in which case it would be a problem as we have no snow plows or anything like that. Snow shovels are unknown here. I had no idea there was such a thing as an ice scraper for car windshields until I moved to Denver and that was an unpleasant shock if you want to know the truth. I knew nothing about cold weather. I'd been living in Central Florida for years and if it got down to freezing there it was an event. I didn't know that gloves were a necessity or boots or a really warm coat. I also didn't know that you could not wash your hair and then go out in the snow without drying it because it turns out, hair can freeze!
Oh, I was so innocent.
There was a girl from Hawaii who lived next door to me in the dorm and she and I were constantly amazed and confused. I remember we both took ice-skating as a physical education class and we both sucked. I may have told this story before but whatever- one of the luckiest things that ever happened to me was that the ice skating arena (is that what you call it?) fell in before we took our final exam on skates. The roof literally fell in.
Phew!
There is a god!
That was a hard time for me. Depression with a big D hit me like a truck and I now realize that it was somewhat of a miracle that I survived. When it first hit, I spent many, many hours in my dorm room, listening to "Blue" and embroidering a denim shirt for my back-home boyfriend who, actually, had broken up with me before I left but I had refused to believe he meant it because how could he not love me? I loved him so much. And I don't say I "thought" I loved him. I did. Maybe not in the way that you should run away and get married because of but with that insane power of first love where you feel like you are his and he is yours. At least it was that way for me. So surely I could get him back and make him realize his mistake by embroidering him this shirt and I cried and listened to Joni singing about having a river to skate away on and it was dark all the time and cold, so cold and he never called, he never wrote.
He did, however, sleep with one of my best friends who was already married and had a baby at the age of nineteen and that story only gets worse and we'll just...stop here.
What in hell was I talking about?
Oh yeah. It might snow in Tallahassee.
So worry about my porch plants has been making me quite anxious. We didn't bring them in this year as you may know and I covered them up but from some branches sticking out of a few plants that looked dead and gone, I knew that this wasn't the best situation or solution and with it about to be down in the twenties for a few nights, I figured I had to do something about it and today I did. It's been so hard lately for me to do anything. To get motivated to move or step out of my ennui for any amount of time. Even something like tidying up my back porch table and putting a clean tablecloth on it has seemed like an impossible task.
But this morning I set myself the goal of doing just that and giving my front porch plants some love and attention and I did both of those things and I feel better. Not like I now want to go and do other things in that vein, but just... better. At least I did those things.
I trimmed back my banyan tree which had gotten sorely bitten by the freezes we already had and uncovered all the plants, trimmed the ones that needed it, pulled the ones I could manage closer to the porch wall, watered them all and re-covered them more snuggly. I was amazed to find that my bird's nest ferns don't look to have been bothered in the least by the cold weather, nor has the ponytail palm. The philodendrons too, look sturdy and well. But I covered them all up and brought a few plants inside where they will definitely be warm. One of these was a kalanchoe that I dug up in the woods in Roseland. It's grown way too leggy and when I put it back out I definitely need to put it somewhere it can get more sun. Also, I want to do some leaf propagation now so perhaps I will have some new baby plants this summer.
It is the season of darkness for them, poor things.
I brought in a begonia and it, too, is so droopy.
And these begonias- well. They are fine.
I'm glad to have gotten that done.
Glen seems to be having a fantastic time. Today they hunted ducks and then caught some big redfish. I mean- what could possibly be better? Hunting AND fishing on the same day? Here's a picture he just sent me.
Haha!
By the way, I hate the word "pop" used like that when describing food, decorating, or clothing. I have no idea why but it just seems like by the second time I heard it I was already exhausted by it.
Or something like that.
Also, grow something, bake something, create something, read something, embroider something and listen to Joni Mitchell and cry, if need be.
I did a bit of gardening today, too. A very little bit!
ReplyDeleteEven a little bit is good for the soul.
DeleteThat sunset IS glorious. You have a Banyan tree? I love them. That poor droopy begonia needs to be sunk into a bucket of water until the air bubbles stop, if the soil has dried out. And then throughly drained of course.
ReplyDeleteYour description of your first love makes me think I have never been "in" love, though I have certainly loved people.
Well, I hope I have a banyan tree. It's in a pot, not planted in the ground. If the begonia doesn't look better tomorrow, I will take more drastic measures.
DeleteThere is absolutely nothing like first love. I am not saying it's better than other love, I'm just saying it's different.
You have inspired me to ask Mr Google how I can grow a mango from a seed here. I doubt it would ever fruit as we are too cold but it could be fun. I have tried avocadoes but they just turn mouldy.
ReplyDeleteI fear the next few weeks are going to be very unpleasant for a lot of people. I feel for you all.
I just stuck my mango seeds in a pot of dirt and they came up! Same with avocados.
DeleteI fear the next four years are going to be beyond unpleasant for America and it is sure to affect the rest of the world and I am sorry and I apologize.
Young love- silly wasn't it? The angst, the yeaning, the hope, the betrayal. ICK. Glad that will never happen again in my small life!
ReplyDeleteBlue was a heartbreaker- so was Diamonds and Rust. I listened to both continuously trying to see how utterly despondent I could become.
As for the next four years which will seem like a lifetime- I have been stress eating, trying to kill myself, I reckon.
Honestly, I don't feel like my first love was silly. I needed so desperately to be loved like that by someone even though it turned out the way it did, which was good because I think he's an insane crazy person now and probably was then but oh, he treated me like a queen.
DeleteUntil he didn't.
Stress eating? I have a gold medal in that.
I don't miss ferrying plants back and forth and covering hostas that grew up too early in the spring. The diplandia is wintering over nicely, but no thanks to me. Someone else waters it; I can't lift it down or reach up.
ReplyDeleteI know that at some point I will not be able to take care of all the plants I have now. Perhaps I am subconsciously admitting that by letting the porch plants live or die as they will with minimal care. As we say around here - root hog or die.
DeleteWe're looking at between 3 and 5 inches of snow, followed by two night in the teens (and highs only around freezing during the day) and then a possible ice storm at the end of next week. All that's really, really unusual for this area. I'd like to see snow, but I can do without ice.
ReplyDeletePreparations are well underway in this house. We'll be able to ride it out in reasonable comfort, even if we lose power. I really hope we don't, though.
Oh, Jennifer! No, no, no, no, NO! That's insane. Please take care.
DeleteJennifer!!!! Oh my gosh! That is catastrophic for your neck of the woods!
ReplyDeleteIsn't that the truth? We in the south are not prepared for this sort of weather.
DeleteDo yourself a favor and do not watch any of the Orange Lump's inauguration!
ReplyDeleteI can't say what I would really like to say!!
I will not watch any of it. I can't.
DeleteDoes the thing that you would like to say but can't involve the phrase, "shots rang out?"
We are calling it 'un-auguration'. We will not watch it. We've got floors to lay, and cats to feed, and sock drawers to rearrange. The best thing we can do for ourselves to find our 'tribe'. We are surrounded by people who feel as we feel, who are afraid, who are despairing. We need to minister to each other. We need to be kind. We are not alone.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think my underwear drawer could use a good folding and arranging. Perhaps I need to do an inventory and count all the beans I have. Or maybe I'll just stay in bed and stare at the ceiling all day. I don't know.
DeleteStare at the pages of a good book instead. Much more comforting.
DeleteJoni Mitchell, the goddess of thoughtful heart-wrenching, memory provoking songs. Can’t believe the weather there. I’m dreading the weather in NYC. If you want me, I’ll be in the bar!
ReplyDeleteAmen, Mister. Bars are warm and welcoming, even if you don't want a drink.
DeleteI agree with you about spending as much time outside as possible. It does wonders for the morale (or at least in my case)! While I don't mind the cold at all I hate the heat with a vengeance, so that's probably why summer is my least favourite season! Your story about the ice rink collapsing reminded me of my neighbour's son, who was in the last batch of kids who had to do military service here. Since he was to be based in Lyon (about 90 minutes from here) and the traffic is horrendous, they decided that he should catch the train to barracks so he wouldn't be late. But wouldn't you know it, the bloody train station burned down that morning. Try telling THAT to your commanding officer! It's a bit like "the dog ate my homework" only worse!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh! That IS a similar story except that mine had a happy ending for at least too people. Me and Susie Asai.
DeleteNo outdoor time around here as our high today is 14°F, tomorrow's high is 8°F, and Tuesday's is 3°F! Ugh. I'm lucky I can stay in and I have some books to read and I may start a cross stitch craft...
ReplyDeleteI don't get so attached to my plants as you do probably because I have never been that good at plant raising. I under water or over water or give too much sun or not enough sun. I'm just not good at it.
No, no, no. That is too cold. Yes, stay in. Be warm.
DeleteI've just had some of my plants for so very long. Decades.
The forecast here has changed for the worse. Now the low Tuesday will be 15˚ and a 96% chance of some sort of snow or ice falling from the sky. I covered one more plant yesterday and watered everything.
ReplyDeleteI broke up with my high school boyfriend because we were on the very edge of having sex and I just wasn't ready. I was not going to be one of those girls that got pregnant in high school. My first year away at college was horrible. I don't know if I was depressed but I was definitely unhappy. I hated that school.
Let's face it, Ellen- you and I are going to lose some plans. I am now wondering if my winter greens are going to make it through. DAMN! They're so beautiful and so good.
DeleteWell, we shall see.
I honestly figured that getting pregnant and getting married was a better option than living in my family home. Luckily, there was a doctor/saint in Winter Haven who would prescribe birth control pills for teenage girls even though it was against the law. God knows how many lives he saved by doing that, one way or another.
I'm glad you brought in some more of your plants and more securely covered the ones on the porch. Weatherproofing plants is always so exhausting but at the end I figure, "Well, whatever happens, at least I can say I tried to protect them." So now you can say the same.
ReplyDeleteThis does sound like a whopper of a cold spell.
Steve, I swear- I am not sure any of them will survive. I'm really worried but- it is what it is.
DeleteIt's cold here too but the sun is shining which is nice and the cold is only for a few days. When I woke up this morning I thought the cat was dead, she wasn't moving and felt cool, but when I moved the blanket she looked at me and meowed, so not dead thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteI live with depression too and it's hard when you don't feel like doing anything, plus you have anxiety on top of that. You're a strong woman Mary, stronger than you know. Sending hugs and love.
Oh gosh! What a terrible fright you had! Sometimes I find Glen sleeping so hard in his chair that for a second, I freak. So far he hasn't been dead once though.
DeleteYOU are a strong woman. I really am not. Hugs and love back.
Trying very hard not to think about tomorrow. If it doesn’t rain I plan on hitting some nature trails to remind me there’s still good out there. Much love.
ReplyDeleteXoxo
Barbara
Good idea, Barbara!
DeleteMs Moon, you made a comment a while back about putting Granny’s Revereware in the dishwasher…. I strongly recommend against doing so, as the handles will degrade and fall off! 😢
ReplyDeleteWell, I've been doing it for about fifteen years now and they still seem fine. I don't use the ultra-powerful detergent. Maybe that helps.
Delete(Vintage Revereware handles are Bakelite, not plastic)
ReplyDeleteHopefully, the FL cold is only a day or two. Your plants are cherished and knowing they are well protected has to be quite satisfying.
ReplyDeleteNortheast weather is going downhill. Tonight is to bring rain, then rain/snow mix and a freeze, followed by fluffy snow. 6-8 inches of snow with a bit of ice beneath is predicted. The roads will be hazardous until everything is sanded/salted and plowed. It will take a day to clear the roads.
Oh yes, the angst of young first love is real.
They're saying we're going to have six days in a row of freezing or below freezing temperatures and that is most unusual for us.
DeleteThey're also calling for icy roads. We will all die. We have no idea how to drive on them.
I feel like the kind of love you were speaking on for your first love is the love we have as people who never had anything all to ourselves before- a fierce unbridled love. my first love like who broke my heart like a bus running me over and then backing up over me to do it again had a baby with a not so appropriate partner in his late 40s and is now a conspiracy theory nut..... xxalainaxx
ReplyDelete