Are you doing anything unusual this summer?

I decided to grow a vegetable garden.
Didn't have a clue of how to do it. I watched you tube videos on how to grow broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, strawberries, radishes, potatoes, and more. Often I learn how to do things by looking on you tube.
Thrilled watching my veggies grow! Such a satisfying feeling!
I am hoping to grow a 100 pound cabbage! I'll upload a picture if it grows that big!

 

Liking your gardening ideas! I would kill everything. But you seem to know how to do it! Surely you will have good results. A 100 pound cabbage! Really amazing! Extraordinary! That would be quite a picture. Upload it here, if you can. Rewarding activities are so much fun. Don't give up--you can do it! Seriously!

 

Unusual #1
This summer I'm forced to be that old guy who has a classic muscle car in his garage and never drives it.. It takes premium gas at well over $5 per/gal.

Unusual #2
If gas prices don't improve, I may be forced to buy a new car. That is the last thing I want to this summer. My primary vehicle is a Honda Pilot SUV. It is getting expensive to feed the V6. We have discussed me getting a newer, more fuel efficient 4 cyl car, that is reliable in winter conditions on rural roads.

 

I like Pilots. Yeah, Gas is over 6 a gallon here. If you need a good winter rig with good mileage, a Pilot is hard to beat.
So sorry you can't drive your cooler car! Those gas guzzlers would be killer to fund nowadays. Maybe drive it to the mall and park. You could still sit in it.

 

I hope you are right. I started it the end of May. I am blown away by how quickly it has grown.

 

Nothing really unusual. I'd love a garden but alas, it would have to be indoor plants only as I don't have a yard and my porch really doesn't have the right set up for serious plants.

 

It is very satisfying. I had never done it before. I can't have indoor plants because my cats like to eat the plants. I have 1 hanging potted plant inside and I am amazed it has not yet been destroyed. I need to give it away. The innocent looking gray cat actually ate and destroyed a beautiful cactus arrangement. You'd think the thorns would have deterred her, but she really liked it. I tried to hide it, but she found it and ate more. I just put what was left of it in the trash a few days ago!

 

I grew up with parents who raised a big garden every year. I also helped my mom can and freeze many of the things we grew. I have a big yard, but it doesn’t get much sun due to all of the trees. We grow some tomatoes, but that’s about it.

Our goal for this summer is to buy a boat. We are waiting for our driveway to get finished so we will have a place to park it. Unfortunately the asphalt places are behind schedule. We were supposed to have it done at the beginning of June, but nothing yet.

 

I'm hoping to have quite the garden haul this year. We've got blueberries, raspberries, pineberries (a strawberry variant that produces white berries), a dwarf blackberry, green beans, banana peppers, bell peppers, cucumbers, a jalapeño, and a cherry tomato. We've got a few red currant bushes and a jostaberry (cross between a currant and a gooseberry) that are doing great, but won't produce fruit until next year. Everything is in a fenced-off area because of the deer. They'll eat EVERYTHING, even the stuff they supposedly don't eat eg. geraniums. Went out yesterday to water and found one sitting just on the other side of the fence staring me down.

I highly recommend the Bushel & Berry blueberry cultivars. They're bred for container growing and the foliage is beautiful. Last summer, I kept one on the porch for decorative value.

 

A new boat sounds exciting. I am remodeling a house and I can relate to workers being off schedule. It has been a REAL hassle to get things done. We don't have enough workers here, so they can afford to just not show up.
I want to grow tomatoes next year. I have never used the greenhouse. I'll figure it out next year. Tomatoes only grown in the greenhouse here.

 

Raspberries grow wild here. I have to be careful not to let them take over!
I have 1 moose who has shown particular interest in my new garden. She goes up to the fence and I have to shoo her away. She is not easily shooed either. I have never done it, but a relative says you have to shoot them in the butt with rubber bullets to keep them out. If she takes down the fence and chows down on my veggies, I am going to be annoyed. If it wasn't a crime this time of year, she'd be dinner for the year.

 

My husband I listened to a presentation about growing mushrooms and since we were the only ones in the class with an oak log, the teacher gave us a gallon bag of mushroom spore which we'll be able to use in another 4 or 5 days. She says we'll have either shitake or hericium. I don't know when we can harvest.

 

That's awesome! I am sure you tube can tell you when to harvest!

 

I was going to say I’ve been gardening too, but right now it’s more like un-gardening because I’m trying to reclaim the overgrown mess of flower beds at my new house. I’m making progress, but it’s a lot. I did plant some native flowers in front though, so that was fun!

Home ownership is giving me all kinds of new and unusual things to keep busy this summer. We accidentally bought a fixer upper lol. BUT! It has a pool, which I am thoroughly enjoying.

 

Oh, the 1 luxury I'd love to have up here is a pool. They have to be indoors here and are expensive. I am sure you'll enjoy it.
Yes, home ownership does entail more than some can imagine! I am fixing up a place to sell now and I had no idea how much work would be involved. I am avoiding ( procrastinating) right now!

 

This is only unusual to me: I’m taking my time and building a fire pit. I’m also resolved to cut my grass every eight days (at least). I have a small chain saw, and I’m putting that puppy to work clearing back brush and low-hanging branches of trees. So far, the brush is falling into its rightful place along the side of the road.

 

Oh, and I’m eating out more. Doing my part to keep other people working. Had lunch at Chick-fil-A yesterday. Going there for lunch again tomorrow. Great place.

 

Way cool!!! That is on my list of things to have too. I have eaten out more the last 2 months than I have in 2 years!

 

I have completed the training to be a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) to look out for the best interests of a child whose parents/caregiver are being investigated for abuse and/or neglect. This is a volunteer position, and is used in many counties in my state, and many states in the US.

 

That is a very kind thing to do. I have some friends who have been doing that for a long time now. It helps the child have 1 stable person there for them during hard times. I have been playing around with the idea of providing long term foster care for 1 child only.
I think I could make a difference with 1. I think it would be really hard with more than 1. The kids usually need a lot of attention and sibling rivalry is a real thing especially with neglected kids. There are so many other responsibilities that go along with foster care that I have not made up my mind 100% yet.

 

Foster care is definitely needed! My county does not have enough foster families, and sometimes a child must be placed several hours away. This makes the situation harder on everyone involved.
Good luck with your decision.

 

I love the garden stories! I had a fabulous spot in a community garden last year, but I had to give it up when I moved out of that neighborhood. Now I have peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, and some herbs growing in pots. Unfortunately the animals are loving them. I'm spraying cayenne pepper spray with dishsoap, not sure how else to deter them.

Long lunches with teacher friends - unusual for me! Also going to Maine for the first time! I got into an NEH seminar that takes place there, so I'll be attending that. Trying to make a trip out of it!

 

Inadvertently becoming an expert on construction engineering. So construction is underway at the high school (that I’m now principal at and I’m very excited about) and I’m near constantly translating what the construction crew gives me into something the school board understands. And Vice versa.

 

Probably not unusual for me, but for others--writing a play. I'm also designing lights for a local community theatre.

 

At the moment, I’m dancing to the radio while eating a cookie. Does that seem unusual to anyone?

 

That sounds like a fun creative outlet!

 

Yes, unusual! lol I really disliked basic Excel! I can't imagine taking an advanced class in it.
It would have benefitted me at 1 time to learn advanced Excel, but did not have time. Also, I never was taught to use Excel. I pretty much had to figure it out myself and once in awhile ask a question to someone more knowledgeable. There was 1 year in my job that I had to use it a lot and it took me forever.

 

Nope, not unusual at all! I had been craving cookies for 2 months. I finally got a bag of sugar, made some, and dang they are good! I dance around a lot too! It used to be cool because I did not have anyone who could see in my house. Since I moved, I have to be more careful! I think I may already be seen as the scandalous neighbor here....lol

 

Going to Croatia for the first time. Any advices?

 

I hope you have a great time! That sounds like great fun!

 

Wow! I have never been there, so not advice. I hope you enjoy your trip though!

 

We are still waiting to get our boat. We wanted to have the driveway paved first because we are adding boat parking. The asphalt plant isn’t producing the mix they need for our drive, so we are waiting and waiting and waiting. We are dealing with gravel until then.

 

My husband is a contractor and so many different materials are hard to come by nowadays. And when they do come in stock they are triple the price that they used to be.

 

SUMMER UPDATE:
Going car buying for real this week. Bummer. Unexpected expense that I was hoping to avoid.

Remember when we were young and the excitement of getting a new car? You would drive it to your friend's house and they too were excited. Soon after they would ask, "So when are we taking it on a road trip?"

So now I tell my peers I have to buy a new car and they respond like I told them I'm attending a funeral. "A new car?" "Why?" "What's wrong?" "What happened to your old car??"

I can't afford $80 a week in gas for my Honda Pilot this school year. I am retiring it to utility duties and shopping for a used Honda CRZ Hybrid or Subaru Impreza. Both are hatchbacks that I need for loading my school totes and supplies between my two buildings. They are also 4 cyl and get much better gas mileage than my old V6 suv. Not the way I wanted to spend my money OR my last week of summer vacation.

 

Car prices and gas prices are so ridiculous right now it makes me wish I could take the school bus to school
There is a bus service in my area but I don't think they go where I need to go exactly.

 

It has been really hard to find vehicles. We just happened to be shopping for DSS and for me in 2019, so we got vehicles right before everything shut down. DH was looking for a truck in 2021, and there just weren’t available anywhere. We had to put down a deposit, sight unseen, on a vehicle to even get one. It took a couple of months for it to arrive. It was on like the third shipment. We all three got new Toyotas. Their lot looked bare.

Some of my friends have kids turning 16, and they’ve looked for used cars, and they are selling for almost as much as new ones.

 

I think an electric car is the answer.

 

I think not.
I was looking at a used hybrid but the fact that I would be stuck replacing a $1200 to $2500 battery or electric motor is a deal breaker.

We drove through a few local lots, saw plenty of brand new trucks. My guess is that not many people are buying V8's.
I live by the Mississippi River. I usually hear boats and Jetskis playing in the water all summer. Not this year. In fact, I have not seen one single Jetski being trailered. That is really sad, especially living in a river community.

 

Guitart -- I was being sarcastic with my answer (amusing myself, as I realize it wasn’t obvious that I was joking). Electric cars are too expensive to solve your problem.

However, I was discussing this very issue with my daughter just a few days ago. She recently paid off a 2012 Prius (a hybrid), and she is concerned that the battery may fail sometime soon (still on the original battery and running fine with 110,000 miles). We looked it up and her car is selling at retail for 13K dollars. I suggested that she could refinance her car for enough money to replace the battery if the battery fails. It’s a Toyota, after all, and should be good for at least another 100,000 miles otherwise. A neighbor of mine, a banker, confirmed to me that she would be able to refinance her car relatively easily.

So, you might keep that in mind. A hybrid (especially a Prius -- they have excellent reputations) might be worth a small gamble. If you do need a battery, maybe it won’t be for several years, and then you can use the car to finance that battery purchase.

Just a thought.