I grew these peppers. It was like experiencing motherhood. I planted the small plant, watered it almost every day and watched it grow into a fine, sturdy plant. Then… blossoms! Then, tiny little peppers. Finally, I am harvesting my fine little green peppers. I’m so proud. It is truly amazing how nature works. I ate one of my delicious babies in a salad yesterday. Yum!
Warren Buffet says the crisis on Wall Street is all but over. But he warned that people with individual mortgages were still going to feel pain.
This is probably the time everyone is looking back with regret on their decision to spend $400,000 on a home that obviously wasn’t worth that much. Americans are wasteful. And the media has taught us that we shouldn’t buy something unless it’s new and shiny… and better than what our neighbor has. I met a woman last week who had the most interesting and inviting back yard. Most of the things in it she had picked up on the roadside where people had left them for trash pickup. It was fascinating looking over the items. I was so proud of her for being so innovative and creative. When money will buy you anything, you lose an incredible amount of creativity. The old adage “Necessity breeds invention” is completely accurate.
I’ve been thinking to myself lately as I look at the paper I use and how I reuse or recycle it, “What if paper was ridiculously expensive?” How would I reuse or recycle it differently? When I was growing up, we didn’t have a lot, and my mother was very creative with everything that we used. We kept glass jars to use in the garage to hold screws and parts. We handed down all clothing and mended what we could. Our clothes line out back was made of heavy duty pipes fastened together. We built a playhouse out of scrap wood. There was no going to the store and buying everything new. It just wasn’t an option. (Besides, what stores did we have in rural Vermont?)
Our pursuit of bigger, better and shinier puts us all at an economic disadvantage and seriously affects our quality of life. Smaller homes use less electricity, are easier to clean and feel more cozy. Smaller cars use less gas and are easier to maneuver in traffic. Recycling and being conscious of our effects on mother nature make the world a better place for each and every one of us.
Some day the Gulf Coast’s barrier islands will probably be like the ruins of some grand dynasty. Empty mansions, abandoned during an economic crisis, vandalized and filling up with insects and rodents. Giant structures in worship of money and power, symbols of wasted resources and gluttonous, short-sighted egos.
Some of you probably think I’m some obsessed “cat lady”, but I really just love my cat, and she made me very proud today. Back in December, I installed a cat door for her. It goes through the wall onto the pool deck. It has two flaps - one on the outside and one on the inside. This makes it very well insulated against bugs and the weather. I knew it would be doubly challenging for her to learn to use with the two flaps, but I had confidence. Although I had showed her the door on about a dozen occasions since it was installed, it wasn’t until last month that I decided to get more diligent about it. I decided to let Phoebe out through the “human door” and then close it so she couldn’t get back in. Then when she looked like she was ready to come in, I would encourage her from the inside of the cat door. It was slow work, but I kept at it, and a few weeks ago, she came in through the door by herself. It was a wonderful accomplishment. Since then, she has come in many times. Coming in was the easy step because when she gets scared, she is very motivated to come in. She’s not as motivated to go out. But again, I was diligent. So today, as I was sitting here working, she approached the door and began pawing at it. Lo and behold, she went all the way through. I literally jumped out of my seat and started screaming like a little girl. I was so happy. She’s done it twice now. With the really hot weather coming, I couldn’t possibly leave my door open for her like I did when it was cooler. Now she will have full reign of the indoors and outdoors, and she will simply love it. I’m the proudest mother ever.
I know, I know… I’ve been gone too long. Here’s a recap of recent events: the economy sucks and people are rude.
But seriously, I’ve been trying to find the time to post photos from my trip to Ireland. Stay tuned. It was a wonderful trip and much-needed time away from my computer. I got to meet my sweetheart’s mother and see all sorts of cool things. On the business front, clients are unable to pay me, so business is a bit stale at the moment. However, I’ve been programming my little fingers to the bone on another venture with wonderful results. Even though times are tough, I am optimistic. Because let’s face it, stressing out RARELY seems to help. (Unless it’s accompanied by MASSIVE quantities of alcohol… haha!)
And lastly, I became a great-aunt for the SIXTH time last week. With all the children in my family, there’s really little need to procreate myself. I have children of all ages at my disposal. I think renting is better than owning.
That’s it for now… I promise to try to write more in the next few days.
… not me, apparently. I built a website for a local developer, but I was contracted by an advertising agency. They entered it into the Addy’s and won. But no mention of me. Boo hoo! I don’t get no respect.
Apparently now I can “say” I put together an Addy-award-winning website… I just can’t prove it.
You know it. I know it. Why doesn’t somebody do something about it. One young soldier, who refused to return to Iraq after a trip home, spoke at my future alma mater. He had this to say:
When a student asked what needs to be done to end the war, Mejia answered that he doesn’t believe any elected presidential candidate can end the war — soldiers just need to stop fighting it.
“The first step in helping them rebuild their country is getting the hell out,” he said.
Mejia blamed the Bush administration for spending billions on the war, when he said funding should be going to help Americans living in poverty, the failing school system and to save the environment.
“It’s not patriotic to support the war, it’s patriotic to stand against it,” he told the audience, to a round of applause.
Read the whole article. We’re putting more US Dollars into the international community through Iraq than we are spending in our own country. If we ever want the dollar to recover, we need to STOP DOING THAT and pay attention to the needs of our own people. We can’t afford to help all the foreclosure issues because we have no money. We’re actually giving everyone $600 even though WE HAVE NO MONEY!!! It’s like adding insult to injury. Wake up, people!
My favorite place to park downtown is the State Street parking lot. On the weekends or in the evening, I could always find a space there. I’m not sure how many people are like me, but I don’t like to parallel park, and I don’t like parking decks. So, my parking options are somewhat limited. But the State Street parking lot was always there for me. Until now. Now, it’s being leased out and used for valet parking. Some people in this town work for a living and think valet parking is a bit overkill. If we didn’t reserver all the parking for valet parking, we wouldn’t need valet parking, right?
SRQ Magazine’s Page 1 email today contained a list of new rules for the State Street parking lot. It really ticked me off and reinforced why I don’t go downtown to shop, especially during season. There is no place to park. Especially when you really want a place to park. Look at what they’ve done to it:
1) An area of parking spaces in the State Street lot will continue to be freely accessed by the general public and city permit holders, as they are today.
2) People holding permits, sold to the general public on a first come first serve basis, will also park in the State Street lot in assigned, numbered, spaces. There will be three types of permits: a 12 hour permit valid from 6am—6pm, a 9 hour permit valid from 6am—3pm and an evening employee parking permit. The Farmer’s Market’s use of the lots on Saturday will not be altered.
3) After 6pm the State Street parking lot will be accessed by evening permit holders and valet available to the general public. The valet charge will be $3. Retailers will be encouraged to help promote the system, by validating the valet parking for their customers and leasing spaces for their employees. Merchants who wish to participate in the validation program may do so for a flat monthly fee. Those that do participate will be given discounted employee parking permits if they so desire. In exchange, those businesses will be promoted at the valet stand. There will be two valet stands on Lemon Avenue.
4) Initially, the valet station will only open one service station starting at 11:30am.
5) The income generated from the lot will offset the cost of maintaining the State Street lot, operating the valet service, administering the program and promoting the service.
I feel bamboozled by the City of Sarasota, and I hope they’re going to make it up to me.
I was out pulling weeds in my yard the other day and saw some most interesting things. Did I mentioned how much I *love* working in my yard?
The first thing I saw were these little red bugs. They were so interesting, and I wish I’d gotten a photo, but I think I managed to find them online. They are Jadera haematoloma, or scentless plant bugs, and can be seen here.
Next, I saw something that was also red. At first I thought it was a bigger beetle, then a worm. I dug into the sand and picked up this little red, white and black striped snake. I yelled for my companion, who quickly brought his camera and took a snapshot. He was so little and cute, and I quickly deposited him back in the sand. I found some info about him online under the heading non-venomous snakes. Whew!
Scarlet Snake (Cemophora coccinea): Another fairly small (to 2 feet) red, black, and white snake which somewhat resembles the venomous coral snake. Scarlet snakes have a red snout and a series of red blotches or spots, outlined by black. They do not have a black snout, or red rings touching yellow rings, like the coral snake. This is a very common snake that burrows in sandy habitats. It is secretive and seldom encountered.
I have a friend, Catherine, who lives in Lausanne, Switzerland. She loves to ski, and each year she travels to Zermatt to swish down the slopes. She always manages to make it to Elsie Bar (to which I *must* go some day), and she forwarded a long a photo as she does each year. She also always gets her photo taken with the mountain’s two St. Bernards. It looks frightfully cold there, so I will leave that vacation spot to her.
