Love Hurts

Q: What do you get when you cross a very pale redhead with a sunny day?

A: Lobster!

As much as I love to be outside, you would think that I would learn the importance of wearing sunblock. Nope, not yet. Today after work I grabbed my garden claw intending to do "just a little" prep work in my veggie garden and finish up my cold frames. 4 hours later, I moved my arm and felt the distinctive crackle of cooked flesh. Being as pale as I am, sunburns don't show up until well after the damage is done. Of course, I have no aloe in the house so I have been slathering on the lotion while I wait for hubby to come home with a (hopefully) huge bottle of the good stuff. Luckily I was smart enough to keep the baby in the shade. I can't imagine how I would deal with a sunburned baby, too!

I did get the veggie patch completely turned and weeded out everything that has sprouted so far this spring. I hope to do this a few more times before planting, since every year it seems I fight a losing battle against grass and pigweed in my garden. I keep thinking that if I kill them enough times before I put in the plants I WANT to grow in, maybe this year I will win. If not, then I am seriously considering drastic measures.

I again brought up the idea of revamping the compost system to my dad. He is one of those very casual composters who just throws everything in a pile and lets it cook. This is not wrong, but I like my compost a little quicker and a little more "done". Often, when I let dad do it his way, I have to sift through what he considers "finished" to take out the leaves, sticks, and weeds that have not kept up with the smaller items. Unfortunately, I once again recieved a look of perplexed blankness and the standard response of "huh?". Maybe one of these days I will just re-do everything the way I want it when he isn't looking. HeHe, that is evil Barefoot poking her head out.

Rabbits are eating my flowers again! I say rabbits are good eating, and if I don't figure out a way to keep them away from my gardens rabbit stew is going to become a very prominent part of my diet. The area where I live is particularly good habitat for bunnies, with lots of food sources and places to hide and make many, many baby bunnies. While they are cute, I wish they would be cute somewhere else! Maybe I will get lucky and a fox will move in.....