On Friday, the following alert popped up on my phone.
Originally we’d planned on going camping over the weekend. I’d made the reservation last summer, but by the time May rolled around, we had way too much work left in the garden, so I reluctantly cancelled. I guess Google didn’t get the memo.
Funny story: this was the third camping reservation I’ve made, and cancelled, since moving to Wisconsin. It’s not like we don’t enjoy camping – it’s long been a favorite pastime – but lately, other things have taken precedence. A weekend spent lounging by a campfire is a luxury we can ill afford. Which is why that brand new tent we bought right after moving here is still unopened in its original box.
And if I’m being 100% honest, the older we get, the less appealing it is sleeping outside. Even with an inflatable air mattress, sleeping bags will never measure up to a plush pillow-topped king bed, you know? Then there’s mosquitoes and 2 a.m. trips to the loo and coffee that takes 45 minutes to brew and is scalding hot for an hour. I’m pushing for a camper – something small and lightweight, like a Scamp. Convincing Tara is proving to be an uphill battle, but with an assist from The Travel Architect, whose own camper adventures were overwhelmingly positive, I feel we’ll eventually wear her down.
Had we gone camping as planned, it wouldn’t have been ideal anyway. Saturday was a washout; it rained nonstop until mid-afternoon. That didn’t stop us from getting yard work done though. I spent three hours in the soaking rain, clearing out an overgrown bed of weeds and poison ivy, while Tara put the finishing touches on her raised beds. Sunday we had sunshine, but with it came humidity. Nevertheless, we worked outside for 8+ hours, and even had a visit from Dick and Carol, who stopped by to pick up a package. We gave them a tour of the new garden and they were very impressed. Honestly, so am I. I can’t believe how great it turned out! Hats off to Tara, who had a vision and made it come to life. Guess I’m not the only one who knows how to manifest.
Tara was finally able to get her tomatoes and peppers planted. She started them from seeds way back in January. Not content with tomato cages or stakes, she fashioned this fancy overhead trellis system where you attach the tomato plants to suspended strings using clips; this trains them to grow vertically and maximizes garden space, so you get more fruit per square foot. They’re also easier to harvest and less prone to soil-borne disease. Pretty slick, huh?
The whole garden is enclosed in a welded wire fence to keep the critters out. It ain’t pretty, but it gets the job done. Eventually, we’ll upgrade to something more professional. All the wood chips are leftovers from the trees we had taken down in December. You might recall my two-day project carting that mountain of mulch across the yard one wheelbarrow-full at a time. I’m glad all that hard work paid off.
So, there’s just one more raised bed to assemble and fill with dirt. A little more weeding and poison ivy removal, some more wood chips to spread, and the garden will finally be D-O-N-E. This weekend should just about do it.
By the way, I’m happy to report that, since mounting my Bird Buddy on a tall pole and adding a baffle, there have been no additional visits from squirrels or “grey catbirds.”
Even Tom Brady doesn’t win every game.
Mark My Words 
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