# Wherever I go, there I am



## JFBev (Mar 25, 2018)

This forum seems friendly -- thought I'd write a little about myself and see what any of you might have to comment on or relate to.

Here goes!  I'll keep the paragraphs 3 lines or less. 

I wrote my first line of computer (math) code in high school in 1973, and have pretty much been in that world since then; was a professional developer and used that background for economics research in the 00's.  I personally never experienced any gender bias as a female, because 90% of the interaction was electronic.

Funny story:  I had been working online with another programmer for 2 years, then I was relocated to the same office building he was in -- even though our offices were about 50 feet apart, we still worked online.  We "knew" each other in that world, and chose to continue communicating in the same way.

When I began to back away from that world, I realized that I'd been in a real bubble -- future-oriented mostly.

A few years ago, I began to teach ESL to adults -- many of these students are barely surviving financially, but all of them have smart phones; this makes it difficult for them to really dive deeply into their new language, depending instead on translators.

Millennials' brains are, literally, wired differently than previous generations.  Their dependence on technology is so complete that if/when there is a natural disruption, very-very few of them would be capable of solving the simplest of problems on their own (without devices to calculate, measure, and think for them).

I have a ton of faith in the talent of engineers who are able to return booster rockets to their original positions(!), rather than products developed in government bureaucracies which stifle innovation.  

The economics part of this journey is a little scarier; what used to be called "behavioral modification" is now referred to as "nudging" toward "optimal outcomes".  Who decides what is optimal?  We are being studied to death (in my less energetic moods, I can empathize with what laboratory rats must feel like).

I didn't mean for this to be a diatribe; I fully understand that the future is a place I can't go.  I am fascinated by the fact that money follows successful novelty at the expense of -- well -- infrastructure, for one.

When the next dark age comes, will society have to be re-learned -- again???

In spite of all that, I am an optimistic person (hey, if a BS-Economics won't make a cynic out of you, then nothing will).
But, I'm not a philosopher by nature. 

Does anyone have any thoughts about how to accommodate such a dilemma?


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

Okay, that first one really was a diatribe.  Sorry to those of you who read it. . .  Can't delete it.  Ah well. . .
Had just gotten off another forum that is filled with "serious" conversations and very strong opinions.  Should've taken a break before logging in here   Am going to let that one go -- it's not healthy for someone who doesn't like drama!

I'm enjoying reading about travel, the off-the-grid home, and really love the word games here!  

Busy week ahead; good weather and a garden to start getting into shape.  Yay!


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## hollydolly (Mar 28, 2018)

Very interesting, regardless of how you feel about whether you should have written it at all. It's fascinating for me to learn from those who have a knowledge greater than mine in _any _subject..so thank you, and please continue..


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## Mizzkitt (Mar 28, 2018)

Hello and :welcome: to the forum. Nice avatar, do you surf? or just listen to the sounds of the surf?


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## terry123 (Mar 28, 2018)

Welcome from Houston!


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

hollydolly said:


> Very interesting, regardless of how you feel about whether you should have written it at all. It's fascinating for me to learn from those who have a knowledge greater than mine in _any _subject..so thank you, and please continue..



Thank you so much Hollydolly!  

Luckily for me (and lots of others), Spring has arrived and now I can get out digging in the dirt and get the garden going again.


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

Mizzkitt said:


> Hello and :welcome: to the forum. Nice avatar, do you surf? or just listen to the sounds of the surf?



Hi Mizzkitt!  Well, I _watch and listen _ . . . do you surf?   
I love walking on the beach -- it's great for keeping the legs in shape and you can't beat the view 
My new adventure this year is going to be learning how to fly one of those bat-winged kites!  Always wanted to do that, and it turns out there's a club that meets one weekend a month during Spring/Summer/Fall in another beach town about 1/2 hour from here.  Already have the beginner kite, so am looking forward to that!


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

terry123 said:


> Welcome from Houston!



Hi terry123!


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## wvnewbie (Mar 28, 2018)

Welcome!  I'm new here myself.  I just have to say"  GO FLY A KITE!


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

Thanks wvnewbie!


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## RadishRose (Mar 28, 2018)




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## hollydolly (Mar 28, 2018)

JFBev said:


> Thank you so much Hollydolly!
> 
> *Luckily for me (and lots of others), Spring has arrived and now I can get out digging in the dirt and get the garden going again*.



LOL...can you tell the weather over here it's supposed to be spring?...we're still waiting...we've had 2 days of Sun in the last month. Poor daffs are struggling trying to raise their little heads.


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## Falcon (Mar 28, 2018)

:wave:  Hi  JFBev.  Glad you joined the crowd.


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

Thanks RadishRose!


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

We know it's Spring when the rain starts falling straight down and the gale warnings are cancelled nthego:, here on the Southern Oregon Coast.  We really have the best of both worlds -- a Northern California climate with a no-sales-tax Oregon address.    We're supposed to have about a week of beautiful weather (today, it was 72F (22C), with a light breeze -- the whole neighborhood was out to play!)  
I went to the garden store today and they're not really stocked up yet.  I need to get some outdoor potting soil to build up my ceramic pots again.  And this year, yes this year, I am getting a brand new chaise lounge for my back patio.  One of those really cool ones with the drink holder attachment.  
So, since the weather moves from West to East, I can stop apologizing to my relatives and friends in the middle and Eastern parts of the U.S. and hope some of this goes their way very soon!  And for you too!


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## JFBev (Mar 28, 2018)

Thanks for the welcome, Falcon -- I'm glad to be here!


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## twinkles (Mar 29, 2018)

welcome from georgia----jfbev


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## JFBev (Mar 29, 2018)

Hi twinkles, thanks!


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## JFBev (Mar 29, 2018)

Beautiful day again here today -- got out into my back walled garden and neatened it up!  Sprayed all the paver joints with white vinegar and bagged up all the debris. Feelin' all efficient


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## JFBev (Mar 30, 2018)

Springtime at the beach! Tourists are beginning to arrive, but I love it because they're happy to be on a vacation and it reminds us how fortunate we are to be living here year-round.  Of course, the time to drive into town _doubles_ (from 8 minutes to 16 minutes) during high season.  No worries, I can cope just fine!  
Still have some garden prep remaining to do today before I get to go to the gardening store.  Have made a list and will make every effort to stick to it .


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## jujube (Mar 30, 2018)

Welcome, JFBev!


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## maggiemae (Mar 30, 2018)

Welcome JFBev!  I lived in Oregon for two years as a teenager coming from the deep south.  It was quite a journey.  I understand what you meant in your original post.  My grandkids are so attached to their "devices", it makes me crazy!  I tell them there is a "real" world out there and you better be prepared for it!  And they are only  13 and 7 years old!  YIKES!


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## JFBev (Apr 5, 2018)

Got lots of garden prep work done and the lawn mowed and fertilized yesterday -- today and for the next week, rain and showers will be around.  
This gardening thing will probably help me save what's left of my mind .  
One of my neighbors is in her 80's and, with the exception of roses, there isn't anything she doesn't know about flowers.  She offered to give advice!!!  How lucky am I?!!! 
Even though I spend many of my waking hours looking at this screen, am looking forward to this Spring and Summer -- first season in too many years where I'll have time to get outside and create a patio garden.
What a gift!


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## RadishRose (Apr 5, 2018)

Are you putting in anything new this year Bev? Do you have mostly perennials? 

How I loved my peonies before I had to downsize, and my iris, rosebush and bee balm. Do you grow any of those? Oh and the bulbs! I do miss it all.


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## JFBev (Apr 6, 2018)

Hi RadishRose!

Most of what I'm putting in will be new to this garden; the previous owner loved the overgrown jungle look in the back courtyard .  Last Summer I pulled most of it out and had the maple tree pruned.  So much more light!  My last prep project is to trim back the 8-foot tall Arbor Vita (sp?) hedge which grows along the back of the garden.  It's very healthy, but I need to trim it back about a foot.  Then, the fun can begin - yay! 

There are 12 large ceramic pots that I uncovered, and a long raised bed on the outside of the paved area.  It was fun to discover that those were already there, but of course I rearranged them   Already there when I moved in: purple irises, tiger lilies, some kind of spring onion with the most beautiful little white blooms, blueberry bushes in pots, and lots and lots and lots of fiddlehead ferns (most of which I pulled out -- just left some around the edges).  Every pot has bulbs also, which I look forward to re-arranging in the Fall.

This year, I'm adding some of my old favorites:  clematis, hollyhocks, yellow roses (some are already in pots and seem happy), and some bright annuals to fill in the rest.
Didn't think about bee balm -- that would be great! 

Then, I'm going to try some low-growing ground cover for the raised bed.  I was told there's something called a "century plant"???  It's more colorful than hen-and chicks, stays low and is supposed to spread rapidly to fill.

Our growing season is all year round -- we have a couple of frost warnings in January each year, but that's about it.  Right now, another strong rain/wind front is coming through for the weekend, so I'm patiently waiting until Monday to tackle that hedge!

What I love about this is that it's not too much -- only about 300 square feet outside my covered patio -- so will be easy to keep up with.  And I'm looking for a new chaise lounge (not one of those anti-gravity chairs) so I can relax on the patio and enjoy my little walled garden!


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## NancyNGA (Apr 6, 2018)

Sounds like a fun project, Bev.  Have you thought about taking a picture right now? Then we could see before and after (and progress in between) pictures.


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## RadishRose (Apr 6, 2018)

Bev, I enjoyed reading all about it. Yes, that arbor vitae (?) gets huge! That oniony plant with the white flower..don't know the name but it drove my friend crazy- it spread all over the yard, clogged up the mower, lol. Very aggressive, she couldnt get rid of it. 

I liked the bee balm for the butterflies plus it was tall where I needed tall. I thought century plant was some kind of aloe or agave, not sure.

Yes, photos would be nice if you can!

My mil used to cook fiddleheads, delicious!

Your yellow roses must be beautiful!


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## JFBev (Apr 6, 2018)

NancyNGA said:


> Sounds like a fun project, Bev.  Have you thought about taking a picture right now? Then we could see before and after (and progress in between) pictures.


Sure! But will have to wait until Monday for current photos -- vigorous coastal weather this weekend! ☺


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## JFBev (Apr 6, 2018)

RadishRose said:


> Bev, I enjoyed reading all about it. Yes, that arbor vitae (?) gets huge! That oniony plant with the white flower..don't know the name but it drove my friend crazy- it spread all over the yard, clogged up the mower, lol. Very aggressive, she couldnt get rid of it.
> 
> I liked the bee balm for the butterflies plus it was tall where I needed tall. I thought century plant was some kind of aloe or agave, not sure.
> 
> ...



Wow, I'm glad the onions are nowhere near my front lawn ☺
I didn't know fiddle heads were edible! Not sure I could handle that texture...
A photo diary might just be the thing to keep me  on track, too!  Now I wish I had taken a "before" of the jungle. It took 5 SUV loads to get rid of all of that


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## JFBev (Apr 9, 2018)

My "mid-project" photos:   
Only allowed 5 max to upload, so these show the high points.  Clarity is not so good, because I resized them for posting...


Somehow a lavender rainbow got into the Mary Garden photo -- love that one!  The last one is my first success of the season -- blooming miniature yellow roses!


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## JFBev (Apr 9, 2018)

Bigger photos -- don't know why the vertical ones won't stand up straight here  -- they do on my photo viewers; anyhow, are these better?


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## NancyNGA (Apr 9, 2018)

Thanks JFBev!  Much easier to see.  Lovely yellow roses.


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## JFBev (Apr 10, 2018)

Thank you NancyNGA!  

I showed those and other photos to my neighbor Lorna (who doesn't get out too much these days) -- she was complimentary about how much work I've already done .  To me, it still looks like a mess, but now I can get to the clearing out and planting in pots!

What fun this is -- I bought this small modular home partly because of that back walled garden (I won't buy a stick-built house here, since this is a reasonably active seismic zone and I don't want to invest a ton of money) -- it's fine to live in a 55+ neighborhood of these homes along a private lane, and with neighbors who have lovely small gardens.  My house has a lot of south and west exposure (passive solar!), and on the "public" sides I keep a nicely trimmed lawn with a few bushes and large pots with blueberries (I just found out they need fertilizer, but have to find out when best to apply) and herbs. 
So when this private garden is spruced up, it'll be a nice space too! 

I wonder if anyone can recommend any of their favorite hanging-vine type plants that do well on the humid, temperate Oregon coast?


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## JFBev (Apr 11, 2018)

Quick change of gears -- watched 4 hours last evening (repeat broadcast) and 5 hours this morning (live) of a person testifying before a committee (keeping that as neutral as possible, because sometimes politics and public interest topics have a way of blowing up in forum conversations nthego.
Whoa!  Kind of an existential struggle between "safety" and "freedom" going on, but it still surprises me how little non-nerds pay attention about how social media systems really work.
Sheesh!!!  'Nuff said, I think.
That's what happens when it's a rainy day and I can't get out into my sweet little garden.  Gonna make a cup of tea and play some games here!


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## RadishRose (Apr 11, 2018)

I looked around for a vine like plant for coastal Oregon (zone 8b to 9a) Loving hydrangeas as I do, this Climbing Evergreen Hydrangea mentioned in the *comments* at-

http://www.drakes7dees.com/blog/coast-plants/

just took my breath away when I googled images:
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Climbing+Evergreen+Hydrangea&t=ffcm&atb=v90-7&ia=images&iax=images

You should be able to grow another favorite; Wisteria. 

I had fun looking these up, reminds me of my gardening days.


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## JFBev (Apr 11, 2018)

Thanks again, RadishRose!
Already have 2 hydrangea bushes on the side of the driveway, but will look up Wisteria.


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## JFBev (Apr 19, 2018)

Walled-garden clean-up and prep is done - yay!  There was one pot that had the most awful, prickly tendrils that had wrapped around the tree last year, so in the Fall I tore up one pair of garden gloves cutting it down to the base and bagging the cuttings for disposal.  Yesterday, I tried to dig the stump out of the pot, but it had rooted all the way down -- had to dump the whole thing.  Don't know what that was, but I think it would make a terrific deer fence if necessary.  Anyhow, it's bagged up and ready for the semi-annual yard debris pickup -- I'll only have four bags this time -- progress!
We should have 10 days of mostly sunshine and 60+ degree temps!  On a friend's advice, I picked up some "confetti" plants to put in the shorter garden pots, and three purple-flowered clematis for the tall blue pot in the Mary garden area.  They'll all get planted tomorrow!
The front lawn is in really good shape this year (a two-year process to get it up to par...), so mowing is now on a weekly schedule. 
The previous owner left me an auto-sprinkler system :love_heart:, and I'm going to re-program it for 2-days/week, 20-minute intervals.  Will see if I can outsmart the machine and get it re-done. 
After all the planting is done, there's one more project I've wanted to do for a while -- pull out and relocate/rearrange some of the paving blocks.  Don't think I'll have to buy more than a dozen new ones to finish the design.  Should be interesting, and definitely appeals to a nerdy brain to get those in order.   There was some settling so it's not really a level area, but I can live with that...
Another fun adventure -- finding a chaise lounge that is not zero-gravity!  Just a reasonably light-weight one that folds out flat and that folds up when I'm not using it.  The old-school style is not easy to find!
Will take more photos when the plants are in, thanks for reading!


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## JFBev (May 7, 2018)

Time to enjoy the fruits!  The trash collection service took away 4 big bags of lawn and garden cuttings a week ago and I got all the new plants in as of last evening -- yay!!!  And I found a perfect chaise lounge including cushions for $49 -- unbelievable 
My first hummingbird arrived yesterday, so I quickly went and bought some already-flowering fuschias for the last two pots and put them in just before dark.  Other new plants put in last week:  purple clematis and something called "confetti" which will expand and overflow their pots at some point.  
Think I'll wait until June to take more photos since there will be lots in bloom.
Tomorrow my friend Lorna (the expert, although she demurs at that...) and I are returning to one of her favorite wholesale plant locations to pick up a few succulents.  When we were there two weeks ago, they had a large supply of tri-colored pastel cacti called something like "ocean drifts", if I remember right.  So we're going back tomorrow to see what my self-imposed remaining budget will allow.  
It's fun to update here -- feels like I have an accountability friend or two to stay on task and now all there's left to do in the walled garden is water occasionally and wait for the blooms to begin. 
Thanks for reading!


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## Keesha (May 7, 2018)

Hi JFBev
Your patio garden looks lovely. I also think Wisteria is wonderful and clematis is by far my favourite flowering vine. 
Happy gardening.


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## JFBev (Jun 6, 2018)

June already!  Have new garden pics -- I've decided to embrace the fiddle-headed ferns; am particularly happy with my new fuschias and took a close-up pic of one of the pots 

The clematis above Mary's statue is in very bad shape, but not dead yet.  There seems to be something about the neighbor's tree above the North side of that corner -- nothing except bulbs survive below it.    To the left (not directly under the tree) is where I put the potted yellow roses and they are doing fine.
Don't know much about trees and can't do anything about it, so I'll wait until Fall to see if I need to plant only bulbs in the pots on that side.  Rats.

It is so lovely to relax with a cup of morning tea in my traditional (not zero-gravity) padded chaise lounge!  Oh, and yesterday evening I bought a 38" neon pink flamingo wire sculpture (which is supposed to glow in the dark -- will see tonight).  I put it on the west side of the house because, well, it looks perfect there; embarrassing the neighbors is just an added bonus.  



I have no idea why the pics lay sideways when I insert them here -- they are "upright" when I take the photos.  Anybody have an idea what I can do about that?

Bev


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## Camper6 (Jun 6, 2018)

*Edited image*

Image I was able to select it. Flip it. And the save it and upload it. I'm using an iPad tablet.


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## JFBev (Jun 12, 2018)

I found out today that the "killer" tree will be pruned way back, but not removed.  Sigh.  My super-neighbor with all the horticultural know-how told me that it's a laburnum ("all parts of the tree are poisonous") so no more potted plants underneath that bad boy! Except for bulbs -- they seem to be doing alright.  I moved my miniature rose pot to a different area, and will most likely put artificial climbing flowers in the tall pot behind the statue.  Ah well.


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## JFBev (Jun 13, 2018)

Looks like it'll be a while before the killer tree is cut way down, so today I picked up two small pots and transplanted the Confetti plants to them and put in my newest experiment in progress -- a front corner garden.  My neighbors have beautiful front gardens and I thought I'd try that too, after severely pruning back a rhododendron bush when the blooms were done.  It's a start and I know that the lamppost will not kill anything underneath 
Thinking about a "bottle tree" also


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## JFBev (Jul 16, 2018)

Just a note -- wildfires this season are, for the time being, much smaller, and east and south of us.  Aerial retardants are now being used when smoke is sighted after lightning strikes -- a very big change from last Summer, when burns were left alone in wilderness areas.  Bad results...
Statistics so far in 2018: lightning-caused fires here = 50; human-caused = 378.  No kidding   Total acres burned so far = 5,000 (est).  (Last year >200,000)

Maybe we'll make it through this fire season with far less devastation than last year.  Here's hoping!


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## Keesha (Jul 16, 2018)

Those fire statistics are concerning. 
Stay safe. 
The confetti pots look striking.


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## Gary O' (Jul 16, 2018)

JFBev said:


> Maybe we'll make it through this fire season with far less devastation than last year.  Here's hoping!



August is coming
We've got elect storms my side of the Cascades
The air seems thick
Wildfire danger is high here

Hoping yer hoping is right


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## SeaBreeze (Jul 16, 2018)

Very nice photos of your garden Bev, thanks for sharing!  Hope there's not too much damage from the fires, please stay safe.  I'm in Colorado and we get a lot of lightning strikes here, and are having some big wildfires here due to dry drought conditions.  Luckily not close to my area though.


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## JFBev (Jul 20, 2018)

Okay, here's where "Felicity Flamingo" will be displayed (originally I had it on the side of the house near the driveway, but when the lights come on after dusk, it really lights up )
Will take another photo after dusk with the lights on.  
You can see behind to the right, where I had to dig out everything that was killed by the laburnum tree.  Have a small pot with hydrangea cuttings that should starting making roots any time now and will plant those.  Since there's apparently no way to kill a hydrangea (and I've tried...), I'm betting a large bush will fit perfectly there.
  Can see part of one of my fuschia potted plants also -- happy with those!!!


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## SeaBreeze (Jul 20, 2018)

Lovely garden Bev, you have a green thumb for sure...unlike me.   Looking forward to the lit Felicity!


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## JFBev (Jul 20, 2018)

Thanks SeaBreeze!  Don't know about the green thumb, but am enjoying the learning curve!

Okay, here's Felicity lit up, and it's just dusk -- can imagine what it's like when fully dark out! :welcoming:  So, better to be in the back walled garden... 



It's so perfectly flamingo-y!  Yeah!


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## JFBev (Jul 25, 2018)

Another fun day in geekdom -- manual debugging work by MS tech for the W10 update on this laptop.  4 hours total, but always fun to play with them.
 My other laptop is not a test machine, so its updates are simple.  
Just waiting for a phone call to recap/feedback, then can go outside IRL and enjoy what looks like it will be a beautiful evening. 
How binary my life seems at this stage.  Interesting!


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## RadishRose (Jul 26, 2018)

I get a kick out of that lighted flamingo. I've never seen one before. Cute!


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## JFBev (Sep 11, 2018)

Whew!  August flew by and I had almost no gardening time. 

We dodged a bullet re: wildfires this Summer, but travelling into the valley was cut off here and there for a while.

About 50% or so successful on the gardening curve -- everything is kinda tired looking and just needs cleaning up for now. 

Funny thing is that what grew best in the front edge garden were "volunteer" plants that must have been gifted by birds.  I now have an 8-foot Pampas Grass plant which grew to its full height while I was gone -- very impressive and obviously requires no care (well except for auto sprinklers) .  Think I'll let it live here. 

In a few weeks our semi-annual lawn/garden debris pickup happens and I'll have six of those huge biodegradable bags ready.

I am seriously considering "Vegas grass" for the front lawn, if it's not too expensive.  Has anyone who reads this tried that?  I understand that the current type is very realistic?

Most of the tourists have gone and we have our beach back to ourselves.  Ahhh...


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## JFBev (Nov 18, 2018)

Foggy this weekend. The rains come in this week.  Still wildfires to our South.  Sigh.
Put up my Christmas tree yesterday, 'cause I needed the lights sooner.
Been a while since I've logged in -- hard to look at screens for fun when I'm looking at one all day for writing 
There, I feel a little better...thanks for reading  

_*Happy Thanksgiving to all in the States!!!*_


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## JFBev (Dec 13, 2018)

Haven't been logging in here often enough over the last few months.  Will try to do better.

Man oh man, what a Fall season...  smallest difficulty was replacing a hot water heater.  How glad I am to be writing from home   Was able to get it taken care of with no water damage, yay!

It's amazing -- or maybe more noticeable? -- since I have a peaceful home to live and work in, it's become more obvious when I'm out and about that too many people are stressed beyond belief.  Part of that is definitely their being hyper-linked.  Trying to help is exhausting and I'm not really any good at that anyhow. 

Think I'll re-read "Candide", especially the last paragraph which describes that all one can do is tend one's own garden.  It has been an excellent few months' learning curve about how to set -- and defend, for goodness sake -- clear boundaries.  Whew!

Am going to just relax into the gentle, elegant Christmas season and avoid the "contagion" of drama.  

I'm so thankful to be part of this forum -- note to self:  reach out for opinions and suggestions sooner rather than later.  Thanks for reading!


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## RadishRose (Dec 13, 2018)

JFBev said:


> Haven't been logging in here often enough over the last few months.  Will try to do better.
> 
> Man oh man, what a Fall season...  smallest difficulty was replacing a hot water heater.  How glad I am to be writing from home   Was able to get it taken care of with no water damage, yay!
> 
> ...



Happy to see you again JFBev. I just love what you said about the holidays:


"_*Am going to just relax into the gentle, elegant Christmas season and avoid the "contagion" of drama*_"

How perfect! :love_heart:


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## JFBev (Feb 5, 2019)

About a week ago, I got a call from a "Carlos" in SF about one of my students who wanted to get back in touch and continue his ESL Business lessons online with me.   I had given that student high-speed intensive sessions while he was here on a 6-month Visa about 18 months ago after he arrived from fleeing Venezuela (where he had worked as an electrical engineer).  Then he left here and survived somehow -- I wasn't in the loop, and didn't ask for any information.

Well, today we had a Skype session - he's now safely in another S. Amer country with a 2-year legal residency status (he showed me his ID card as proof).  Poor young man.  His hair is going gray but I think my "teacher/mom" effect helped him out a bit.  I've set up a series of English writing assignments for him and we'll do a Skype connection each month.  Also gave him a list of my favorite podcasts in both English and American , because he's surrounded by Spanish again.

Not that I needed it, but it never hurts to remember how truly short my problem list is compared to so many other souls.  Oh, and that I started out on the "road less traveled" a long, long time ago.  Thought it would have arrived somewhere by now, but hey. . .


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## JFBev (Mar 8, 2019)

March already!  Growing season never really stops here but is more influenced by the day length than anything else, and it's already into the Spring clean-up time. 

The blueberry plants are looking good with lots of buds ready to open soon, and the hydrangeas, rhododendrons and azaleas are in good shape.  
Felicity Flamingo made it through the winter rains, but faded to white.  So a new coat of bright pink should perk it back up .  A few new pollinator-friendly annuals and a couple of herbs to fill the large pots and that should do it! 

Just going to keep my little back garden trimmed and maybe add a few of those whirly-gig things or gnomes -- things like that.  
I accept that I'm no green-thumb, but with a little maintenance here and there, it should be a nice little place to relax during Spring, Summer, and Fall.

And I promised myself that this year I'd try to learn how to fly a two-handled, bat-shaped kite.    There's a beach about 30 miles South where a club meets one Saturday each month and they're always encouraging new people to come on down and join them. They love what they do and are willing to teach newbies.  Well, I'm one of those, so am looking forward to the adventure!  I'll post a pic or two here in the diary, probably.  Well, maybe.  We'll see.   Hey, they could be a series of "how not-to's" at first, but will show the beautiful Pacific no matter what. 

Still considering relocating inland, but for this Summer I'll just enjoy the kite adventure and deal with whatever else happens.  No decision yet.


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## JFBev (Apr 23, 2019)

In an earlier post, you can see the back corner of my garden (behind "Felicity Flamingo").  Where nothing grows in the dirt. Not even after amending the soil.  Not even after putting a short fence around it to keep cats out.  Not even after rooting a hydrangea cutting and planting it according to very specific directions last fall.  Aarrgghh!  Okay.  'Nuff complaining. 

I noticed just last week, our local grocery has begun to put out all kinds of thingamabobs to put in gardens!   Lots of shiny, movable, colorful objects!  

So I'm going to grab one or two each time I'm in that store and should soon have a collection -- with no regard for matching color or scheme.  Let's see if this nerd brain can handle it. Also if the two neighborhood cats decide it will be below their dignity to use that area for business...
:wiggle:

Will post a pic or two when there are enough to make a nice group!


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## RadishRose (Apr 23, 2019)

Could it be the area is too shady? Maybe a shade loving ground cover like pachysandra would work?


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## JFBev (Apr 24, 2019)

It gets about 4 hours of direct sun a day, and hot in the Summer months.  But I'll look up pachysandra for ideas, thanks RadishRose!


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## JFBev (May 28, 2019)

Here are the first two additions to my "nongarden" corner:




Don't know what that volunteer ground cover is, but I'm going to let it grow for a while to see what happens!


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