Yes, yes. I know I've been a bad blogger. And it's not the end of Mark or the blog, just the garden. I'll get to that in a bit. Since you can't just fall off the face of the electronic earth for awhile and not offer SOME explanation here it is: Mostly I've been dealing with cars.
- My car (2010 Chevy Equinox) wore a hole in it's own engine block and is in the shop. Since its still up in the air as who will pay for the new engine I'll hold off on the details and we'll just count. (-1 car).
- Daughter #1 was involved in an auto accident. God allowed her to escape without serious injury even though the air bags failed to go off, but the car was totaled. (-2 cars).
- The "spare" car which was waiting some time and cash for another transmission (-3 cars) will now be her car, but that means it needs to be fixed NOW.
- And finally Daughter #2's car left her sitting twice (-4 cars), but I think I've got that one figured out and fixed. (hopefully back to -3 cars).
I managed to locate a used transmission for the "spare" car and have located a shop to put in it for me, so in a couple of weeks Daughter #1 will be back on the road. My Son has my old S10 with around 250,000 miles on it that is still working, I have my '92 Dodge Dakota beater truck that still gets around ok most of the time, and De has her RAV4 that, with new front rotors and brake pads is behaving well for the moment.
I've been on vacation (an 'at home' vacation - De is still working) so I've had less need of a vehicle but have still been very busy.
- Monday 9/1 - Rehearsal (I sing with a local Southern Gospel Quartet and we unknowingly got booked for 3 performances over 4 days),
- Tuesday - Church small group,
- Wednesday-Final soundtrack arrangements and 1st fix on daughter #2s car,
- Thursday - Meeting at church,
- Friday - Performance at a local coffee house (1-1/2 hour program in two sets),
- Saturday - Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) support of combined Civil Air Patrol/Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services exercise,
- Sunday - Church in AM, performance in PM (2 hour program in two sets),
- Monday 9/8 - Vacation starts, my car goes into the shop, evening performance (1/2 hour program),
- Tuesday - Daylong paperwork falderal on my car, Church small group,
- Wednesday - Stormy weather, indoor chores, and transmission hunt,
- Thursday - More bad weather, transmission and repair shop hunt, lesser paperwork falderal on Daughter #1's car and accident,
- Friday (today) - Final fix (I hope) on Daughter #2's car, I FINALLY get to the garden only to be rained out after about an hour.
So that's my dreary tale of motor vehicle mayhem, personal over-commitment, and the vacation that wasn't.
Now.. Hmmm... Oh yes! THE END IS NIGH!! (of the garden). Before I got rained out I did manage to get the last of the tomatoes out, cucumbers and summer squash harvested, peppers harvested and one of four beet beds harvested. I didn't get the last of the "total loss" corn crop, Stripetti squash, carrots, green beans (yes - there are still beans to be picked!), the rest of the potatoes dug, the last cabbage, and the other three beds of beets in. We still have butternut squash, some personal sized melons, some small while pumpkins (that will be used as decorations for Daughter #2's wedding reception in about 6 weeks), more stripetti squash, and some new cabbage heads coming on. The end may be 'nigh', but we're not done yet. Here's some pics with apologies to all of you who keep nice, tidy, weed free gardens.
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| Tomatoes - Done |
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| One more picking on corn, and potatoes to dig |
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| We usually get more cabbage from the same plants! |
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| Peppers are still producing, but are almost done. |
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| White miniature pumpkins for Daughter #2 decorations |
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| Cucumbers, summer squash, and zucchini pretty much done (thankfully!) |
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| Personal size melons are looking good! |
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| Lots of Stripetti out there |
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| Butternut looks to be getting about done. |
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| Pole beans and more corn to bring in |
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Still not a bad harvest
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All in all, it's still clear that God is so faithful and we are still very blessed.
Col. 1:9-12,
Mark
Vehicles! Even though the maintenance of them can be a big pain in the patoot, ya gotta love 'em. Otherwise, we sure would have a tough time living in today's world, wouldn't we? My dear husband is in charge of vehicle care around here and I know sometimes it can be a very time-consuming job.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is still looking pretty good and producing well for being on it's last legs.
Mama Pea - I can say now that GM has decided to cover the cost of new motor, which is a huge answer to prayer. I'd guess a new engine would run between $5000 and $8000.
DeleteWe are happy with our garden. De picked another 3 gallons or so of green beans today, and there is still corn, carrots, squash, cabbage, pumpkins and potatoes to bring in.