First item on my 'staycation' was putting in my garden. Well, it's not a garden like I used to do with long rows of veggies and hours of back breaking labor. It's a container garden and it's so much easier on the old back. It's particularly easy when the hubs does his thing -- he rotates the soil from one barrel to the next. This makes planting an absolute breeze because the soil is so soft.
This year, we're doing a Sweet 100 Cherry tomato plant (his fav...when he picks them it's one for the house, five for his mouth, lol), a Beefmaster (my fav...they always make it to the house because I'm too prissy, lol. I want my food washed.) Then I have a barrel with herbs - sage, tarragon, rosemary, thyme, mint (this one is chocolate mint, smells & tastes like the Girl Scout cookies Thin Mints. Yum) basil, and lavender. Then I have a barrel for brussels sprouts and one for kale. And because the tomatoes like green peppers and marigolds, we have a few of each scattered in all the barrels except for the herb barrel. I've always fancied myself as an organic gardener so I do try to do companion planting where possible. I avoid toxic chemicals like pesticides or chemical fertilizers. My daughter, who's turned out to be a sprig off the old mother plant, lol, makes a wonderful compost tea. The garden loves it! She sells compost tea kits on Craig's List. If you're interested, email lmikulski@gmail.com and the kit is $50.00
Another job I got done was shredding mountains of old documents. You know the kind, bank statements, bills, statements from the health care provider, statements from the very sad retirement accounts. This was an all day job. I was so pleased when I finally got to the end of the pile(s). Until I found another pile but by that time my butt was totally tired of being chained to the chair beside the shredder. I just promised that I'd put that in the to-be-shredded pile and that I wouldn't wait until it was mountainous.
And the last heinous job I had was window washing. You know it's time to do this when you look out the window and think there's a heavy fog. At noon. On a sunny day. This year I tried a new product from FlyLady.com I think she calls these Rags in a Bag (it's a mesh bag). Let me tell you, I washed these winders inside and out using nothing but these cloths and water! No soap, no glass cleaner. Just water. I did have to rinse the cloths between windows but, what the heck, that's no big deal. I dried the windows with another dry cloth. No streaks at all. I loved it!
I also had the opportunity to read a couple of very good books.
Emerald Silk by Janet Lane, Five Star Publishing ISBN:1-59414-682-9
This is a historical romance. Emerald Silk is apparently the second book of a series. It has an interesting premise -- what happens when a xenophobic knight meets a beautiful half-blood gypsy? Well, okay, we know what happens but how they get to their HEA is the trick, isn't it? :-D I found it a very interesting book with lots of fascinating historical details.
Catch a Shadow by Patricia Pott, Berkley Sensation,ISBN: 978-0-425-22119-8
An EMT's decision to help a dying man delivers her into the chaos of murder, treason, and international espionage and only one man, himself a convicted thief, can help her. Interesting and exciting, lots of tension. I enjoyed it.
The Flame and The Shadow by Denise Rossetti, ACE, ISBN: 978-0-441-01634-1
This erotic fantasy romance is by an author who is new to me. I have to admit I was impressed with her writing, her characters and her plot. The hero, Gray, is a mercenary and a sorcerer, who is actually two persons in one. Or is it one person and one rather sexy shadow? (Fantastic premise!) Gray had been hired to deliver Cenda, a fire witch, to the one man in the universe who can help rid him of his shadow self. But he doesn't count on falling in love... I'm keeping this one and looking for more in the series.
Heart Fate by Robin Owens, Berkley Sensation, ISBN: 978-0-425-22367-3
I'm betting we all know that Heart series and how terrific they are. This one is no different. It's a great read. Oddly enough, this one touches lightly on spouse/child abuse but Ms Owens treats it so delicately and gives the characters so much room to grow and to handle their problems that, really, the book is about hope as much as love. You can never go wrong with a Robin Owens book :-D
If you're a member of my newsletter group and would like Catch A Shadow or Emerald Silk, please send me an email (lyndak.scott@gmail.com) with the title of the book you'd like in the subject line. In the body of the email, put your yahoo id or name so I can verify you as a member of the group AND include your snail mail address. Next Friday, June 5, I'll put all the names in a box and ask my Wookie-Baby to pull out a winner for each book. If you want both books, you'll need to send TWO emails, one for each.
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