Time to start planning the garden

 

Our temperatures reached 40 degrees this afternoon, under sunny skies. It was our first pleasant day after nearly three weeks of single-digit temperatures, so naturally we started thinking about our gardens.

My wife and I generally plant vegetables and herbs, although we make sure to have decorative plants outdoors. We don't have much of a yard so we do a lot of container gardening. We did OK last season, our tomatoes came in nicely, and we did very well with our herbs. 

This season we hope to add more vegetables. We'll include tomatoes, because we enjoy those. And we'll continue to plant some herbs, because we find a variety of uses for those. We're not sure which vegetables to add.

I've been thinking about peppers, and maybe some snap peas. I'm also considering a few pumpkin plants, but my neighbors tell me they are not worth the effort. 

My sister grows garlic, tomatoes, herbs, and pumpkins, but she owns a small farm and has the space grow a variety of produce.

If I had a larger yard, I'd give thought to a fruit tree or bush. A friend has a single lemon tree in his yard, and I'm always impressed with the amount of fruit it produces. 

A neighbor of ours when I was growing up had several mulberry trees, and I always enjoyed the berries they produced. I can still remember how sweet they tasted on a summer morning. 

I have some decisions to make, but I also have some time to plan. As of last week, we had a snow pack of about 18 inches and received another inch or two of fresh snow over the weekend. That will take some time to melt away. In the meantime, I can do a bit of daydreaming.

-- Thank you for reading. Your comments are aways welcome.

Thursday Notebook: The age when winters stays too long

We are approaching the end of three consecutive weeks of a weather pattern that has alternated between frigid cold temperatures (night-time lows reach -12 below zero) and snowstorms, some dropping as much as 8 inches of snow in just a few hours.

It's a one-two wintery punch that strains endurance and patience. People called these weather patterns character builders, once upon a time, because they strenghten your character as well as your body, if you survive. I have a hard time deciding which is worse, the severe cold or the accumulating snow. I read a news report earlier today that stated the snowpack, the mass of snow on ground that frozen and compressed by its own weight, in northern Illinios is 18-inches deep. That measurement doesn't include the top layer of snow that has yet to compress. It's a lot of snow.

This is commonly referred to as the dead of winter, a period when seasonal depression settles in and drains people of energy, initiative, and drive. I'm not feeling depressed, but I feel my energy levels steadily decline throughout the short days. And I find myself looking at my bed at an earlier hour during the long nights.

I suppose I have reached the chronological age when winter stays a long time and can't leave soon enough. At 60, I am at the stage when I don't want the daily temperature to be lower than my age, and I now understand why older individuals move to Florida, Arizona and other locales that enjoy warm temperatures year round. 

I could go on, but I must pull on about eight pounds of layered clothing to take my dog outside for his last walk of the day. Wish me luck.

--Thank you for reading. Your comments are always welcome. 

Wednesday Notebook: When a passing is met with hatred

 

A popular and controversial radio personality died today following a long battle with cancer. His passing was met with sorrow from many and intense anger from many.

His name is not important for this item. I've reflected for the last few hours about the comments posted about him on social media since news of his passing was shared late this morning. I liked the many messages offering prayers and condolences. I think such expressions are good releases for those who post them.

I also read many messages from people who said they were happy the man was dead. They called him vile names and stated they knew he was in hell. I knew people would post such bitter messages, but they were disheartening to read, and they could not be separated out from the heartfelt postings. 

I suppose some have greeted the deaths of others with hatred and venom since humans first crawled up from the muck. But doing so takes so little effort these days. Spew some anger through a keyboard, press a button, and send hatred out through the Internet. It happens nearly every hour of every day. 

And I think every time such messages are posted a bit of our collective humanity dies with it. And that's something we all should mourn, I think.

-- Thank you for reading. Comments are always welcome. 

Tuesday Notebook: The cardinal is one tough bird

 I am, like many Americans today, living through a brutal cold snap that is fairly typical for February in the upper Midwest. Overnight temperatures reach -10 or worse, wind chills make it feel much colder, and day-time highs are little better.

And it's been like this for about 16 consecutive days. Not at all pleasant. And that's why I am so impressed with the cardinals that live outside my house. That's the Northern Cardinal to be precise. The male is typically of a distinct red plumage and equally distinct call. The female cardinal offers a lovely song.

I think the cardinal is a tough as is it beautiful. The temperature was just above zero when I stepped out of my house at 7 a.m. today. I immediately heard a male cardinal in the branches of a tree near my driveway. He was chirping away as he might on a warm summer morning. 

I stood and stared, a little stunned by what I was seeing. I was layered in a coat and sweatshirt. I wore a knit hat, gloves, thick pants and heavy boots, and I was still uncomfortably cold. The cardinal probably didn't weigh more than a couple of pounds and stood on spindly legs on a branch that swayed in the wind. He not only looked comfortable, but sounded happy. 

It didn't seem right to me, but, of course, his appearance and performance was completely natural. 

Isn't that amazing? 

-- Thank you for reading. Comments are always welcome. 

Monday Notebook: A few of my favorite presidents

 

Today is Presidents Day and I spent time refecting on some of my favorites and thought I'd put together a list of the ones I not only admire, but find most interesting, even if they possessed some serious flaws. 

I don't agree with every thing each did as president. But their lives, their accomplishments, before and after serving as president, combine to make them exceptional presidents, in my estimation, or unusually engaging. 

My personal favorites:

1. Dwight Eisenhower

2. George Washington

3. U.S. Grant

4. Abe Lincoln

5. Frankin Roosevelt

6. Ronald Reagan

7. Thomas Jefferson

8. Harry Truman

9. Calvin Coolidge

10. James Madison

Interesting (If not my favorite)

1. Theodore Roosevelt

2. Richard Nixon

3. Andrew Jackson

4. Lyndon Johnson

5. Grover Cleveland

6. John Kennedy

7. Gerald Ford

8. Chester Arthur

9. James Polk

10. Jimmy Carter

I always enjoy learning about each president and those who served in their administrations.  I don't bother a "least" favorite list. I just don't want to go there. I imagine others would disagree or find issue with some of my selections, and I welcome comments. 

-- Thank you for reading. Feel free to comment here, or send an email to kbotterman@gmail.com.