A Home and Garden Day

Library Mantle

You wouldn’t think that the trip from Oysterville to Seaside to visit a loved one would take its toll on the homefront, but indirectly the last two weeks have done just that.  Or maybe it’s just that being home around the edges (rather than isolated for days at a time in Portland) leads to noticing all the “benign neglect.”

So, yesterday I declared  a “home and garden day” and got some of the edges taken care of.  I finally set out the hoses and tried to adjust those pesky lawn sprinklers — the kind that go “pssst pssst pssst” around in circles.  They were no doubt engineered by geniuses and figuring out which of the multiple moving widgets and gadgets will do the trick is almost more than this woman can tolerate.  But, finally, mission accomplished!

A Work In Progress

Then there were those oversized pots in what we euphemistically call “the kitchen garden.”  There are four of them, each containing an herb we use fairly frequently — parsley, rosemary, mint, bayleaf — and weeds!  They had been pulled away (the pots, not the weeds) from the house during last summer’s painting project and needed to be returned to their proper place.  Heavy!  I weeded and trimmed and fertilized and pooped out.  It’s a work in progress…

Pesky Sprinkler at Work

Inside, I managed to scrub the kitchen floor, water the indoor plants, arrange some wild roses for Friday Night and stay dry-eyed during an online bill-paying session.  I gave the carpet a lick-and-a-promise with the vacuum and decided that paying someone to shampoo it might be necessary in the not-too-distant future.  As for dusting and polishing silver — how about a “home and garden month” or maybe two?

Kitchen Floor

All the time I was puttering and muttering, I felt guilty that I hadn’t gone to Seaside to spend time with Nyel.  I was relieved to learn that he had had a non-stop gaggle of visitors yesterday — Bill and Sue from the beach,, Petra and Michael from Astoria, and Cousin Pat from Gearhart.  Plus, of course, the usual round of nurses, therapy sessions, and other rehab niceties.    Yay!

Today, though, I am going south again.  After all, I don’t think any of those wonderful visitors came laden with freshly ironed shirts and other necessary amenities (or is that an oxymoron?)  Plus… there is only so much home and garden I can deal with in one swoop.  (Oh.  And did I mention that the chickens got into the kitchen garden pots and unearthed the parsley?  Twice!)

 

One Response to “A Home and Garden Day”

  1. You inspire me with awe.

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