throwing in the towel

When it comes to plants , I don't often  throw in the towel. But this spring I'm going to do just that with the fox tail lily.   When I left the farm, there were plants that I absolutely wanted to move with me.  And at the top of that list were the fox tail lilies. 

I took some starter plants, I took some seed, and I even ordered extra plants online.  All to make  doubly sure I’d have that plant with me.  But it didn't happen.

I got the original plant from a start I dug up in a vacant lot.  It was growing wild.  I planted it on the north side of the barn.  It not only grew, it thrived and self-seeded untill I had a large patch, and I was able to move it to other other parts of the garden.  It’s tall and stately and the spectacular flowers open slowly like a beautiful sunset.

It's hardy, drought tolerant, disease free and long lived  It’s only shortcoming is it’s fussy about being relocated.  Instead of a root or bulb, it has a tuborous corm that grows close to the surface in a spiral.

I loft oe area of the new garden free--just in case one of the seeds or roots decided to make an appearance.  This is the fourth spring, and  it has not appeared

So if  it isn't here by the end of May, I will plant that area with bully plants and mourn the loss of one of my favorites. 

I seldom give up on a plant.  I even had a pin on my hat that stated.: I don’t consider.anything dead until I kill it myself”

If you get a chance to add it to your garden, please do.  It’s not easy to come by. 

if old, go bold

 

Yesterday my friend Kathy came over and she put the crimps and clasps on the jewelry pieces I had just finished.  We spent the afternoon discussing our favorite subjects, cooking and gardening.  As usual,   she did not come empty handed and brought a wonderful loaf of her homemade bread, a plate of cookies, and a packet of squash seeds.  Before she left, we walked around the garden and admired the rhubarb poking up, a little  yellow crocus, and the brave chives that were bursting from the ground.

I could not have attempted the jewelry project without having her as a backup for what I can’t do.  No one could describe these pieces as delicate or demure.  My motto is, “If you're old, go bold.”   It's not that I need  new jewelry, but it's fun to have something new to wear at the beginning of spring. 

worth the extra money after all.

Whenever I meet someone who has been diagnosed with macular my advice is always the same: start now to master dictation and text readers.  We all think we don't need them yet.  But once you do need it, it is so much harder to learn a new technology.

Learning to use dictation it's fairly easy and allows you to reach out to people.  But if you don't master the text reader, no one can respond. You really need to know how to use both.

My new phone has a text reader feature which I am trying to learn now. Unfortunately, all the instructions are in text that I can't read.

The dictation and the text reader on my old Word program were abysmal because it was so old and outdated.  I tried to buy  a new Word program.  Now you can't buy the program outright.  You have to pay  a yearly fee to use the newest  version.

I figured it was a waste of money, but I was really wrong.  Both dictation and the text reader on the new word program worked beautifully and in sync.  I couldn't be happier. I only wish the narrator on Microsoft Windows 10  worked as well.  It’s so frustrating as well as being complicated.  The Word text reader only works on Word and not on the internet.  So I am still struggling for anything on the internet.   

Now for the blog I use Word dictation instead of dictation on my phone. Then I listen to it with Word text reader, and then my  husband does  the final editing.

This is all going more smoothly now.  The only glitch is inserting pictures. Somehow my picture file system is all messed up.  I am now focusing on the picture problem.  So in the end, getting the new Word program was worth the extra money after all.   

old costume jewelry renewed

 

I did manage to get a two-strand necklace from the beads I recently posted.  I had to work out a few technical issues and restring one of the strands.  I am happy with it and it is ready for my friend to finish the ends.

 I had these plastic beading trays with grooves, and   they are working well for me.

I have the beads settled in the grooves, so I don’t have to worry about them shifting. 

 I want to make a couple of turquoise necklaces while I'm in the mood.  I gathered two necklaces, two bracelets, and one money clip.   I will see what I can do with them.  My criterion was finding beads with a hole  large enough that I can feel it.

 We had rain, snow, and hail this last week.  So this project is just what I needed.  It’s not that I need more jewelry, because I seldom go anywhere anymore.  But just playing with beads will help pass the time until I  can work in the garden.