Andrew In The Boat Days

There are good days.

There are bad days.

Then there are Andrew in the boat* days. 

Today was almost...almost, but not quite, an Andrew in the boat day.  It was so bad, I walked by and said to no one in particular, "Oooh, Lordy!" and my coworker replied, "I know, right?"  No other words were needed.  She knew exactly what I meant.  

It all started when I got to work, and ...wait, it all started when the alarm went off at 2:45 AM, which automatically makes it a bad start to the day.  But let's not talk about that.

There was a little bit of excitement when I got to work and there were cops at the gate.  They were standing there talking to the two third shift supervisors.  Hmmm, I wonder what's going on on third shift. 

I found out later that someone on third had gotten fired, but did not want to go gently into that good night, and they had to call the cops to get him to leave company property.  My friend laughed and said, "Why would anyone want to stay out here?"  Truly, it's a horrible place to work.  I'm counting down the days until I can retire. 

The day just went down hill from there.  We had six, yes SIX brazers out today.  The lines were right on us all day long, but did they send us any help?  Of course not!  They just stood over us shouting "WORK HARDER!!!! BRAZE FASTER!"  Figuratively speaking, of course. 

As if that weren't enough, they'd turned the air conditioners off, and it was hot in there.  I didn't think the day would ever end, but at long last, it did.  The plan was to come home and start digging up those daffodils I want to move, but that didn't happen.  I came home and sat.  Just sat...

So, in lieu of an action packed, fascinating post, you get....more garden photos!  Yay!  

OK, this first one isn't actually a garden photo, but it's something that popped up in a Lowe's flier last week.

 

It says it kills dollarweed, which is taking over my yard, and also kills fire ants.  It was kind of high, so I checked Walmart.  It was still a bit high, but less than at what it was at Lowe's, so I immediately ordered some.  If it does what it says, it'll be well worth the money.  I'm going to try to get it put out Sunday morning, and I'll let you know. 

Last week, I was checking the garden center for lantanas.  They still didn't have anyt, so  got a new petunia.

I don't know what variety this is, but thought it was pretty.   That's all that matters.  I decided to hang my petunias on the east side of my car port this year, instead of on the front porch.  That way, they'll get the softer early morning light, and be spared the harsh afternoon sun. I know petunias are supposed to be heat tolerant, but maybe Mississippi summer is just a little too much for them. 

Also, I'd mentioned digging up my daffodils, which I didn't do.  Here's the plan...I'm going to tear down that old fire pit out behind the back fence and just get rid of it. Then I'm going to dig up all this monkey grass on the East side of the house

-- which will be quite the chore in itself -- and  use the concrete chunks which make up the fire pit and build a raised bed right here.  I don't think I'll have enough to do the whole length of the house, but we'll see.  

Or I may not.  I don't know.  Somehow, I don't think it'll look as good in real life as it does in my head.  I'm really not very good at this sort of thing. 

In other garden news, I got out yesterday and planted a few more of my seedlings. 

Yes, I finally pulled up all those flags.  They were already starting to rust.  But by this time, I think the flowers are big enough, I'm going to know which ones I planted and what are weeds. 

One thing I don't really like about that seed starting tray I used is that the seedlings don't seem to form a good, tight root ball.  It seems to me it's too easy to damage the roots when getting the seedlings out of the tray.  I think that's what happened to this little baby. 

I watered him after I took this photo, and he perked up a bit, so maybe it'll survive.  Everything else in the bed is looking good, even my bluebonnets.

One of them is even putting out a new bloom!

And my lantanas are budding as well.

I love these, because both of my grandmothers had them in their flower beds.  I was so young when they died (I was 14 when my maternal grandmother died, and 22 when my paternal grandmother died), I feel like I didn't really get to know them all that well.  Having some of the same flowers they did makes me feel connected.  

BTW, the white powder is fire ant killer.  They also love lantanas.  Apparently.  

*The Chosen, Season 2, Episode 7 -- No spoilers.  You'll just have to watch it.