I Caved

It was 62° in the house when I got up this morning.  I told the cat, “I’m getting too old for this,” and I turned on the heat.   It felt so good, and when I got into my car, I knew why. 

It was the coldest night yet, and I wish I'd put on a pair of gloves before I left for work.  It eventually warmed up into the low 60s, so the heater stayed off after I got home from work.  I have the space heater in my living room, which has it at a nice, toasty 71, so we're good there.  

Alas, the frost got my lantanas, so I'll have to spend some time this weekend cutting them down. 

I'm deciding if I want to put it into my tumbling composter or the big pile -- which I still have.  I've been reading that it usually takes up to 8 weeks for the tumbler to fully compost vegetation, and it works better if it's only filled up 3/4 full, so I've kept the big pile for larger things, like my roses that I cut down last week.  The plan is, once I get things going, is to add to one side while the other is composting.  When it's done, I'll switch the covers and add stuff to the empty side.  And so on and so forth.  I'm thinking it'll compost faster during the summer months because of the heat, but for now, we're just watching and waiting and seeing how things go.  

I really hope all that made sense.  I've been waking up at 3:00 for the last two mornings, and it's not even the cat's fault.  I've just been waking up.  Thus, my mind is a bit muddled at the moment. 

OK, moving right along.  The frost also got my pineapple sage, which kind of surprised me.

Everything I read said it's a winter hardy plant that can be harvested all year round.  I guess I was reading the wrong stuff, because this is obviously frost bitten.  I was also surprised that my rosemary seems fine. 

I'd read it's a Mediterranean plant that doesn't overwinter well.  Hey, I'm just winging it over here.  The surprises are half the fun.  

We're supposed to have one more cold night, though not quite down to freezing, then it's going to warm up into the 80s by the middle of next week, so tomorrow, I'm going to move all the plants back outside again. In a few more weeks, I'll move them inside for the duration, only putting them out on warm days. 

And finally, I was chastised by the deer this afternoon, because I'm all out of corn.  I'd considered going to the store after work, but as it was ...after work, all I wanted to do was come home.  

It's like literally, my only goal.  

Needless to say, the deer didn't get any corn and I got a good stare down from the big doe.  I could almost hear her saying, "Where's the corn, Corn Provider???"  I'll be sure to put an extra treat out for them tomorrow. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go grab a quick shower before tonight's cheesy Hallmark movie comes on. 

Laters.