Rain, please

As a child, I remember the old chant we used to call out, especially if it was ruining our summer fun: “Rain, rain, go away, come again some other day”. Well, we’re living in those other days now and I sure wish we could get a little rain. Say, a half inch a day for the next month. I’d even be happy for a quarter inch. Unfortunately, at this time of year, when the rain does come, it usually is the after affect from some hurricane sliding into the coast somewhere to wreak havoc or is accompanied by damaging hail, winds and tornados.

My nature friendly yard, of course, is a haven for – you got it – nature! Since I water the plants in my vegetable and herb gardens (but not the grass), there are all sorts of birds attempting to take a cool sip of, say tomato juice, grapes and more. Just this afternoon I saw six birds lined up on the fence, each taking turns to swoop in and see which plant they could savage. There were two cardinals, two dove, a sparrow and a starling. Surprisingly, no mockingbirds which are our biggest garden predators.

At night, it’s rather like a farmer’s market with constant visits from deer, rabbit, coons and a feral cat or two hoping to snag a fish from the pond. Last night we even had a fox drift by, always a fun run for the old dogs to bark at.

Surprise, surprise. I spoke to my father on the phone today. He moves around so much from hospital to nursing home that I am never too sure where he is or how he is doing. My sister-in-law was visiting him in the hospital today (an overdose of tranquilizer by nursing home staff) and he wanted to talk to his ‘daughter’, so she put him on the phone with me. It took him a couple of minutes, but he finally figured out who he was talking to. His hearing is not too great and with the scramble eggs in his mind, he wasn’t really sure what the phone was for, but an old dim bulb clicked in and he realized the little voice in his ear was me. It was like a breath of cool air washed over me when I finally got to speak with him for a couple minutes. But then he was gone. I take the few precious moments I can grasp and savor them.

Gardens vs. nature, get out the guns!

Who is going to win – nature, or my efforts? Right now, it’s a toss up. Nature is throwing us a drought and record breaking temperatures. No rain in sight and none in the near past. I’m not watering the grass; only the gardens, but the garden near the septic drain field is flourishing – squash and tomatoes and beans. The tomatoes, when they come, get eaten by the mockingbirds. I’ve managed to harvest a handful without damage so far.

Inside the ‘family’ yard, the tomatoes are wilting even though they are getting water. When they do sprout a fruit, again, the mockingbirds. I think I can net the plants and maybe save a few. My gladiolas are sprouting regularly, but a couple of the darker ones seem to be suffering the heat. The white ones are flashing their big showy blooms and grace my kitchen daily. They were so prolific this year I am going to have to figure out how and when to seperate the bulbs and move some of them. Peppers and squash seem to be all that are doing well enough, I’m to the point where the peppers are now going in the freezer.

As for the front yard – well, the cannas are still being eaten but they keep trying to come up. That’s one plant I never thought I would have trouble growing. All the other plants – ice plants, salvia, petunias, zinnias – are mostly history due to rabbits and deer, and probably that squirrel. No, I’m not going to shoot them (you noticed the ‘guns’ in my title?).

The plants doing the best however, are my new aloe veras, mosquito plant, authentic hawaiian pineapple (It’s almost two feet tall!) and the ginger root.

 The new herb gardens (3 weeks old) seem to be hanging in there and staying alive, but not much measureable growth. I’m enjoying the various teas I’ve concocted along with my normal hibiscus, peach, rose & mints. I made a cooling rub for my shoulder out of emu oil and lavendar – it was soothing, but not as effective as the emu/capsacian combo. If you haven’t ever tried the emu oil, add it to your list to experiment with. For some reason, it soaks deeper into your pores and allows other chemicals (or herbs on my part) to sink in further. By applying emu oil followed by a pepper rub, it makes an extremely effective muscle/joint pain reliever.

 At least one hummingbird is still hanging tough and the lizards gather under one feeder and lap up the sap. I had to laugh tonite as I watered one particular garden when there was a gecko stampede. They were running over my foot and up the wall, looked like someone had stepped on a fire ant mound! Good thing I like these little guys or I’d have gone screaming (and barefoot – don’t tell my doc!) into the field of dry grass and probably some new stickers.

So who is going to win – gardens – or nature? I fully expect when I leave town for a week, and return and leave again for two weeks – that nature will win the battle.

Now, for the guns. I’m not a gun buff or militant – I’m a shooting sports instructor with a healthy respect for ethics and safety. Tonite I’m reorganizing the gun safe, somewhat, and making sure all the guns I’ve used this year have been locked away with a little gun oil. I was amazed how many of our own personal guns I’ve used the past few months for various classes, and it doesn’t include the ones I am occassionally provided to use with certain events. From our own stockpile, I had used 3 shotguns, three 22’s, 3 pellets, 2 BB’s, the Muzzleloader and even the 243 rifle. I have to now dig out from two different gun safes a couple of hand guns to practice on. I was pleased to find a somewhat limited model hand gun at a local sporting goods store that I need to practice with. I didn’t BUY the thing – just wanted to feel it and see how to break it down since I’ll be working with it in a few weeks. Meanwhile, I have a revolver here and my personal favorite  James Bond gun to practice with. Both guns are similar to what I’ll be teaching with, so should do well enough to practice with. I think I will try to find a couple of my girl friends (or if all else fails, my poor son) and teach them how to shoot a pistol. That means load, unload, breakdown, clean, then practice different holds and stance. After that, if they want, we can go to the gun range (remember the temps here? OUCH!) and get in some live firing.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad – wherever you are. I love and miss you.

Father’s Day & Memoirs

A piece from my life writing group that I wanted to share, and remember as it’s the first time I ever put this fond memory in writing:

The Best Father’s Day Gift

 

Three years ago, I volunteered to go along with about 20 boy scouts to their annual summer camp. A seasoned camper and a parent myself, I didn’t believe there would be too much they could throw in my face that I could not work with.

 

This is the Boy Scout organization, of which I have much praise for the way it teaches our youth to become tomorrows leaders. The leaders of our Troops are mostly men, but some brave women have a lot of valuable training to share as well. Still, dealing with small things like the uniform shirt (ugly, designed to fit men and terrible material for wearing in a week outdoors with 100 degree weather) – the uniform pants; again, designed for men and really look terrible on women, and the rules about ‘no touching’ – which means that lonely or injured boy that needs a hug can’t have one. (It’s to protect us leaders, you see, from being sued for abuse or molestation).

 

Then come the ticks, leeches and various outdoor obstacles. When the little boy was frantic about the tick on his ‘pee pee’ – well, I couldn’t help him. Had to take him to a medical office! (And I’m actually glad!).

 

That year, I worked on the gun range from sun up to sun down (14 hours or more each day!) helping the children hone their shooting skills and acquire their merit badges. Many other skills were worked on in camp and eagerly I assisted the two dozen scouts. At the very end of camp, it was going to be Father’s Day and at the final campfire, awards and honors were to be presented to and by the various scouts. It had been an extremely hard week for the scouts with the weather and the bugs, but we all managed to come through it with good stories to tell and great memories to keep.

 

The final camp fire was rousing, rewarding and created a bond none of the attendees would soon forget. It seems every person there was honored in some way – a difficult feat for over 300 people! All of the fathers too were honored and stood up to get their applause for their dedication to the boys and honored for just being a father. As we walked back to our tents after the camp fire, one of the boys spoke up in the crowd, and called for my attention, “Mrs E?” (yes I replied) “ I want you to know that out of all the fathers here at camp this week, you probably are the best father we have ever had and wanted to wish you your own Happy Father’s Day”. This was followed by a chorus of “Yea, Allrights, You said it’s” from the other boys in the group.

 

Never was I more honored than when I received that accolade. What is it they say about out of the mouth of babes?

 

Tornados & Boy Scouts

It’s so sad to watch the unfolding story of the Boy Scout camp that was destroyed by a tornado yesterday evening; even more, the death of the 4 scouts. After watching it for quite some time, I decided my son, age 14, needed to see the footage as well. So, together, we watched the coverage. We haven’t discussed it yet, but we will as it’s bound to affect him. In one week, we too will be leaving for a Boy Scout camp; our fourth year of doing this. Will he be more scared? Or will it cause him to be more alert and more aware of the training he has had and will be taking. This year, my son is getting his life guard certification at camp as well as a refresher on CPR. My son is 14, remember? Can we count on these boys, at such a young age, to save someone’s life? In school this past year, my son mentioned to his classmates that when you perform CPR, you had to be careful as sometimes you could crack their breast bone or a rib with the force required to administer the chest compressions. He was ridiculed and reminded more than once during the school year about his statement – the kids did not believe him when he related the training he had received. Those kids obviously had not ever taken the course or been briefed properly.

So back to the question: will the boys who are taking CPR, first aid and yes, becoming life guards, be able to react in such a dire situation as happened to the scouts in Iowa? The answer is – YES. I whole heartedly believe they will do some good if not be able to save some lives in their futures. Over and over, I heard the phrase repeated, “Be prepared”. I want the boys to be prepared, but I also want them to see the real world and be informed. Life, and emergencies, do happen and you have to be ready for them.

I’m sure there will be many boys more afraid to camp out, alone, in nature this summer. But hopefully they will take away with them the thought that they need to learn these things and need to be prepared. I am certain, when the time comes, that my 14 year old will make a good lifeguard, maybe even a great one with time and experience. And I will be proud to have my son or any of the scouts, along with me when I go out in the field, in a boat, or just walking down the street. I am no longer there taking care of them, I am there for them to know I support them and believe in them.

Lazy lake day

My son and I went out to the lake this afternoon to start our two week swimming program. My son will be taking a Life Guard class at the end of two weeks, and I just need to get in shape so I can pass the swim test without looking too out of shape. The water was cool, down right chilly in fact, but we enjoyed it immensely and had fun swimming and horsing around. It was very windy today and there were a lot of boats on the lake, so the waves were fighting us with considerable force. That was probably a good thing as we got more exercise swimming against the current. All in all, it was a fun afternoon.

This little guy, a green tree frog, has made his home in our yard this year. Twice we have caught him clinging to our back glass door, most likely to catch the mosquitos and other bugs that are drawn by the light leaking from inside our house. I actually think there are two frogs as I have been hearing them at night in the tree. As always, they are a welcome guest in our nature friendly yard.

Tomorrow, and the rest of the week, we’ve decided maybe it would be easier to hit the pool in the mornings and do a little lap swimming, with lazy afternoons thrown in here and there at the lake. It sounds like a nice way to start the summer, and a good way to build up endurance for a week of scout camp followed by two weeks of working in the New Mexico mountains. What fun and experiences we are going to have!

Weekend

It’s Sunday night and the new week beckons with new possibilities as the old one lays down to rest. The past week I’ve spent a lot of time in the yard and garden. I have two new herb gardens and repotted several old plants. My gardens are flourishing, except where the deer and rabbits are having a hay day with the flowers. With the hot dry weather and constant wind, I’ve finally had to start the sprinklers to get things out of their limp almost comatose state.

My hummingbirds had vanished for nearly a week and I was sad to think maybe they were gone too quickly; then out of the blue while I was reading on the back porch, a hummer buzzed me to let me know he was back and he was thirsty. I quickly refilled the day old feeders (I was keeping them fresh just in case!) and now I have seen a couple of the hummers at both front and back yard feeders. Phew! Thought I lost them.

My son and I have started a new ‘get in shape’ plan since we are both at the fattest stages of our lives. I had, a few years ago, dropped about 30 pounds to keep my diabetes under control without insulin shots, but slowly, with an unpredicted pregnancy and subsequent problems and maybe a little depression, have put most of the weight back on and I’m sad to say the last 6 months my diabetes is getting out of control again. My just turned14 yr old son developed beginning ulcers last fall and has put on a gross amount of weight the past 6 months – a true sign of stress or depression; I’m not sure which. So, together, we are working to straighten our lives out. We are starting with baby steps – sit-ups and walking; a little more biking, swimming and canoe trips and watching what we eat. We’ve neither of us ever been much for junk food – no candy bars, soft drinks, chips, cakes or cookies to give up. No alcohol either since I don’t drink. None of my family likes to eat out (darn it), so it’s not fast food either. We eat tons of fruits and veggies every day and seldom have beef in the house (I’m allergic to beef). So it’s just plain lack of exercise with a little too much good ol’ home cooking. My husband just left for China so the next 3-4 weeks, it will just be the two of us working together with no outside pressures. We aren’t really going for weight loss, we are both going for more endurance, flexibility and general health. For me, I have six weeks until I have to go into New Mexico mountains and work for two weeks, something that could be tough for a person from the flatlands carrying so much extra baggage. For my son, he starts football and possibly swim team again in the fall and he wants to be more in shape so that he won’t be such a wash out at the practices when they start. So, we’ll keep our fingers crossed and hope we graduate from baby steps to long strides in reclaiming our health.