Waterwise Botanicals Day Trip

We were up at 5:00 a.m. this morning showered, oatmealed and out the door at 6:00.  We drove two hours to Waterwise Botanicals for an event called Succulent Celebration.  The Gates were opening at 8:00 and we got there about 7:50 and drove into the 2nd parking spot.  Which proved useful when the over 200 spots were filled before the event really started at 9:00 and people were parked up and down the highway.

We walked around a bit and there was a heavy marine layer and we were quite chilly.  This of course burned off later but this is probably when we both got a little burned.

The over twenty acres has lots of specialty display gardens along with ponds and pathways and fields and fields of plants.  We eyed a few things before making our way back to the main tent and got seats in the nick of time.  There were a few hundred people there and a lot were to hear the first speaker Debra Baldwin, I would call them a cult following as many were there to get her new book that came out this weekend and have it autographed.  Lori has had the book a couple of weeks and forgot to bring it with her to be signed.  But it was informative and very entertaining.

We missed the next speaker as we wandered around the acreage and had lunch.  We were planning on sticking to a budget so trying to decide….do we focus on a vertical for the front corner of the yard or look for small Agave’s to line the path with.  We first picked out some Canyon Sage with bright red flowers that the hummingbirds love.  Then while looking for the agave pups we found the five-gallon size for less than half what we had been seeing them for.  We pulled out four but while standing waiting for one of the workers driving purchases to the front decided on four more.  The deal was amazing, but it went over the budget by 25%.

I was completely overwhelmed by the amount of “things” really got no pictures of the event.  So here are the Agave once we got them home.  When they are installed in the front yard I will post a picture then.  We have been working so much in the yard and have nearly half of the grass removed and will be working on it more this weekend.

We got everything loaded in the truck and went back to make the next speaker Michael Buckner “The Plant Guy” talk about color.  He was quite impressive, with over forty years of landscape design experience.  We answered any question on any/every topic given him and had lots of advise and information.

We skipped the next speakers and headed home getting in about 6:00 pm.  Quite a fun and full twelve-hour day and now more plants and even more inspiration for our succulent garden!

Work Status and a New Dress

I had an interview yesterday that I am really excited about.  I am hoping to make round two happening next week.  If When I get this job it will start part-time in July and be full-time by September when the person I will be covering for goes on maternity leave and then goes through the end of the year.  So far I got through the HR email questionnaire and that got me an invitation for testing.  Ninety minutes of on-line testing later, a personality evaluation, spacial and reasoning test and both Excel and Word test I got through to an actual interview (Yesterday) I interviewed with the person I will be covering for and then the HR rep.  I am still up for another job I had interviewed for a couple of weeks ago.  I haven’t heard back on that job either but having two options as possibilities has made me realize which one I would prefer, which is a nice change over the “anything please” mode I have been in.

In the mean time work-wise I am shooting over 500 bead types for Briana, I have received two shipments already and after a week of trying to find an inexpensive macro lens (pro-note…they don’t exist) I am finally shooting with my standard but it took lots of playing with the settings to figure out what lighting works best and its keeping me busy along with a little cash in the future.

So with no job or income now is not a good time to spend money right. Right.  Well I have been doing really good at not spending anything.  Of course there was 600 in pool chemicals and the airline ticket in March that all went on my credit card but not much else.

But I got an email that this dress was available.  It was months ago that I pinned it from ModCloth and added my name to the waiting list.  So when I got the email that it was in (but wouldn’t last) I was torn.  Heck I am on the verge of trying to figure out if one of these jobs will come through in time or if I should go ahead and cash out my retirement fund from the City of Renton.  It isn’t much but would cover my credit card and get me through another month.

So what did I do….I charged the dress.  It got here today and fits great and is so fun.  Dresses can be so tough to fit, sizing can be a challenge and they don’t always flatter the top and bottom.  This one is perfect!

Long Weekend

Last weekend was the Memorial Day weekend, yet it still seems like it’s the weekend.  We were quite social over the actual weekend, breakfast in Irvine on Saturday and then dinner in Long Beach with friends.  Sunday we went for a hike at Eaton Canyon.

Three of Lori’s schools ended last week so she only has one left.  This class is Monday and Wednesday for the next three weeks and since this Monday there were no classes she only worked yesterday.  Even writing that sentence I had to ask what day it was and what if anything we did in the yard yesterday.  For the record we didn’t work in the yard yesterday, however Monday and Tuesday and today we did plenty.

The bricks we picked up a while ago are now bordering the box woods we planted a few months ago and a pathway has been put into the little garden area we put in.  Also we picked up pavers this morning and started a side path along the house.

I have dug weeds, moved bricks, sweated lots, gone on one interview and set up another all in the last week.  I have not written my assignment due this weekend or heard back from last Friday’s interview.   But it’s not all bad, the endless weekend is heading into another weekend.

If I had a Liiizzzzard….

We were up early on Saturday and drove up to the Huntington Library and Garden.  A professor from one of Lori’s schools was giving a tour.  We got into the garden several hours before it was open to the public.  We mostly walked through the cactus and succulent garden as that was the focus for the class but the entire place was just amazing.  I took so many photos that when I uploaded them today I plugged all of the holes in my 365 project from the last month.

Once the garden started filling up with people and it was clear I had worn the wrong shoes for anymore than a few hours of walking (albeit cute heals) we grabbed some lunch and headed home for a few hours.  This turned out to be the comedic part of our day.  Lori cut up an apple as a snack and was eating that while working on papers or lesson plans or something and all of a sudden asked if her tongue should be tingling and then urgently asked for me to get the Benadryl (For a little history she is very allergic to things like chocolate and her throat closes up.)  I acted fast in barely any time at all she had swallowed one and there was a half in the box so she took that too.  She felt like her throat was closing.

In just a little bit, maybe a minute when we calmed down, granted my heart was racing, we started talking about it.  Her lips and tongue were “on fire” it was at this point that we realized she cut up the apple on the cutting board I cut up a jalapeno on the day before for stir fry……

I wish I could convey the laughter, just how funny this was and now the never-ending joke of my trying to poison her and my proof she should stay out of my kitchen!!

So I worked on my homework while she napped due to the Benadryl before we headed up to Monterey Park for a party given by all the students in her Ikebana class for the sensei who has retired.

Sunday I made breakfast while Lori ran to Starbucks for tea, brought me back a New York Times and the day was spent reading the paper.  Well I read the paper, Lori got ready for finals for a couple of classes this week while I interrupted her with things out of the paper. With that and grading papers and preparing lectures and assignments for the next few weeks I was shocked when her computer rang out 8pm and the weekend was over!

Here are just a few of the many lizards I photographed on Saturday.  The first photo was for fun, then it was just a “thing” I took them in groups, in the sun, on rocks, digging in the ground, darting from all the wild parrots who wanted them for lunch.  It became funny, even though that does not transfer here.

Sans Wheat

Last year I was trying to figure out what was causing me stomach aches and discomfort.  I wondered if it was cheese or meat that was causing cramping and bloating, lasting a few hours and usually after eating one of the two or a combo.  I thought I might not be digesting the protein, perhaps having some kind of gall bladder issue.  With each event I tried to backtrack what I had eaten that day.  But even on days that I would leave the cheese off a sandwich, pasta with just veggies or although I rarely eat pizza would only have veggie I could not pin point one thing…..until now.

Over the last couple months I cut wheat out of my diet.  After a brief trial of this last fall I decided to try again (insert various reasons that I will not go into again here).

I have had fish tacos with cheese in corn (not wheat) tortillas.  I have had plenty of brown rice, potatoes, oatmeal, basically lots of other carbs and grains….just not wheat.  I have had lots of fish, chicken, bacon even a little pork chop.  I have had string cheese, caprese salad, cheese on my enchiladas (again with corn tortillas).

All of this to say I hadn’t had any stomach cramps.  Until a couple of weeks ago, I ate two sesame flatbread crackers as a quick snack.  Two, that was all, nothing else with it.  The stomach ache was quick.  It lasted hours, it made sleeping virtually impossible that night.

Then last weekend Lori and I had a Sushi lunch out, there was a roll we shared and I didn’t even think about it but the shrimp in the roll was coated in panko.  The stomach ache was nearly immediate.

I knew before that things like cookies and sweets would give me heartburn.  Not chocolate or treats without flour, but mostly pastry of some kind.  This did however make not eating my baked goods easier.

After doing some research I do believe I am allergic to wheat, or at least wheat sensitive.  Simple as that, easy to avoid and difficult to avoid all at the same time.  However the stomach ache is not worth even a little wheat.

No pizza, no bagels, no crackers, no bread, no cereal, no breading, no pasta (I miss pasta), no flour tortillas…it does not matter if it is ground, whole or sprouted wheat, I am sans wheat these days!!

Heat Stroke; Unscheduled Hormones; Mothers Day

Its hot.  Not only is it hot outside its hot inside, as in inside my body.

Yesterday we drove to Compton to buy used bricks.  Doesn’t seem that big of a deal right, got there about noon.  Took my truck as it’s a six cylinder and has a little more guts than Lori’s.   Loaded 200 bricks into the truck which was then low riding and headed home.  It was hot out, 90ish.  Once we got home I had to jut lay on the carpet and cool off.  The heat would just not stop.  I had been drinking ice tea and water but it wasn’t working.  Trying to help get a pathway prepped and I could not understand the word level.  I felt both incompetent and bitchy and was relegated to laying on the floor under the fan with a cold cloth on me.

What I didn’t realize was the nausea I was having and some of the hot flashes was my cycle arriving ten days early.  Ten.  If I had realized I was PMS’d perhaps some of the (worthless-loser-easy to offend-maybe it’s just mothers day-everything is making me cry) feelings from the last few days I could have identified easier and I would have been kinder to myself.  Who are we kidding, the only difference is I would have realized it was hormonal and may have just gone with a good cry a few days ago instead of trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with me now!

Today we are not risking more heat stroke.  We got up early and took a trip to Lowes for a wheel barrow.  Got some of the ground cleared where we are putting in a brink path and took about half of the bricks out of my truck.  But it is now noon and above 90 degrees our project is in now in the direct sun so we are taking a break for a few hours.  Lori has grading and assignments to work on.  I have this weeks writing class material to read and there is always, always jobs to apply for.

Until we get the project done, here are some pictures!!!

Timing

I initially was going to be in Washington this weekend.  It is mothers day after all and I really wanted to make my annual trip to take a Fuchsia to Lola.  Then the lack of income thing just keeps stretching on.  So I ordered the Fuchsia to be delivered tomorrow (surprise – there is a chance it will arrive before Lola reads this blog).  Once the decision was made to not go I even ordered chemicals for the pool and got my brother to take in a sample and tackle the Spring balancing act.  Thanks Dale!

Then last weekend I got an email that my Godson was in a major accident.  He is going to be fine and is now out of the hospital there are months of recovery and he is staying with his mom (thank God for a rambler).  I have thought about him and Diane every day this week.   (Lori offered her credit card for a flight the moment I read that email, to be fair she offers a flight every time I mention missing something)

Well today I got an email from Lola, she will be having major surgery next Thursday.   Now what…..

Lori and I were planning on going up at the end of June as family will be in town there and her classes over.  It is a perfect time to get some maintenance done around the house, visit family and by then take a break from the weather.  But I may have to change plans and head up sooner.  I know its only a 2 hour flight, but today it sure seems further away.