Category Archives: gardening

by | May 27, 2012 · 5:48 pm

Cacti in Minnesota? You betcha!

Prickly pear cactus is native to a small area in southwestern Minnesota. This stand is growing right outside my parents’ front door. Blue Mounds State Park has prickly pears growing throughout the park. I was too early to see them bloom this year.

Even more rain is rolling in tonight. The forecast is for 1″ – 2″ tonight, and then decent weather tomorrow. Perhaps this will start drying out. I’ve had 7.7″ of rain this month already. That’s close to 4″ above “normal”.

Even though it was a quick trip, it was nice to get away for the weekend. I think the last time I had a weekend away from home, excluding Lucy’s hospitalizations, was in August.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day. Dawn Valley is having an open house and hosting a Memorial Day service. Please remember why Memorial Day occurs, and as always, give your loved ones some extra attention tomorrow.

Prickly pear cactus

Almost ready to bloom!

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Filed under family, gardening, rebuilding, weather

by | May 23, 2012 · 10:22 pm

And the forecast calls for rain

Remember when nearly all the weather folks in the Twin Cities were bemoaning the drought ad nauseam? We’re not hearing too much about that anymore. Some areas are going to get over 3″ of rain tonight. I’ve been treated to a good sound and light show (thunder and lightning). Everything is green and lush. I think I’ll be picking blackberries in two weeks and raspberries in about four weeks. Neither apple tree bloomed this year, though.

I met my cousin Julie at Jake’s City Grille in Eden Prairie after work. It was nice catching up a bit. I needed the decompression time. The garlic burger was very good. As we were leaving because of the impending deluge, “Second Chance” started playing as the background music. The rain even held off until I got home.

Apparently the bronze vases at the local cemeteries are being stolen in large numbers. Just a couple of years ago, many bronze grave markers for veterans were stolen for scrap. One must be a particularly vile low life to steal from the dead.

Remember to give your special someone a hug tonight.

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Filed under family, gardening, rebuilding, weather

by | May 22, 2012 · 8:45 pm

Garden photos finally

I finally have some May garden photos uploaded. The link should open a new window. Comcast is playing with bandwidth throttling, so it will be a touch on the slow side.

I can’t find any hail damage from a couple of nights ago. The tree rats are doing more damage to the planters than the hail did; so much for my bluebonnets. It may rain the next couple of days so the surviving planters will be happy.

The cemetery has annuals planted in the garden across the driveway from Lucy. The petunias are cheery.

Have a great evening and let your loved ones know they are special.

The annuals garden at Dawn Valley

The annuals garden at Dawn Valley

There may not have been much hail, but it was backed with some strong wind.

The hail with it!

The hail with it!

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Filed under gardening, rebuilding, weather

by | May 5, 2012 · 6:50 pm

“The Sky is Crying”

Lucy’s MP3 player has about 1,400 songs on it (all legal, of course). One of them, Stevie Ray Vaughn’s cover of “The Sky is Crying”, seems appropriate today. My backyard picked up 1.11″ of rain since midnight, and 1.46″ since the yesterday. The Twin Cities metro area was about 5″ behind on rain. I don’t see any standing water despite all the rain. I also haven’t seen any state birds (mosquitoes)…yet. I swear the Siberian irises have scuba gear on now.

The garden planting is almost complete despite the downpour. The garden work has been very therapeutic for me. Lucy and I would eagerly await the arrival of gardening weather. It gave us some wonderful quality time together through the years.

It’s been a tough week dealing with the administrative minutiae that needs done once a person dies. With the exception of one local financial institution, everyone I have dealt with has been sympathetic and helpful. Lucy and I tried to cover all the bases to reduce the hoop jumping for the surviving spouse, but it’s still tough.

Most of you know I start a new job on May 14th. I’ll be working in Eden Prairie as a Sr. Software Engineer for a company that is growing quickly but intelligently. The job is demanding and I’ll need to be as close to 100% as possible when I start. That’s why I’m trying my best to get the administrative stuff done so quickly.

Thank you again to everyone who has called, emailed, or visited. Words cannot describe how you have helped me.

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Filed under gardening, music, rebuilding, weather

by | April 13, 2012 · 3:26 pm

Two weeks at home

Lucy is still with us. She has been home now for two weeks. I can honestly say that she is comfortable and relaxed. She does have some periods of tension, but I am learning how to better manage those.

The hospice volunteers have been so amazing so far. I have been administering Lucy’s comfort meds round the clock for the past four days with some dosage and timing adjustments to help keep Lucy as comfortable as possible. Having the volunteers here helps relax Lucy, and I can get some power naps or complete some errands. Checking items off a “to do” list is very satisfying. Something as simple as having lunch with my parents away from the house helps keep me refreshed.

Two Janes have been here today. Volunteer Jane did a phenomenal job at getting Lucy to relax. Her background included being a psychotherapist for a number of years in addition to working within the healthcare profession. Lucy really enjoyed the hand massages and the soothing voice. Nurse Jane checked on Lucy’s condition, reviewed the meds log, and observed how peaceful Lucy was. The meds do not need adjusting which is a relief.

I haven’t been doing daily updates because Lucy’s condition has not changed much. Our gardens, however, are surprising me with how early some of her flowers are blooming. Our miniature irises are already blooming about three weeks early. The daffodils are already done for the season, and the early tulips and lilac bushes will bloom in the next couple of days.

We are so thankful for all the love and support everyone so generously gives us. It helps gives us comfort and strength and we are so grateful to you all!

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Filed under cancer battle, gardening, hospice