Tag Archives: corruption

Everything Still Matters

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After a couple of sunny days, it’s back to clouds again. I am wary that I won’t get swept under them also. Sometimes it is hard to stand your ground. It’s hard to put on a brave face, never mind pasting on a smile. I’m a born melancholy baby. Maybe I don’t need to pretend but I won’t let it all hang out either.

I’m learning to live with my creeping bellflowers. I just did some minor maintenance in the front yard this morning. Keeping up and on top of things can kill you. I’m looking at the big picture and trying not to focus on every little thing. The leaf rollers are a different matter. Last year it was aphids. I don’t know which is worse. These caterpillars are attacking my pepper plants, chewing them up. I’ve been picking them off and squishing them daily. If I don’t, I might have any pepper plants left. This morning I threw a crop cover over them to see if that would help.

I do have some good news. Two of my bitter melons have a bloom each. The garden is doing well despite our strange weather this year. The lettuce is finished in the greenhouse but I am harvesting the new crop in the raised bed outside. The French Breakfast radishes are a beautiful and delicious addition for our salads. Things are not growing as they used to but they’re still growing and providing food for the table. It’s a reminder for myself to adjust and adapt to what is here as best as I can. And never lose hope and belief that everything still matters.

Everything still matters and even more so than ever. I can’t afford to get distracted by all the corruption that is happening down south by Donald Trump and his merry crew. It bothers me so much because it reminds me of what helplessness feels like. I’ve been in that place a few times in this life. It feels very bad when you know things are not correct but you can’t do anything about it. It is the worst kind of helplessness. Even so, it is the best time and opportunity to put your best foot forward. I have to remember what Lao Tzu said. A journey of a thousand mile starts with a single step.

A Good Day

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A sun shiny May 19th. It’s 11:30 and 11℃ out. The greenhouse is 26.6℃ with vents and door opened. It goes to show how powerful the sun is. It has powered me to trim the grass in the back and part of the front yard by 10:00. The battery on the trimmer ran out so I must wait for it to recharge before I can finish. It might be tomorrow. I hope to plant the kohlrabi in the front raised bed later on in the day.

I could not bear to read the two Heathers posts this morning. The corruption that is coming from Trump and his merry men are too horrifying. You may wonder why I am so taken up with all this since the U.S. is not my country. I wonder myself. It took awhile for me to recognize that it reminds me of the times I’ve felt completely, devastatingly helpless. And this is not just a U.S. problem. It touches us all. We are all connected.

Helplessness does not serve me. Neither does anger. And so I tap on the keyboard, plant my kohlrabi and take my father out for coffee. Neither of those things are easy but I flex my fingers and move them across the keyboard. I dig 14 holes in the raised bed and plop a kohlrabi in each one and fill with dirt. Then collar each with a bottom cut out yogurt container. After that I loaded my father and his wheelchair in the car and headed out to the mall for our coffee. A friend joined us after and we shared a meaningful conversation.

It is a good day. There’s dark clouds overhead. Heaven is trying to rain again.

I Hate Not Easy

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May 16 and snow on the ground. Our bed of garlic is beautiful in snow. I am frozen with inertia, not knowing how to start. I am still on my black tea and coffee kick so I am not even craving for another cuppa. For my almost a week of effort, I don’t have too much to show. The pound I lost, I got it back too soon enough. I haven’t given in. Now my plan is to cut back my rice portions. Being Chinese, I love my rice cooked in any style and in large portions. It’s not going to be easy.

I hate the not easy part but I will give it my best shot. I do want to lose the 10 pounds, get rid of my double chin and protuding tummy. Though I feel I’m not overeating, I am sure that my portions of everything are oversized. Researching portion sizes per meal, I found that meat should be 3-4 ounces, the size of the palm of my hand, cooked rice at 1/2 cup, 1/2 pound raw potato and 2.5 to 3 cups of vegetables a day. I guess I don’t have to worry about overdoing the veggies.

I’m back to starting my morings reading the two Heathers. I know. I’m poisoning my brain with all the corruption of Donald Trump and his merry men. I have to know what is going on. Yesterday at Freshco, cauliflower was $7.99 per head. There was no broccoli visible but was $4.99/lb. the day before. It is costing a considerably more to fill my car now than before Trump and his Iran war. All this makes it not easy to ignore the news, even if it is bad. Now that I got this off my chest, it’s time for me to move on to the next not so easy thing chore. But first I want to show off my garlic bed.