Baby Tomatoes

Yes, there are teeny, tiny, itty bitty pea-sized baby tomatoes on one of the miniature tomato plants. (I have a "Sweet 100" and a "Cherry", but forgot to put their sticks in the pot with them, so I don't know which is which anymore). I've not seen much action on the full-size tomato plant, although the lillies that are surrounding it are very tall and look like they will have several layers of bloomage.

The cucumber plants are growing like gangbusters and making a lot of flowers, so it's only a matter of time before they start to make cukes for me too. They're also starting to make the little "grab on to the trellis" tendrils, so it looks like my dream of a vertical cucumber garden is going to work out ok. Woot!

The zucchini and yellow-squash plants are doing well, they are each about 10-12 inches tall and have leaves the size of my hand on them. They look to be quite happy. The chives are not as good, but they're not dead yet.

Unfortunately, the "Patio Blueberry" bush is not doing well. I suspect it may be dead by now, although there is still some residual green in a few of the stems. Something keeps digging it out of the ground. I don't know what it is, or why it is picking on the little blueberry bush. I may just order another one to see if I can make that one grow - protect it with a plastic hat or something. I suspect mourning doves, actually. I've seen a nesting pair cooing around of late. Damn things are a nuisance.

At least they can't nest on my back porch light anymore. When the association put on the new vinyl siding, they also put new light fixtures all around. This is great, although I would like to have my motion-sensor one back in the front again (saves on light bulbs and electric bills). The upside, however, is that these new fixtures have pointy tops on them, which means the doves can't make a nest on them! No more worries that Mamma Dove will peck my head as I go into my back door!

(edit in)Question for you electrically-intelligent folks out there (Electric is not my strong suit). I got a sensor thingy that screws into the lightbulb socket in a fixture and is a photo-sensor. This turns the light on at night and off in the day. I would like to use this on the outdoor light that no longer has the motion sensor. The only downside is that it specifically says to use it with INCANDESCENT bulbs. Is there a legitimate reason why NOT to use them with the newfangled low-energy screw-in flourescent bulbs? What specifically would contraindicate using them with anything but an incandescent? Inquiring mice want to know. (/edit in)

It is raining today, so no need to water the gardens tonight. Thank you, Mother Nature! In lieu of that, I shall perhaps vacuum tonite. I'm also thinking of purchasing a single 1/4" sheet of 4'x8' plywood to make a cat barrier between the livingroom and the kitchen. This would be tall enough to keep them from hopping over it, thin enough so it wouldn't be too heavy for me to tote around, and I should be able to secure it with just the moulding from the downstairs bathroom door and the diningroom wall - and a couple of nice heavy chairs. With the water fountain, and the auto-feeder, I could easily leave them overnite or 2 as long as I block them out of the main house area so they can't get into any mischief with chewing electrical cords or knocking over glass items.

I'd really like to have a pocket door there instead, but the way the house is built, that just really isn't an option. I love pocket doors. Mom and Dad had them at their old house (the one where SPTLM and I grew up) for both the kitchen entrances, and they were just wonderful.

I got my baby fan to working again. It is so cute. Only about 4" tall, it has see-thru blue plastic blades that are very flexible - you can't hurt yourself by touching them at all, even when it's running - and it does put out a fairly strong little localized breeze! DOUBLE-A batteries, however, not AAA.

Damn. I was going to make cinnamon-raisin scones for breakfast but I forgot. This morning was hard to wake up. Too many naps this weekend, I fear. I got a small batch of stuff done, however, so that's all good. One of the cats seems to be having digestive issues again - the carpet is not happy. (Another reason for getting a blockade set-up working for the kitchen.) I hate to have to confine them so much, but I just can't handle getting up in the middle of the night to get a drink and having to dance around the livingroom to avoid stepping in cat vomit.

I hope you've all had a nice breakfast long enough ago not to be grossed out by the previous paragraph.

595 days