Mosaic Mom

I called this a Dr. Seuss Christmas tree because it looks like the illustrations in that series of books, doesn't it? What a crazy topper!


It's yellow stained glass cut with Leponitt clippers and dremelled smooth so it won't slice your fingers open. The green is Bisazza and a little stained glass also dremmelled smooth.

Here is Zeus helping with the Dr. Seuss Mosaic Christmas Tree photography.

Here's Plant Daddy from yesterday applying the BT to the tomato crop.

He is a hero! We expect a bumper crop now!

I toodled over to JoAnne's to shop for gifts for the nephews. It was crowded but very manageable. The line at the checkout moved along well.

Then over to Publix. I bought 2 lottery tickets but nada. Last year I bought a lottery scratch off for a gift and the recipient won $100. But I have never had a repeat. Sigh.

While I was out, PD got 3 more of these ligustrums planted.

Tiny caterpillars called tomato fruit worms have invaded. Our crop was threatened.

Plant Daddy was the hero and applied Bacillus Thuringenesis. BT is a bacillus that makes the caterpillars shrivel up and die, but is harmless to us. Very sustainable. Very "green". So Plant Daddy saved the day.

I got about 50 beets planted today and also another batch of sugar pod peas. Transplanted cauliflower yesterday.

Plant Daddy and I also planted 10 seven gallon Ligustrum bushes along the front fence line. Got to stop those cold winter breezes from blowing through. It is already down to 70! Brrrr!


Fruitworm Damage...Grrrr!

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

Hope your turkey is delicious and your mashed potatoes creamy.

Is anyone getting up at 4AM for the "sales"?
Not me!
But I might spend a nice afternoon writing Christmas cards while the turkey roasts on the grill.

PD and Zeus watch the grill. Usually they cook chicken or pork chops. Tomorrow they'll attempt a turkey.

What's the menu for Thanksgiving dinner at Mosaic Mom and Plant Daddy's place tomorrow?

Turkey (cooked on the grill)
Cranberry relish
Mashed potatoes
Salad made from our own lettuce, tomatoes and bell pepper with walnuts and rosemary and tossed with home made blue cheese dressing
Pumpkin pie

Our friends are coming over and bringing corn casserole and deviled eggs.

We're still debating about the stuffing.
PD is for. I'm against.

What's on your agenda for the day?

Today is Plant Daddy's big day.

Tonight we'll have his favorite...carrott cake...and maybe give him a little gift or two. (It won't be plants!)

There is still no word from Mt Dora Library about any winners of their writing contest.

There is still no word from the book publisher about Mosaic Mom's Tesserae Tales.

No word from a flash fiction contest up in the Panhandle.

I have 3 deadlines in early December and one in early January. All those are ready to send. I hope after I send 'em, I hear something. Grrr.

Hooray!
We got 1.8 inches of rain last night. The garden always appreciates it. And the temps will be cooler now...down to 83!

On Wednesday, we are planting several more ligustrum shrubs along the front fence row.
I am glad for the moisture in the soil so the hole won't collapse while digging.
I am glad that the shrub won't be water stressed.
And I am glad it will be a cooler spell in which to dig.

I open, PD sets the plant and closes. Then that new fangled water wagon will be put to use.

Helen and Anabel and Maria dropped by the farm today. Here's what was in season for them to gather and take home and enjoy...

For 2 days, the internet has been running like sludge.
Since I paid for an upgrade to high speed, I have had nothing but trouble. This slow down is the latest.
Is it cut cables? Is it sun spots? Who knows.
All I know is it is slow, slow slow and I time out when I check my mail let alone try to post a photo to the blog. Grrr.

I'll be in the studio working on the mosaic Christmas tree if anybody needs me.

Step 1. Chip up Bisazza tiles to make the tree. Cut stained glass into long thin strips for the star topper.

Man I haven't done anything like that since someone spiked the brownies at a graduate school student party!

My BP hit 160/100 yesterday at the gynecologist office so I went over to the primary and got help. Saw an actual doctor this time.

She determined that I was allergic to ACE inhibitors and that the nurse never should have given me effexor, but the bp had to get fixed.

She gave me a beta blocker. I took 1/2 a pill before bed last night.

By 10:30 this morning, my bp was 107/83. I felt like a freakin zombie! I had moments I would just sit and stare and try not to fall down. My hands and feet hurt due to the bad/lack of circulation, and all motivation evaporated.

It must be wearing off now. I have a headache that feels like a severe hangover.

I wonder if I should take the other half of that pill?

Two weeks from today will be December 1st! Yikes!
Are you ready for Christmas?

I have started working on a christmas tree mosaic. Photos this afternoon.

Had to run to the doctor this morning. Blech! Then long line at the pharmacy. Blech! But I picked up some nice ham at the deli as a treat. Yum!

Now back to work! There's gardening and mosaicing to do...forget the housework!

In the next couple of days, Plant Daddy and I have about a dozen trees to plant.
How to water them all?

In the home made water wagon Plant Daddy made!



It beats hauling buckets like we used to do!

The fireplace needed a fresh look now that the weather is "cold" (night time temps in the '60's!).

I made this mosaic candle holder from sea shells and found objets. The base is a terra cotta saucer. The candle sits on a 4" white tile left over from the bathroom remodel.

It looks cute all lit up on a cold evening!

Here's how it's done!

Step 1

Step 2


Step 3


Step 4

Step 5

I have had another 100 word story accepted in a Drabble Anthology.

I've waited to announce this to make ordering a copy easier. Drabble 14 was published just at the same time as Comic Con and the press got backed up. All should be clear now, so order my story!

It's called "Short 'N Sweet".

You'll never look at your beautician the same way again!

“Come on outside and let’s do it!” said Plant Daddy with a twinkle in his eye.

“Baby, I’m ready!” said I, clicking off Wheel of Fortune and jumping out of my chair. I dashed out the back door and across the patio and positioned myself up close. “What do you want me to do?” I asked.

“Here, hold this and touch that, “said PD.

“I can’t see,” I complained. “It’s dark.”

“I’ll turn on this flashlight,” offered the valiant PD.

“Quit shaking the light around,” said I.

“There’s a mosquito biting my ear. I can’t help it.”

“That fragrance is wonderful!” said I, trying to get my hand positioned.

“I hate mosquitoes, they’re all over me.”

“Quit shaking the light, I can’t see what you want me to do.”

“It’s the goddam mosquitoes and the wind from Hurricane Ida.”

“We ain’t never gonna get this done and House is gonna be on in 15 minutes.”

“I can’t do this,” said PD. “Night time is not the right time for breeding.” He shut the flashlight off and started for the shed.

“Let’s take the party inside,” I said. “You get one end, I’ll get the other.”

“I’ll get a hand truck,” said PD and quickly retrieved it from the carport.

We rolled the Draceana in its 8 gallon pot into the shed and stationed it next to the pool table. The light was so much better and no wind! I was a little worried that a hitch hiking lizard might jump off and get eaten by Zeus.

“Those flowers are so exquisitely fragrant. Should I touch them with a brush? “ I asked.

“I checked for pollen under the microscope, reported PD. “There’s not much.”

So I grabbed tweezers and accomplished direct anther to stigma contact. PD was doing the same. Ahhhh! So satisfying.

Afterwards, we rolled the plant back to its spot in the garden. We tagged it and we hope for the best for seed production. We’re not optimistic.

Draceanas are in the lily family. Their fragrance is intoxicatingly sweet. I would love to see them induced to bloom and sold as a flowering potted plant crop. The only problem is…they only bloom at night. They close up by day.

I just read a book by a Sansevieria breeder who says he is getting a lot of pollen and using a q-tip to transfer, but fighting the darkness and the mosquitoes is not working well for me. This may be a short lived hobby.


"I like to watch!"

What I did this weekend while the boys worked on their cars...

The heat has thrown the gardening season off. The green beans I timed for Thanksgiving were ready yesterday.

I picked about 3 pounds of Early Contenders and Cherokee Wax. Also pulled in a few more cucumbers so I can make a batch or relish today.

The tomatoes might make it for addition to the salad bowl...or on a sandwich with leftover turkey and mayo. Yum!

A lady I know phoned me Thursday. She invited me to drop by the Mt Dora Plant Show.
There were 2 other errands I needed to do in Mt Dora, too, so I tried to go this morning.

I could hardly get into town because my route took me past 2 stops on the garden tour. It was worse than traffic jams in Athens Georgia on a football Saturday.

The first jam up was back near Elyssium sub division. The shoulders of the road were parked solid. Traffic was stopped dead in the road as drivers were either waiting to find a parking spot or trying to dodge pedestrians.

The second stop on the garden tour was off Clayton and again, traffic was at a halt. Not a cop in sight to help the flow either.

I finally made it downtown, thinking that there might be parking since everybody else was driving around to the gardens. Oh, so wrong.

I spent 35 minutes circling looking for a spot before giving up and going to Lowe’s Garden Center instead.

At Lowe’s I was disappointed to find lots of cabbage but not a single cauliflower. Grrr.
Their broccoli looked pitiful too, so I came home and planted more seeds.

I had planned to pick up a Pulse Magazine in Mt Dora. I still have not seen my friend’s article.

I also was going to check out getting a Segue Scooter for Plant Daddy for his birthday. The lady who phoned with the invitation had suggested that I could rent one for the day and check out the garden show and the scooter at the same time.

I was on 5th Ave right downtown when a geezer on a segue almost ran his contraption right into the side of my car! What the heck was he doing? He was trying to jay walk on the damn thing! Nargh! Scratch that idea.


What PD is NOT getting because I couldn’t find parking in Mt Dora!

The cucumbers needed transplanting.
I went to the bench in the greenhouse. I lifted one of the 5-inch pots with the 20 inch long vines.

“SNAP”

What a sickening sound. And yes, closer inspection revealed, I had broken the stem.

I took the other three to the garden and as I was sliding the last one into the hole and guiding it onto the trellis, “SNAP”. I broke another one!

Dammit! I needed those pickles.

I finished garden chores (including planting carrot and pea seeds) and came into the house to start cooking the eggplant. As I reached into the cabinet to fetch the rice, I slipped.

“KRACKLE”

What another sickening sound as thousands of grains vibrated across the linoleum. It took a half hour to vacuum the countertops and floor.

Tired from all these chores, I reached into the cabinet underneath the microwave and lifted a 2 liter bottle of Diet A&W Root Beer. I thought I’d give myself a little treat. I twisted the cap open.

“POP”

That root beer erupted 5 feet across the kitchen. Almost half that bottle ejected and three dish towels were needed to wipe up the root beer lake. I hadn’t shaken it up. I thought to write to A&W with complaint, but what would they do? Send me another exploso-bottle? Forget it.

Finally everything settled down, eggplant was marinating, kitchen floor was mopped, I begin to iron the laundry.

I turned on the TV. There was a mad gunman loose in Orlando. I immediately telephoned LME. She clicked on and without a hello said, “It isn’t me. I don’t go over in that part of downtown.”

“Ok. Love you, “I said.

Now that made it a perfect day.

The good news is Little Mind Escape came over today. We made noodle dough by hand. We made zucchini filling. We stuffed 41 raviolis. We froze them and split the loot.

The bad news was...that only used up ONE zucchini.

Good news: Plant Daddy and I ate zucchini fritters on Tuesday and steamed zucchini on Wednesday.
Bad news...it took us 2 days to eat one zucchini.

We love LME for taking 2 zucchinis with her when she left today.
The bad news...We still have 3 in the fridge.

Man o man we are full plenty with zucchini at the moment.

(I made 3 pints of strawberry jelly today too. It was a great kitchen day!)

My Jade plant spent the summer decorating the front porch.

But lately it’s been looking ratty. We’re not out on that porch now that the weather is cooler, so it doesn’t get looked at, fertilized, groomed, or watered. It had suffered a lot of leaf drop.

I decided to move it back to the greenhouse this morning. It’s a big boy plant, being a 7 year old specimen in a terracotta bowl, so safety first…

Step 1: Hunt up my little red wheel barrow.

I finally found it back in the Z shop…what were the boys doing with my little red wheel barrow?...anyway…on the trek back from the front porch, I almost ran over “Mini-Blackie” the black snake. He’s a cute little 20 inches.

“Mini” was focused on a lizard clinging to the side of the greenhouse. Neither was going to move. I was the one that had to go around…Grrr…But I accomplished moving the Jade plant despite the “Wild Kingdom” episode I had interrupted.

Later this afternoon, I decided to fetch oranges for the salad for dinner. I went through the same area and “Little-Blackie” was hunting lizards in the same area. “Little-Blackie” is about 30 inches.

It occurs to me I haven’t seen “Blackie” yet this season. Last year “Blackie” was over 4 feet long. He may be pushing 5 feet if he had a good summer.

I need to keep my eyes open!

Why is writing an article for a magazine just like making a mosaic?

Because everytime you think you have it done, you find a little bitty detail that has to be changed or added or fussed with.

Last time I forgot the "About the Author" section. This time, during my final edit this morning, Plant Daddy suggested moving the sequence of the text. He was right! Reads better now!

It's always something!
I'll spend the rest of the day just hanging around...like these plants...

Or maybe I'll run errands!!!