Jaci Dawn

I’m tired.

I probably over-did.

I had that surgery on Thursday. The one where the doctor goes in and uses ultrasound technology to blow up a kidney stone into pieces the size of sand. That surgery.

It wasn’t as easy as it sounds. There was a stent the doctor put in between the kidney and the bladder that caused spasms. I had two pain killers on hand. I slept a lot.

Got the stent pulled out on Friday and felt immediate relief. But my kidney still felt a bit like I had been sucker-punched. I slept more.

Today I felt great. No pain. Ahhhhhh.

So I went out shopping: Home Depot for the fence project mentioned before, BiMart (locally owned) to purchase items used to spoil dogs, the Farmer’s Market for local strawberries and hazelnut mulch, and the grocery store.

And then, because it was uncommonly nice out, I weeded and edged the front yard flower beds. That really is not as big of a project as I make it sound: not many weeds grow under the rhododendrons and the earth stays soft and loamy. Trimming up the rhododendrons was probably not the greatest idea, but I trimmed one up anyway. I like to be able to see under them and behind them.

Then I planted sunflowers.

I hate to even confess I did that but I wasn’t home during the month of May and I didn’t get any sunflower seeds into the ground. There was a pot of 3 sunflowers for $13 at the grocery store and I figured I’d bite the bullet. It’s for the finches, you know.

The weather has been so crappy that our Dragon Flower hasn’t even bloomed yet. It blooms on the 7th of June. Rather, it has always bloomed on the 7th of June every year since we inherited the original plant. This year it is going to bloom on the 4th of July.

The dogs eat it. So this year – since it is late – I’ve actually had time to think about how to keep the dogs out of it. I put up the unused tomato cages around it.

It’ll keep Harvey out, anyway. I don’t have much hope for keeping Murphy out of anything. He’s a motivated pest.

I spread that hazelnut mulch out around the plants in the island flower bed. Pretty, isn’t it? Not harmful to dogs. Slugs hate it. Eventually I want to do all my flower beds in hazelnut mulch.

What else did I do…?

I did the laundry and hung it outside to dry. I love love love my clothesline! I hate hate hate it when I have to use the dryer.

Oh – and I bought myself a garden helper!

No more lugging that 75′ of hose out and wondering where it’s going to kink! Better yet – I can reel it all back in. AHHHHHH.

I worked on my little fence project, too, but I have decided to do a Squidoo “lens” about that. I’ll publish a link when I’m done with it.

For now: I’m done in. My back doesn’t hurt but my get-up-and-go is all gone. I’m happy it was a productive day.

Just don’t ask if I cleaned house… because I didn’t. ;-P