Finny Farm Update!

Well, as I'd posted a couple of days ago, this past weekend was officially "Pretty Damned Productive" - what with 'Rent-A-Son-Services, LLC' coming over to finish-up my third raised bed (which - "Credit where Credit is Due" - was constructed by my Beloved Spouse).

C had actually offered to *plant* my veggies for me - but I really felt like I had to "draw the line" b/c - well, HELL, it's MY garden and *I* ought to at least be able to dig some holes and plant the suckers myself (I mean - Jeez - they're still in TINY pots!) (And the soil is ohhhh, soooo workable!).  So, yeah, I totally appreciated his offer - but I really wanted to plant 'em myself so I *could* claim the garden as My Own!

(Weird logic there - I know!  But I'm still p*ssed-off at my hands/feet/psoriasis situation and I steadfastly REFUSE to be a complete invalid!)

So annnnnnywaaaaaayyyyy...  I have about 800-jillion veggies to plant, and a brandy-new raised bed.  First-up?  The Finny-Farm Maters and a "new" variety: Indigo Rose (s'posed to be a dark-blue-purply tomato).

This morning, before it got all Bloody-Hot outside (and before my never-ending mind-numbing client conference calls got started), I wandered out and planted some 'maters!

No.  Not the greatest pic. "Oh well!"

Colin Copia is in the back, on the left-hand side (not really visible in this pic).  Brandy, the Yellow Brandywine is on the left, in the front.  Stephanie Stupice is in the right-front corner and (Unnamed) Indigo Rose is in the back right corner...  Cassandra Cuke, sadly, did not survive (:::moment of silence:::).  

I planted the maters *deep* to encourage maximum root-development, but not so deep that they were in the Straw-Zone...

Now, to be perfectly honest, I don't know how well this bed is going to perform this year.  On the plus side:  It gets hotter'n Hades back there.  Down-side: It does get some shade from the Tiki Shack/Ceramic Studio.  The bottom half of the bed is filled with "mostly-rotted" straw (from last year's straw-bale [FAIL] experiment).  I fear that - as the straw decomposes - it might try to "steal" nitrogen from the top layer (although I tried to circumvent that with bagged steer manure, and I also added some organic blood-meal to "bump-up" the nitrogen)...

My other concern is with water retention.  The soil is good - and I have added some "water-saving" polymer crystal doohickeys (yes, I know, not *completely* organic :::sigh:::).  This particular bed is at the "end of the line" on one of our drip-lines.  We've rigged this bed up with a soaker-hose (and I have repaired all of the dog-eaten emitters "upstream" from this), but the reality is: There's not a whole lot of water that reaches this bed (and I can't tap off of any other lines b/c THEY are maxed-out, as well).  So I suspect I'll be giving this bed a good old-fashioned "hose-watering" (/super-deep soaking) once a week - in addition to the 5 mins twice a day "sweat" from the soaker hose...

And my FINAL concern is trying to keep the neighbor's Passiflora vine from grabbing-hold of my tomato cages and gobbling up the entire bed! (that's prob'ly gonna be the biggest challenge!).  I have my hedge-clippers all sharpened and ready to go!!!

(Sorry vine!  Passion-fruit/Banana Jam just *ain't* that tasty!)

Fingers are crossed that I'll get a good harvest out of this bed!

Haven't tackled the other two beds (and/or the "overflow" bed out by the back fence).  Planting these 'maters and fixing the (NUMEROUS) dog-chewed sprinkler lines was about all I could manage today, before my feets gave me the ol "F**k you!" and I had to go sit-down. (:::BIG sigh:::)

Hopefully, tomorrow morning, I can stick some more stuff in the ground!

I'm GONNA have a garden, Godd*mn it!

Recipe: Creamy Farm-Share Soup (Or "Clean-out the Fridge already!!!")

Well...  I switched the Farm-Share/CSA Delivery to "Veggies Only" which, unfortunately (or maybe not!), only comes in a "Medium" (or Large!) box.

The Small "Mixed Fruit and Veggie" box was great, but hubs just doesn't eat much fruit and I *can't* (can't take the sugar-content).  Invariably it would sit around, untouched, until I either made juice out of it (for hubs), or I'd end up tossing it in the composter b/c the fruit flies were beginning to magically appear! (Ick!  What's that in the bottom of the fruit basket? Ewwww!)

So the upshot to all of that is: I am OVERWHELMED with veggies at the moment (and Gawd Help Us when my garden *really* starts producing!!!).

I opened the fridge to assess the situation yesterday...  Hmmm...  Asparagus... Broccoli... Celery... Leeks... Mushrooms...Spinach...

Okay Google, what have you got for me?  I started with "Asparagus Broccoli Soup" and this is where I landed.

Sounds delicious!  I think I'll tweak it!

QT's "Clean-out the Fridge Already" Soup:
This particular batch yielded appx 6-8 "generous" servings (and I think it will freeze well - Yay!)

Ingredients (adjust to suit your refrigerator contents):

• 1 cup fresh asparagus, chopped into 1/2" pieces
• 2 cups broccoli, finely chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 1 cup fresh cauliflower, finely chopped
• 1 big fat leek, finely chopped (just use the white and light-green parts)
• 1/2 of a small onion, finely chopped (is there a "theme" here???)
• 1-2 cloves of fresh garlic - *minced!* (HA!)
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 handful of fresh spinach (no need to chop)
• 32 oz chicken (or vegetable) broth
• 1-2 Tbs olive oil
• 1/3 cup white cooking wine (although I think cooking sherry might be better)
• 1/2 cup of heavy cream
• 4 oz. softened cream cheese
• Seasonings of your choosing (I used Pea Soup Andersen's "Gourmet" seasoning salt - but that's not readily available unless you happen to live near - or more accurately - drive past a Pea Soup Andersen's Restaurant!)
• Dash of paprika

Instructions

1. Finely chop your veggies! (you'll end up pureeing it, so the finer the better)
2. Grab a large pot and saute the leeks, onions and garlic in olive oil, with a little salt, over medium heat, til translucent.  
3. Add the rest of the veggies and saute some more.  Maybe 5-10 minutes, til everything starts to get slightly mushy.
4. Add the cooking wine to deglaze the pan
5. Add the broth, bring to a light boil then reduce heat to low and let it simmer, covered, for appx 20-30 minutes.  Everything should be super-mushy by this point (except for the mushrooms, and that's okay)
6. Hit it with an immersion blender (or let it cool, then whir-it-up in a regular blender).
7. Add cream cheese, let it melt in.  You might need to blend it again.
8. Add the cream.  Simmer for a few more minutes and add seasonings to taste.
9. Serve hot with a dash of paprika

Enjoy!!! (Note: This might also be tasty with a blorp of sour cream - but I don't have any so I can't confirm).

Anyway, it was a nice, mellow soup.  Not too heavy (temps outside are hovering near the 90's - so "hearty soup" really doesn't seem very appealing right now!).  It was actually "just right" for lunch!  

New Droid...

Well, after much flailing and gnashing of teeth, I finally joined the 21st Century and upgraded my 1st Generation Droid to the new Droid RAZR 16G...

Oooh!  It's Purple!
(Last photo taken with Old Droid!)

Old Droid was just getting increasingly "buggy" and required fairly regular "Battery-Pulls" to re-boot after a freeze-up....

Simple things like taking pictures and uploading to FB were just getting frustratingly annoying - or annoyingly frustrating! (including the phone "completely forgetting" that it had *just* taken a picture).  Many-many cuss-words were uttered and I finally decided "To Hell With It" and ordered a new phone, online, from Verizon Wireless...

Now I'm supposed to get an Employee Discount (b/c my company has some kind of "arrangement" with Verizon), and a "Customer Loyalty Discount" and a whole bunch of other Happy Horsesh*t...

The Droid RAZR 16G was "on special" and "My Price" was supposed to have been $69.99, right?

The other contender was the Samsung Galaxy Nexus - and it was cool.  I mean, I saw it "up-close-and-personal" in the Verizon Store - but it didn't totally "Take my breath away" (plus, the GUI was just different-enough that there would have been a "learning curve!" :::GASP:::).  The Galaxy Nexus was *not* as deeply discounted - so I opted for the RAZR.  I also contemplated the RAZR MAXX - but pricing on that was outrageous.  Screw it.  Just go with the RAZR...

Okay, well, mini-rant here...  Dear Verizon:  DON'T tell me you're giving me a Super-Duper-Stupendous Deal unless you are prepared to deliver, k???  Apparently the "regular" price for the phone (as listed on their website) was $149.99...  "On Sale" for $99.99 - but with my "Loyalty" discount, I get $30.00 off, so $69.99.  Sounds good, right?

Well, THEN they add-in a $30.00 "Upgrade Fee" (thus negating the "Customer Loyalty" Discount!).  I'm not sure WHAT happened to my "Employee Discount" but then, with taxes (on the Full-Bust-Out-Retail-Price of $599.99 - WTF?!!) (NOT clearly-stated on the website, I should note!), I ended up paying $149.49.  Or exactly fifty cents LESS than the Advertised Price.  Gimme a break!!!

Sorry - didn't mean to rant - but srsly, Verizon?!  Don't bullsh*t me, okay?  If the price is $150.00 - then just f**king say so!!!

Honestly, I don't mind that I paid $150.00 for a new Smart-Phone.  I DO mind that you TELL me I'm gonna pay $69.99 to "lure me in" - but then charge me full-price anyway...  I'm not stupid - I *hate* deceptive advertising practices...

And, had I not been SO fed-up with the old phone, I probably woulda pitched a b*tch and tried to get the "Final Price" a tad closer to the $69.99 "Advertised Price" (Which probably would have necessitated a trip to the Verizon-store - and I wasn't up for that).

To be fair...  Prior to my upgrading my phone, I received an email from Verizon - promising me a "Totally Free" Accessory for my phone (Snap-on case, or Screen Protector).  Well, the stuff for the OLD Droid wouldn't fit the NEW Droid, so I emailed them.  Turned out that NEW Droid wasn't part of that "Totally Free" Accessory Offer, but they ARE honoring that and will allow me to pick a protective case for my new phone.  So that is a "partial" offset to my pissed-offedness!

Annnnnnywaaaaaayyyy...  End of Rant #1!

Sooooo....  Rant #2:  I received my new phone a couple-days after ordering...  I'd left a note on the door for Fed-Ex - with my signature - so FedEx would leave the package on my doorstep.  Yay Fed-Ex, they DID!

So I excitedly opened up the package and read thru the set-up instructions.

Now I *did* have the presence of mind to download ALL of my personal files off of my old phone, to my PC (pictures, videos, music files, ringtones, yada-yada)...  The only thing I couldn't find was my Contact List.

Now, I did know that First Generation Droid was *not* compatible with many of Verizon's "proprietary" apps (which, honestly, I kinda liked!) (and that's a Big Reason why iPhone was never "on the table" for me - too proprietary!).  That included "Back-up Assistant" so there didn't appear to be an "Easy" way to transfer my contacts from my Old Droid, to the New...

I'm here to tell you: The Instructions provided by Verizon really-really-really sucked!

There was some sorta bullsh*t (directed from their website) where I needed to "Export" the contact list from OUTLOOK in csv format.  That's all very well and good except that I DON'T HAVE an Outlook Account set-up.  And when I tried to initiate the Export from my phone, it put it into vcf format (Outlook), and it included email addresses from about 400 years ago (and very few phone #'s, actually).  Now, I know that Droid relies heavily on your Google email acct - but the people I EMAIL from gmail are definitely "different" from the people I "call" on a regular basis...

Well, long story short (Too Late!), I ended up setting-up a dummy Outlook acct on my PC (no email associated with it), and I keyed in all of my important contacts into Outlook.  This, actually, was a good opportunity to do some "clean-up" since...  Well, my mom is no longer with us, so I don't really need to keep her in my Contact List, right?  Then I followed the instructions (from the Verizon site) to export the csv file, then I IMPORTED it into Google Mail, Contacts.

Well, SURPRISE!~  All of my original "Contacts" actually DID reside - with phone#'s intact! - in gmail's "Contacts." If you look on your GMAIL screen, there's actually a "drop-down" where it says "GMAIL" (directly under where it says "GOOGLE"), and THAT'S where your phone's "Contacts" reside - Duhhhh!

So, after I'd imported my new Contact List into Gmail (using their "Import" feature), I ended up with duplicate contacts - but, in the end, it was fairly easy to "clean-up" my contact list...

Anyway, it took me two days to get the Contacts squared-away, but when it was all said-and-done, it was fairly easy to "Activate" the phone, on my own.  I *really* didn't want to go to the Verizon Store and "don my Blond Hat," to convince them to do it for me - although I'm sure they would have.  But - given my experience with *my* company's I/T Dept, I was reasonably sure they'd find a way to f**k it up! (I definitely did NOT want the 400-yr.-old email contacts added to my phones contact list!!!)

And I am pretty "rabid" about NOT syncing ALL of my contacts (Facebook and multiple email accts).  I maintain "multiple personalities" online and I *don't* want everything smushed together!

Now one thing that *did* freak-me-out when I first fired-up the phone (and synced my "Contacts" from gmail), the phone ALSO added all of my Facebook Contacts.  No-No-No-No-Noooo!!!  But I *did* figure out how to suppress the FB contacts from my "Phone Numbers" list...

Bottom Line:  Setting up the phone really wasn't very intuitive - and the instructions from Verizon really sucked-eggs.  Thankfully, I was able to figure it out...

I'm guessing that the Verizon Store would have (reluctantly) taken care of it (but I think they work on commission, so be prepared for push-back!). Nevertheless, if you're considering an upgrade, you're not entirely "on your own..."

Once I got the phone set-up, I have to say that - overall - I am pretty happy with it.  The GUI is slightly different from the First Generation Droid, but not too difficult to figure out.

Features that I like:  

• Once I got it hooked-up to our WiFi, I can actually play any music that's accessible on the network (i.e. stuff on my hard-drive on my laptop in the house).
• Picture Quality seems vastly superior to Old Droid.  And uploads to FB happen almost instantaneously.
• 4G speed is definitely far-superior to 3G (although I worry about them over-subscribing and slow-downs in the future)
• Bluetooth uploads:  I can take a picture with the phone and upload it to my hard-drive on my laptop via Bluetooth (a little slow - but less of a pain than plugging in the usb cable)
• So far, so good - no freeze-ups (but NO clue what I'm gonna do when/if that happens - the battery is NOT removable)
• Most of the apps I use, appear to have come pre-installed (Yay!  But I *did* make a list before I shut-down the old phone)
• Some of the Verizon-specific apps are also pre-installed (not sure if I like that - we'll see).  VZNavigator ($fee) is on the new phone, but I think I'll stick with Google Maps/Navigator (FREE!).
• I'm guessing (hoping) that the memory is expandable (looks like there's a mini-SD card slot)
• Can watch Netflix Movies on the new phone (that's actually pretty cool!)

Downside:  I'm worried that the battery is NOT user-replacable... We'll have to see how that pans out.  Right now, I am fully charging and discharging the battery, a few times...

Anyway - overall, I am pretty happy with the new phone.  I hope I can say that 6-months from now!!!

Hooray for Rent-A-Son Services!!!

So C texted me, late yesterday afternoon, to let me know he wasn't working today and "Would I like some help with the garden?"

Sh*t howdy YES!!

So he showed up - bright-and-early - at 11:00am (Hey - he's young!  I remember when 11:00am was "early!")

I felt kinda bad because - just a few weeks ago - I had him break-down the straw-bales and pile 'em at the opposite end of the Garden-Yard.  No easy feat given that this particular yard is something of an Obstacle-Course - with Killer-Fruit-Trees aplenty ("You'll put your eye out!"), and meandering paths, and Kamikaze Bees.  Plus - when he moved the bales - he broke 'em apart so they were gonna be doubly-difficult to transport back!

Anyway, he used the wheelbarrow and completed it in no-time.  Added bonus: With it approaching high-noon, with the sun directly overhead, and the bed site being *the* hottest location in the yard???  Well, Thank Gawd for Rent-A-Son-Services!!!

Last year's Straw-Bale-Fail
Recycled into *this* year's new raised bed

Now the straw is "mostly" rotted, but still pretty "recognizable" (as you can plainly see).  Nevertheless, I did want to use it as "filler" in the bed - and minimize the qty of soil I had to buy.  Not sure if that'll turn out to be a good idea or not - but we'll see, right?

I figured it'd be best to toss some composted Steer Manure on top of the straw - to bump-up the nitrogen and help facilitate decomposition.  In retrospect, I'm wondering if I should have also added blood meal.  Hmmm...

2 Cubic Feet of composted (bagged) Steer Manure

Then, Bagged Organic Planting Mix on top of that (12 cubic feet)

We ended up paying a princely sum at Home Depot.  But I just wasn't up for a trip to Lyngso, today...

Well, it looks pretty full!!!

C also staked my volunteer peach tree (I shoulda pruned it back in February - Oooops!).  It kept falling over and the (amazingly abundant) fruits were brushing the ground...

My plan is to water the hell out of the new bed (and yes, we've strung a drip-line/soaker hose out there).  I think I'll test the soil tomorrow (Thanks, Finny!), and I might still need to adjust the nitrogen a tad...

"Ideally" I would have set this bed up a few weeks ago, so it'd have a chance to "rest" and stabilize before planting.  Unfortunately - as you can see from yesterday's photos! - I'm not gonna have the luxury of "Time!"  I'm just gonna plant the sh*t (this week, during the cooler morning hours) and hope for the best!

Annnnd...  Not to worry, I'm gonna "Get My (Garden) Geek-on," and rig-up the time-lapse Plant-Cam so I can have a "video" later this season

Next up:  C helped "open" the Gazebo.  Mostly clean-up, but there was some "heavy-lifting" involved.  And some removal of dead-plants, and re-potting of plants in broken-pots, and sweeping-up of crap and yada-yada.  Looks *much* better now (and Hubs was most appreciative!) 

Lastly, we set-up a cheesy-wooden white-picket-fence around my "barnyard bed" - which is located in the "Resort" section of the yard - in front of the back gate and right next to Roly-Pig.  I am *hoping* that this fence is tall enough to deter the leaping/digging Destructo-Dogs (Yes.  Very "Hopeful" - but...).  Anyway, he also replaced the dog-chewed sprinkler line in that bed - and that's where my large-leafed-viney plants are gonna go.  Squashes, pumpkins and cukes...

New Droid RAZR pic - with Zoom.  Not bad, actually!

So...  All told, I would have to say that today was a *very* productive day!

(And boy, are my feet paying for it now!  Jeeeeeeezzzz!!!!)

Another Raised Bed (Yayyy!!!)

Not sure how much "Entertainment" and/or "Humor" I'll be able to inject into this post, but I'll give it my best shot!!!


So, I took a "walkabout" in the backyard the other night::

Peaches are looking Super-Happy!
(These are the "Early-bearers, white peaches")

Santa Rosa Plums - will be VERY prolific this year!!!

Artie-Choke!  This is a li'l baby!  

Not sure if theyll be super-prolific, but I'll take what I can get!!!

I left two cabbages in my winter-beds, *hoping* they would form heads and become usable.
I'm starting to have my doubts (it is *too* sunny and warm in the beds - I'm afraid!)

"Volunteer" Tomatoes - leftover from Last Year.

Not sure what "varieties" they are - but I only planted heirlooms last year.
I suspect they are either Kellogg's Breakfast, Green Zebra, or Carbon...

In any case, I am leaving the "Volunteer" tomatoes alone!  They appear to be well-established and - with any luck - will be *most* prolific this summer!!!  My "intent" was to attempt to "Rotate" my crops for this summer's garden... But if something comes-up on it's own?  Well, I am not inclined to f**k with a good thing, right?!!

I'm debating about "what to do" with the Cool-Season Garden...  I ripped out *most* of the cool-season stuff a few days ago, but I left the cabbages - hoping they'd made "heads."  I just don't know if that's gonna happen and I'll PROBABLY rip them out :::sigh:::.

But HERE is my biggest "Challenge!"

Finny Farm and Santa Clara Master Gardeners' Haul

I have NO place to put them!!! EEEEEEEKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Annnnnnywaaaaaaayyyyyy....  Given that I wanted to do some kinda "crop-rotation,"  I quickly realized that I was gonna need ANOTHER raised bed (b/c the two existing beds were devoted, primarily, to tomatoes last year).

I was actuallly hoping to contract Rent-A-Son-Services but - alas - C. has a "regular" job and isn't always available to tend-to my various whims (:::sigh:::)!  I was forced to ask The Spousal Unit to build my third raised-bed TODAY...

He acquiesced - however reluctantly! (Believe me!!!  Had my feet not been so "Ouchy!" I would have done it all MYSELF!!!)

Consequently, I was subjected to his A/R, OCD ways, and overt concerns over the fact that my raised beds would be neither level, nor square, nor perfectly WHATEVERS!....  JEEZ, I *don't* freaking CARE!!!

2"x12"x12' and 2"x12"x8'  Pressure-treated lumber.

Yes, I know that pressure-treated ain't the GREATEST - but "It'll do." Okay???

But that meant he got to drag out his POWER tools ("Arr! Arrrrr!")

And there was MUCH "Meticulous Measuring!"

("D00d,,,  It's a rectangular-ish BOX for holding DIRT!!")

He did most of the construction out on the pool-side patio (shaded by palm trees).

But the "final" construction took-place back in the garden (guarded by Killer-Bees!!!)

New raised-bed - out between the Tiki-Shack/Studio and Greenhouse

The "Challenge" for me is gonna be the Volunteer Peach Tree which will, mostly, shade the new Veggie Bed...  I think I'll leave the tree alone, this year, but I may NUKE IT next year (if it negatively-impacts tomato production)...

Anyhoooooo....  I hopes my feets will "behave" tomorrow and enable me to fill-up the bed with composted straw-bales and soil, so that I can actually PLANT much of which is growing "Out-Of-Control" in the greenhouse!!!  I've already got a drip-line hooked-up, so I'm not worried about getting water out there (this is where last year's Straw-Bale Bed lived).

Gotta get the Summer Garden Planted ASAP, though...  If not, it will all be For Naught!!!

PSA: Neato-Bandito-Lime-Squisher

Okay, I'd posted a few months back, about my Sugar-Free Fresca-Rita Margarita Recipe...


Well, today I went out back to rest my feet in the sunshine ("Doctor's Orders") and, since I was sitting at the Tiki Bar, well...  It was MANDATORY to have an "Adult Beverage," right???


Turns out, I had run out of bottled Lime Juice (:::gasp:::), but I *did* have fresh limes (:::whew!!!:::)


While I was visiting my college-buddy, D, in Mexico last year - she had THE coolest little lime-squishing gizmo (in fact, she LAUGHED at me when I had emailed her - prior to our arrival - that I would require "bottled lime juice" for my margaritas!) (and - don't get me wrong - I wasn't "demanding" anything:  She had sent me an email prior to our arrival *asking* what she should have on-hand for our visit - like any good hostess would!!!) (And I have done the same prior to HER visits here - so *please* don't think me an "Obnoxious House-Guest!).


Annnnnywaaaaaayyyyy...  Fresh Limes are PLENTIFUL in Mexico.  And the Mexicans have a Most Ingenious Way to extract lime juice from said plentiful limes:

Mondo-Cool Lime-Squisher-Gizmo!

It's made of some kinda cheap pot-metal (undoubtedly chock-full of lead and PCB's and other nasty carcinogenic sh*t!).  I've actually seen similar "juicers" - made of plastic - at the grocery store and BB&B and whatnot - but they do NOT hold a candle to this one!

It's a hinged, metal doohickey, and the bottom has holes in it (for the juice to run out - but "Trust Me!" - you also need to turn it sideways so the excess juice runs out the side).  Now, you'd *think,* given the shape, that you should place the sliced lime in it, rounded-side down.  Not so, Kemosabe!  You want to put the flat (cut) side down in the rounded bottom, and when you squish the top, rounded, part down - you kinda turn the lime "inside-out" to get ALL of the juice!

Anyway, I *love* my Lime-Squisher-Gizmo.  And - it turns out - FRESH lime juice tastes WAY better than bottled - in a Fresca-Rita (Why am I not surprised?!!)

Soooo...  You can follow my original recipe (linked above).  Substitute the "1-2 parts lime juice" with 1/2 of a freshly squeezed lime.  And you can cut-back on the Splenda b/c FRESH limes are naturally sweet!


I love-love-love my Messkin Lime-Squisher!  And, in fact, they make them in different sizes so I *also* have a much-larger (Orange-Sized) squisher for whenever I feel compelled to squeeze fresh OJ for hubs..!

Garden Fresh Salad!

Literally, even!


Around 11-ish this morning, after two mind-numbing conference calls, my tummy was telling me it was time to eat.  So I wandered out to the garden with my colorful harvest-basket and a pair of scissors...


Out in the far-back-corner of the garden (actually "front" corner of the house), next to the greenhouse is an old "junky" plastic pot which has some "Volunteer" lettuce growing (green and red leaf lettuce); Inside the greenhouse, I have a 6-pack of assorted lettuces; I have a couple of patio planters which I'd seeded with "cut-and-come-again" types of lettuce greens - including spinach (which is starting to bolt 'cuz I never cutted-or-came-the first-time!  Let alone -again!). And, of course, I still have beets and carrots and broccoli in the fridge from a couple of days ago...


Ohhh, and I found a spring onion and a couple of peas worth harvesting while I was out on my Backyard Walkabout.

Now *this* is Garden-Fresh!

So I brought everything in and tossed it into the sink to rinse it off.  I also "spared" a small garden spider and released him back into the wilds!

Tossed everything together and added some Almond-Accents Honey-Roasted Slivered almonds.  Then I made up a *most* delightful vinaigrette dressing using some Gourmet Blends Pomegranate-Balsamic Vinegar and Lime-infused Olive Oil - about 50/50 proportions (BTW - not affiliated - I just really-really like their stuff).  It was a tad on the sweet side so, next time, I'll probably add some lime juice to "tarten" it up just a bit...

Anyway, it was a VERY delicious salad.  

And about as fresh as you can get, right???

Yeah, this year-round Garden Thing is actually pretty cool!!!


P.S.  What I *didn't* eat, went straight outside to the Roly-Pig Composter so that, later this year, it can work towards fertilizing THIS year's harvest!  How freaking GREEN is that?!!


P.P.S.  I've given up on Blogger's "spacing" issues with the paragraphs.  You'll just have to scroll through double/triple/quadruple spaces until Blogger "fixes" it.  Every time I post with everything lined up properly, it squishes everything together.  Then when I go back and fix it, it quadruples it.  And I am *not* editing html.  So there! :-P~


P.P.P.S.  New Droid is on order - should arrive tomorrow.  So maybe, just maybe, the picture quality, in future posts, will improve a *little* bit!