Hillfarm - good news, thank heavens.

[dragonlaurel]

The decision to stay sane so you can be there for the rest of the family is smart.
Weeding is therapeutic sometimes too. My onions and garlic are up but I haven't planted the rest of my garden yet. Should be soon.
Can I come visit that cabin too? I go through stages where I really miss being off grid.

 

[hillfarm]

most definantly. My cabin is always open to friends. I have actually closed our property in with lattice fencing so I can grow vines and roses on. Very much the country cottage look. The sweet old lady across from us asked if we were trying to disappear under all the vines.
I think subconsciously that was exactly what I was trying to do. I planted tons of new morning glories and sweet peas and climbing roses this weekend. I'm gonna plant some bamboo in the back fence to block out the nosy neighbors on that side next. LOL.

Im becoming a recluse.

 

[Denim Deb]

I want that cabin, too.

 

[MorelCabin]

Me thinks we all need a vacation from our lives...LOL!

 

[hillfarm]

One more day and I am off for 9!!!!!!!!
i NEED A BREAK!!!!!!!!!! So badly.

Fingers in the dirt. Kids are on a different spring break than me, so I will be home and no one to look after. even sweeter.

Im so giddy I cant stand it. 9 day vacation. :lol :

Ex cancelled all visits till next month, cus he doesnt want to face me. But he says cus of gas prices. hmmm.
Works for me and the kids. :bun

DD has shut up and found someone else to drive crazy, her latest boyfriend and her last boyfriend are fighting over her.
But the focus is off me. For now.

Doing kitchen demo to fit the new fridge in and yanking the nasty dishwasher. Gotta replant all the lettuce and carrots. Storm ruined every thing. Oh well.

Looking forward to the break. the gardening and the quiet.

 

[dragonlaurel]

Glad you're finally getting a break. Enjoy! I always call gardening "playing in the dirt". My body reminds me it was work later, but at least it's enjoyed.

If there's still room, that lattice might be nice for some muscadines. They grow well in the South. Not picky growers, but they like plenty of sun, and good air flow to avoid fungal diseases. Yummy, and they make pretty good wine if you want to. I'm trying to find room for them in my garden.

Some bamboos are great wood for projects too. Might use it in outbuildings, some furniture, fencing, etc.
You might think about a living fence like Osage orange or black locust. Nice wood, and grows into a tight livestock fence that's thorny enough so humans won't tangle with either. Mother Earth News covered them this winter.
fixed typo

 

[hillfarm]

What a horrible day for Japan. I am still in shock over the videos of people standing in front of the wave and driving as the wave picks up their car and washes it away. They were real, not some movie. Thats the hardest part, knowing how many people were wiped out like that.
Almost time for me to call it a day, and then off to spring break.

Hope everyone has a good day.

 

[hillfarm]

Thanks Dragon for the idea about the grape vines. I hadnt thought about those. They may get to heavy for our lattice fence tho. But might work great along back. I made jelly years back from mustang grapes, not very good. But wine, well heck thats worth a try.
I have two vines of a green grape and a red one on another fence I built just for them. So far they are doing beautifully. Last year they fizzled. I got them on the soaker hose route this year, so its gonna help.

Hubby and I proudly went garage saling and were given a ton of scrap plastic lattice and grey 2 by 4's. So hubby built me an entryway into the back garden that I have the joy of decorating. Climbing roses, I think. Lots of solar lanterns and maybe some odd Mexican bright colored iguana art peice thrown on for fun. Best part we have been wanting to do this for 2 years but it had to wait till we got bigger stuff done. so this falling in our lap for free was just awsome.

My spring break was heaven. Got so much planted. Bought as little as possible. rooted gobs of ivy and vinca to spread the love.
Painted and finished the bathroom. Its turned out well. We have ripped out the pink toilet and sink, replaced the rotted floors and built cabinets and all. Under 500 dollars. Tub is another 400 but its not in yet.

Texas is in a severe drought at the moment. Its terrible for March, so I managed to keep my fish pond alive with water stored in the rain barrels. But thats depleted, hopefully we will get enuf rain for a refill this weekend. Only 20 percent chance though.

The new fridge is a great step up, my eggs wont freeze now. We just cant seem to sale off the old one. Everyone wants an ice maker. Um not for 200 dollars, geez.

So Im gonna get out my soap box for a minute and just say, if your from Texas and you have kids in the school system take note....

I have lost my job, as has everyone in my department. They have cut all programs except math, science and English. They have reduced most to very unacceptable levels. Of course football isnt touched, this is Texas. Some things are just sacred.
But a program to help kids who are in the foster programs, providing them mentors, GONE. A program designed to get pregnant teens back on track. Gone. Anything designed to encourage college and future planning. gone.
I work for a very very impovrished district. I maintain discipline, which is now going to be handed over to an overtaxed group of teachers to alternately trade out on keeping during what used to be their breaks and conference periods. Class room sizes are going to sky rocket. Art, drama, choir, band and many like courses are cut in half and doubled up.

YET, none of the adminstartors are touched. We have 5 principals, and their jobs could easily be handeled by a lesser paid employee. but nope, they will just pay minimum to an aide or secretary and give them twice as much work as they had before to cover the lowered body count.

So here's the rub, unemployed teachers go on unemployment. Enjoy paying for that. Less employess mean less help for the kids. Many of our kids who come from horrible homes will now fall threw the cracks and become uneducated and the easy way in this town is to become dealers and users. So guess who is picking up the tab for our increased prison pop?

What to do? what to do?

I'm going to pick up a job that will make me enuf cash to buy out of this area, move and live on as little as I can. This area is a crap hole. It will now become a festering cess pool of drugs and violence. You cant put these kids back on the streets and not give them any hope. The wealthier population will do great, they succeed in the typical classroom. But we are talking about a 90 percent poverty level. What happens when these kids show up for breakfast, dont go to class cus its "stupid" translates to I cant keep up. And then they show back for lunch then go home. In between you have kids with nothing.
Parents, if they even have them are too busy working, raising the other kids or just gave up on the troubled teen so they are of no use.

It is a sad sad time for Texas. We have failed our future generations.

 

[glenolam]

Oh Man.....

I'd probably get out of there too.

 

[hillfarm]

yep, Im wore out with it. The pecking orders in schools are horrible. Admin rules with complete tyranny. Then it trickles down. And the only ones really working are the ones who deal daily with the kids and no one thinks they have a single valid thought about how best to serve these kids.

This position has helped me to have the patience of Job when dealing with angry teenagers, but I'd take them in a heart beat over greedy politicians and law makers.
I had a kid tell me that it was my job to deal with his attitude. And I promptly showed him my check stub. He never said it again and he and I are good friends now. He says I dont get paid enuf to put up with his attitude and I'm too cool to have to.
He realized I did this job out of love for them, and to try and give them the best I could offer, not to get a paycheck.

The hardest part of all this is to see how the kids will suffer exponentially over these cuts. It will reverberate through this generation and many to come.