Rainy Day Reflections/Jumping the Shark

Okay, no political rants today. I just have to announce that I love Spring. It is, bar none, my favorite season--mainly because it means the end of winter. Every year, when March finally rolls around and I see things o' green starting to bud and bloom, I breathe a sigh of relief and think, "Phew. I survived another one." And I live spring and summer like they are the last piece of grandma's pie at a family reunion--all in, face covered with cream.

I put my garden in last week, before the rains moved in, singing underneath my breath, "Tomatoes, Marigolds, Squaaaussh!" over and over. And because I have nothing to write about, and I am avoiding 1) folding laundry (Seriously--every item of clothing my entire family owns is on the bed, clean and ready to be folded. And yet here I sit.) 2) finishing my grading 3) walking on the treadmill (Because, as I mentioned before, it's so very rainy), I am writing out a list of what's in my garden. Feel free to slip into a catatonic state.

Tomatos: I planted (are you ready for this?) EIGHTEEN tomato plants--Burpes's Big Boy, Beefsteak, and Super-sweet Cherry. I can.not wait to sink my choppers into the juicy, plump, tangy goodness of a REAL (not grocery-store plastic) tomato. Casey thought I was crazy for planting so many until he heard how many my MOTHER planted (Forty. Six. Tomato. Plants. In two rows. It definitely runs in the family.)

Marigolds: I always plant marigolds between the tomato rows. I read somewhere that they keep critters at bay (because, let's face it--they're a little stinky). I dunno if that is true, but I DO know that the combination of vegetable (okay, technically fruit) and flower, red and orange pleases me vastly. I like the big fluffy ones, because when my mother or I make up a batch of something Indian in the summer, I can festoon our platters with marigolds and it makes our meal just a bit more exotic.

Squash: zucchini and yellow crookneck. My kids like it when I fry squash (of course), but they also like them boiled--they say it makes their teeth "squeak." My biggest problem is remembering to pick them when they are the right size--I always let a few get too big and then they are inedible. Once, when we had a six-foot-long black snake who lived in our garden, I reached down to pick up one of those too-big zucchini and screamed when it moved! It was my friend, who slithered out of the garden and made her way across the yard. I stood there, shuddering--I don't mind snakes, especially ones who keep critters out of my garden, but I don't really want to pet them. The way she booked it out of there, I figured the feeling was mutual.

Corn: I took a lil' trip up to the Sleepy Hollow store and bought some Kandy Korn and Peaches-n-Cream in bulk. I don't why, I just trust those red-with-disease-fighting-chemicals kernals more than the neat, bland packages you get at the big stores (Wal-Mart, Lowes, Home Depot). My favorite kind is the Kandy Korn. One year, we planted some of this, and when the ears were ready, I merely stripped the husk off and ate it right there in the garden--no boiling required. It was amazing--reminded me of being a kid again, eating sugar cane from our little shamba. I plant the Peaches-n-Cream because the white-and-yellow kernels on one cob please me.

Sunflower: I planted the sunflower my son gave me, too (they planted seeds in class, in Styrofoam cups, and he brought it home to me with careful instructions on how to plant it), but our STOOPID dog, Jane, dug it up and carried it into the pasture. MyBoy and I both walked around with sad faces, proclaiming to the heavens how much we HATE that dog. And speaking of flowers, I also planted a ton in my side-bed. I am not one of those careful types who color-co-ordinates her flowers--the more riotous and raucous the hues, the better. So my garden has reds nestled next to pinks of three different shades, from pale to fuchsia; orange cuddles with purple, yellow beams at white, and my ever-patient, always returning lavender lords over it all, its smoky silvery leaves regal rather than snotty.

So there ya go. Wake up and go about your day and I (*big sigh*) will go about mine.