A Miracle and Payback

I wasn't expecting a miracle. I had a friend who had said she and her husband would try to help me buy a car. At first, they said they'd help once they sold their extra car. But there was a problem with the title. So I didn't get too excited. I know how long things take sometimes. I was happy that they were thinking of me and wanted to help.
Then the miracle happened. I got a text message that they were going to give me a van. I just couldn't believe it. I had signed up for Charity Cars online but didn't expect to see any results from that for a LONG time. I was pretty far down on the list and couldn't find my way around the web site. It was not an easy web site to navigate.
So we met last week and went to the registry and I now have a van. I can't really believe it yet. I still feel like I'm borrowing a car. That's OK too. I will take better care of it that way. I get almost weepy when I think about how generous they were and how it has changed my life. It's just an amazing feeling to be able to go to the store any time I want. People can invite me over to visit and I don't have to ask for a ride.

Of course, now, I want to pay it forward. My new neighbors don't have a car. I've taken them to the store a couple of times. The husband is a locksmith and he fixed the lock on my camper. I had lost the key for it and he had keys that just happened to fit and adjusted it for the sagging door. I like the barter system.
But the other night they asked for a ride to a friend's house, which was some distance away, to pick up cigarettes. I didn't want to drive that far, and I didn't want to go right that minute. I had just settled down for the evening and was sipping a cold one and watching my little lizard buddy on the plant shelf stalk a fly. (I live an exciting life.)
I did take them but I was a teeny bit annoyed. When I thought about it, I realized I had always asked people to take me when it was convenient for them usually when they were going anyway. I only asked someone to drive me to the nearest corner store if I really needed something that day.
I really want to help, but I feel like I need to decide what I am willing to do.I end up doing what people ask and then being annoyed because it wasn't what I really wanted to do.
I will take them to the store when I'm going anyway or we've made plans to go. Or I'll take them to the corner store and even loan them money for cigarettes if they are desperate.  I will not drive them to Walmart which is miles away in the next town just because that's where they'd rather shop. I want to help but I don't have unlimited gas money and I treasure my time.
I hope I'm not being selfish after all the generosity that has been shown to me. I'm torn with trying to make a decision on how to handle this.

Results of the Great Experiment

My seeds have all sprouted and look healthy even though I was away for the weekend. This is such a great way to start seeds if you have to be traveling or just get too busy to pay attention. I have three different types of plants growing so you can't judge by the amount of growth. What I was looking at was how much water was used up when I came home from my visit. They all three had a tiny bit of water left in the reservoir but all the rest had been sucked up into the soil.
The conclusion is - - they all worked the SAME! It doesn't matter which method you use, they all work! There may be more efficient ways to start seeds if you're doing a huge garden, but for my needs, this is just perfect! This system is great for starting seeds,and growing herbs and veggies like lettuce that don't take up a ton soil.

The Great Experiment

I needed some pots to start some seeds for my fall garden. I decided to experiment with self-watering (actually self-regulating, you still have to water but not as often) containers made from soda bottles. I've seen so many ways to make these. Most are pretty similar but just enough different that it made me wonder which one works the best. So, I started with three bottles. One just has holes drilled in the neck, one has a wick made out of paper towels and one has a yarn wick.

All three were pretty easy to make. The first one has a bunch of holes in the cap, around the neck and the shoulder of the bottles. I cut it off below the shoulder.


The instructions said to use a straw as a filler hole and to drill a overflow hole in the bottom third of the water reservoir, but I didn't have any straws so I just made a hole that can serve as a filler hole and an overflow hole.

I know it's a little hard to see, but it's a half-moon shaped hole just about where the bottom of the label was.

The second one has a wick made from two paper towels.  One towel is folded in half, and folded again. Then it's folded in half the other way and rolled into a tube. The tube is then set in the center of the second paper towel and pushed about halfway through the mouth of the bottle. The long tail of the second paper towel is spread out to catch the soil when it is added.
I have some reservations about how long the paper towels will last. I've seen some involving sponges and old tee shirts. Might give that a try later.


.


Here's a video of how to do this one

The third one just has one hole with a length of yarn (or string) through it. One end will sit in the water reservoir and the other will be up in the soil.

All of the tops were inverted and pushed down into the ends of the other section of the bottle.






Then I put soil in the containers and watered it from the top to get everything working. The one with holes just gushed water and the overflow hole did its job. The one with the paper wick slowly trickled down and the water is amazingly clean. The yarn wick one took the longest to flow down. The soil is still a bit soupy.

I planted the seeds and now I wait. I will report back as things develop.

Mini Gardening in an RV Park

Some things in my little container garden are coming in pretty good. The Swiss Chard that I planted in the shoe bag is fantastic. I almost hate to pick it. It's just huge and beautiful. But I don't like to let food go to waste either.


The carrots are doing well too. I wish I had planted more but there is still the fall season.

I have some chard and carrots cooking in the crock pot as I write.

That's a hammer on the table for size.

 The tomatoes are not doing well - again. I'm trying a home made wilt spray that seems to be working. I'll take before an after pictures if it works. Onions are doing fine. I just replanted some mint. I've got some mango seeds sprouting and even some Jerusalem artichoke from the side of the road.

I've been given some houseplants too, not that I need them, but they're sort of like stray animals...I even adopted a Purple Fountain Grass from the dumpster...

The Bread Fiasco

Corn, yeast, oatmeal bread? This is going to be interesting.

 I was out of bread so I decided to make some quick 5-minute cornbread in the microwave. I dumped a cup of flour in a bowl and - oops. No cornmeal. Well, OK then. How about yeast bread in the rice cooker? (I'm getting into this alternative baking since I don't have a working oven.) Directions said to add a little bit of water to proof. I've never proofed before and I've made a lot of bread, but decided to try it.

 Oops, I wasn't supposed to add water to the flour mix like I just did. Now the batch is too wet and I'm out of flour. I tried adding powdered milk instead of liquid milk but it just seemed to dissolve. Ha. Oatmeal. Just the thing. It's rising now.

Then it hits me. I'm getting a ride to the grocery store today. I won't have time to let the dough rise and bake it too. I would have been fine with the cornbread, but not yeast bread. So I cut a little time off the rising and turn the cooker on. Of course, being a rice cooker, it keeps shutting itself down to warm. I keep turning it up until time to go. Then I unplug it and wrap it in a towel. 

The bread was still warm when I got home. I turned the cooker back on for a while. I gave it a taste test and declared it done. It really was pretty good bread. Imagine what it would have been like if I had done it right!

The Glass, Half Empty or Half Full?

I'm feeling a little down today, for no particular reason. I think it's because I had a few sales last week in my Zazzle store and now that's come to an end. I've been working hard on making silhouettes for my Dog Store to the point that my wrist hurts, but only have a few people visiting the store.
And this morning the park owner knocked on my door to tell me I had left the water on outside. It wasn't on high but still.....I feel like an idiot...
It was a lovely morning even though it was wicked humid outside. It felt good in the camper with the AC on drying out the air. I did a few things that I knew I wouldn't do once the camper heats up in the afternoon. Did some laundry and put some beans in the crock pot. Now the dogs want to do something but it's just still too hot. Once the sun comes around to the south side of the camper it heats up like an oven in here.
Another lean month for food and cash. I haven't heard back from the Food Stamp department. It has been a while. I don't like to use the phone because of my hearing.
I think the projects that are building up is getting to me too. I need just an item or so for each project but can't get to the store to buy it. I don't like to order something that costs a dollar or two and pay $6 for shipping. So the projects keep mounting up. Here's one in progress.

I would really like to attach the faucet to the pipe instead of the hose coming through the window. Then I could finish the back splash and would be able to close the window instead of stuffing plastic bags in the cracks. I just need PVC cleaner.

But tomorrow we're being rescued again and being picked up to visit with a friend. We'll play with computers, dogs and sheep. I can get a stop at the store too.

Another Restless Night

I did not sleep well last night. Before bedtime, Moss was cocking his head at one of the lower cabinets. Inside I found a mouse caught by his tail in a trap that had been sitting there for a year. (the trap, not the mouse) I found some long, poky things and tried to move him to the outdoors. Of course that didn't work. He had wrapped himself around something and managed to pull his tail free. Then he scurried under my bed. I set the trap with fresh peanut butter and set it by the bed, then attempted to block it so one of the dogs don't get a trap on their nose. Now I'm squeamish about putting my feet down there.

Then during one of my nightly visits to the loo, I looked up and by my head, on the wall was one of the ugly wood cockroaches. They are huge and somewhat scary. I chased him around until he disappeared into the depths of my closet.  Great. Tried to go back to sleep. This is a bit unnerving since I had one crawling on my neck in the middle of the night a few months ago.

During another trip to the loo I spotted him or a friend on the back of the wall behind the fridge. He seemed to vanish behind the wall to the closet. Great. I left the light clipped to the wall over the fridge and tried to get back to sleep. I really need to seal up this camper.

Now for a nap....