Because the bees won't be here for a week [+ Spicy Winner]

Since the bees won't be here until *next week*, I have to focus my wandering anxious attention elsewhere. And since these things probably won't get some QT from good old me for a while, I thought I'd stare at them for a minute before I ignore them for at least a solid month.

Hi wild ass meadow, you're really getting big and wild. And do I see some things blooming that weren't blooming when I looked last? Why yes, I believe there are. Neato. Keep up the good work. See you in, I don't know, May sometime.

Of course I will be looking at this. I have to. It's at the front of my house. But still. I won't be LOOKING like I am now. Specifically, with the camera and rapt attention.

And OH RIGHT! I planted 100 daffodil bulbs on a whim last fall. That was fun. I vaguely remember the hamstring pain that resulted from a morning of digging the holes.

Well, fine job with your blooming, 100 daffodils.

I'll have to remember to plant more daffodils this fall because there really is nothing like a big wad of daffodils stretching across the yard. I really like it. Also, wads of things. Wow. This just got inappropriate. Bet you didn't know I could do that with daffodils.

Saucy.

Wads of daffodils. Really paints a picture. Potentially a gross one.

This is our new street tree that's actually beginning to put on leaves which means that it's not dead and we haven't been warning neighborhood dogs off of it for no reason. Though, the lighting is pretty shitty, so I apologize for that. Much like the previous photo of the tree, it's not the best. That's what happens when you are so focused on not including your neighbor's 18 cars in the frame that you forget to do things like, I don't know, measure for light.

It's 8am. Though it looks like it's midnight. Hooray.

And then for the vegetable garden. Which WILL get some attention even once I have a busy hive of bees cooking alongside because I think you know what a total vegetable garden psycho I am.  I mean, that's the reason I'm getting bees, right - is to ensure maximum pollination of my precious vegetables.

Did I not tell you that? I can't remember. My reporting on the beehive progress has been sporadic, I know. Well, let me clear this up once and for all - I'm getting bees to make sure that every single blossom on every single vegetable and fruit on my property gets 1:1 bee nuzzling attention.

I am a cherry blossom and I need nuzzling. STAT.

Seems reasonable enough, yes?

But, for that to happen, I will have to pinch together every last moment I can find in the next 24-36 hours to prep and plant the vegetable garden before the bees turn up next week.

Which means I have a lot of pre-planting tasks to tackle and then some post-planting tasks that are very important, too.

What are these tasks? Oh, I'm so glad you asked. I really wanted to make a bulleted list. It serves a very important purpose in my soul.

• Go the the Master Gardener's Spring Garden Market and buy some tomatoes and peppers
• Test the soil
• Amend the soil
• Set up the bean teepee
• Fix the sprinkler manifolds where the stupid nubbin broke off after all these years of the sun staring at it
• Check the irrigation
• Sow the seeds
• Plant the plants
• Level the beehive
• Play "Drink the Beer" with Bubba

As you can probably tell, the last bullet is probably the most important. Or at least it will seem that way after a long day of one million yard projects when I'm draped over my patio chair in exhaustion.

So, since I'm planning to spend this weekend doing only garden related things and no time doing computer related things, I moved up the Spicy Contest winner announcement to today.

Aren't I thoughtful? I know. Sometimes miracles happen.

So, for the winner: DownhourGunter!

My friend, your entry came from Twitter, so NICE GOING on that one, since this is the first time I've added that as a way to enter a contest and CONGRATS because now you're going to be able to try to grow jalapeno popper chiles with me while leafing through this gorgeous book from the Chile Pepper Institute.

Doesn't that all sound Super Spicy? Almost Thai Spicy? OK, not that hot. That kind of hot does mean things to buttholes. This is just a super GOOD kind of hot. That makes you happy to be alive instead.

Just trust me, you don't want it Thai Spicy, OK? Why doesn't anyone listen when I tell them that?

Anyway, shoot your name and mailing address to finnyknitsATgmailDOTcom and I'll ship you off your fantastic prize.

And then you, too, can get to staring at the pot of soil with nothing growing in it (yet? I hope, yet.) like I am right now.

Something I learned from this book: it can take 2+ weeks for a pepper seed to germinate. Oh. That's not as satisfying as, say, lettuce, which germinates in, like, 15 minutes. Oh well.

And everyone have a good weekend.