New Gardenland
Rainwater tank for our garage, estimated cost $600 for a slimline tank
Pebbles or tough ground cover for driveway...? Mondo grass moved..?
Another magnolia, perhaps star magnolia? And cercis forest pansy
Kowhai and lemon tree moved to north side
Extra border edging - still to decide what plants, must be low growing
Plant up garden entrance by garage
St Giles Church
Berm planting round edges with natives/coastal plants
Lobby pots/hanging baskets - peace lilies, ferns, spider plants
Planters with herbs and flowers
More compost bins and worm farm set up
Apply for more funding
Henderson Baptist
Raised Garden beds planted up near entrance
New indoor lobby plants welcome at the doors
Sid and Janes' Swanson Garden
Weed and tidy and deadhead and shape existing garden
Harvest flowers
Kimberley Daycare
Complete overhaul...or weed and mulch
Set up garden collection
Woodside
A new arch plant maybe beans or peas
Plants to grow near shed perhaps climbing plants
More Gourds
Remembrance Chair
Riverpark Reserve
New Playground!
Shade trees and playground planting
Liaise with UMS and Auckland Council
Ranui Community Garden
Work with Joanne and learn all about Maori medicinal herbs
Primary ITO
Find another assessor to work through Amenity Horticulture modules
Permaculture Blitz
Learn more and apply permaculture principles...especially small and slow solutions.
Garden Road Trips
Taranaki Festival in November
Join Soil and Health and any excursions
Tiri Tiri Matangi Island check out bird life
quote - Galatians 6:9 Let us not be weary in well doing. For in due season we will reap, if we faint not.
Thursday, 10 January 2019
Monday, 7 January 2019
Pick your own garden
My sister is over and she's been strawberry picking, blueberry picking, and lavender picking. I've been potato picking, garlic picking and chamomile picking. Well, the first two some other gardeners had harvested, but am still picking!
What else is good - gardenias are blooming, fennel is attracting bees, my eggplants are swelling up, as are my capsicums, and tomatoes. Summer is here!
We had our picnic...it seems like nobody has EVER been on a picnic in the park, let alone an actual picnic before. I thought you would bring food to a picnic, but, apparently this does not apply to men. They just bring themselves, and then say, we don't want any food. Also Mr Whippy tells me, he can't stay, he has to make money. I decide am not going to invite Mr Whippy back again if that's his attitude, plus his ice creams are way too sugary. Thankfully I met some other neighbours but they say we only renting. I must be the only one that doesn't rent in this neighbourhood who actually calls it home. Everyone else seems to be just visiting. Even my own dad doesn't go to this park which is forlorn and neglected.
I don't know about you but my dad just left me to garden on my own, I moved a potting table to beside the garage where nobody can see it. Mum was in horror that I actually moved things around in the garden. She said move it back, by the fence but then dad said it was fine where it was, until I pointed out the leaky gutter, which has massive holes in it. Which nobody is going to fix, just like the ripped up curtains and torn chairs. (thanks Mummy Cat) So we moved it to under where there were no holes. I am going to get stick whatever I do, if Mum had her way the house wouldn't even be here and I'd be dead, but unfortunately I survived childhood to grow into an adult who doesn't always immediately obey her mother. Its such a trial living with me I tell you.
Dad leaves me to garden on my own otherwise he would have to do it and he doesn't want to bend down and lift things. Mum just gardens by proxy. Is telling people what to do, actually gardening? You try to look after it, but then someone else comes along and tells you not to.
What am I meant to do then, go work as a secretary? I would be so bored. Or teach. Its hard to teach older people new things because they think they know everything already. I can't think what else I'm going to do this year. Maybe nothing. Have a rest. I have friends who seem to never do any work and don't intend to. I don't know how they survive, maybe on the dole, but I've given up on the dole because, it seems that people even when they've got the dole, are always broke because they always going to spend it at the movies as they got nothing better to do. I'm not really good at anything, although someone told me the gardens miss me and my magic touch there are weeds growing there now. But actually my former boss said I did not weed everything thoroughly so, maybe this person was either lying to make me feel better, or they just did not get anyone to replace me, being the stingy company they are...? Because apparently anybody living there can garden, there are over 400 residents and only one of me, but most people just don't want to bother. As they have better things to do, like watch movies. Anyway!! Enough of that.
My next mission is to go and find sand and seaweed for the garden, but sh it's secret squirrel again but I think I will be safe as nobody owns the seaweed that washes up on the beach. Am glad my sister is getting out in other peoples gardens, I heard that she went to Katharine Mansfield's garden in Hamilton as well, maybe I will make a gardener of her yet. Its nice that other famous people have gardens even after they are dead, even when they actually were not even gardeners but writers, but, I don't think I will, as I won't be here to garden it.
What else is good - gardenias are blooming, fennel is attracting bees, my eggplants are swelling up, as are my capsicums, and tomatoes. Summer is here!
We had our picnic...it seems like nobody has EVER been on a picnic in the park, let alone an actual picnic before. I thought you would bring food to a picnic, but, apparently this does not apply to men. They just bring themselves, and then say, we don't want any food. Also Mr Whippy tells me, he can't stay, he has to make money. I decide am not going to invite Mr Whippy back again if that's his attitude, plus his ice creams are way too sugary. Thankfully I met some other neighbours but they say we only renting. I must be the only one that doesn't rent in this neighbourhood who actually calls it home. Everyone else seems to be just visiting. Even my own dad doesn't go to this park which is forlorn and neglected.
I don't know about you but my dad just left me to garden on my own, I moved a potting table to beside the garage where nobody can see it. Mum was in horror that I actually moved things around in the garden. She said move it back, by the fence but then dad said it was fine where it was, until I pointed out the leaky gutter, which has massive holes in it. Which nobody is going to fix, just like the ripped up curtains and torn chairs. (thanks Mummy Cat) So we moved it to under where there were no holes. I am going to get stick whatever I do, if Mum had her way the house wouldn't even be here and I'd be dead, but unfortunately I survived childhood to grow into an adult who doesn't always immediately obey her mother. Its such a trial living with me I tell you.
Dad leaves me to garden on my own otherwise he would have to do it and he doesn't want to bend down and lift things. Mum just gardens by proxy. Is telling people what to do, actually gardening? You try to look after it, but then someone else comes along and tells you not to.
What am I meant to do then, go work as a secretary? I would be so bored. Or teach. Its hard to teach older people new things because they think they know everything already. I can't think what else I'm going to do this year. Maybe nothing. Have a rest. I have friends who seem to never do any work and don't intend to. I don't know how they survive, maybe on the dole, but I've given up on the dole because, it seems that people even when they've got the dole, are always broke because they always going to spend it at the movies as they got nothing better to do. I'm not really good at anything, although someone told me the gardens miss me and my magic touch there are weeds growing there now. But actually my former boss said I did not weed everything thoroughly so, maybe this person was either lying to make me feel better, or they just did not get anyone to replace me, being the stingy company they are...? Because apparently anybody living there can garden, there are over 400 residents and only one of me, but most people just don't want to bother. As they have better things to do, like watch movies. Anyway!! Enough of that.
My next mission is to go and find sand and seaweed for the garden, but sh it's secret squirrel again but I think I will be safe as nobody owns the seaweed that washes up on the beach. Am glad my sister is getting out in other peoples gardens, I heard that she went to Katharine Mansfield's garden in Hamilton as well, maybe I will make a gardener of her yet. Its nice that other famous people have gardens even after they are dead, even when they actually were not even gardeners but writers, but, I don't think I will, as I won't be here to garden it.
Friday, 4 January 2019
Neighbours Picnic Day
I thought I would announce this for Sunday 6 January from 12:30 in the Riverpark Reserve by the playground we are having a picnic...!
And so far the weather looks warm enough, although yesterday was extremely windy, but it seems to have blown over fingers crossed. And I have asked Mr Whippy can he do a loop of our street and come park near where we having our picnic, which is beside the soon to be upgraded playground (March) and fitness equipment, not far from....the flying fox.
Yes the flying fox! Hooray.
And two shade trees. Which may be...Titoki, but I've requested Bottlebrush (Kings Park cultivar) or maybe Puriri for the birds. There will also be some planting by the playground, which will apparently be some fluffy carexs. Well at least that's better than tumbleweeds!
Now this picnic just needs some people to come and enjoy.
I have list of things to bring.
Picnic basket
Drinks
Sandwiches
Grapes... or strawberries?
Chips and dips
Picnic rug
Frisbee..need to find one
Ball (found a stray tennis ball on the deck)
Hula Hoop
Giant Bubble Maker ($2 shop?)
Skipping Rope.
Book to read...
Teddy Bears
Cushions
My family have decided to AWOL on me so, I don't know if I can carry all these things myself or whether to just load the car and drive two minutes into Bittern Place. There is parking, well it's a park after all.
But if you in the neighbourhood, esp if you are a Riverpark Resident, please come join us, or Kevin and his family will just be picnicking by ourselves. Like Mr Bean. And we don't want to disappoint Mr Whippy otherwise he won't come round our street anymore. It's just off Universal Drive the second no exit street down, and you can walk from Universal Drive, Bittern Place, Woodside Road or the back way from Riverpark Crescent. See you there!
Saturday, 29 December 2018
So you want to be a garden designer?
I have just been reading this book. At first I thought nah. I don't actually want to be a garden designer.
I mean I am one, because I have my PDC, and I could design gardens, but designing a garden and actually doing it are two different things.
I have found if one wants to design a garden, one needs an insanely wealthy client with a brand new plot who will throw money at you to get it done and won't use any lack of budget as stumbling blocks. Unfortunately, unlike New England where this book is set, people in Auckland aren't that flush with cash because housing is so expensive they have no time to spend on their garden. This book was talking about installing stonework masonry, landscaping swimming pools, decking, patios, stairs and doing driveways. This is even before they consider the plants.
Then because you can't conceivably do all this on your own what you do is charge a mark-up of your services, and then get sub contractors to do all the work for you under your direction. So basically you become a project manager. Most people won't hire someone else to do this for them because they would want to do it themselves, but if they do hire you, you need to work with them and do exactly what they want, even if it's maybe the wrong thing, like put in a swimming pool that is going to guzzle a lot of water that someone else will have to clean.
I've learned that one may install a spectacular garden but when the money dries up and they have no time to maintain it the garden will soon go to rack and ruin. Especially given our climate that weeds love. We get no rest over the winter period unlike in New England where it snows in winter and the plants are hibernating.
I think its a bit like people who hire other people to decorate their house. Why would you do this, can't you trust your own taste? If I have someone else decorating my house, then it wouldn't be mine. They would decorate it according to how they like it not how I like it. Because everything you do creatively has something of YOU in it. Maybe I am not thinking like how a garden designer may think, because they have really sold out but I would put too much heart and soul into my work to just love it and leave it. So the dilemma seems to be will Selina garden for cash. Or will she garden because she loves to? Would it be better to just concentrate on my own garden than bother about other people's, who may or may not even be interested. I thought about this and remember not long ago feeling insulted that someone would want to use me to tart up their home with plants just so they can sell it to someone else who doesn't care about plants and end up ripping them out again when they die through neglect. I mean I am all for gardening and greening up areas but money ought not to be a motivating factor. So I thought well you just don't know who you dealing with.
Anyhow, will just keep doing what I'm doing, which is growing spring onions, you can just chop the roots off the ones you buy in the supermarket and put them in the ground to grow new ones. I've also potted up spider plants so, if anyone would like a spider plant (I looked in Kings, they sell for at least $12) you can just ask me. You can pay me back later in plants.
I mean I am one, because I have my PDC, and I could design gardens, but designing a garden and actually doing it are two different things.
I have found if one wants to design a garden, one needs an insanely wealthy client with a brand new plot who will throw money at you to get it done and won't use any lack of budget as stumbling blocks. Unfortunately, unlike New England where this book is set, people in Auckland aren't that flush with cash because housing is so expensive they have no time to spend on their garden. This book was talking about installing stonework masonry, landscaping swimming pools, decking, patios, stairs and doing driveways. This is even before they consider the plants.
Then because you can't conceivably do all this on your own what you do is charge a mark-up of your services, and then get sub contractors to do all the work for you under your direction. So basically you become a project manager. Most people won't hire someone else to do this for them because they would want to do it themselves, but if they do hire you, you need to work with them and do exactly what they want, even if it's maybe the wrong thing, like put in a swimming pool that is going to guzzle a lot of water that someone else will have to clean.
I've learned that one may install a spectacular garden but when the money dries up and they have no time to maintain it the garden will soon go to rack and ruin. Especially given our climate that weeds love. We get no rest over the winter period unlike in New England where it snows in winter and the plants are hibernating.
I think its a bit like people who hire other people to decorate their house. Why would you do this, can't you trust your own taste? If I have someone else decorating my house, then it wouldn't be mine. They would decorate it according to how they like it not how I like it. Because everything you do creatively has something of YOU in it. Maybe I am not thinking like how a garden designer may think, because they have really sold out but I would put too much heart and soul into my work to just love it and leave it. So the dilemma seems to be will Selina garden for cash. Or will she garden because she loves to? Would it be better to just concentrate on my own garden than bother about other people's, who may or may not even be interested. I thought about this and remember not long ago feeling insulted that someone would want to use me to tart up their home with plants just so they can sell it to someone else who doesn't care about plants and end up ripping them out again when they die through neglect. I mean I am all for gardening and greening up areas but money ought not to be a motivating factor. So I thought well you just don't know who you dealing with.
Anyhow, will just keep doing what I'm doing, which is growing spring onions, you can just chop the roots off the ones you buy in the supermarket and put them in the ground to grow new ones. I've also potted up spider plants so, if anyone would like a spider plant (I looked in Kings, they sell for at least $12) you can just ask me. You can pay me back later in plants.
Wednesday, 26 December 2018
'Tis the season
Christmas season has started...the garden is peaking for flowers. I'm harvesting chamomile, lavender, lambs ears and watching fruits developing come autumn.
Tidying up patches here and there am shifting ferns plus am thinking of moving lemon tree to out the north side in front of the terrace as it's getting shaded by the manuka and kowhai. I will have to do that in autumn/winter when the ground is a bit softer though.
Have potted up lots of spider plants, yes I did go to Kings Plant Barn Boxing Day sale and bought two sacks of potting mix for $10 as had a discount, sweet! But not buying any plants as its not the right time to plant them although, very tempted to buy another protea to replace the ones mown over at church. They were all 25% off i.e normal price.
Good news although not sure if should say on here, as its another secret santa thing, but to anyone reading this, please don't tell anyone, so I will write very small or maybe in green so anyone who's colourblind and won't be able to read it - am getting a team together to make the garden at church but we not going to say anything we just going to do it so it will be a surprise. Because miracles don't happen when you explain how it's all going to be done and have to write audit reports and document it and say how much it cost. I'm pretty sure santa doesn't include the receipts for all the gifts and count up all the time and labour it cost to sort, make and deliver the goodies and charge it to the children he loves. No he doesn't do that he just gives, and he somehow just knows what the right gift to give to each child. Of course he has lots of helpers...an operation that big doesn't just happen with just one person. Thank you garden angels.
In other news have just been relaxing with my summer reading a book called 'The Worst Hard Time' it's the untold story of the dustbowl in America. I can't believe that happened but it did when misguided homesteaders plowed up the prairie to grow wheat to export to Russia and then just abandoned it when prices dropped so all the top soil of these abandoned fields just blew away - and people were dying of hunger, starvation and literally choking on dust storms when the wind blew over the dry land. The best grassland in america was totally ruined by get-rich-quick suitcase farmers, and the homesteaders were also lured in by cheap land that the native Americans said was totally unsuitable for crops as it had no fresh water. I'm wondering if that could happen in NZ..I'm thinking of all those pine forests/plantations which are logged and what happens to the land once they are logged. When you drive past logged places they look terrible just devastation everywhere. After all they are an export crop ...
But what do I know. I'm sure the experts have some clue rather than thinking about how much money they are making from it. Also I think it's weird they don't do anything with the logs just export them to other countries, we could be making furniture, carvings, pine oil, mulch...fragrant bbq woodchips, mushroom habitats, etc etc.
My family did put up a Christmas tree this year from the Christmas tree farm in Balmoral. When it dies I plan to use the pine needles as mulch it's very good especially for acid loving plants. Otherwise what a waste of a tree! Please everyone look after your trees and if you must cut on down, grow another in it's place we need all the oxygen and shade and bird homes we can in these perilous times.
Woodside Garden is going great the potato harvest yielded 303 potatoes this year. We've had plums, and there's leeks and strawberries. I'm a bit sad that SOME of the people I know only care to come along so they can harvest whatever we have grown..but never lift a finger the other times. So I kind of thought maybe I just won't show people the garden unless they prepared to spend a morning there gardening it. Or is that miserly of me? Again, what can you do when mothers want you to drive them everywhere, not pay for petrol, and harvest all your bounty, yet not contribute. Oh and tell you you can't spend the money they gave you for Christmas. But when tables are turned and they say oh you didn't help make dinner, or cook anything so you can't eat it. Oh but you did offer to help but then just get yelled at for helping. Thats quite a difference because I've never stopped anyone from gardening if they wanted to...and I've never forced anyone to garden and piled a guilt trip on them if they don't. I don't even care if they want to plant whatever they like, it does not matter to me as long as they are enjoying gardening!
Anyhow am planning a Neighbours picnic for Sunday 6 January raindate the following Sunday in Riverpark Reserve, by the soon to be upgraded playground (hooray, it's going to go ahead in March!!) so don't be two sandwiches short of a picnic just come along!
Tidying up patches here and there am shifting ferns plus am thinking of moving lemon tree to out the north side in front of the terrace as it's getting shaded by the manuka and kowhai. I will have to do that in autumn/winter when the ground is a bit softer though.
Have potted up lots of spider plants, yes I did go to Kings Plant Barn Boxing Day sale and bought two sacks of potting mix for $10 as had a discount, sweet! But not buying any plants as its not the right time to plant them although, very tempted to buy another protea to replace the ones mown over at church. They were all 25% off i.e normal price.
Good news although not sure if should say on here, as its another secret santa thing, but to anyone reading this, please don't tell anyone, so I will write very small or maybe in green so anyone who's colourblind and won't be able to read it - am getting a team together to make the garden at church but we not going to say anything we just going to do it so it will be a surprise. Because miracles don't happen when you explain how it's all going to be done and have to write audit reports and document it and say how much it cost. I'm pretty sure santa doesn't include the receipts for all the gifts and count up all the time and labour it cost to sort, make and deliver the goodies and charge it to the children he loves. No he doesn't do that he just gives, and he somehow just knows what the right gift to give to each child. Of course he has lots of helpers...an operation that big doesn't just happen with just one person. Thank you garden angels.
In other news have just been relaxing with my summer reading a book called 'The Worst Hard Time' it's the untold story of the dustbowl in America. I can't believe that happened but it did when misguided homesteaders plowed up the prairie to grow wheat to export to Russia and then just abandoned it when prices dropped so all the top soil of these abandoned fields just blew away - and people were dying of hunger, starvation and literally choking on dust storms when the wind blew over the dry land. The best grassland in america was totally ruined by get-rich-quick suitcase farmers, and the homesteaders were also lured in by cheap land that the native Americans said was totally unsuitable for crops as it had no fresh water. I'm wondering if that could happen in NZ..I'm thinking of all those pine forests/plantations which are logged and what happens to the land once they are logged. When you drive past logged places they look terrible just devastation everywhere. After all they are an export crop ...
But what do I know. I'm sure the experts have some clue rather than thinking about how much money they are making from it. Also I think it's weird they don't do anything with the logs just export them to other countries, we could be making furniture, carvings, pine oil, mulch...fragrant bbq woodchips, mushroom habitats, etc etc.
My family did put up a Christmas tree this year from the Christmas tree farm in Balmoral. When it dies I plan to use the pine needles as mulch it's very good especially for acid loving plants. Otherwise what a waste of a tree! Please everyone look after your trees and if you must cut on down, grow another in it's place we need all the oxygen and shade and bird homes we can in these perilous times.
Woodside Garden is going great the potato harvest yielded 303 potatoes this year. We've had plums, and there's leeks and strawberries. I'm a bit sad that SOME of the people I know only care to come along so they can harvest whatever we have grown..but never lift a finger the other times. So I kind of thought maybe I just won't show people the garden unless they prepared to spend a morning there gardening it. Or is that miserly of me? Again, what can you do when mothers want you to drive them everywhere, not pay for petrol, and harvest all your bounty, yet not contribute. Oh and tell you you can't spend the money they gave you for Christmas. But when tables are turned and they say oh you didn't help make dinner, or cook anything so you can't eat it. Oh but you did offer to help but then just get yelled at for helping. Thats quite a difference because I've never stopped anyone from gardening if they wanted to...and I've never forced anyone to garden and piled a guilt trip on them if they don't. I don't even care if they want to plant whatever they like, it does not matter to me as long as they are enjoying gardening!
Anyhow am planning a Neighbours picnic for Sunday 6 January raindate the following Sunday in Riverpark Reserve, by the soon to be upgraded playground (hooray, it's going to go ahead in March!!) so don't be two sandwiches short of a picnic just come along!
Friday, 21 December 2018
You have two hands
Actually there is not a lot more to do in my garden.
I have mulched the front bed with gaura and see there's borage coming up from seed I had scattered. Butterflies are coming to visit. It has rained last night.
But there are some things.
1. Find out what to do with all this applemint
2. harvest potatoes - at Woodside
3. harvest leeks - at Woodside
4. Grow chokos..where? - at Woodside
5. Check on watermelon
6. Worm fertilise plants
7. Rake leaves at St Giles and put in garden as mulch
I'm very annoyed that people just seem to think, because I am a gardener, that means I will do every garden that's going. Um the whole point of gardening is not that you get someone else to do it, is that YOU do it yourself. Otherwise, if you do not want to do any gardening but still want a garden, then that's as stupid as saying you want to own a car but will not drive it. Perhaps the kindhearted people you bludge off will feel sorry for you and give you rides but not forever, and especially if there's a bus stop right outside your house and you actually have a free gold card.
I had some calling cards made up that I can now give to people. It says Gardener, but it doesn't mean I will actually garden YOUR garden. It just means you can come and visit mine! Because, why would I garden your garden if you could do it yourself and do it how you want it? I don't know what you like to plant, besides if I gardened your garden while you sat back and did nothing, then what's the point? You would miss out on all the fun of gardening! How could I deprive you of the peace you will get from pulling weeds and making compost? And of talking to your plants while watering, or seeing birds and butterflies and knowing you made a home for them.
Aiya. Anyway. No worries I have now things to do but am quite insulted again - MUM. Mum had to lift her fingers to do some gardening that she saw needed doing (good spotting mum!) and then blamed me that I didn't do it.
At times like this I will just say, here, there's a spade. Look, there's some secateurs. Oh and look what's on the ends of your arms.
If you have two hands, you can garden!
I have mulched the front bed with gaura and see there's borage coming up from seed I had scattered. Butterflies are coming to visit. It has rained last night.
But there are some things.
1. Find out what to do with all this applemint
2. harvest potatoes - at Woodside
3. harvest leeks - at Woodside
4. Grow chokos..where? - at Woodside
5. Check on watermelon
6. Worm fertilise plants
7. Rake leaves at St Giles and put in garden as mulch
I'm very annoyed that people just seem to think, because I am a gardener, that means I will do every garden that's going. Um the whole point of gardening is not that you get someone else to do it, is that YOU do it yourself. Otherwise, if you do not want to do any gardening but still want a garden, then that's as stupid as saying you want to own a car but will not drive it. Perhaps the kindhearted people you bludge off will feel sorry for you and give you rides but not forever, and especially if there's a bus stop right outside your house and you actually have a free gold card.
I had some calling cards made up that I can now give to people. It says Gardener, but it doesn't mean I will actually garden YOUR garden. It just means you can come and visit mine! Because, why would I garden your garden if you could do it yourself and do it how you want it? I don't know what you like to plant, besides if I gardened your garden while you sat back and did nothing, then what's the point? You would miss out on all the fun of gardening! How could I deprive you of the peace you will get from pulling weeds and making compost? And of talking to your plants while watering, or seeing birds and butterflies and knowing you made a home for them.
Aiya. Anyway. No worries I have now things to do but am quite insulted again - MUM. Mum had to lift her fingers to do some gardening that she saw needed doing (good spotting mum!) and then blamed me that I didn't do it.
At times like this I will just say, here, there's a spade. Look, there's some secateurs. Oh and look what's on the ends of your arms.
If you have two hands, you can garden!
Wednesday, 19 December 2018
Stop rambling?
I looked up the definition for 'ramble' and I'm wondering whether I ought to change the name of this blog to Organised Garden Planner.
Why because definition two is rather worrying. Although, I named it 'Rambling Garden Diary' because ramblers are climbing plants. Not that my garden is vertical, more horizontal and wants to spread everywhere. Perhaps is ought to be 'Creeping Garden Diary'.
I got this strange sensation that people don't really like ramblers. One thing is they are scared that ramblers are going to take over with their filibuster style of growing. But this is so weeds can't get a look in. Another is that, they are always being cut down. For example, I suggest to church that because of the vision to have a community/childrens garden near the daycare, we could have planters and they won't get mown over. And lo and behold someone has already made some that I could buy and we could put them in. But no, we have to wait till some people who aren't gardeners have a board meeting and then we'll let you know.
But this is the same with the windows. The windows desperately need replacing as the panes are rotting. This was meant to be done oh, about at least five years ago. Oh no we have to wait till people have all discussed it and made a decision, nobody can just make a decision on their own and JUST DO IT. Jennifer has said to me 'Well I will believe it when I see it. I may be dead before then'. This is no joke, as her husband didn't live to see the garden bloom. And yes they could have a board meeting and talk about it, but they won't do it. I don't see them rolling up their sleeves and doing it. They might get someone else to do it, but nobody can just do it because they will soon find an email in their inbox saying 'who put these windows in? Did we say you could put them in? Take them out and don't put any in till we have discussed it'. Um...hadn't it already been discussed?
I have learned by 'discuss' is code for have lots of meetings but don't do anything. Which is why I hate meetings. The last one I went to took 3 hours. I should have up and left after the first hour.
I don't need muffins or cups of tea. I just want to know what we going to do then do it. I don't care if people want to vent about politics. They can vent to their blogs like I do.
Why do we have meetings at all? Can't we just go and garden? It seems to me, that we can have meetings in the garden while doing some work, or we could just have lunch and talk about stuff then. Why call a special meeting? Is there a special 'meeting' pay that everyone receives who goes to meetings, or is it just an excuse to sit on our butts and chat about nothing, boast about our accomplishments, and tally the treasury. I think people want to make sure there's money in the treasury, but I'd say if there's too much money in the treasury someone is hoarding it rather than spending it, and nothing is being done. Perhaps they are waiting for it to collect interest, but the time it collects interest enough to pay for whatever it is you want, well, some people just don't have as long to live as you do. I wasn't brave enough to walk out.
Thankfully I have now put in new batteries in both my watches and can now look at them and say 'Aw is that the time? I must go home and have a nap, otherwise I will fall asleep and drool all over you' . By the time I've had a nap, they would have got back to me and said 'we haven't come to any decision, but there's another meeting in a few months time, don't do anything until we have reached a decision. ' But I have already decided that I am going to Feel the Fear and DO IT Anyway.
My strategy of 'ignore what everyone else thinks and garden' seems to be working it's charms. Like rambling plants they just want to grow. You can't actually train the climbing tendrils to grow where you want them, what you do is you let them grow out FIRST and after they have sent out shoots, THEN train them back, nobody that I know has ever put in a climber that's already trained and then just not let them grow! If people want instant garden that then they are better off just painting their walls green with flower patterns and astroturfing the ground, but they will still have to pick weeds out of the astroturf. Yea we like the concept of a garden, except growing things, um do we have to do it? Yes silly, the thing about gardens is in them people plant plants because they actually want to see them grow.
Now I have rambled on enough, it's raining Hallelujah. Keep growing plants, and don't ever stop. Keep up the good work. I'd rather see plants grow then watch a pile of money grow in the bank, and thing is you just can't eat money.
ramble
/ˈramb(ə)l/
verb
- 1.walk for pleasure in the countryside.
"I spent most of my spare time rambling and climbing"
synonyms: walk, take a walk, go for a walk, hike, tramp, backpack, trek; More
- 2.talk or write at length in a confused or inconsequential way.
"Willy rambled on about Norman archways"
synonyms: chatter, babble, prattle, prate, blather, blether, gabble, jabber, twitter, go on, run on, rattle on/away, blither, maunder, drivel; More
noun
- 1.a walk taken for pleasure in the countryside.
synonyms: walk, hike, trek; More
Why because definition two is rather worrying. Although, I named it 'Rambling Garden Diary' because ramblers are climbing plants. Not that my garden is vertical, more horizontal and wants to spread everywhere. Perhaps is ought to be 'Creeping Garden Diary'.
I got this strange sensation that people don't really like ramblers. One thing is they are scared that ramblers are going to take over with their filibuster style of growing. But this is so weeds can't get a look in. Another is that, they are always being cut down. For example, I suggest to church that because of the vision to have a community/childrens garden near the daycare, we could have planters and they won't get mown over. And lo and behold someone has already made some that I could buy and we could put them in. But no, we have to wait till some people who aren't gardeners have a board meeting and then we'll let you know.
But this is the same with the windows. The windows desperately need replacing as the panes are rotting. This was meant to be done oh, about at least five years ago. Oh no we have to wait till people have all discussed it and made a decision, nobody can just make a decision on their own and JUST DO IT. Jennifer has said to me 'Well I will believe it when I see it. I may be dead before then'. This is no joke, as her husband didn't live to see the garden bloom. And yes they could have a board meeting and talk about it, but they won't do it. I don't see them rolling up their sleeves and doing it. They might get someone else to do it, but nobody can just do it because they will soon find an email in their inbox saying 'who put these windows in? Did we say you could put them in? Take them out and don't put any in till we have discussed it'. Um...hadn't it already been discussed?
I have learned by 'discuss' is code for have lots of meetings but don't do anything. Which is why I hate meetings. The last one I went to took 3 hours. I should have up and left after the first hour.
I don't need muffins or cups of tea. I just want to know what we going to do then do it. I don't care if people want to vent about politics. They can vent to their blogs like I do.
Why do we have meetings at all? Can't we just go and garden? It seems to me, that we can have meetings in the garden while doing some work, or we could just have lunch and talk about stuff then. Why call a special meeting? Is there a special 'meeting' pay that everyone receives who goes to meetings, or is it just an excuse to sit on our butts and chat about nothing, boast about our accomplishments, and tally the treasury. I think people want to make sure there's money in the treasury, but I'd say if there's too much money in the treasury someone is hoarding it rather than spending it, and nothing is being done. Perhaps they are waiting for it to collect interest, but the time it collects interest enough to pay for whatever it is you want, well, some people just don't have as long to live as you do. I wasn't brave enough to walk out.
Thankfully I have now put in new batteries in both my watches and can now look at them and say 'Aw is that the time? I must go home and have a nap, otherwise I will fall asleep and drool all over you' . By the time I've had a nap, they would have got back to me and said 'we haven't come to any decision, but there's another meeting in a few months time, don't do anything until we have reached a decision. ' But I have already decided that I am going to Feel the Fear and DO IT Anyway.
My strategy of 'ignore what everyone else thinks and garden' seems to be working it's charms. Like rambling plants they just want to grow. You can't actually train the climbing tendrils to grow where you want them, what you do is you let them grow out FIRST and after they have sent out shoots, THEN train them back, nobody that I know has ever put in a climber that's already trained and then just not let them grow! If people want instant garden that then they are better off just painting their walls green with flower patterns and astroturfing the ground, but they will still have to pick weeds out of the astroturf. Yea we like the concept of a garden, except growing things, um do we have to do it? Yes silly, the thing about gardens is in them people plant plants because they actually want to see them grow.
Now I have rambled on enough, it's raining Hallelujah. Keep growing plants, and don't ever stop. Keep up the good work. I'd rather see plants grow then watch a pile of money grow in the bank, and thing is you just can't eat money.
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