Barely a stiff breeze

I'm happy to report that yesterday's weather forecast ended up being a bust! Aside from some gentle rain showers, nothing happened. Of course, some idiots on social media are dragging the local weather guy instead of being grateful we dodged a bullet. I struggle to understand people sometimes. I guess they'd be happier if we'd had widespread damage and destruction! 

Anyway, it ended up being a very productive day for me. I was only able to get the basics done for my job, but in the afternoon when the receptionist took over phone duty, I got my taxes done! Now that's a great feeling, not to mention a relief. We're even getting a modest return this year! That will certainly be welcome and will come in handy. 

My driver's license expires next week on my birthday, and I'm planning to take a personal day off work tomorrow to go renew it, and this time I'm getting a "Real ID" for federal identification. I've had to scramble to get all the documents needed for it, including a copy of my birth certificate. (There's no way in hell I was going to ask my estranged mother for it). After completing our taxes, I gathered all the documents I'll need to take with me tomorrow. It seems ridiculous that I need seven (!) forms at minimum to get the Real ID, but at least after tomorrow that will be done. I've been worried about it for months because now you can't board a domestic flight without one. Not that I have any immediate plans to fly, but you never know what might come up, and at least now I'll be ready. 

I also made Poppy an appointment for her shots and checkup, which will be tomorrow after I finish at the DMV. I figured I may as well use the personal day off to get as much done as possible. One day soon I'm going to take a personal day or two off JUST FOR ME and do something more fun.

Anyway, thanks for the good wishes on my post yesterday. I'm grateful that the terrible storms didn't materialize and the garden is safe.

At home today

Our crabapple tree has started to burst into bloom. Isn't it pretty?

Today is an unexpected work from home day for me. We have very strong storms set to roll through the area in two waves, bringing extremely high winds, large hail, and the possibility of tornadoes. The district made the call last night to switch to an e-learning day (along with other districts across the area) for safety reasons. I can answer the school phone via the Zoom app on my personal phone, and there are several tasks I can complete from my home computer. It's nice to sip coffee and work in my pjs, not to mention sleeping a bit later since I didn't have to be logged on until 8:00 as opposed to being physically at work at 7:00. It's also nice to be able to write a blog post while "at work"! 

It was a nice, warm, sunny weekend and I got a lot done. I'm in the process of potting up dozens of tomato and herb seedlings, and my lettuce and carrots (planted out a couple of weeks ago in the raised beds) are growing nicely. The two new roses are leafing out and doing really well, too. Hopefully we won't get large hail today that could easily damage them. And I dread any major storms because of how stressed out the dogs will get. I got up early and made sure they were fed and taken out to relieve themselves, because once it starts to rain hard (and especially once it starts to thunder and lightning) they'll refuse to go out. One can hardly blame them!

I'll report back later on any storm damage. Here's hoping it's not too bad and doesn't wreak havoc in my garden. A work from home day isn't worth all that!

Palmetto's Finest

Have I ever mentioned that I have wonderful office windows? They give a great view of the eastern sky, and since I arrive at work by 7am, I'm often treated to beautiful sunrises.

Here are two from this week alone.

Work has been hectic for a couple of weeks now, because our school was named as a finalist for this year's Palmetto's Finest Award. This was the week we were expecting a second team of evaluators to visit and spend the day at our school, without knowing the exact day they would come. Palmetto's Finest is a very prestigious state award, and everyone's been very excited. The administration, teachers, staff and students have been working hard to prepare to make the best possible impression, and the superintendent has seen to it that the maintenance department and landscapers and others have been working tirelessly every day to make sure our school shines. 

Well, today was the day! The evaluation team showed up at 7am and stayed all day right through dismissal and afternoon carline. What a relief that it's finally over! Everything seemed to really go well, and the day went off without a hitch. Whether we win or not, I think we all did ourselves proud!

Here's part of the email our principal sent out once they'd finally left. I sure feel lucky to work in such a great school!

I want to thank each and every one of you for an amazing job you did today. The lead evaluator called this a phenomenal visit and noted they saw many positive things. Please thank your students as well. They behaved very well. 

This is truly a testament to how wonderful we are as a staff. You already do amazing things. I just want others to see this and know it as well. 

Staff may wear jeans tomorrow. 

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

In like a lamb

On Sunday the weather was spring-like and beautiful. Temperatures got up to 75 degrees (23 C) and the sun came out after several days of rain. It was good to get outside and forget about the state of the world for a few hours. Gregg and I took the chance to get some garden tasks done while soaking up the sunshine. We re-mulched the rose bed around the two new shrubs, swept and tidied the porch, and planted this year's lettuce. Have I shown you how I grow lettuce? 

Small kiddie pools (with holes punched in the bottom for drainage) make great containers for growing lettuce. The depth is fine for the short roots, and the circumference gives you lots of room for a large crop. It's economical, because the pools are cheap and will last for several years if stored out of the weather when not in use. Even the two bags of garden soil I used in it will be recycled, because when the lettuce is done, I add the leftover soil to the bigger raised beds for volume.

Another thing I did yesterday was bring my tomato, herb, and marigold seedlings out to the porch to live. We're still sure to get cold weather, but they're all fitted snugly into large Styrofoam boxes that can easily be moved inside if need be. The 10-day forecast looks very warm, and the sunlight filtered through the porch screen should really make the little plants grow. I hope to plant out in about a month.

 

One last sure sign that spring is here is Louella's tree bursting into bloom. This is about two weeks past its absolute prime, and it's still so beautiful! These trees are always the first to bloom in our neighborhood, and I look forward to them every year.

More roses!

On Friday my two new bare root David Austin roses arrived! I didn't waste time; yesterday morning I did the recommended root ball immersion in buckets of water, and in the late afternoon I planted them on either side of the Eustacia Vye. That particular bed is finished now (aside from some possible future companion plants for the roses). It's on the south side of the screened porch, and the three rose varieties are Benjamin Britten, Eustacia Vye, and Desdemona. Considering that last year my Eustacia bloomed less than two months from planting out, and then bloomed again in the summer, I have high hopes of seeing all three flowers this year.

Almost Wordless Wednesday: Blooms and a Brat

Marla came over on Monday afternoon (she was off for President's Day) and we had snacks before watching trashy TV for a couple of hours. Look at bratty Marco going after some of our treats! *

Also on Monday afternoon, I took a picture of my blooming orchids. They're really showing off right now.

*The dogs didn't act much better
 

Two Valentines

It's February break for me, which means no work this week. I love these breaks that aren't tied to major holidays so there's no pressure to do anything except exactly what I want. Gregg and I don't make a big deal over Valentine's Day, but I did get us Chinese takeout that night and a small (made for two) strawberry cheesecake. 

Here's something sweet I wanted to share. On Friday the kids at our school made Valentines for teachers and staff members and the PTO sorted them and passed them out. I didn't expect to get any, because as the bookkeeper/secretary I'm not really  working with students very often, if ever. But much to my surprise, I got two! 

The first is from Anson, one of the four kids I made friends with early on who still come by the office first thing every morning to say hi and give me hugs. The second is from a little girl who waits in the office for the nurse to arrive every morning (she takes daily medication) and likes to hang out with me. I taught her to read an analog clock (something kids are not able to do these days as a rule, which is insane to me) so that's why she thanked me for "teaching her time". I was really touched to get these two little Valentines! 

Soup for supper

Sunday afternoon I made a pot of soup from scratch that turned out to be the best I've ever made, along with two loaves of homemade bread that also turned out exceptionally well. We've been eating big bowls of soup with torn pieces of crusty bread ever since. Delicious!

Italian Sausage and Lentil Soup