You know the jingle
"maybe it's Maybelline"?
That's what we sing around here, but we change the words..
"maybe it's menopause!"
I just sang it a few minutes ago in the kitchen.
It's the 1st of July.
Weather.com predicting a high of 82 degrees today, with humidity in the 3,498% range, and I'm up in the kitchen making vegetable beef soup.
I'm sure Glenco and Aaron can't wait to get their mouth up on a bowl of hot, hearty beef vegetable soup on a steamy July day such as today.
Maybe I'll bake a pumpkin pie.
What would possess me to make a pot of this today?
Perhaps it's that my veggie drawer in the fridge is starting to resemble a morgue.
I'm going to call Glenco to the fridge soon to see if he can identify some of the contents.
I'll cover the veggies with a paper towel and somberly pull it back as Glenco looks on in horror.
'Yes! I recognize that leek! The last time I saw it was at the Piggly Wiggly -
that had to be over a week ago'.
It's time to make some soup, y'all!
Last night I made this for dinner, and it was a hit.
Recipe HERE
The only problem was that Aaron ate all the bacon up on me.
I was perplexed, as I'd cooked it before I left for the day, only to find it mysteriously missing when it was time to assemble the salad.
Aaron was also mysteriously missing.
See?
He knows better.
I could have flown into a rage when I noticed the bacon missing!
Or started crying.
Maybe it's menopause!
(seriously - I never fly into rages, I really don't.)
As delicious as the salad was without the bacon, I can only imagine (and trust me I did) how great it would be with that divine salty crunch.
In other news, we had some pretty hardcore storms hit the area last night.
I lost a potted plant.
I shall rebuild.
In other other news - I found out that I have a torn meniscus in my right knee, and some bone on bone action there as well. Couple this with the tendinitis that is still in my right shoulder and forearm - I'm a hot mess.
I could barely raise my right arm today.
As I stand out in the garden with my fork...I feel like I'm standing at the ocean with a Dixie cup.
You just have to laugh, you know?
I do promise to post some pictures of the carnage that is my yard.
I cannot tell you the grieving process I've been in over it.
Literally - all the steps.
I in no way mean to make light of the loss some people have experienced, but loss - is loss.
Yes, the loss of my garden doesn't compare to the loss of other things - but I do believe that we need to even grieve and process the small losses in our lives.
Shock: How did my garden become such a hot mess?
Denial: Wait, I can do this. Sleep is overrated. We don't really have to do anything else this summer other than yard work, do we? Order a pizza and let's get busy!
Anger: Why won't anyone help me? Don't they like yardwork? Who planted all these stupid plants!? Why do things keep growing!? I want to move to a retirement community.
Bargaining: OK, OK - I can do this. I should just make it a LITTLE bit smaller - I mean come on - look at all the time you've invested in this. It's so lovely! Everyone will miss your gardens. Maybe you could just mass plant - yes - mass plant - that would be easier than the cottage garden.
Depression: All is lost. I have no life. Who am I without gardening? No one will ever like me again. Why would anyone want to come here? I'm such an idiot! I've created a monster! I'm old! I'm crippled! I can't do this anymore! I don't want to do this anymore! Is there really life outside the trowel? I'm going to move to Florida and take up Zumba and macrame.
Testing: This is where I am now. Making peace with simple. Making peace with a little well done.
Acceptance: Stay tuned. : -)
As always - I encourage you all to love your family hard today, live a little slower today, and be grateful for.every.little.thing.
Like hot soup in July.
Til soon.
xo
