Gnomes and whiskey barrels

My youngest sister’s birthday is May 4 and I asked her what she wanted. She wanted some rubberized garden shoes. She told me Target had them. YAY! They had shoes (kind of like Porky’s pink shoes, only cloggier) in blue, orange and yellow. I choose the orange and also got her a good pair of garden gloves in an orange stripe. Cute!

Guess what else they had?? That’s right—garden gnomes!!! Yippeeeeeee. Cast Iron. Heavy. Adorable. One holding a shovel and one holding a flower pot, so I got them both. (stfu, jhd)

Last week BP and I went to Rural King (kind of a white trash Lowe’s/ Menard’s combo.) He was looking at tools (what else?) and I spied half whiskey barrels. The real deal. Not the phoney baloney faux whiskey barrels like Wally World sells. Big 40 pound whiskey barrels. Regular priced $15.99, now only $12.99. I sweet-talked BP into coming back with his truck to buy some for me.

BP: How many do you want?
Me: Just one.
Me: No two.
Me: Oh, get three.


So he did and they’re still in the back of his truck until the painters are finished with the porch and windows. They smell like whiskey. When I figure out where they’re going in the yard, I’m going to fill the bottoms with empty soda cans, packing peanuts, etc and just the top half with potting mix. Two barrels will get a gnome! I want to fill one with different varieties of coleus, one with herbs (thymes, rosemaries, basils—not Meme’s doggie, and Italian flat leaf parsley) and one with annuals like snapdragons and dahlias. But maybe I’ll change my mind when I go to the nurseries. But that’s the plan right now. I might even do heirloom tomatoes in one.

Backyard Tree & Dead Lawn

This is a tree in our backyard. I used to know what the name was--it's an ornamental Chinese something or other. My now deceased neighbor lady hated the way the blossoms smelled, but they have no odor to me. I think they're pretty. The dead patch in the lawn is from two bags of mulch I laid there in the autumn and forgot about. I moved them so the grass will soon spread.

DreamyUK sent these funnies to me!

Easter Dinner

We’re going to my oldest sister’s house for Easter. I think most everyone will be there. This year I’m the some-sort-of-salad, and dessert person. I think I’ll make a chocolate cake, but I’m not sure what kind of salad I’ll bring—probably either a Greek salad with lots of kalamata olives and feta, or an orzo pasta salad with tomatoes and a lemony dressing.
Are you bringing anything interesting to your Easter dinner?

How I maintain my 500 pound girth

Dove ice cream bars are delicious

Act now!

Powerball drawing for Wednesday is $220 million dollars. Shelfers in good Emmerica standing may email me a number between one and fifty-five. I’ll buy the ticket(s). If I win the jackpot on the Shelfer ticket, the people participating will split two million dollars. I’ll email you with the numbers once the ticket is purchased. You must email me a number no later than 5 pm on Tuesday April 11th.
Good luck.

Great Battery

Our backporch smoke detector just started beeping Friday, April 7. I had forgotten we even had one back there. BP changed the battery in it. He brought the old battery to me to look at. "Guess when the last time the battery was changed," he asked. I didn't know. I told him that I had forgotten we even had a smoke detector by the back door.

He always writes the date he puts the battery in on the battery itself.The old battery's date was MAY 28, 2001!!!!FIVE FREAKING YEARS that battery lasted! It was an Energizer E Titanium. I know it's not suggested that a battery is kept in a smoke detector for FIVE years, but isn't it great that it lasted so long???


I suggest blu and Porky use this type of battery in their Turbo Rabbits.