Never Ending Leaves

G rakes them up.  H drives them over here in his truck.  I spread them everywhere there is bare dirt.  And still the pile seems as high as it was before I started.  The nice part is that the leaf pile has just enough grass clippings mixed in and is still heating up.  Composting.  And the BEST stuff on Earth is leaf mold.  We even cleaned out my old set of compost bins and I started layering my kitchen debris with leaves there.  Easier than trying to get all the way to the back of the vegetable garden in the winter.

I have been struggling to get ahead of the weeds in my perennial and shrub beds for the past five years (since I started working full time) and this fall I am making a big effort to remove the weedy top five inches from one large bed and plant a few new shrubs and roses and then top the open soil with chopped leaf mulch.  I was pleased to uncover a large number of worms in this soil, which was the location of my first vegetable garden 20 years ago.  It was also where I tried to grow a large number of hybrid tea roses. Tried. Failed.  I did add a home made mixture (from Martha Stewart) of additives to the soil for those roses.  It seems to have made a significant difference to the soil over the years.

Finally, (finally), made an actual dinner last night.  Roast turkey breast, baked sweet potatoes, steamed green beans and a small portion of stuffing for G.  It was SO DELICIOUS.  We were so hungry for a real meal.  G has taken his last pill and feels much better.  Has color in his face.  His voice is still thready but getting stronger.  He returned to work yesterday and it was okay.  Counting down the days until he retires on December 23rd.  I signed us up for a Medicare seminar on November 1st. Hard to believe we are old enough for this.  I don't feel ready to retire.  I don't feel ready to be old.

My last class (at work) for 2012 went well.  I had a larger than expected turn out.  We are all decorated for Christmas at work and are just about ready to start making the Holiday Greens Boxes.  The mum population is declining and the count down to the Winter Open House is starting. Poinsettias.

 I have to REALLY switch from a cold yogurt lunch to a hot soup lunch.  I have my recipe for lentil soup right here by the computer.  I purchased a bag of lentils yesterday.  It's low fat and low calorie but not low carb which is why it fills you up.  I spent far too much time trying to find something to wear this morning--38 degrees at 8 am.  It takes a while to completely transition from warm weather work clothing to cold weather work clothing.  Some of the guys at work change into shorts before lunch.  I just take off my jacket, then my sweatshirt, roll up the sleeves on my thermal undershirt etc.  Then reverse as the afternoon gets chilly.

Getting my haircut this morning before work.  Riley wants to get going.  He missed day care last week because G was home on vacation and he wants to get back into his doggie routine.  Under my feet grumbling.  Still have to pack his lunch and put coffee in my thermos.