Samain and the Summer’s End Moon

Sunday gratefuls: The Trail. Ancientrails. The Abyss Trail. Burning Bear Creek Trail. The Kalalau Trail. The trail into the Haleakala Caldera. The trail in Waimea Canyon State Park where I almost died. The trail along the Rum River where I used to exercise. The trail in the Woods behind the Andover Library where I snowshoed. The trails in Turkey Creek State Park where I ran out my grief. Upper Maxwell Creek and Lower Maxwell Creek trails.

Sparks of Joy and Awe: Shrimp Broil

Life Kavannah: Wu Wei

Week Kavannah:  Chesed.  Loving Kindness.  “Kindness is the language the deaf can hear and the blind see.”  Mark Twain

Tarot: Being a metaPhysician

One brief shining: Picked up my new garden shears, an old favorite style from the Andover days, released their spring, and started cutting the thick stalks of now withered Tomato Plants after I severed the twine holding them up; a few frozen Roma and Cherry Tomatoes, most red but a few green still clung to their branches, snip, snip, snip, snip then with gloves on I began to pull, the interlaced Branches making the task of removing all of them easier, a few Tomatoes fell off, but I piled up the Plants outside, went back inside and picked them up, one smashed by my foot, its Seeds spilled on the greenhouse floor, tossed them on the pile and Artemis’ first year had ended. Almost.

Artemis: Go now, the growing season has ended. Not quite though. Nantes Carrots still grow in the east facing raised bed. Probably should say they were still growing yesterday. 17 degrees right now. That might end them though Carrots can survive a lot of chill, becoming sweeter as they do. They are the last with the exception of that Russian Garlic I planted over a week ago in the west facing bed.

May plant Lettuce, Arugula, Kale, and Chard where the Tomatoes grew. Need for Nathan to install the insulation panels before that makes sense. Also need to procure a better heater, probably propane.

Even with good temperature control it’s possible winter crops will be hard to grow given the weaker light of Great Sol. Learning. I love having all these problems to solve, things I understand. A real hobby.

Which reminds me of my painting I’ve not gotten back to. And cooking. Which I also enjoy. I’m hopeful that the nerve ablations, when they happen (still unscheduled), will free up some energy, some stamina for both of them.

Stamina becomes an issue because pain in my lower back does not take long to wear me out. I had ten Garlic Cloves to plant, for example. After digging their holes, putting in the fertilizer, placing the Clove, and covering each one with Soil, then more potting Soil, I had to stop at six, come in and rest my back before I could finish. Same with removing the Tomato Plants. Took two sessions.

Working with Plants, with Soil, with the raised beds, the greenhouse, painting, and cooking all require standing. Which taxes me. A lot.