Doing Kirkwood

For our monthly “dinner date”, Avdi took me to Kirkwood, an old gentrified town full of eateries, pubs, and boutiquey shops at a busy railroad crossing.  We watched trains go by–there’s an old but still in use station there–as we ate and drank our way down Kirkwood Road.  We had an assortment of excellent tacos and margs at Mission Taco, then craft brews at 4 Hands tasting room and patio, where we sat outside at sunset along the busy tracks and talked.  Then we checked out Andy’s for authentic frozen custard–my first, and really good.  Finally, we watched a freight train and Amtrak pass each other at a crossing.  It’s like a train lover’s paradise there.  It was a beautiful evening.

 

Germinatrix Not Geriatrix

I am living the good life here—Avdi feeds me sumptuous steaks and gave me a fancy homemade soap!  Such decadence.  (I should mention the kids, including the new girl, got fed steaks as well.  We’re egalitarian here, not élite snobs.)

My recent sowings (plus the obligatory weeds) are germinating already, so hopefully we’ll get more food going into fall, or winter, or whatever the hell they have here!

 

Apocalyptic Pastimes

On Labor Day, I agreed to watch S while everyone else went to the MOBOT Japanese Festival, but typically, at the last minute, S decided to go, and Y decided to stay home!  So Y and I got to spend some good time together talking and hanging out.  They often express serious concern about how humans are destroying the environment, and suggest we just go all the way and destroy ourselves so the earth has a chance to recover.  I sense this is one of many existential issues a lot of young kids are preoccupied with now.  I can’t say I disagree.  It’s just sad we’ve passed this apocalyptic vision down to them.

In the garden, I’ve now cultivated and reseeded every available space between ongoing crops, so the garden will hopefully continue to produce cool-weather veggies through fall, whenever that is.  The weather has been a little more conducive lately.  The tiny cantaloupe is the one that made it.  Watermelons did slightly better, but not by much.  Squashes and pumpkins simply disappeared.  Rumors about my “green thumb” have been greatly exaggerated.

It seems the kids have a little crew now that regularly plays in the house and yard, or rides bikes together.  A new girl joined the group, so it’s four.  Avdi and I sat drinking Palomas (by me) as he worked, enjoying the sound of kids happily trampolining and playing outside.  Avdi’s has become a sort of welcoming safe house for kids and grownups alike.  Not exactly the infanticidal “childless elite” of JD Vance!

 

 

 

 

September Sauna in STL

I seem to be having a “day off”?!  The others went to Paint Louis (graffiti and music fest), which I did last year, see my FB cover photo.  (The car was too full this year, so Avdi dropped me home.)  I think I’ll have my own “Slainte” Louis ahahahaha…

I slept over last night, and actually slept and had at least one good dream, very unusual.  E was as usual baking up a pâtisserie of cookies, banana chocolate chip bread, and even pretzels!

I get to eat some of my free charitable food handouts at home!  And drink my not-so-free booze (hence,”sláinte”)!  Lately I mostly seem to eat and drink Avdi’s.  And hopefully mostly earn it.

Look at this gorgeous eastern black swallowtail cat on the dill!  And all the other colors of life going strong in the grueling sauna.  Apparently September is totally part of summer in MO.

 

 

 

Two Years Ago Today

Two years ago, on the cusp of summer and fall, I moved to MO.  It feels longer.  So much has happened between 2022 and ’24.  To summarize: I finally got where I needed to be, in every way that counts.  The rest is just details.

I got to see the deranged blowup hitler clown get punctured and start to deflate!  Prez Biden’s bowing out and passing the torch to Harris/Walz at the exact moment needed was his greatest heroic act as a leader/servant.  I’m thankful I got to live to see this moment.

Missourians rose up in outrage at Repugs’ criminal human rights violations and fought back.  Reproductive and other rights are back on the table.  Progressive Black and Queer/ally dems are on the ticket up and down the ballot.  There may be hope for this state after all.

The Queer/Black communities here in STL city and county are strong, visible, and actively working to make this a more inclusive, egalitarian environment, especially for children coming up.  So much so, that sometimes I forget there’s a whole hostile red state surrounding us, and people who still don’t get it.  I feel privileged to live in a place that reflects the diversity that will one day predominate.

I’m happy to live in a lower income apartment where I’m in the minority.  Just across the metaphorical tracks, there are at least some people of color, and every other house has BLM/LGBTQ+/dem signs and flags.  The revolving door of friends at Avdi’s reflects this welcoming community atmosphere.  It’s like an oasis, but with real life issues being dealt with.

Most of all, I’m thankful to live near my son and gkids and get to see them evolve and grow, even with all the complex issues and growing pains.  It’s always a dynamic, never static, state of affairs, where I’m constantly challenged to adapt and keep up.  Sometimes I find myself in long conversations with one of the kids, that I didn’t see coming, and it’s like a revelation.  I learn something new every day.  I try not to be part of Avdi’s overload of responsibility, but part of the solution.

I’m dragging more these days, exhausted before I even begin, always feeling inadequate.  But underneath it all, knowing I’m where I need to be keeps me going and growing.

 

 

Plowing Through

This latest heat wave (at one point the heat index may have been 112!) just keeps extending, so I just keep plowing through it.  Or hoeing, would be more accurate.  I planted another section of veg garden with more greens, or I should say reds–red mustard, red cabbage, and red/rainbow beets.  It should be very colorful, if nothing else.  I relocate cardboard (for keeping weeds down) as I go.  In general, my goal is to clean up and improve Avdi’s surroundings, one area at a time, as long as I can keep going.

Sometimes as I’m working, hummingbirds come right up to me and hover, looking at me for a long moment.  Those are the moments that make it all worthwhile, watching wildlife like chipmunks, goldfinches, and many other bird and butterfly species being drawn to the food and shelter provisions in the landscape, and feeling at home.  Not to mention humans!

 

 

Essential Survival Skills

Here’s my new trick–I can actually sleep at Avdi’s now.  Tuesday I not only took a long nap there (!?) but then slept through the night (once I finally got to sleep).  Then I go home and sleep some more!  But I make myself get up and keep living.  Coffee is my latest favorite drink.

Avdi and friend  got to go to a Cards baseball game!  They lost to the SD Padres, but the humongous hot dogs (piled with glop, STL-style, naturally) and local craft beers were memorable.  They have a whole ballpark village filled with international foods, drinks, and concessions.  If the Orioles come to town, it will be my turn!

Meanwhile, between sleeps, I got more gardening projects done or started.  I planted more salad and greens, created a little flower and herb garden for S, cleaned up E and Y’s small flower plots, reseeded E’s with shade herbs, planted more cilantro in the herb garden, and harvested okra and tomatoes.  I’m working on clearing an area by the perennial veggies (asparagus, horseradish, prickly pear) to eventually be a permanent strawberry bed.

S’s friend J has been coming by regularly after school, and is becoming part of our revolving extended family.  Even when S is out or ignoring him, he likes to get involved and be helpful.  Our resident chef E showed him how to help make brownies (which were delectable, as always).

Of course I continue to do a lot of housework and little projects behind the scenes.  I’m still not as proficient as Avdi would like at certain tasks, but often E can step in and take over.  I am getting better at mixology!  An essential survival skill.

 

Refried Genes

Yesterday was too hot for me to do much outside, while Avdi, E, and even Y found it a perfect time to work out in the hot garage.  It got me to thinking, as climate change heats up the world and makes weather extremes more common, only the young and stronger humans who have been born into it or learn to adapt will survive.  Those of us who can’t hack it will die out.  Eventually, even the fittest won’t make it, if the wrong politicians (i.e. trump and co.) have their way.

As it is, it would take extreme measures, applied yesterday, to even slow down climate change at this point.  Most of us know this theoretically, but just step outside and look around at the world, and it’s literally at our doorsteps.  In some cases, submerging entire homes and coastlines.  (Remind me again why people still stupidly retire to Florida?  Natural selection?)

Anyway, that’s my unoriginal thought of the day.

 

 

False Fall

It got really hot again, but it can’t fool me, or keep me down.  I’m on to you, MO.

I stayed over Sat. night through Sunday, so Avdi could go out.  Once I finally did get to sleep, I actually mostly stayed asleep, which is unusual.  Probably due to feeling more at home there.  I’m learning how to chill out and be a fixture, at last.  I can even ignore S and his mishegoss, for the most part.  E is very skilled at diffusing potential volatile situations.

In garden news, I sowed a row of “salad”, did more cleanup, and harvested tomatoes.  I’ll just keep working my way down the garden, doing same, until it’s a whole new fall/winter garden.  The actual goal is to use up all the old seeds from yesteryears, and start over fresh.  Kind of like one of my metaphors.

I even overcame some of my mechanical phobia, and did much-overdue fixit stuff in the downstairs bathroom.  Maybe some jerry-rigging was involved.  But once again we have a functional TP holder, towel rack, and wall hooks.  Also, the toilet seat no longer tries to fall off.  Skibidi.  I feel so useful.

In case you think I’m just a boring, uninformed old grandma, I’m back to following the latest political news and commentary, since there now seems to be some hope for us again.  I never get complacent, but it’s energizing to not feel despair every day.  Instead of a deranged psycho fascist, we may have a chance at intelligent, sentient beings serving us actual people, and restoring some justice and human rights.  Harris/Walz!

Now back to boring grandma stuff.

 

 

Merry Erev

You’ll have to trust me on my Shabbat meal turning out nicely, because I was so out of it, I forgot to take photos!  I made a beautiful fresh fruit salad, herbed roasted potatoes, peppers, and onions that all came from the garden, and steaks (that didn’t).  Of course the challah was the favorite, as usual.  S’s friend J joined us for dinner, and enthusiastically enjoyed it.  It was quite a merry gathering.