And now back to our regular boring program.

I got off to a late start, what with being schnockered and all!  Plus it was really hot and humid, not very motivating.  Still, flowers never stop for a hangover.  Neither do some slow germinators that finally got their act together, like the squashes, melons, and okra.  The peas are blooming like crazy.  Even the eggplant is starting to bloom.  Still no sign of beans or sunflowers, though the corn mostly came up.  I guess one of the three sisters took a year off, or something.

Today I brought the last holdouts from the lab to outside, and officially shut it down for the season!  That calls for a –no, never mind!

Here are flowers and stuff.  Oh wait, one’s a ‘shroom.

Read on at your own risk.  I didn’t reveal the location, or, if I did, I’ll have to kill you.  You’ve been warned.

Avdi and I actually finally got to go on our “Mom date”, and it was worth waiting for.

First we checked out Mac’s Local Eats, a beer and burger joint, which was excellent.  We ended up talking to Mac, the owner, who told us about meeting Anthony Bourdain while shooting episodes of his show, only a month or so before AB left this world.  That story alone was worth the visit.

Next Avdi showed me The City Foundry, a reinvention of the historic district, with outdoor and indoor upscale eateries of all kinds.  Just the architecture alone is fascinating, but we weren’t there to eat.  Have I said too much?

Somewhere tucked inconspicuously between other watering holes is a plain door with a red light.  You wander down through a spooky cavelike corridor that ends up at a scary metal vault door.  Someone’s head pops out of a panel and checks you out first.  Then they let you into a classy dark speakeasy with all the trappings!  If you want a drink other than the house handcrafted cocktails and classics, the bartender will make one to order, which I did.  Our drinks were excellent and unique.

If our date (or my life, or my drinking) had ended there, I’d die happy, but we eventually finished out the evening at The Handlebar in the Grove, up on the breezy roof under a cloudy sky.  I couldn’t even finish that drink, being way over my limit, but like I said, worth it.  It’s always a learning adventure.

The peas are finally blooming, and I harvested some radishes.  I cleared out and weeded several areas, and made a space for Y’s veg plants.  I brought all the houseplants outside.  Avdi and E and I re-covered the pool with yet another new cover.  The fate of the pool is up in the air.  More trouble than it’s worth.

Joyce stopped by in the evening while her kid was at an activity nearby.  Since they had to move, we rarely get to see them, so it was good to spend even a short drop-in.

Which is kind of how I feel about this Blahg lately: I rarely have the time to spend writing much except a garden summary every couple of days, I’m so busy gardening etc. at Avdi’s, which is fine, but I make the time, however limited.  If nothing else, it helps me keep track of the swirl of life events.

The veg garden is officially “done”.  Ahaha.  I planted the last of the seedlings, eggplants, in the last remaining space, with a path around the whole garden.  Y tried it out and approved.

Then I collected remaining miscellaneous seedlings, plus Y’s veg seeds, and planted them in little pots in a flat, so he can have his own potted veg garden.

I also brought out the dormant elephant ear bulbs and planted them in the big shade garden, just to be different.

Then I tried out another new beer (for mother’s day) and surveyed “my” domain.

Avdi asked me what I’d like to do for M-day, and basically it was all the above.  Stay home with the Fam and avoid the crazies.

Then I took a nap downstairs.  (That’s after having actually slept through the night using Avdi’s vacant bed, sooo relaxing.)  Then I slept in this morning in my own bed, cheerily dreaming of being prisoners in a sort of internment camp, where they kill you for talking.  Hmm.

If success is measured by old and new friends all chilling with drinks, kids playing badminton and enjoying themselves, and most of all, Avdi getting to relax for a change, then this one was a major success.  So much so, that he’s decided to preschedule the next couple of B&Bs, so everyone can plan ahead.  I myself really enjoyed seeing Avdi get to depressurize.  Also, the beer (and non-beer) selection was excellent.

Today I prepped for erev: baked challah, made dinner : sweet bbq chicken, scalloped potatoes, and the first salad from the garden.  I helped clean up the patio for our first b&b tomorrow.  Avdi mostly worked outside, which I was glad to see.

Just to be different, it rained (!) during my morning “commute”, so while I waited, I actually got stuff done at home.

At Avdi’s, I continued to clean up the patio in prep for the B&B on Saturday.  There wasn’t a whole lot of gardening for me to do, just waiting for seeds to germinate.

However, Y came up with a use for me!  Not so much a job as a well-intentioned but ill-advised/timed project.  They/he (going by “he” now) wanted to build a small greenhouse right behind the veg garden (?!), despite both A and I having misgivings.  I suppose Y belatedly wanted in on the action.

We weren’t exactly “Bob the Builder”, having little-to-no clue how to use which tools for what!  We eventually got a “floor” down, a “frame” up, and were trying out the actual greenhouse plastic cover Y had obtained, when A came along and put a hold on the whole misguided affair.  Y was pissed, but I was secretly relieved.  The things we do to humor Gkids!

Here are some more (surprise) irises.

Peppers are now planted, leaving just room enough left for the eggplants I brought out to harden off.  Accordingly, I was able to expand and organize the pantry staples downstairs.  Now I just have one last small section of misc. flower/herb seedlings and prop experiments left.  My plant mothering/fussing will mostly shift to outdoors by mother’s day.  Nobody needs to buy me flowers!  Iris heaven is on earth.

We’re to that point in the planting season where most of the seedlings are planted or hardening off, freeing up the prop lab space for food staples to invade once again.  We’re also planning the first B&B of the season!

Yesterday I brought out the pepper seedlings to harden off.  I hoed and raked the final outer side of the veg garden, and direct-sowed okra in one half, and planted the cherry tomato seedlings in the front half.  Next I direct-sowed two kinds of zucchini in the middle of the veg garden.  That leaves just enough room for peppers and eggplant, and the veg garden will be “done”.

That left some prop lab space available for the food staples to encroach, which they did.  I was able to start reorganizing it.  Which is a good thing, because I finally sorted through all my own staples at home, and have several boxes-worth to share or give away!

Back at home, I lit a yahrzeit memorial candle for my mother, and ate the entire pizza I bought from E for his fundraiser.

Look at these magnificent irises!  I can’t get enough of them.

I’m tired in a good way.  Friday I made challah, baked a lemon poppy seed cake with raspberry filling and icing, topped with raspberries, for E’s birthday, and made a great chicken vegetable stir-fry, including the first greens from the garden, with rice.  Stacey joined us.  Everyone seemed happy.

Saturday we all spent the day preparing for E’s big party.  I did the initial mowing around the edges of the yard and saplings.  Then of course it poured and flooded the yard.  E’s party of peers only was quite a bash.  Stacey and I hung out in the basement, where K’s friend C , and briefly Y, joined us (the introverts’ party).  Stacey and I did some edibles and got really euphoric.  We all talked all evening, until she had to go to sleep; then C and I adjourned to the office and continued talking.  I got quite high.

Today, I walked over earlier than usual and helped clean up.  Then we all said goodbye to Stacey.  The yard was still a swamp, but I was able to go ahead and mow the whole front and most of the back (K was out with A).  It was turning into a hay field.  Then I got a lot done in the garden.  I weeded, hoed, and I planted a lot of tomato seedlings.  Then I stayed for the charcuterie meeting.