Batten Down The Hatches

Perhaps the termites in the planter will be washed away by gulley-washer of a storm that is forecast to blow through here for the next 48 hours. MonsterMustDie dug out the area around the lost plant and we have only seen one or two isolated termites since then - and we have not lost any more plants.

Meanwhile, the weather service predicts that the next two days will contain heavy two days will be filled with severe thunder storms  that will not be past us until Thursday. This will be a test on the present condition of the roof over my condo. I am more concerned about the condo than I am with the house we are in now. My main concern here is that we will be without electrical power again if some trees come down. We have an overgrown sweet olive that hangs over the lines coming into the house and always looks like it will yank the cables off the house. Most of the trees in the neighborhood are in good condition but there are several dead and ivy-festooned trees behind us on land owned by Dekalb County. We'll just have to wait and see what happens with that.

Today is also MonsterMustDie's birthday. I gave him a book and Criterion DVD from his wish list. We didn't make any plans to go out because it is a big work week for him. Looking out over his domain, he had the idea that he'd like to do another Summer Solstice party at the house that focuses on art rather than music. I intend to leave the preparations to him this time around just to keep from arguing about it. I'd love to have another creative gathering but I know we will clash horribly if I start trying to organize what I believe we would need to do it right and disturb his minimalist ideals. We'll see how things go. Gives me anxiety just thinking about it.

Termites + Garden.

John came home from work today and was inspecting and weeding his planter in the back yard while I watched through the kitchen window. He pulled something out of the box and started inspecting it carefully and knocking dirt off the bottom and looking more closely at it. I came outside to see what was going on. “What kind of bug is this?” he said, handing me the rootless stem “It looks like white ants.” I looked at the shape of the insect coming out of the hollow of the stem. “Termites” I said. There was no doubt in my mind from the unique shape of the creature. He doubted my prognosis, believing termites only eat dead wood. I pointed out that termites are colony insects and there will me many more where those came from if he looked. Then he dug into the soil and found plenty of termites underground.

I've never seen this before in a garden. Just weird if he did not place it over a tree trunk or roots from a fallen tree. Ants would be a lot easier to deal with because they usually leave plants alone, just going after the insects, like aphids, around them. You can usually work around ants. But termites? I think his garden is a goner this year.

I am wondering what, if anything, he can do to save the rest of his work in the planter? They do not seem to be in the wood of the frame as far as we can tell. Don't know where they came from unless they were somehow already the cabbage seedlings he bought.

Here comes the rain.

Roofs are important. They are not an area to be cheap on.

I hope my condo stays dry this time. The roof is leaking again after it was supposedly fixed and after hundreds of dollars were spent making repairs and painting the inside. The condo owners association continues to argue over the cost of a new roof - an argument that has gone on for decades.

When I first moved in year ago, all or most of my neighbors were convinced that, any day now, someone would make an incredible offer on the property and it would sell to make room for a high-rise. I'm sure that is why my father advised me to buy a condo rather than rent an apartment. He also warned me for years to NEVER sell my place without his approval or a go-ahead from my brother, both of them being CPAs and business men. That day never came but there are still too many investor owners who have no interest in the maintenance of the building or living there. Times like this, I would love to sell the place and free myself from constant battles like this one where I feel like no one listens to me or cares. I advise all of my friends to NEVER BUY A CONDOMINIUM. There are still some people who do, despite my advice, and every one of them has regretted their decision. When you mix residents with investors, there is a no-win situation. My hands are tied legally from doing anything with the outside maintenance and repairs on the building that I share with others.


On a more positive note, the garden will probably jump into action after a good rain. I have small tomato and pepper seedlings that I plan to pop into the ground after the storms this week have passed.

What I learned today

I had never heard of a "fat quarter" before today. It is a term used by people selling fabric that refers to a half yard of half the width of the fabric. It's a size used a lot by crafters and quilters but not much in actual sewing of garments or larger things. 

feeling overwhelmed

I feel like I am being stalked by Miguel Rosario at Colorado Technical University. He says I am enrolled in classes now but I have not even had transcripts sent to them or found any grants or loans to pay for furthering my education yet. I want to stop this dialog and maybe pick it up later, when I have things spread out in front of me that explain how I am supposed to afford this and how well this will enable me to find work afterwards. 

For all I know, I am also enrolled at Mercer and Westwood now. Maybe Full Sail and University of Phoenix as well. 

I made the mistake of saying I was interested in going back to college and, although I would strongly prefer an on-campus experience, I was open to online schools. 

More than anything, I just want a job and every employer seems to require a current (new) Bachelors or Masters degree - in a "related" field (which mostly appears to be programing or IT).
Every online University wants me to have started classes today or some time this week or month. Mr. Rosario is demanding to know why I have not logged into the College and started my classes. This makes me want to run away screaming from the entire idea of talking to anyone about college classes anywhere. I made $16000 last year and the cheapest degree program is $50000.00+ but everyone's like "No problem. Just start this degree program and we'll sort it out later.