Moonbeam Grape Tomato SKU: 3026-A Size 1/10 GRAM

Pacific Beauty Calendula SKU: 7021-A Size 1/32 OZ

Matt’s Wild Cherry Tomato SKU: 2970-A Size 1/10 GRAM

Dwarf Jewel Blend Nasturtium SKU: 7160-A Size 1/8 OZ

California Orange Poppy SKU: 7094-A Backordered – ships by 03/06/2024 Size 1/64 OZ

Bush Delicata Squash SKU: 2951-A Size 1/8 OZ

Mardi Gras Blend Bean SKU: 2150-A Size 1 OZ

Napoli F1 Carrot SKU: 2322-A Size 250 SEEDS

Cosmic Purple Carrot SKU: 2335-A Size 1/32 OZ

Truchas Lettuce – Pelleted SKU: 2626P-A Size 100 SEEDS

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce SKU: 2550-A Size 1/32 OZ

Olly F1 Sweet Pepper SKU: 2802-A Size 10 SEEDS

Racer F1 Pumpkin SKU: 7253-A Size 10 SEEDS

Sora Radish SKU: 2855-A Size 100 SEEDS

Green Machine F1 Summer Squash SKU: 2890-A Size 10 SEEDS

Supersonic F1 Summer Squash SKU: 2893-A Size 10 SEEDS

The book I’m reading has a picture with a beautiful bouquet of tulips on the table, and so do I!

I treated myself to some new markers yesterday. I’ve got more gradations now.

Last post to this blog before Xmas. Had a good week off to myself before necessary travel begins today, so I’m good.

annotated edition

This was a re-re-read. I re-read it only three years ago. I went to look up my review of 2020 and was floored by tables describing my Covid-related inactivity and case statistics. It does not feel real.

Anyway, my observations this go-round included amazement that Catherine quickly saw through the artifice of Isabella’s letter towards the end of the book, after Captain Tilney had amounted to nothing and Isabella thought she might have a chance at patching things up with Catherine’s brother. She (Catherine) was such a dupe of Isabella through the entire book, in scenes where she (Isabella) was so much more transparent. It seemed odd that she so suddenly wised up.

I won an award. I won two awards.

“Chris, thank you for being an amazing technical lead. You have mentored all the new team members and keep the older ones in line. … Your leadership and knowledge have helped this team grow immensely. Lourdes and I are very much thankful for your contributions, leadership, and forward leaning thinking!”

and a small one, arguably more meaningful, as it was from a peer:

“Thank you for ALL your support and guidance. Really appreciate it !!!”

It is one (two) of those awards I get to shop for. I am feeling jewelry again this time.

First blooms on my Xmas cactus noticed the day after Tgiving. Good job Xmas cactus! Way to start the holiday season right on time and NOT too soon!

Dwight Garner quoting George Orwell, with three important rules for tea. “I maintain that one strong cup of tea is better than twenty weak ones.” “The water should be actually boiling at the moment of impact.” “Try drinking tea without sugar for, say, a fortnight and it is very unlikely that you will ever want to ruin your tea by sweetening it again.”

‘Twere I to try to live my life over again in a different way, my current life would seep in anyway, until I found myself at the very same spot in which I find myself now.

My life travels downhill like a river finding the easiest course.

On either side are all the infinite alternative paths it did not take.

There are infinitely many better and infinitely many worse.

This one is right down the middle.

From Oliver Burkeman today: “Thus a person encounters, say, a book of practices derived from Stoicism, and rather than thinking “How useful, some Stoic techniques to add to my collection!”, instead concludes: “I’ll become a Stoic, which will fix all the ways I feel problematic, and then life will be plain sailing!””

Yes, yes, yes!

“We do this, I suppose, for the same reason people join cults or embrace rigid political ideologies: because it’s more scary to acknowledge the reality…”

No, we do it because we think there’s supposed to be a magic bullet. That everyone ELSE has a magic bullet; we’re the only ones futzing around.

As part of occasional tidying and cataloguing that I do – moreso as summer becomes a distant memory – I cleaned up and reorganized my bulletin board last month. I can better enjoy my colorful collection of sheep & goat cards.