Summer visit almost over....

So, today I realize Tammy will be coming in 8 days.  That's great!  I'm looking forward to seeing her and Ricky.  But, that also means that Ariel will only have 2 more weeks with us.  Bummer....

We haven't done as many outdoor activities as we did last year.  We went floating once with Gena, Karna, Beth, Rhonda and April.  That was fun!

Ariel has really been focusing on weaving this summer.  She's woven 2 dishtowels on Gena's loom and 1 on our table loom.  She's also warped our little inkle loom, and now she's weaving on the backstrap loom I got her as a little present.  She's loving it!

She's also learned a lot about baking and cooking this summer.  She really like baking cobbler and pot pie.  I admit, I like those too!  Yummy!

July is getting hot

The heat is building up.  The air conditioner is running full time now.  Yesterday it was 91.  Today it only got up to 88, because we had a thunderstorm and that lowered the temperature. 

I've been working on the garden, to get all those darn weeds pulled.  I want to be able to see what's growing.  We had so much rain we couldn't get out there and work.  Now, I'm pulling grass after it rains.  It's the only time it's cool enough.  And the ground is softer and the grass will come up.

I got all the vining plants cleaned up (squash, melons, zucchini), I'll get the tomatoes cleared up tomorrow.  We have melons blooming and a few fruits growing.  There are squash blooming too.  The tomatoes are putting on flowers.  The cucumbers are doing very well.  Josh has been bringing 2 - 5 in each morning.

Ariel and I have been doing a lot of baking.  Yesterday we made Red Velvet Cherry Whoopie pies.  Yummy!  I made a nice pork and rice casserole.  Today Ariel made beef pot pie for lunch.  That was yummy too.

Life can be confusing.... a RANT about technology.

This morning, I checked my blog and discovered the links to all my photographs were not working.  I spent about 2 hours trying to figure out why.  No luck.

Because I got frustrated... I went and ate lunch (pork chops and cheesy potatoes).  Then I had a piece of nutella no-bake cheesecake.  Yummy.

I decided to see if my Google+ account was also messed up...  Well, no.  Not really.  But every picture that was posted in my blog was suddenly there, waiting to be shared.  Crap!  I didn't want to have all those things posted on my Google+ account.  Why does Google insist on sharing everything.  Why are my blog photo's automatically required to be posted on my Google+?  I don't USE my Google+.  I only have the darn thing because it's integrated with my Andriod tablet and phone.

Automation is NOT my friend!  I will post something when I want it shared.  I don't want darn Google deciding for me.  What a hassle! 

I HATE autocorrect when I'm typing!  I don't WANT to talk TO my darn phone! I don't WANT my location to be shared with the world! 

I guess I must be getting cranky in my old age.  Sure, I have a few apps on my phone.  The app Out of Milk is very handy for me.  Having new pictures on my phone downloading to my tablet is handy...  Dropbox is cool, because I can share the files I choose with several friends at the same time.

But, my phone is a PHONE!  It's not my extra brain.  I don't want the darn thing beeping at me all the time.  I don't want it automatically notifying me I had a Facebook "like"...  Hell, I didn't even KNOW that was why it was making all the distracting noise until my son told me.  The nice gentleman at AT&T linked all those things together "for" me when he was initializing my phone.  I know he was trying to help, but that wasn't what I WANT.  I want my phone to make a sound when someone is calling or texting me.  Period.  Nothing else...  well, maybe having it make a GODAWFUL racket when we're under a tornado watch would be nice...  but cripes!

WHY do I need my phone to tell me someone "liked" my picture?  I'll find out when I go on Facebook.  There's NOTHING in my life that needs someone else's "like" to demand my immediate attention.  Are the woods on fire??!!  OK.  That I need to know.  That my cousin in PA found my picture of a chicken amusing??!!  No.  I can find that out when I'm ready.

I don't WANT my phone to check me email for me.  Or tell me when I'm near a restaurant.  When there is a HOTSPOT... Is the HOTSPOT the result of a volcano?  OK, that I WOULD like to know!  Do I care that I could be browsing while we're driving down the road?  NO!  I DON'T! 

Back to my blog photos.  I finally got them to show up AFTER I gave in, and shared a few photos on my Google+ page.  Wizz!  Bang!!  Finally, all my blog photos were back.  What the HELL!!!  Why??!!  What damn difference does it make??!!  If I'd wanted my darn pictures shared on Google+, wouldn't I have done so?  Why do I have to relent and share all this?  WHY, WHY WHY!!!  Cripes.  Doesn't Google already know enough about me without demanding I share my pictures?

I live in rural Arkansas, in the woods, on a gravel driveway ON PURPOSE!  I don't WANT to share every facet of my life with the 'PUBLIC'.  If I did, I'd live in a glass house IN A CITY!  I want my privacy.  I want to share what I'm comfortable with, to the people I WANT to share with.  I don't want some company (or a *&^%$#$%^&* piece of technology) deciding for me.

I would classify myself as a Libertarian.  I want my FREEDOM OF SPEECH, my right to LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.  My right to bear arms (or bare arms for that matter)!  My freedom from unreasonable search and seizure.  I think our Government should follow the Constitution.  Hell, I vowed to protect those rights from all enemies, foreign and DOMESTIC.

And my damn pictures are in that category.  I want to share them when I wish!  Not when damn GOOGLE decides I should.

So, here I am.  Angry at GOOGLE.  And I can't decide how to remedy this.  Maybe I should stop using Facebook, Blogger, Google... damn "smart" technology and social media.  Yahoo.  Youtube...  No, I LIKE Youtube.  And that means I have to interact with GOOGLE.  I'm NOT happy about that.

There are some people in this world who believe that TECHNOLOGY is evil (or a serious threat, anyway).  I am sure that our Government will use all TECHNOLOGY available to it, to monitor each and every one of us.  I'm not happy about that either.  There are cameras everywhere.  Our little, local town of Hardy isn't too bad... but, what level of surveillance is too much?  A slippery slop... A dangerous game... a DAMNED IF YOU DO AND DAMNED IF YOU DON'T scenario.

Why can't I just have a nice little blog about my adventure in homesteading?  Why can't I live my private life, use what technology I want and leave the rest.  Why? 

Gardens, grandkids and crocheting

My son Joshua and I made a quick trip to East Ellijay, Georgia to pick up my granddaughter, Ariel.  She's 11 now, growing up fast!  She was 2 1/2 when John and I got together.  That first year we were together, we lived in East Ellijay.  Ariel's mom Tammy lived right next door and Josh lived next door to her.  We were all within shouting distance.  John's brother Jim and family lived a few hundred yards away.  Brother Joe and family lived across the street.  John's mom and stepdad lived just up the road.

Then we found our home in Arkansas and moved.  John had always wanted to live in Arkansas.  Tammy and Ariel came and stayed with us the first 2 trips we made out here.  Ariel came to spend the summer when she was 6 and 7.  The next 2 summers we weren't able to take her, but she's been here last year and this year.  Good memories in the making.

Who knows what we'll get into this summer.

The garden is growing, very weedy at the moment.  I spent 2 hours out there this morning and got 1 row done.  Here's what it looked like before I started.

I finished the crocheted baby afghan for my niece Tricia.  She's to have her baby in July. Raven, I believe is the name of the little one.  Now I have a birthday present to get done.

I also promised to finish a lockerhooked rug.  I enjoy making rugs.  But they do get hot and heavy after awhile!

Flowers and bees

We've been blessed with mild temperatures lately, and plenty of rain.  The flowers are happy!

Our garden is sprouting, growing and looking good.  I'll spend the morning thinning out the seedlings.

I found 2 strawberries under our lilacs yesterday.  Dang, they were good!

Sadly, our beehive is empty.  Our bees didn't survive the winter.  That is very sad.  We have seen some honeybees flying by though...  We weren't successful in catching the swarms the past few springs, so there are bees around here somewhere.  John and Josh saw some on Riverview Farms property when there were visiting the creek.  I've seen them on the clover in our yard.  We're hoping to get our hive re-established.

There are lots of mason bees and bumblebees around this year.  And those darn red wasps.  John killed a LARGE Japanese hornet here in the greatroom yesterday.  Nasty!  Yellow and black with red highlights!  I'd never seen one before. Not even when I lived in Japan!

I should have chicks hatching in a week or so.  Tuesday next week is what I marked on the calendar.  I hope this batch does better than the last.  1 chick out of 28 is awful!  That little guy is doing well in it's brooder though.  Growing and chirping.

That's a wooden egg I have in there with it.  I found it standing on the egg reaching for a fly yesterday.  Silly little critter.

The garden is finally in!

Josh got the tiller going last Wednesday (May 7th), and we got the garden planted!  Yippy!

I hope we have the same kind of year we did last year.  Man, things grew really well!  Here's 1 day's harvest...

Projects around the house

We've been staying close to home lately, puttering around.  I've been playing in the flower  beds and knitting, baking and making soup.

Monday and Thursday, Chris and Jack came over and worked on the finishing the interior work on the windows.  They milled some cedar logs into boards, and framed around the windows.  It smells VERY good in here now!

While they are here working, I like to make a large meal for lunch and feed them.  Heck, they are working for us, helping us out.  Besides, I like to cook.  So the other day I made some beef stew, baked bread and made cinnamon rolls.  YUMMY!

Our friend, Joe Barnett, also stopped by and had a "fresh & hot from the oven" cinnamon roll with us. 

I started a new lace knitting project.  I'm making another circular shawl with some lovely lace yarn I got as a birthday present from my friend Nancy Bjerke.  I decided to use the pattern "Old Shale" (also known as Feather and Fan).  I really like knitting that pattern.  It's easy and looks lovely!  Here's the Raverly link to my project.  Feather-and-fan-stitch-or-old-shale

Yesterday, I went to a few yard sales with Gena Stout and Karna McFadden.  That was a lot of fun.

I guess I'll spend my day today puttering around outside.  Maybe we can get the seedlings planted in the veggie garden.  I'll take some more pictures of things growing and post them.  I really LOVE Spring!