Inez's Almanac

[Quettalee]

...for starting worm farms and compost heaps.

We actually had worm beds when I was a kid. Yep, that was when we operated a "fish camp" on a huge fishing lake in northern Florida. OMG. I've got to start another thread so I can relive my 'fish camp days'. Stay tuned; there's some good stories from that time period. LOL

[Joxcee]

Sounds like you should write a memoir.

[Quettalee]

I probably could, Jox. My dad must have had gypsy in his blood; he could never stay in one place doing one thing for very long periods of time. I guess that's why I always felt cheated out of "that place you call home" and why I'm am so hesitant to move across country. My whole childhood was spent moving from one place to another....Florida, Georgia, Conn, Arkansas.

Inez always tells me to find the up-side of the sh!t that life throws at you. I do have a lot of adventures that few people ever have the opportunity to enjoy.

You're right; I should dust off the cobwebs of my past & write it down for...what? Posterity? Maybe.

[Joxcee]

You can write it for yourself and your family and publish it with a Print On Demand type publisher such as Lulu.com ... or try and sell it to an agent or larger publishing house ... whichever might interest you. Check out Memoirs at the library to see just how you might want to write it up. Join Zoe to workshop it if you'd like. Workshopping it at Zoe doesn't mean you have to go with a large publisher or agent if that isn't what you want to do. There are writers there who only publish to small, local
publishers.

[Quettalee]

Thanks, Jox.

There may come a time when writing something like memoirs will bring me peace, closure; I'm sure many things. Too much going on right now to even think about it. Mom is getting worse steadily to the point where I hold my breath every time the phone rings. My stepdad is still in the hospital, also.

I have found that it eases my stress to write, though. Hopefully in time I'll find my way to write something meaningful....or at least interesting enough for others to enjoy.

[gams]

Sorry for your stress, MG. Sigh. Aging parents, especially those in ill health; such a difficult thing to have to watch. I'm so glad for you that you were able to get away recently and visit with your Mom.

Take care.

[Joxcee]

You're welcome Q ... writing for yourself is just as rewarding as writing for others.

Sorry to hear things are so rough right now.

[Quettalee]

Thank you, my friends.

[fallenangel]

I hope they both get better. Im sending a hug to you

[Quettalee]

Thanks for the warm-fuzzies, 'angel.

[Quettalee]

I have left this thread at the bottom because it has been so long since Mom was able to share much of anything with me. She has had two more mini-strokes in the past month and looses her train of thought easily.

I happen to catch her on a good day this morning. She was able to talk and just kept talking until I finally had to make her get off the phone to take a breathing treatment. She forgets things--certain things all the time...like the girls' names. She gets so frustrated because she can't remember which one is which. I think we finally made a connection this morning--one she may be able to remember. Daughter #2 is the gardener--the one after Mom's heart because gardening was always her favorite hobby. Daughter #1's birthday is the day before her mom's birthday (my grandmother). (I guess your own mother's birthday is one of those things that never leaves you).

Anyway, she got off on talking about our tomatos and her flowers. Mom has always had two green thumbs--could grow anything, anywhere. She would not rest until I had promised her no less than five times during our conversation this morning that I would make sure Summer got all her plants. She has three or four huge Peace Lilies, an aloe plant that is about to take over one corner of the living room, three mammoth ferns, and Thanksgiving cactus that will take your breath away. I use to argue with her that there was no such thing; that she was pulling my leg, telling me they were Thanksgiving instead of Christmas cactus. Apparently you can tell them apart by the leaves--sharp, serrated ones on the Thanksgiving and more rounded ones on the Christmas. Anyway, she gave me cuttings from one the last time I was down there. Try as we might, none of them rooted. This was one of the things Mom remembered this morning. LOL. I told her the truth. She said, "Lord, Marquetta, all you had to do practically was lay them on the top of the soil and they would take root and grow--if I did it during the first quarter of the moon. Obviously I missed that part.

Anyway, we talked--mainly I listened--about tying up our six-foot tomato plants with torn, "wider" strips of sheets instead of thin twine or string. Seems a good strong wind will bend the stem right over the string and break it off. She also said we could tie them up and run them along the top of the fence since our three giants are in the corner. She told me that too much watering or too much rain would cause "bloom rot"? Is that right, Gams? I asked if they could continue to bare tomatoes until frost and she said as long as they have new growth, they will continue to bloom from the new growth--but not from where they have already bore fruit.

It was a good hour with Mom this morning. Amazing that she can remember such vivid details about some things, but must ask me a half a dozen times during each call what the girls' names are. That part makes me sad.

[Joxcee]

I think the worst part of getting older is that your parents are also getting older. It's no fun when your parents become your children. It's even worse when they're far away and you aren't there to watch over them. Honestly, I don't know which is worse: seeing their minds go, or their bodies.

[gams]

Hugs for you, Quetta.

[Quettalee]

Thank you, my friends, from the bottom of my heart to the tips of my "semi-green" thumbs.

[Joxcee]

You're very welcome...

[Quettalee]

Mom called me yesterday to let me know about the tainted spinach. Bless her heart, I first read about it on...what...Wednesday? She had just heard and was wiggin. She said she told LLoyd, "I know those girls have got a bag of spinach in the house; they eat it everyday." She's right. Mary was making three "green drinks" a day, and I usually take a salad to work every night.

Does Hubs have some inside scoop, Gams??

[gams]

I keep forgetting to ask him, Q. He hasn't mentioned anything. He has though, always told me he wishes I wouldn't buy the bagged product, always warning of the possiblity of e-coli contamination. I love baby spinach, but rarely buy it because of that reason. That, and because I'm usually the only one that eats it.

We grow it though - spring and fall; I've got some coming up now. It's the only thing left in the vegie garden, except the perennial herbs and asparagus.

[gams]

I remembered to ask him about the spinach thing....I don't know if this is exactly the "inside scoop" or not, but he said local stuff should be fine; spinach from the Midwest has not been reported to be tainted . It is spinach grown, packaged or distributed in California you shouldn't buy, most specifically spinach with the labels River Ranch or Earth Bound. Those bags should have been pulled from the shelves anyway.

[gams]

And just a quick question about the Farmer's Almanec - a just wondering thing. Are there almanecs for different parts of the country, or just one big one?

[Quettalee]

This is for Inez...

Before the Next Teardrop Falls

Freddy Fender, a pioneer of Tex-Mex country music, dies at 69

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Mom absolutely loves Freddy. It reminds me of a wonderful memory...

I was in Jr. high and mom worked at one of the many greasy spoon diners along the road of her life. I used to get off the bus there after school and clear tables and wash dishes for a couple of dollars a day. Of course that little diner filled every single day with the same ole regulars. There was a jukebox--of course--and every time one of those regulars came in, the above button on that jukebox got punched because those regulars knew how much mom loved Freddy. Sometimes the ones I knew would come in and drop their change and tell me to load 'em up; you know I loved that.

I wish I had a quarter for every time that song was played for Inez.

See ya, Freddy.