The theme for Every Inchie Monday this week is world, and since my little world is the only art I was able to finish this week, it took front and center today!
I am sure any of you that are gardeners understand, the garden just went nuts! I thought I planted small this year, I tried out the Square Foot Gardening technique, and it really did make a difference. The plots are tidier, the produce is spaced adequately, the single zucchini plant is producing just one or two at a time, easy to use up as they appear. But this week, it just so happened that the beans, the basil, and the cucumbers are all ready right now. If I want to make my dilly beans, pesto and sandwich dills, they have to be done NOW!
That isn't necessarily a problem, except, and isn't there always an except, there are a few other things happening at the moment. My nephew is back in town, and this time he is my helper, rather than Mr. How2's, at least for a little while, until he gets stolen away. This means that we have started tearing apart the garage, the side garden and the tool shed, sorting, cleaning and purging. Since he is only here for a limited time, I've got to make use of every minute. We are also heading off to our family reunion this weekend, which is a camping trip, therefore requiring a LOT of prep work.
Last but not least, tomorrow morning, at the crack of dawn, we have to drive up to a very remote piece of property and pull musk thistle. I realize that if you don't live here in the Okanogan Highlands, you probably don't understand the significance of this activity. Let me explain.
We have something here called the Noxious Weed Board, and they have the task of governing how property owners handle the presence of dangerous or noxious weeds on their own property. A noxious weed isn't necessarily something dangerous to living things, it is usually a designation assigned to a weed that can become invasive and threaten native plant species. The weed board sends out representatives all over the county looking for these criminal plants, and if they are spotted on your property, then you get a phone call. In the goverment's infinite wisdom, they gave this agency the power to demand that you eradicate the plant. If you are not compliant with their demands, they have the authority to bring a crew onto your land, spray and/or pull the weeds, then send you the bill. If you do not pay up, they are then allowed to put a lien against said property. As you can imagine, the fees charged are exorbitant, so we take care of the issue ourselves. It means an entire day in the broiling hot sun, hacking down stalks with a machete, and then nipping the blooms off and bagging them. If left on the ground, the seeds will continue to develop, turn to fluff, fly away and start the whole cycle all over again. I am all for taking care of my own properties, but there is no system in place, it seems, to clear these plants from public lands, most likely because there is no one to charge for the work. Because of this, we can never truly eliminate the threat, as the seeds for next spring are borne in on the wind from unattended land.
So that will be my day tomorrow, but I will be with family and we will likely treat ourselves to lunch back in town when we finish. It is a huge interruption in an already busy schedule, but there is nothing much I can do to avoid it. On a lighter note, I am already packing my brushes and canvases, looking forward to getting some art done on the camping trip. I am hoping to leave my first piece of abandonment at the local farmers market we always attend during the reunion. I can hardly wait! In case you are interested and haven't heard of Art Abandonment, go check it out. I am brand new to the group, and still learning the ropes, so they can explain better than I.
Until next time...enjoy!
