Sorry, I probably could have been writing, but haven't.

I had my first day off in six weeks last Friday. After sleeping in 'till 8:30, I got up and chilled for about four hours. By chilled, I mean that stayed in and didn't partake in the 97 degree heat.

But finally I got bored and anxious and went to Lowes for a shovel, some plants, some soil, and some trees to start making this yard my own.

My biggest pet peeve has been the lack of privacy trees on the East side an the x lilies (I don't know what they are yet; tiger?). They act as a snail night club, so I stopped watering them. So they got even uglier than they were. They had to go. I don't want snails that close to the house. Come to think of it, I don't want snails at all.



So I planted some peppers and tomatoes.



They're doing good so far, even have some new growth already. The one on the end almost needs one of those upside down cone trellis things. The garden soil I bought smells exactly like cow manure, probably because, well...

Too bad for the house hugging lilies that they weren't my favorites. I water my favorites.



I put another tomato in a pot.



I bought a new hummingbird feeder too, but they hate it.



Even the non-hummingbirds like the old one.

NOT FOR YOU!



The snails that are still in the garden, but now I can see them and toss them into the back slope.

I don't have it in me to kill them. I've killed 1,000+ ants in the past week, but not a snail. Not sure what the distinction is. Maybe it's just because of their size. I did put a pie plate full of beer out, which they love. I heard that it drowns them, but it just makes them really lazy so they don't want to leave the pie plate full of beer and forget about yummy tomato plants. I totally understand that. Then I go out in the morning, gather all the drunk snails up and toss them as far as I can up the slope in back. Two years from now, I'm going to hear a knock on the rear door, and it will be a snail who will ask, "What was that all about?"

By the way,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RICHIE!!!