What the eff? Pt. 2

On the other side of the Apricot tree from the Amaryllis (thanks, guys!) is more dirt. Mostly shaded, but occasionally it gets some sun. Imagine my surprise when there was a lone spot of purple amidst the dirt (and renegade ivy.)

Some kind of purple trumpet flower. It's pretty, but completely rogue.

Close up:

So odd.

We've also got...um...walnuts?

Tree:


Fruit:


Fallen Fruit:


Nut?


Ok. So this is what it looked like after Husband had rinsed most of the rotten fruit off of it. We couldn't get it open, so I tried cracking it with a big ol' nail and out hammer. It's mocking me. We gave up.

If it helps, the nut smells burned, like smokey ash.

I would say that we'll just leave these for the raccoons for now, but they don't even seem to want them. Maybe it's not edible, after all?

What the eff?

Back in the spring, while I was lying in bed wondering if my guts were going to remain inside my body, my wonderful husband decided to help out with my vision of a pumpkin patch. I had it all planned. The neighborhood kids would come and pick their own pumpkins...there would be pie and breads and decoration and seeds...it would be delightful.

This was all the growth we got:

And honestly, we're not even 100% sure that is a pumpkin plant I took a picture of. All I know is that it sprouted in the mound that husband filled with seeds.

Could be we planted too late. Could be the neighborhood cats did a number on it with all of their digging around. Could be the fact that we haven't seen a drop of rain since March is keeping it a dried up dirty wasteland... OR - all of the stupid ivy that was there before sucked all of the nutrients out of the soil. It does look rather dust-bowlish back there.

Which is why today, when I went to drop melon rinds in our slow compost pile, I was shocked to notice something:

On the left is the compost pile - thoughtfully created with a concrete barrier. In the foreground - debris that needs to be chucked. And a random succulent. Mostly what we notice is the big dust-bowl-like dirt wasteland in the center there...where a thriving pumpkin patch *should* be.

But do you see what I see?

No?

This:


Yeah. I didn't plant that. Nor have I bothered to water that patch of dirt since July. I keep hoping we'll turn the compost and find some great soil and then when (if) it (ever) cools down here we'll till it in and re-plant the patch. I'm not giving up.

And yet...pink flower:

I can't identify it. I know it was not there when the place was ivy-ridden. But there it is. A little pink-petaled stem of hope that maybe my thumb isn't entirely black after all. Maybe what my plants need is a little *more* neglect...?

PS - any tips on that pumpkin patch are welcome. Thanks!

PPS - My sister says they're lilies.
PPPS - other votes are for Amaryllis. I think that might be the win. Also - when Husband was digging the mounds for the pumpkin seeds he found a lot of old "onions" that were dead in the dirt. We now speculate that they were actually bulbs.

Something's been eating my oranges

It fell from the tree in the backyard at some point over the last day, and when I went out this morning all I found was an empty shell...and some exploded bits. Wonder what could be doing this?

Whatever it is has opposable thumbs, a deep love of overly ripe citrus, and was clearly not a girl scout. Good thing all I do is sweep the fallen oranges into the shrubs anyway and let them decompose. Natural fertilizer.

I have too many girl parts!

My big problem with older houses is one that is luckily easily rectified: shower heads. Old shower heads just suck. Really, that's all there is to it. Generally they were originally good, but decades of mineral deposits and lack of attention leave them with water spraying everywhere but where you want it. Ours is no exception:


Luckily, I have a nice gooseneck hanging around, so I unscrewed the existing shower head and prepared to install the new one. And then I made my discovery: both parts of my equation are female parts.


So I fiddled around a bit and discovered that not only is the ring permanently attached and *female* but even if I were to just push it back I couldn't screw the gooseneck to the pipe because the pipe has a weird bulby tip:

I know what you're thinking and stop it.

Luckily I have a plumbing guru on speed dial. Fingers crossed for a speedy resolution so I can have a decent shower!