I’m sitting outside on my patio about to mix soil to add to my potatoes. I have the back patio light on, but I never did turn any lights on inside my house. My house is completely dark, but when I look up I can see Quintus pressed against the window. As soon as he sees me look up he meows and it’s so comical. Sometimes I fake meow with him because it’s so typical of him and it just gives me a good chuckle to see him meow with no sound.

It’s been a crappy week but there was still plenty of good. Like not getting poison ivy again. I’m super thankful for that. And the pain comes to an end eventually. I’m thankful for that too.

I’m seeing a new physical therapist after getting into a car accident and walking away with another whiplash injury. I like their energy and they’ve helped me regain some of my range of motion fairly quickly. I agreed to dry needling today though and it kicked my butt. Dry needling is a form of acupuncture that’s supposed to break up the spasms, but it’s like they knocked the hornets nest down and then just left it there. I’m supposed to be more sore tomorrow, but maybe my body acts differently. It could be worse, and it will pass eventually. 

For now I’m finding solace in playing in the dirt. I finally found seed potatoes this year and I bought a few too many and now my garden is covered in grow bags full of potatoes. Or hopefully full of potatoes soon. 

I planted tomatoes everywhere last year. You need to let the soil rest for 4 years before growing a nightshade (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant) in the same spot. The best thing to do is grow legumes next to add nitrogen to the soil. So by all accounts I should be overwhelmed with potatoes, peas, and beans this year. 

I saved a ton of sunflower seeds from last summer. I gave them out to my coworkers after Christmas. I planted quite a few along my fence. There were some bad shells so I broke them up and added them to my compost piles. Or rather, I thought I did. I have two stray sunflowers growing in one of my raised beds. A very happy accident. I tried to sow sunflower seeds continuously so that they bloom for weeks. Hopefully they’re a success. Hopefully they bring others a little bit of joy too.