random

Monday’s Musings — Understanding the Green Thumb

~ Hope Surrendered ~ Leave a comment

Green Thumb

Harvesting veggies from the garden is so much more fun than planting, weeding, watering and waiting for them to grow. There are rewards at each stage, but harvesting is the ultimate reward.

Without looking into the folklore, I now KNOW from where the idea of having a green thumb comes.

It comes from harvesting veggies.

When I harvested my peas, my left thumbnail turned green from popping open the pods and scraping them into a bowl.

When I harvested my Chinese pea pods, my left thumbnail turned green from snapping off the top and destringing them.

When I harvested my green beans, my left thumbnail turned green from pinching them off the vine and then using my nail to break away the top.

When harvesting my cucumbers, my left thumbnail turns green from piercing the vine before pulling the cuke from it.

When harvesting my cherry tomatoes, my left thumbnail turns green from snipping the fruits from the vine WITH my nail.

When harvesting my apples, my left thumbnail turns green from pushing the waste through the apple corer.

Harvesting has been going on for a few weeks, therefore, I’ve had a green thumbnail for a while.

The only thing that might completely remove the green hue from my thumbnail would be a manicure. However, other than an occasional buff and file, I’m not really a manicure kind-of-gal, and I still have some harvesting left to do.

I’m pretty sure that the folklore surrounding having a green thumb DOES involve the ability to grow plants well. So, hey! I will consider my green thumb an accomplishment and as a sign of the successful harvest!

Advertisement

Monday’s Musings — Creating a Better Fit

~ Hope Surrendered ~ Leave a comment

Sewing Shirt

One of my sons is a baseball player. All season I’ve been wearing the fan t-shirt. I only like t-shirts if they have a very loose collar, and this one doesn’t. It rubs my neck, and it makes my round face look even more round. Ugh.

For weeks, I’ve been thinking, “I should do something about this collar.” I wear the shirt a few times a week at games to support his team, and I think about that collar every time I put it on. It’s one of those SHOULD DO things that doesn’t get done. But…it did get done this week.

Using a seam ripper, I carefully took the collar off the t-shirt. I then pressed and rolled the ragged edge of the fabric twice so it would not unwind –that would not be at all attractive, even for a t-shirt. I then ran the new collar’s hem through my sewing machine. The whole thing took me less than half an hour.

My altered t-shirt feels so much better on me now! The slightly-scooped neck is much more comfy than the tight crew neck, and I’m astonished at how much slimmer my chubby cheeks look with this simple alteration! I should have done it at the beginning of the season, as it would have saved me a few “should-a-would-a” thoughts.

How many aspects of our life could use a slight tweaking to create a better fit?

What if I would get up 15 minutes earlier each day? What if I made a pact to have an empty kitchen sink before heading to bed? What if I would deal with every received email on a check-it-once basis?

Hmmm…the possibilities:  a few extra minutes for Bible study — I’m always craving more time anyway; a pleasant feeling when walking into the kitchen in the morning; no more dread wondering how I’ll get through 2800 emails — someday.

Slight alterations. A better fit. An opportunity. A new outlook. More productivity.

There are blessings all around us. Too often, we feel that CHANGE has to be big. No. A quick and simple alteration can create a better fit in our life, in the Word and in our walk in just a few moments. Imagine the trickle-down effects. Blessings are waiting to be realized — with or without a sewing machine.

Monday’s Musings, A New Week & Soapy Fingernails

~ Hope Surrendered ~ Leave a comment

Fingernails Soapy - Copy

Welcome to a new week! Thanks for venturing into it with me!

Last weekend, I wrote about paddleboarding — you can read that here:  http://wp.me/p1oeLN-2I. I know the subject didn’t quite fit into the rest of the writings I’ve shared, but I was (and still am) looking for a way to throw in some tidbits outside of faith-based hope writings of the week. So…welcome to a new week!

Monday’s Musings? Wonderings from the Weekend? I need a title. Any suggestions?

My plan — my hope — is to start the week by offering up a lighter post that goes along with something I experienced, did, thought about, etc., at some point during the previous week or weekend. I don’t know it it’ll work out, but I’m going to try to get my hands dirty at trying it.

Speaking of getting my hands dirty…

The rains have been abundant in this part of the country, which has led to my garden being just a tad neglected. I’ve been behind in my weeding. With a break in the weather this past week, I decided to head out to the garden and take on the task of weeding.

I wear gardening gloves for planting and digging, but I feel like they hinder my ability to pull weeds, so I often don’t use them for this task. This presents a dilemma when it’s time to clean up.

Dirt under the fingernails.

So this week, I tried a little experiment. I got an old bar of soap, and I scratched my fingernails into it before venturing out to the garden. This bar of soap will stay with my gardening tools, as it’s not very pretty anymore.

For the most part, it worked. When I was finished, I used a nailbrush on my dirty fingernails, and the soap that had been under my nails made clean up easier.

The neglected garden gave me a lot more to think about. Friday’s post was a start — you can read that one here:  http://wp.me/p1oeLN-3W  — and you’ll probably see some more of those thoughts in the coming days.

Make it a point to find hope around you this week. It IS there! Enjoy your week!

The Thrill Escapes Me

~ Hope Surrendered ~ Leave a comment

Water.Kayak. - Copy

Paddleboarding lessons. I saw the blip in the corner of my computer screen as the email notification popped up. It was an offer from one of those daily-special sites. With a quick smile, a wrinkle of the nose and a slightly confused state, I thought, “Why?”

I have a lake nearby. There’s also a river that’s not too far away. Paddleboarding. Hmmmm…

The thrill escapes me. It just completely escapes me.

I love being on the water. Motorboat, canoe, pontoon, kayak. I might like to try windsurfing someday. Parasailing is a huge thrill (except when you actually can see the sharks in the water below or when the boat driver dips and drags you due to his inexperience). A glass-bottomed kayak in tropical waters is amazing, but paddleboarding?

I love the idea of skimming across the water, and I even love the idea of getting a great upper-body workout while I’m doing it, but I can do that in a kayak. Why do I need to, or even want to, stand up for any period of time and attempt to maintain balance while doing a similar motion? Why would I want to try to get back topside on the board after falling in the water (repeatedly, I am sure) when I have the trustworthiness of a kayak?

No, I’ve never tried paddleboarding, but I am sure I will one day. I have a feeling I’ll prefer my kayak.