Where Have all the Flower Children Gone?

So I'm a post hippie believer.  What I mean by this is I was born in 1961 which really makes me too young to be an actual hippie.  The problem is I was impressionable as they were coming of age, which means I was listening.  I listened to the whole "make love not war" mentality and I bought into it.  Their voice was strong and it sounded absolutely right to me.  There was a huge push regarding pollution, both land and air, and also it was a very natural timeframe.  People believed in being low maintenance.  The whole thing was totally sold to me.  Unintentionally at the time. 

These days, if this was society's message, it would be packaged up and we'd all be following along.  It wouldn't be accidentally marketed by teenagers.

My issue with this is that I believe actual hippies sold out.  Most of them became the power people we watched on 'Thirty Something' during the eighties.  They became rich through mergers and arbitrage and forgot about the message they made me believe.  They wore their suspenders and red ties and became the thing they most abhorred, I'm thinking now that I've been ripped off.  Where are my people?

Did reality just become too overwhelming to stay in our communes and wear our birkenstocks?

My career has never totally fit for me.  I go through the motions, attend the meetings, write the proposals, create the powerpoints but it's surreal.  I still want to be dancing barefoot under the stars.

Hey, I did celebrate the winter solstice. Not exactly the way I intended. A friend of mine had a ladies night at her house and we all drank some wine and bemoaned the Christmas work. This wasn't exactly the pagan experience I was picturing but it'll do. We all agreed that wiccan stores are kind of fun and the lunar eclipse added a touch of natural excitement but then we went back to discuss our Christian holiday.

This group used to be a book group but after a few years of no one actually reading the book I guess we just get together now and talk about our kids.

My sister-in-law went back to work because she felt she needed some intelligent interaction with "smart women." I also went back to work but I don't really agree with her. These women, originally stay at home moms, are some of the most intelligent people I know. They all have degrees and talented, polite and good kids. Conversation is real. Sometimes the intelligence is in knowing what's best for your family and how you'd like to live your life. Maybe it's smart to set yourself up in a situation that works for you.

Don't get me wrong. I work full time right now and I wouldn't have it any other way. There are a lot of smart women there as well. I just don't think you can judge a segment of the population with such finite definitions.

Let's go easy on our own and support each other regardless of our individual choices.

Note: Don't judge me on this post...read Christian as lapsed Catholic.

A Really New Thing

Some of my yearly firsts are strange. This week I had a first. The first time I ever sewed outside. Seriously, this was way too hearty for me. The story is this, we decided to go camping so last weekend we pulled out the tent for the first time in a few years and set it up. Well, the zipper to the door was broken. This was a real problem for me because I am very fond of my tent and we paid 160 dollars for it some years ago but I don't think we really used it enough. (What makes my tent special is the entire roof is screen so on a clear night you can lay in bed and look at the stars, I love this.) So I was a little upset.

Of course all great ideas come in the middle of the night and I had an epiphany. I would sew velcro (there's no way I could put in a new zipper...I am talentless) onto the tent to hold the door closed. So there I am carting my sewing machine outside to sew the tent. A first for me (for most I would think) and also the last time I'll be doing that. The velcro holds okay for now but I'll let you know after the camping trip.

Phlox

Lavaterra

Zinnias

Sunflowers

Came home after being away only two days and my gardens have definitely changed. This is what's growing. No morning glories yet, and something is eating the pumpkins (trouble with pollinating and after I personally pollinate them, something eats them. Lucky if I end up with two pumpkins this year.) Oh well. There's a bunny out there who is well fed.

Botanical garden - Sarasota

On Gardening

I wrote a nice post and then I hit the "back" key and lost the whole thing. Ugh. Today is the hottest day of the year. It feels like I'm sitting in a refrigerator that's been placed inside an oven. On the upside, I found a cucumber in my garden today. Most gardeners probably don't revel in such minor accomplishments but for me, the idea that I can grow food never ceases to astonish me. Especially since last year I managed to grow a huge crop of weeds peppered with very few sickly looking tomatoes. This year I vowed to do better and I have been. I've been watering almost every day and I weed on Saturday mornings. Things are actually growing. I'm going to have tons of pumpkins and tomatoes and next week I'll be picking green beens. Too cool for words.

I should state here that my grass is another story. Brown and dead it mocks me. My neighbors look upon my yard with a brutal head shake. Do I care, no, not so much. If it were up to me, I'd plant food and flowers everywhere. I don't really get the grass thing.

I measure my years in the things I do each year that I've never done before. This year, so far, I made jam. It is the best jam ever and it was so easy. I have seven jars in my freezer. I also just got back from TN, but I don't count going new places. It seems to me this is a separate thing. Also, since I was working I didn't get to see much, but I did confirm that I'd like to go back.

Gardening knowledge: plant pumpkins as early as possible. Be ruthless about thinning your plants. They won't grow if there are too many. (This is my only advice right now)