What I'm Reading This Week #29

Howdy do all and welcome to your Friday.  I hope your week treated you well and you're ready to recharge a bit.  You know, when I started this gardening business, I had delusions of like, actually enjoying it maybe with my morning tea before the day got hectic.  

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Instead it's like the second the plants went into the ground, Mother Nature turned it to 11 and hasn't let up. The wall of humidity is ridiculous!  I can't even go out to water or do something simple without looking like I was back on the chain gang for 8 hours.  Or I get to see the 500th mistake I've made and end up ripping out my strawberry plants or moving other plants because they might be too close together.  Watching my 4 puny tomatoes laugh at me as they choose not to ripen or grow while other people talk about mad harvests in which they can't pick them fast enough.  I will say the bees have been making me happy out front.  I was at the planter and one was working on a zinnia next to me at face level.  We looked at each other, gave a nod and continued with our business.  Last night I was refilling my bee bath and noticed there were two bees happily working on the newly opened milkweed.  Yay!!  Though I admit, we're definitely hoping the word gets out to the monarchs to stop by.

This week I took my besties approach and dedicated 20 minutes to some kind of cleaning in the bedroom.  Monday I worked on the nightstands which were dusty AF and got all of my junk into the drawers and dusted and tidied the fireplace.  Tuesday I cleared off the storage bench that basically became a catch all for laundry and there were even sweaters at the bottom which tells you how long it's been there.  Visually it was quite relieving to see.  Wednesday was the hardest day mentally and I was going to go through the corner but that was the day Mom's health took a turn for the worst and that corner has a lot of her stuff in it.  I couldn't do it.  I noticed that the fireplace was already getting dusty again so I took the spray off the Swiffer Wet Jet and wiped down the walls.  Then I vacuumed the area rugs and floor.  I felt like our Shark wasn't doing the job when I tried an attachment on the curtains.  Well, that'll apparently happen when you haven't emptied the canister and apparently the uber clogged top filter.  So I had to empty and change all of those and re-vacuum everything.  Nothing like doing a job twice but this time the flat attachment actually worked so I vacuumed the curtains, ceiling fan blades and board and batten wall.   90 minutes later I was a sweaty mess and stripped the sheets and took a shower.  The Mr threw open the windows even though it was sweltering just to get some airflow for 20 minutes then closed up shop.  I still need to work on the inner parts of the nightstands and that corner but it may need to wait until I can mentally handle it.  At some point I need to get under the bed and see if there's anything I can pair down.  Yesterday I wiped down the ceiling fan blades in the bedroom then took 20 minutes to clean off the dining table but still need to wipe it down and put some furniture polish on it.

Now let's get to:

8 Strength Training Tips for Women Over 50 From a Doctor and a Trainer  (Looks like I need to throw the floor bike back in on strength days)

13 Surprising Habits That Quietly Age You Faster  (Good to be aware of)

Trying to Eat More Magnesium? These Are Dietitians Top Picks  (This reminds me I need to boil up some of those to keep in the freezer.)

I'm 78 and my brain is sharp as a whip—my No. 1 rule for a strong, healthy brain is so simple (A good practice to get into!)

Doctor’s Note: Shingles Virus, a Sleeper Cell in the Back  (If you're over 50, you really need to consider the vaccine if you haven't gotten it.  If you get shingles, you're going to know it and possibly go blind as many people get infected near their eyes.)

Why Everyone's Brain Feels So Broken Right Now, Says Doctor — 'My Mind Feels Like It Has 78 Tabs Open'. (Yep)

7 disinfecting golden rules you must follow for a healthier home   (Ugh, the soft surface one reminds me I need to wrestle off the slipcovers soon.  I need to pretreat or use the steamer on a few spots before I chuck them in.)

The Secret to Keeping Container Plants Alive All Summer Long, According to Gardeners  (Not sure I agree with the watering schedule because I have friggin mushrooms growing out of some of mine!  I got one of these to check the soil and for non food plants added this to help keep the soil moist longer.)

How To Declutter Your Closet With a Single Box  (I bet you can't guess which one I am when it comes to the two types of people.)

6 Clever Ways to Reuse Silica Gel Packets  (Some great ideas!)

I think we were initially going to build a scrap planter for beside the stairs but I don't know if that's still a go or not especially with the weather.  We'd have to construct in the garage and check stuff.  We'll see if he's up for it but we've got 2 1/2 weeks before I can return the brackets if we say no to it.  Otherwise, nothing else on the agenda.  Maybe watching Big Dreams Small Spaces with Monty Don.

What are y'all up to this weekend?

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