Lily had her weekly chemo appointment today, so I have been pretty much out of the loop today. Lily is still doing super well, all her numbers were good but her platelet count is still high, and we are continuing to ween her off the prednisone and will go down a little more next week. Next week is her last weekly trip, and after that it will be every other week. Here she is right after we got home:
She’s happy and prancing and just doing really, really well. Rosie came over and licked her and greeted her (even though in this pic it looks like she is just trying to dominate her, she was actually grooming her)
Now to address the elephant in the room- “What the fuck is going on in John Cole’s front yard?” Long story short, the yard leveling has begun in earnest. The front yard did not need any additional dirt to level, instead we just plowed it all under with a rototiller and then used a leveling rake to even it all out. We’ve been getting a ton of rain, so we covered it to keep it somewhat dry and are seeding it tomorrow.
The back yard, on the other hand, is a god damned disaster.
I got a local guy to bring 15 tons of “topsoil” over for 200 bucks, and he came over and dumped it outside my fence at seven o’clock in the morning, and when we looked at it, it was half top soil and half fill and clay. It was most certainly not screened topsoil. So we (this is a royal we) put it around and evened out the back yard near the deck and got rid of the major holes and the erosion and slope by the deck, and now we are going to have to till the whole damned thing to break up the clumps, and I will have to go somewhere else to get about 8-10 yards of actual screened topsoil, which I didn’t want to do because it is expensive as hell.
Right now since there is so much clay and clumps, we’re just letting it sit for a while and working on the beds around the fence, which we lifted to cover the bottom of the fence. I’ve got a bunch of hostas to take out of the front beds to put there, and I’ve got friends who are desperate to get rid of stuff like day lilies and the like.
Rule #1 in life- if you think you are getting a super deal, you are probably getting fucked.
Would you look how tall my peas and maters are, though? And the holes in the backyard are gone, so no one (mainly my clumsy half blind ass) is going to break their damned ankle taking the trash out. That’s it for around here.
Also, fuck Trump.
Sarah in Kingston
Seems like good progress on many fronts.
Brachiator
Great news. Hope she continues to improve.
SiubhanDuinne
I have said for years that Lily is like a little fawn, and there’s nothing here to make me change my mind.
She is so lovely. This atheist says, “God love her.”
schrodingers_cat
My garden update
Our neighbor is helping us plant trees in our front yard, so far husband kitteh and the said neighbor have replanted and staked two oaks and one maple from our yard. This weekend they are going to plant two more maples. I finally cleared the weeds in the vegetable bed. That was back breaking.
Lillies are budding and rhododendrons are on their way out.
Adam K
Maters, heh. That’s how we talk north of the Ohio, too, but we’re waaay more sfisticated.
Mary G
Housemate B has mostly taken over the gardening here, as my hands continue to deteriorate. He mostly likes to grow food, so we have set up a hydroponic set of pipes for strawberries, and I bought dwarf lime, clementine, mandarin, and lemon trees to grow in pots in the driveway. In the back we have tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cilantro and celery.
ETA: forgot to say thank you for pet video and pics. Rosie looks so much healthier, and Thurston in the back and Lily in the front inspecting the bags of dirt are good to see.
dexwood
You’re all right, Cole, I don’t care what Steve says about you. Lily posts always lift my day to a higher level. Trump might have been a different guy had he been worthy of a dog’s love. Nah, probably not…
NotMax
Do put a discreet marker on the spot where the Balloon Juice time capsule is buried. Future generations will effusively thank you.
:)
eclare
I feel lazy, but am glad to hear about Lily.
rikyrah
Lily and Rosie look so cute ? ?
Thanks for the update Cole.
CliosFanBoy
awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww doggies!!!!
Ruckus
First rule of any financial transaction – If it sounds too good to be true, there’s a 99.9% chance that it is. The other .1% of the time – you are really, really, really getting screwed.
satby
Glad to see Lily doing so well!
Skip the additional topsoil and get screened compost. I don’t know if it would be any cheaper, but tilling that in will break up that clay and improve the soil long term more than just topsoil will. I did that for the near concrete clay soil in my garden in Michigan, and after a year and a second application of compost the dirt looked like healthy black loam from a forest. Grew everything that was put into it too.
Gelfling 545
Glad to see that Lily continues to improve. Who’s a good girl? Lily is!
I recall getting topsoil several years in a row to make our yard plantable and, er, drain the swamp. The rule seemed to be that they dumped it in the driveway in the morning and it poured rain by noon. Fortunately, those days are behind me.
raven
We have a small Honda tiller and it really does the job on stuff like that.
Mnemosyne
Yay Lily! She knows the jackals are all pulling for her.
I said this in an earlier thread, but jackal good wishes seem to have helped me, too, because I will only need one ACL revision surgery, not two. Woot! I still have no idea when it can be scheduled, though — I have to wait 3-4 weeks for my insurance company’s approval before I can get a date. Feh.
I am planning to celebrate with a weekend trip to the Happiest Place on Earth that just happens to concide with my birthday. Given my current state of gimpiness, it will be mostly hanging around the fancy hotel and not too much theme park time.
dexwood
@satby:
So true. Try gardening in New Mexico’s alkaline caliche without compost. My dirt is basically pulverized, sandy granite. I buy compost, I compost everything I can. Plus, you need to be water smart. Stretch it wisely, even then, it often isn’t enough.
zhena gogolia
We love you, Lily.
M4
My question was about John Cole’s rug.
Go Lily!
NotMax
@Mnemosyne
Just for you, The 18 Best Things to Eat at Disneyland.
Gotta be something in there that meshes with your dietary needs.
Shell
Good girl, Lily, good girl!
Is that Thurston in the backyard photo, by the fence? Make sure he doesn’t get buried.
***********
Envious on all these garden reports.
Anne Laurie
Thirding Satby’s advice — go with screened (and *aged* compost), not topsoil. Apart from its plant-nutritional value, compost will hold moisture a lot better than standard topsoil. Most of what’s sold commercially as ‘topsoil’ these days would’ve been classified as ‘construction fill’ if the rules were what they should be.
And congratulations to Miss Lily, who looks fantastic… as do your tomatoes & etc!
danielx
And fuck that guy who burned you on the topsoil. Also. Too.
M4
@Mnemosyne: glad to hear your knee is… not the worst case!
HRA
Thanks for the update on Lily, John. I love the photo of Rosie grooming Lily.
I planted my container garden of vegetables and herbs two weeks ago and everything has grown so fast. I have a good sized day lily “farm”. among a lot of other plants in my 8 beds. I give a lot of them away every year.
Hugs to Lily and the fur babies.
Hope
Mai naem mobile
The guy who fucked you on the dirt was a dirtbag. I bet he was a Trumpov voter. I got a little concerned when I saw the Lily update post. I am happy for you and that she’s doing well.
M4
Are we sure topsoil guy wasn’t trump? I know I’ve never seen them in the same room.
Yarrow
Yay, Lily! So glad she’s doing so well.
Listen to satby, John. Spend your money on compost and mulch. Layer your yard with compost and it’ll pay you big dividends. Check out the book “The Hidden Half of Nature” to see how some folks brought their empty clay side yard to life using compost and mulch.
NotMax
Another earthquake notification form Kilauea. 5.6 intensity.
(The civil defense announcer mispronounced it “Kilomalea.”)
?BillinGlendaleCA
@NotMax: Seems like they started frying everything since the last time I was there(it’s been 20 years).
?BillinGlendaleCA
@NotMax:
Trump changed the name, it’s supposed to be Kilomelania but Trump spelled his wife’s name wrong again.
Joy in FL
I love Lily. So glad she is doing well. Rosie is a good doggie, too.
Your yard is going to be awesome, John.
ruemara
@Mary G: I’m sorry your hands are getting worse. I know you like to garden. I hope you have some recovery so you can do a little more of it.
Lily looks happy & healthy. The garden looks… nascent. But the backyard garden is looking fine! I miss growing things.
Edited to add: I’m here rolling out my legs & I wonder if I’d have become gym queen if I knew I’d be in a painful & intimate relationship with foam rollers.
WereBear
Thirding the compost idea and if a clay is a real problem vermiculite does wonders.
Lily is such a good girl!
Everyone remember that June is Shelter month!
Mnemosyne
@NotMax:
I’ve probably had about half of that list. I’m still a little annoyed that word got out about the Bengal BBQ and now I have to stand in a huge line just for some bacon-wrapped asparagus.
Insiders know that California Adventure has the best food. They even have an on-site bakery where they make the Boudin sourdough bread that gets used throughout the whole resort.
Mnemosyne
@M4:
AND I was able to get tickets for “Dear Evan Hansen” when it comes to town in October. So today could have been worse.
Gvg
Buy a bag of worm castings and sprinkle tiny bits all over the yard. Worm castings are full of worm eggs so you get natures rototillers doing the aerating your soil for you.
Compost is good too. Also all organic matter. Sometimes your silly neighbors will throw away bags of leaves. Grab and compost or shred and spread. Buy a mulching mower or put a mulching blade onto the mower you have. Keep your own lawn nutrients back into your lawn instead of throwing away.
opiejeanne
That little tail wag when Cole calls her by name is cute.
Our Annie cat does this when she’s busy in the garden, kind of like “Yeah, Mom, I’m acknowledging you but I’m not going to talk to you because I’m stalking a mouse. Lily’s probably much more polite.
Steeplejack
@NotMax:
Damn, I usually hate listicles like that, but I was amazed to see how many things on the list looked really good. Maybe I’m just hungry.
Major Major Major Major
@Mnemosyne: Oh, my husband loves that one.
Steeplejack
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
You say that like it’s a bad thing.
MoxieM
Lucky pups with all that dirt to dig–er–play in! My Murphy likes to dig herself a wallow and lie in the cool top layer to keep the heat away. Lily looks terrific, such a good thing to see.
Kay (not the front pager)
Hi! I just dropped by with a little problem. Everyone here is so good with the pets, I thought you might have suggestions.
My DIL’s best friend is very ill. She is hoping to go home to Korea in 2 weeks so her mom can take care of her if she is well enough (she’s in the hospital now, just out of ICU). She has a 12 week old part-chihuahua puppy she was planning to take with her, but she just found out it would have to be in a long quarantine. Does anyone know anyone who would be interested in this (really adorable) puppy? I can’t take him. I already have two very large and cantankerous cats and a very small and cantankerous dog.None of them will take kindly to a happy little puppy soaking up all the attention.
This is a young, thirty-something woman dying alone in a strange country and I just feel so bad for her. There’s not much I can do, but if I could ease her mind about this one thing, it would make me feel a little better.
ETA: I’m in the DC/Metro area. If you know anyone in the surrounding area (within like half a day’s drive or so), I would be glad to bring the little guy around. He’s 12 weeks old, has his shots current up to 12 weeks, and is pad trained.
ruemara
Uh, you should start a compost pile or bin going. Check if your municipality has a program. Or I can post the training videos I did for my city. But it’s easy, if you do vermicomposting, the worms are cute, bait & everything is great fertilizer. & Turning your heap is good exercise.
Mnemosyne
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
They hit both extremes — you can get fried pickles or a giant fresh pickle, your choice. They have actual fruit stands in addition to the churro carts. Etc. There are a ton of vegetarian choices, not so many vegan, but they’ll usually do their best if you ask ahead of time.
Steeplejack
@Mnemosyne:
Score! I know you were pessimistic about getting through.
And good luck with the knee.
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
No spoilers! I know that the main character is gay and that it’s really poignant, but I’m going to try and go in with no preconceptions. I did that with “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” and ended up loving it.
Steeplejack
@Kay (not the front pager):
How about some helpful details, like the location? And is the dog current on shots, vet care, etc.?
Also maybe e-mail Anne Laurie and get her to front-page a pet bleg. “Quick Links | Contact a Front Pager” at the top of the page.
ETA: Damn it, just saw your ETA.
Mnemosyne
@Kay (not the front pager):
Email Anne Laurie with the details — you can message her from the Contact A Front Pager link on the front page. She can create a bleg post for you.
Major Major Major Major
@Mnemosyne:
*whispers*
it has catchy songs
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
I was, like, the 4,000th person in the online queue, but I just let it run in a browser window while I did other things and eventually I got in. It’s balcony seats on a Wednesday night, but we’re good with that.
WereBear
@Kay (not the front pager): a local shelter can put him on Petfinder. Emphasize the family emergency aspect. People understand that.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: Good to hear you’ll only need one cutting session, but your wait time must be a mistake. I’ve been informed that we have the “Best Medical System” in the world and there is absolutely NO waiting unlike that hellhole Canada.
jonas
Why don’t you find out who did your neighbor’s back yard. That seems pretty squared away. ;)
Kay (not the front pager)
@Steeplejack: Lol, yeah, I suddenly realized that would be helpful to have a little info about the puppy. He is a cutie. I’ll send the pictures I have to AL, thanks for the suggestion.
Lymie
Two weeks post knee replacement and off all assistive devices. Driving! Still taking Tylenol, but feeling pretty positive. Going to the gym for 6 months previous means there are muscles inside this overweight body.
Now, trying to get up the social courage to attend high school boy friends mothers service. I loved her, too! But….. am I the only one that got old?
zhena gogolia
@Steeplejack:
Just reading it gave me an attack of IBS. And here, see if you can spot the solecism:
Major Major Major Major
@Lymie: Woohoo!
Time tends to go in one direction and at a consistent rate, for most people.
Lymie
@Kay (not the front pager): little dogs are super easy to place up here, happy to facilitate/foster if needed.
chris
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Sure, there’d be a wait but it wouldn’t include 3-4 weeks to see if insurance would pay some or all of the cost.
satby
@Mnemosyne: Good news on the knee, especially if you can get it scheduled soon. And congrats on your ticket score. Early Happy Birthday!
@Kay (not the front pager): what a horribly sad story! If she got the dog from a rescue group or a (spit) reputable breeder, they will likely take the dog back to rehome. It’s in some rescue contracts that the dog be returned to them instead of surrendered elsewhere. A breed rescue might also jump at the chance of taking a puppy because they often don’t need to be fostered as long as an adult dog. Do send the details to Anne Laurie too.
Lymie
@Major Major Major Major: yeah, no, hs boy friend looks trim and cute in FB pics it really will take courage.
Mnemosyne
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Ironically, when I first tore this ACL on the job back in December of 2005 and had to go through CA workers comp, the surgery was done by the end of April 2006. With good private insurance, I’m having to wait FOR FREAKING EVER for each and every authorization. It seriously may end up taking over a year after the initial injury date to get the damn surgery because every place my HMO is sending me is way overbooked for months out.
jl
Thanks for cute petpic.
I for one, think that both yards look absolutely great. I see no problem. But then, I grew up on farms, and that is how things usually looked. So, maybe it’s just me.
satby
@Lymie: I hear you! As a fellow old overweight person (tbh, I’m a fattie) you can’t give up doing things you want to do just because of what someone might think about your looks.
Princess Diana got dumped for Camilla… Just sayin. Looks aren’t the most important quality. No one looks like they did in HS.
Major Major Major Major
@Lymie: Lots of people look trim and cute in Facebook pics, even if they aren’t.
@satby:
ah…
Ruckus
@Mnemosyne:
Good to hear on the single surgery. One is always better than two.
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
We’ve been working at the VA on what I have for 3 yrs and I still don’t have any real answers. We have found out a lot of things it isn’t so I guess it isn’t all for naught though. But sooner or later someone is going to have to make an actual decision. And I don’t get to blame any insurance companies. It is a shame that most of us have to have medical decisions made by insurance companies rather than doctors. Best medical care money can be made off of.
John Cole
@Mary G: Is there nothing that can help your hands?
Steve in the ATL
@Major Major Major Major:
So now you have forsaken Einstein?
“Two hours talking to a pretty girl* can feel like two minutes; two minutes sitting on a hot stove burner can feel like two hours”
*substitute boy as needed
Steve in the ATL
@John Cole: faith in our lord and savior Jesus Christ
Major Major Major Major
@Steve in the ATL: You’re a lawyer, you should have more than a passing familiarity with hedge words.
Ruckus
@satby:
I must look enough like I did in HS. 2 yrs ago I went to a service for a HS friend, him being a year ahead of me the only person I recognized was a friend from my class who I had seen a recent picture of. We hadn’t seen each other in 49 yrs. He knew me. I’ve grown 3 inches, gained 50 lbs, lost my hair and have a full beard. He knew me. Some things you just have to accept, there is no explanation.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
Cheese, right? Although I can’t keep up with all the gradations of vegan/vegetarianism, I think maybe “lacto-ovo” vegetarian might get you into the cheese zone. But, yeah, bit of a howler.
Major Major Major Major
@Steeplejack: Vegetarians eat cheese. When they feel like it.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
Nope, it’s a pure copyediting mistake. It took me a second read to catch it.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
According to my friends who had to go vegan (heart disease and type 2 diabetes risks), the easiest restaurant to order at is Mexican. Get a vegetarian burrito with no cheese or sour cream and you’re good to go.
But because they went vegan for health reasons, they don’t get freaked out at the thought of possibly hidden animal products in the tortilla or anything nitpicky like that.
Ruckus
@John Cole:
Depends on what the cause of the problem is. And your definition of help. If I’ve got what they think I might, Parkinson’s the answer is not really. The med helps a bit but not fully, and the disease progresses until they have to give you too much meds and the reactions to that level……
If I remember correctly, Mary’s issue has about the same answer, not really.
Dan B
John
30 year landscape design pro here in clay / glacial till horror land (otherwise known as Seattle – gardening paradise, it’s actually Oregon, the place that the glaciers deposited our topsoil.) I echo the compost suggestion, but also its best if you can get some stuff that’s not superfine and don’t till the hell out of the topsoil / clay clods. Some chunks are beneficial for the soil ecosystem (rhizosphere, if you must). Chunks and modest sized rocks provide habitat for worms and burrowing critters that will mix, aerate, and provide nutrients long term by pooping and eventually dying underground. Also adding leaves to beds yearly works wonders. Ground leaves on turf, composted or not, works well. Minimize conifer needles. Leaves that aren’t composted will pull some nitrogen out of the soil for a few weeks but nitrogen is the simplest nutrient to apply. It doesn’t even need to be worked in. I can explain in detail if you like but there’s information available, probably from a reputable source like the Royal Horticultural Society or you local Agricultural Extension Agency.
opiejeanne
@Mnemosyne: Aw man, having to wait for that is crummy. If I could I’d go with you and push you around the park if necessary, but I’m probably not traveling for a while. The first cataract surgery seems to have been a rousing success, but I’ll find out for sure next Thursday. I’m pretty enthusiastic about having the left eye done now, but I’m not sure how long I’ll have to wait. My surgeon seems to be pretty popular.
Steeplejack
@Mnemosyne:
Oh, “right of passage,” right. Been turning off the copyediting scanner at times lately to keep myself from throwing a tie-rod. You can tell that even first-tier news outfits have gutted their editing staff.
My current burn item: apparently the nation’s Strategic Comma Reserve is running low, leading to the vast proliferation of constructions like this:
Of course it should be:
I’m seeing this everywhere now.
Major Major Major Major
It’s not to style guide, but it actually makes for an interesting voice.
frosty
@satby: Here’s my take on compost. Good stuff! Every time I trim the hedges etc. I pick it up the clippings with the lawnmower with the bag attached. After a bunch of passes I have small compostable stuff and I don’t have to haul it to the curb for the garbage pickup. Multiple wins!
opiejeanne
@Mnemosyne: Amen on the Bengal BBQ. The line was pretty bad last time we were there. DCA may still have Margarita slushies, which I liked but ymmv.
I’m surprised the list didn’t mention the Blue Bayou restaurant. The food used to be outstanding. When I was 15 a friend’s parents took us to Disneyland and we ate there. First time I had a shrimp Louie.
Steeplejack
@opiejeanne:
“No. 11: Monte Cristo at Blue Bayou Restaurant.”
Mnemosyne
@opiejeanne:
We’re actually going to minimize in-park time and mostly hang around the hotel since I managed to get a cast-discount room at the Grand Californian. (It’s still crazy expensive, but it’s my birthday splurge and G doesn’t have to know. ?) We’ll probably pop into DCA for my two favorite rides (Soarin’ and Radiator Springs Racers) and then go back to the hotel to exploit it as much as possible. I may even squeeze myself into a bathing suit if the rugrats aren’t too numerous to enjoy the newly refurbished pool.
Sadly, we weren’t that impressed when we finally went to the Blue Bayou — maybe we caught them on a bad day. We’re going to try Steakhouse 55 at the Disneyland Hotel.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
After many years of argumentation, I finally managed to wear everyone else down and get my Oxford commas back into our style guide at work. The day I discovered that the corporate proofreader had surrendered and stopped removing my Oxford commas was a good day. So we may now be using more than our allotment of commas and causing shortages elsewhere. ?
Steeplejack
@Mnemosyne:
Are you sure you still have a corporate proofreader? Just sayin’.
opiejeanne
@Steeplejack: I only noticed the Cafe Orleans.
I can’t remember what I used to order there and the menu has changed a lot over the years. We used to have annual passes when our youngest worked in the park, 2001-06 and we ate in the French Market most of the time. We gave up on even getting into Cafe Orleans years ago.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
We do for the physical books that get published. Not sure about the news site(s).
Steeplejack
@opiejeanne:
“Nobody goes there anymore. It’s always too crowded.”
opiejeanne
@Mnemosyne: I just checked the menu and wasn’t impressed.
I’m trying to remember the name of the place that we liked outside the park.
Mnemosyne
@opiejeanne:
We used to love the Storyteller’s Cafe at the Grand Californian, but they switched it to being a buffet for every meal, not just breakfast. I know it makes it easier for parents, but it was really bad for the quality of the food.
They’ve also started doing a special thing in Tomorrowland where they put couches and tables on the ramps around Innoventions. They only promise you an overpriced dessert box, but you get a good view of the fireworks if they don’t get cancelled because it’s too windy. I decided to gamble and reserve that, too. I get a discount on food, so why not?
opiejeanne
@Mnemosyne: We used to have breakfast at Goofy’s Kitchen when Katie was working there. The food wasn’t bad and it was fun, but I think it was a buffet. That works better for breakfast than other meals, I think.
Mnemosyne
@opiejeanne:
We have to come back early on Sunday because G has to work in the afternoon, so I reserved an 8:30 am time at the Paradise Pier character breakfast. Having something fun to look forward to will help me get up early, and we park in the structure behind that hotel, so we can load up the car and then leave immediately afterwards. Win/win!
opiejeanne
@Mnemosyne: Sounds like fun. We ate at Paradise Pier once. I think I had breaded shrimp, but I remember that dessert was cotton candy!
karen marie
I know you have a lot going on, John Cole, but PLEASE, in the name of all that’s good, pull out that giant shrub in front of your front porch. It is too big and has no context. You could do something nice with smaller perennial shrubs and flowering plants. Option B is to whack it super hard to reduce its size. Every time you post a picture and I see that shrub, I shudder.