Hobbying

I've always hated (HATED) the "what are your hobbies?" question. Whats that about? Who has hobbies? I'm always afraid of saying I don't have any. What if i don't have any hobbies? Does that make me a loser? Does reading count? Jogging? Hanging out with friends? Panic. What do I say? Am I really boring?
So after years of this question...I still have no answer. However, I have a husband with enough hobbies and passions for both of us. For instance, its 12:04am on a Sunday evening and he's working away on a new longboard he's making with his own hands. Its got stain and woodburning decorations that are pretty detailed and time consuming. Ever the artist, he can't just slap some varnish on a board; its personalized and made with care. The only problem being that he's terribly excited to have it done and RIDE it but determined it will be perfect so the result is a lot of late nights. He can barely drag himself out of bed in the morning but has an equally hard time dragging himself TO bed in the evening when there's still more left to do on the board.
Longboarding has taken this Okanagan group over this summer. A whole group of guys just made a bunch of boards and are so excited! Excited enough that a few of them are making boards for their wives so that we go out with them. I don't have one yet but Justin's pretty sure thats exactly what I need for my summer fun so I'll have one soon I'm sure.
A long board is a skate board thats long. You can't do the tricks on a longboard that you can do on a skateboard but you can go long distances and go quite fast. Its more a distance/racing board. And because its long, its a little less scary to learn on. I've never ridden one yet but I'm sure I will be when Justin's board is done.
Last summer the passion was skimboarding on the lake. After using someone else's board most of the summer we found one online and he nearly chewed his nails to a stub waiting for that board to arrive. And really, all of these board sports we have cluttering up our entry are really just a landlocked substitute for the real passion: surfing. If there was surf nearby, his skimboard and longboard and skateboard (and possibly wife) would be shelved and he would be eating, sleeping, and dreaming surfing. We live on a lake and he is constantly scanning the water for anything that might resemble a wave.
Part of me wants to tame him and insist on safety. (Why do all his sports have to include speeding along on a board? Is there such a thing as an Aladdin complex?- 'cuz he's got it!) And the other part of me is proud of him for being talented and fearless. I guess I'll just continue to breathe up a quick prayer every time he grabs the board of choice and races outdoors.
I'll post a picture of his finished product in a few days.

Pictures....finally.

Justin and little Kaitlynn in Montana.



This is my little garden, freshly planted. It actually has some plants in it now. Some transplanted ones and some that actually grew from the seeds we put in! I'll keep this updated as it changes.



This is our front door. This flower bed is also slowly filling up....



Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.



Yes I know...charming to be sure!



Waiting forever for lunch! I went to Bellingham a week ago and we all went to Pike's Place market for the afternoon. Other than being freezing (and me in a skirt) it was lots of fun.



Jolly good friends.

Garden Picture

A sketch of the garden. I had to do this for school so I'll include it for your enjoyment. This garden is 16 feet wide and 23 feet long if I remember correctly so most of my rows are 7 foot or shorter. Just the way a garden (for two) was meant to be. And even though its small, its going to be way more than we can eat so we'll feed some of the struggling young couples around us for a few weeks too!:)

Success!

Woohoo!! You'll all be pleased to know that there are real plants growing right side up in our garden!!!! Our peas and our beans are poking through and they even look healthy and happy! I'm so excited! I feel like a master gardener!! A few weeks ago we planted our potatoes, corn, beans, peas, and broccoli. Yesterday I planted parsley, sage, oregano, dill, basil, cilantro/coriander, and chives in the herb section and zuchinni, cucumbers, lettuce, spinach, carrots, and radishes in the salad section!! I still have to get some peppers and tomatoes in.

My favorite thing about my garden is the fact that its small. The rows are very short. I purposely planted some things in two short rows rather than one long one to make it more a "play" garden. Not the garden of slavery I spent my childhood summers in!

I also have lots of sunflowers to plant but apparently they don't encourage the growth of some veggies so I'll have to plant them somewhere outside of the garden. And there's also an empty spot in front of our house that needs attention but this master green thumb is a little unsure of herself with the flowers so she's taking her time. I know I'm going to plant nasturtiums and rosemary but I'm unsure what else. Apparently nasturtiums are fully edible, flowers, leaves, and seeds. And the more flowers you pick, the more they grow! Plus, nasturtiums and rosemary both do well in poor soil, underwatered, and neglected. Hmm...does this say something about my confidence!?

All's Well that Ends Well

Whew! I'm not hopelessly doomed to failure in my garden! Turns out my little upsidedown plant may not have been as backwards as I thought. I never changed it, not because I had faith I'd done it right but because I was procrastinating, and lo and behold, the pink fuzzy thing has turned into a green leaf! Its really a miracle!

Now my broccoli on the other hand....we transplanted a few beautiful little plants into our garden and the birds-who-are-asking-to-be-shot-and-eaten came and ate them. They're gone! I hate birds now. And something else is eating our compost...oh well...

On a happier note, Justin and I just boought a camera so hopefully in the next few weeks I'll begin adding pictures to my blog. Hmmm...maybe I should get a hair cut first...