How did this happen? – Did you ever agree to have lunch with someone, then find yourself organizing the luncheon for 10 people except the person you were having lunch with originally isn’t going? I am the queen of saying no but somehow this one caught me off guard. It all started when there was the “let’s call so-and-so” to join us. I’m not a phone person so I agreed to email anyone I had an address for. Now I’m running a luncheon convention for old ladies that I barely know. Hope they don’t expect entertainment! Ain’t gonna happen again!
Date night – If you’ve been reading me lately you know I’ve had some dental work done that required eating soft foods for two months. This past week I had my maiden voyage with new foods that went well. I had promised my teeth that if they behaved I would take them out for a margarita and a steak. I held true to that promise. It went a lot like first dates do. Everyone was on their best behavior. My teeth chose not to bite my lip and I chose not to complain about them. Maybe it was the margarita but it was a great first date.
Mindful chewing — Yeah I sound like some crazy celebrity but in recovering from dental work I have had to do “mindful chewing.” That means I focus on chewing and nothing else. It’s best to avoid social situations where you might get so involved you forget to do the “teeth up, teeth down” routine. Hopefully I’m almost back to normal or as normal as I get.
The sad tale of my rose bushes – I have a rose hedge in front of a wooden fence. It looks wonderful…sometimes. This year I wanted to get a good photo when it was in full bloom. I took some shots early in the week but it wasn’t quite in full bloom. A few days later I noticed that it still wasn’t full of color. A closer examination showed that the local deer had come in for happy hour and nipped the flowers. Now I have a hedge without roses. Damn deer!
More on the deer – Not only did they eat the roses but they also nipped the flower tips off of all the perennials along the driveway. A portion of the back yard has a high fence and that’s the only safe place for plants. I try not to tempt them though. Deer can jump high if the reward is great enough.
So how was your week?
Nothing is a nice as a good chew. YEA! success
Maybe the deer were practicing up for a gardening audition? Roses – thorns? Good grief.
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Thorns, yes! Don’t know how they do it in their mouth. I can get sore hands from thorns and my hands are tough.
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Secret nocturnal lives of deer…they are probably in cahoots with trolls….
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so glad your night out went well, as for the deer, yikes!
Now onto the important things, lol – that lunch – what time should we be there and how tall are the margarita glasses? hehehe…
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Very tall!
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Kate, I”m beginning to feel we have parallel lives… my dentist visit was so depressing I’m not even going to share it even though it involved an old bridge ( ie three teeth) and I have a wild pig rooting about the roots of my roses…lots of hasty fence making going on….
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Sure seems like there is always something going one!
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I have pots of geraniums without flowers on them. Just leaves and stems. In pots by the front door where you’d think that deer wouldn’t roam. You’d be wrong.
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I had huge sweet potato plants in my front pots. They love sweet potato plants even if they have to stand on the front porch to eat them. Might as well, pressed the doorbell and came in for a drink.
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Knowing you as the no-animal-turned-away person, you’d probably sighed and served them up
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Would you like some butter with your sweet potato vine?
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I’m so glad your post dental maiden voyage to dinner was a very pleasant experience! You’ve apparently made it over the hurdle! I so frequently envy people with deer in their neighborhoods, but then I wonder how I’d feel if I experienced the damage. I like to think I’d be very patient and welcoming, but I have a lot of illusions about how patient I am, and those who know me well are dubious!
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I love deer too and I don’t think harshly of them when they eat my plants. It was frustrating when I had one that came in every night to swim in the pond (we have photos). I was afraid she would slice the liner. That was the impetus for the fence. I’ve stopped doing all the fancy flower beds but it’s more lack of energy than deer. Over the years I have learned what they don’t usually eat too and that helps. They don’t eat the roses every year and I’m stymied by they did this year. Everything here is lush from all the water so there is no shortage of food.
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I probably shouldn’t have laughed about the deer … but I’m guessing your roses are like candies to them. I LOVE deer, but I could understand how they could quickly lose status if they kept destroying my hard work in the garden!
I thought you might be interested in this little tidbit I found – “Deer turn their noses up at fragrant plants with strong scents. Herbs such as sages, rosemary, thyme, and lavender, as well as flowers like peonies and bearded irises, are just “stinky” to deer”. Maybe if you planted herbs in-between your rosebushes … ?
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The roses are right next to bearded irises. Fortunately many of my plants are inside the fence.
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I always enjoy when you can connect your random “five” like you do. Congrats on the improved teeth — eating substantive food is important in my book. But deer I can do without, not that we have that many here in Florida. Ever since my parents hit one at night, I’m leery of them. My mother was convinced that was how her tinnitus started!
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Deer are dangerous here to for driving. Dusk and dawn they are all over looking for food. I didn’t know they caused tinnitus but it happens! 🙂
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So, did you finally get your permanents after having an absent dentist?
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Nope, not yet. July 2nd is the magic date. The minor adjustment and mindful chewing seem to have resolved most of the issues.
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Oh yes, I’ve bitten into my jaw in the past and had to get adjustments. Glad to hear they’re working for you.
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I hope your teeth will reward you for your diligence and patience. What would be the alternative? Starbucks margarita milkshakes for every meal?
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Eating regular food is fabulous. I will never underestimate the power of good choppers.
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We tend to take teeth for granted until they don’t behave.
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I HATE when I inadvertently bite my tongue or the inside of my mouth. Once you’ve done it, chances are you’ll do it again (just to make sure you feel the pain fully). I hope you continue to be incident-free. I can’t believe the deer ate all of your roses… talk about mindful chewing.
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Mindful chewing of a different sort! 🙂
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I love your date night with your new teeth. Oh dear about the deer! Its an ongoing issue in these parts too.
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Yes, deer issues are not new. This year they got the roses!
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I’ve had bugs eating my organic garden plants, but no deer. That’s one of the few advantages to suburbia. Glad the new teeth are working out!
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These are the old teeth that decided to get persnickety!
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That’s too bad. I was hoping that you had gotten the final procedure and I had missed it. So, so sorry.
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I doubt that you will miss it. I will be shouting it from the rooftops! July 2 is the day!
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Hi, Kate – I am glad that your teeth are feeling better. Steak?! That’s quite an accomplishment. I look forward to reading about your date with the lunch bunch!
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Ah the lunch bunch. They are the exercise ladies from my old gym. I’m finding I have less and less in common with them but they are nice to see occasionally.
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Good luck with the lunch bunch ~ sounds like your “double date” turned into a “double cross.”
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I like that! A double cross!
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The squirrels dug up my new day lilies. They must have thought I left buried treasure for them! Sorry about your roses. My daughter has the same problem with deer in her neighborhood in Georgia. She can’t plant anything they don’t enjoy eating. We only have raccoons and possums but they are only after the cat food.
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We have raccoons. Ours love the bird seed.
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We also have turtles that love the cat food. The squirrels tend to gobble up everything!
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Awww turtles! We don’t have turtles here. The squirrels dig up everything but we have more issues with chipmunks. The have a condo under our porch. One day it’s all going to fall down! 🙂
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No chipmunks in Florida but I wish we did. They are so cute! There is a creek behind Ouse hose and the water turtles come into the yard to lay their eggs. The crows rob the nests more often than not. The box turtles are everywhere.
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Maybe if you borrow a dog and let him mark your lawn, it will scare the deer away. Or is that a case of the cure being worse than the disease?
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That was suggested to us before we put the fence in. The cats voted it down! 🙂
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The squirrels dug up my newly planted day lilies. I guess they though I had hidden treasure for them! Sorry about your rose bushes. We have raccoon and possum visitors but they are usually after the cat food. My daughter has the same problem in Georgia with deer and she lives in a neighborhood full of houses. We’ve encroached on their woodlands and they are fighting back I guess.
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You have such beautiful landscaping. Pity that the deer don’t realize you are not putting it there for them to eat! I have heard that there is some kind of a “urine repellent ” available to keep them away. Have you ever tried that?
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We’ve tried most everything. Some things stink to high heaven and most need to be resprayed every time it rains. It’s easier to ignore.
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Mindful chewing really does sound like a diet fad .. lol. Glad you’re on the mend from that ordeal.
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Yes I have had several meals without a single chomp on the lip. I’m getting better too. I can almost have a normal conversation over a meal. Can’t get worked up so no politics! 🙂
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Deer, much like rabbits are beautiful to see in the wild, but they can be destructive.
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Yes. We have rabbits too. I don’t do a lot of annuals unless they are in pots. They also LOVE parsley. You have to learn to live with them.
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Better hungry deer than a hungry bear! Bruno cares nothing about leaving a hedge in tact. He just merrily tramples en route to sustenance!
Congrats on your positive first date with a steak!
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Your deck bear scares the bejesus out of me!
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“Mindful chewing” sounds like a new diet. Maybe you’ll start a new fad.
Our neighbors put deer net over their veggie garden. But it would defeat the purpose with flowers! I wonder if there’s anything you CAN do!
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There are things like hanging soap or spraying with something that smells like rotten eggs. We did that for years before the fence. Now we enjoy the flowers inside the fence and concede the rest to the deer. They were pigs this year! Every last flower gone!
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No doubt your steak was love at first bite Kate. Sorry about the roses though.
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It was overwhelming. I couldn’t finish it so I got to enjoy a second meal the next day. It came with a baked sweet potato, one of my favorites.
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Sounds yummy. 🙂
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Sorry to hear about your deer infested roses and other plants, but good news on the dental front it seems! 🙂
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At this point there are NO roses on my bushes. 😦 However, my teeth are coming along. There will be a second date!
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