Random This and That

The little cat Smog is feeling much better. Robb and I realize that we have to be vigilant about his diet, because if he gets "off his feed" it could at best cost us a lot of money, and at worst kill him. The hair on his legs is growing back, from where they shaved him to give him an I.V. Smog has a beautiful coat, but with his scrawny shaved legs, and luxuriously furry feet and ankles, he looks like he is wearing Ugg boots.

And Robb and I are still dragging around with the remnants of our tenacious colds.

I went in for an MRI last week, to see if someone could pinpoint the weirdo health problems I've been having. While my brain is just fine (thank goodness) it turns out that I have a sinus infection.

I've got a couple of thoughts about this: First, I'm betting that I've had this sinus infection for months, and that it is the reason I've been sick so much, and it may explain my general lack of energy. Maybe I'm moping around the house because of a nagging infection, and not because I'm slipping into a black depression. I'm choosing to assign almost magical properties to the antibiotics I'm starting today. I'm going to believe that when they cure my sinus infection, I'm going to have loads of pep and drive, and quit mooching around like a slacky-pants.

My second thought is that it seems like massive overkill to diagnose a sinus infection via MRI. Rather like killing a mosquito with a sledge hammer, and a wildly expensive sledge hammer at that.

Our winter vegetables are almost finished. We're still eating beet greens, and the world's least impressive leeks are being harvested a little at a time. If they're not going to get any bigger, then fine. We'll just eat them as nibbles, instead of bites. We actually ate store bought kale for the first time in who-knows-how-long. It was tough and old. Unfortunately my seedling kale all dropped dead. I need to start another batch. My seedling beets seem to be sulking, they're not growing, but they're also not dying.

I can't remember if I mentioned that my experiments in plum tree grafting have continued to flourish, and that several more of the little twiggy scions have sprouted leaves. Some of those leaves look at bit tentative, but at the moment, we've gotten viable grafts of Inca, Laroda, Elephant Heart, and Shiro. The aphids are still attacking the plum, but both Robb and I have seen ladybug larvae, hunting aphids.

Our persimmon tree is in full bloom. These flowers (pictured above) are not "pretty" like most fruit blossoms. I doubt that anyone got nostalgic or misty-eyed about persimmon blossoms. I like them. They're freaky looking, and kind of waxy or fleshy. If looks are to be believed, we're going to have a huge persimmon crop.

Or maybe not. The plum is shedding fruit, which I assume is normal. I think that the tree will hang onto only as many fruits as it can handle. I just wish I could find a use for all of these unripe plums.