Raise your hand if you love hand watering (in moderation!)

Hey Murmur!

Yes, I think our husbands might have come from the same batch of cookie dough. What is it about them? They do the lamest things and you want to just throttle them! Then, you come back from stewing, and they've done the dishes or vacuumed or changed a poopy diaper, and then you can't stay mad at them! We just celebrated 8 years of married bliss this past Wednesday.

Speaking of dumb guy things...

I have to share this story aout my dad...My mom was out of town one time. I was too young to cook. My dad served us taco salad for dinner. When we finished eating it, he asked us if we liked the salad. My brothers and I said yes and he replied, "Good because it was supposed to be tacos, but I dropped the platter on the floor so I took the stuff that didn't touch the floor for myself and mixed all the rest up like a salad for you kids."

I get so mad when I thnk of that! His own children!

Oh, my . . . that is indeed a grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr . . .

My mother would never have left us alone with any thought of our dad doing a thing (she was the caregiver all the time, every minute of every day . . . interesting that my dad now has to take care of her and darned if he isn't doing his best - doesn't even yell or complain like he used to about everything!).

Now my first husband (possibly the age of your dad or a bit older than he) would have done exactly what yours dad, except that he would have made life very difficult for me if I was going to go somewhere and he had to do something. I was extremely ill one time (not a serious issue, just totally downed with bronchial stuff) and he was so angry that he had to heat up a can of something that he wouldn't speak to me and when my brother called from Canada to see if I was okay, my ex told him I was fine and wouldn't let me talk to me!) I can laugh now.

Current husband did a great deal of the cooking for his first wife and their three sons - he took them camping so she could have some quiet time, etc. He ain't perfect, but I am grateful to have him!! He respects my love of gardening and brags to people about what I have done.

Little reminders, eh, about how good they really are!!! Even if we could choke them for doing such goofy things!!!

Yeah, my mean ole dad who fedme taco salad (and scrambled fish the next night) is coming over tomorrow to finish building the fence in the back yard. He's on speaking terms with my mom again (they're calling eachother pet names again) but he has to finish the job he started last week! Ha!

And yes, I get kinda scared to leave my children alone with hubby for too long- I'm scared the house wll be on fire and the kids will be wearing their shoes on their hands.

Hi, VS - Glad you got back safely. Sounds like you had a truly
lovely time. Good.

Croclover, everybody knows that if you dropped something
on the floor, "the devil kissed it", and that's the only reason
you can't eat it. How long was your mom gone? I'm sure
the floor was still clean LOL

The only things my husband cooked were pot roast, hot dogs,
and Spaghetti O's. That's it. Whenever I went to the hospital,
my kids knew what was for lunch and dinner.

Of course, to make up for this shortcoming in the kitchen,
everybody got to pick whatever cereal they wanted, and
I would come back to 20 boxes of the sweetest, junkiest
cereal ever invented by man, and ice cream up the wazoo
in the freezer. You know who got to be the meanie here,
don't you, when it went in the trash?

As for his watering method, it was to turn the hose on full blast,
then lay it down on the ground and come back to move it
every hour. I mean, that way everything got a good soaking, right?
Never mind that there would be holes in the garden from the
blast of the water, or that the soil was completely washed
away from the roots and my flowers were just floating away.
He had watered. He'd done me a favor 'cause he loved me :o )

I spoke to the earth a lot at those times, but I can't print what
it was I said here, or what the earth replied. Gmfl#blk!!!!

At least your husbands try (and changing diapers is certainly a big plus). What is it about those men who seem so domestically helpless? Are they really that helpless, or is it a just a macho thing? "You Jane. Me Tarzan. Me kill meat. Jane cook meat. Tarzan not know how clean up meat." Or do they try to appear helpless just to get out of doing things they don't like to do?

Fortunately, I'm not married to a Tarzan. My DH had coffee ready when I came downstairs this morning (he doesn't drink coffee); he just finished spraying Messenger on everything; he's painting our bedroom this afternoon; he doesn't mind cooking if I don't feel like it (and does it well); he does laundry sometimes; if he notices sand on the floor (FL ya know), he'll sweep it up instead of telling me I need to sweep. This evening he'll handwater everything. Don't misunderstand; I don't just eat bonbons all day! :) But we've been a team since Aug. 32 years ago! I don't think I could have stood 32 years with a man who can't change a light bulb. Nor handwater. :)

Bivbiv...what IS Messenger? I asked for a spray that's good for setting blooms (I think that's what it's for) and noone has known what I'm talking about.

Messenger:
http://www.edenbio.com/garden/

Debbie

Hi, Connie. Messenger contains a protein that's a growth stimulant; it is NOT a fertilizer. If you Google it, you can find and buy it online from a company called EdenBioscience. It comes as a powder in a small packet, and you spray it on with water every three weeks. I found out about it on a DG thread, and many people swear by it. Today was the third application, and I think we're beginning to see it work. For two years we've had a Snowqueen hibiscus that hasn't flourished at all. The leaves have been very puny and sparse, and it has one or two blooms occasionally. In the past week, however, the leaves have become much larger, and the foliage is dense. This morning, it had three blooms, so I hope this is the beginning of a prettier plant! We also have a duranta erecta which has never bloomed. Yesterday I spotted one lone flower, its first one ever. This small shrub is only supposed to get about 24" high, but this week I had to trim it in order to see something beyond it. I think I'm about to become a Messenger fan!
If you find one of the Messenger threads on DG, you'll see some impressive blooms. Another unexpected side effect in some cases, not all, is fewer pests. I think I recall one explanation for the pest reduction is that Messenger seems to attract beneficial things that like to eat the pests.

Oh, good. I see someone just found the link.
M.

Thanks to both of you for the M. info. Going there now...

In the Garden Talk Forum you'll find a thread, "Messenger...Before ane (sic) After."

There is also a messenger co-op until July 4th.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/620738/

Thanks to all...just visited the Messenger web site and the co-op site and ordered from the Co-op!

love hand watering. Wish I had more time to do it. AND MORE GARDEN. still have the work in progress going, always........

calvin

Hey, Calvin spelled backwards is Nivlac.
Never saw a man handwater anything except
the grass, Calvin LOL

Mahnot, you're a clever girl. I do think Nivlac is a guy, and it's nice to see a man who is man enough to water plants as well as grass. You're a good fellow, Calvin!

OK Mahnot, so if you discovered Nivlac's secret, can you tell me why I'm called Croclover?

And, Maynot, yours could be "Ton ham"...and that would be ONE, mighty large ham! :)

And Calvin is indeed a "gardener extraordinaire" who is one, manly, cool dude who does a lot more than tend to his grass! LOL I've met him, his sweet DW, and beautiful, perfectly behaved two children!!!

LOL Connie! Ton Ham! Hee hee! Can YOU guess why I'm croclover?

My thought was "Crocus Lover," but I guess that's too easy. Now I'm really, really curious!!

Guess again- I have never grown Crocus. What I love is green though...

ooh, wouldn't be a Gator (University of Florida, for the non-floridians) fan transplanted to CA, now?

Good guess shelflife but not correct. I am a California Native and not a football fan. I do adore Hockey though- go Stars! Another hint- the things I love are I hear very popular in some areas of the country but so far I am a Lone Ranger out here from what I can see.

And you, Shelflife- does your name refer to a love of books?

Oh, wait -- the shoes? crocs? I've just been considering ordering a pair.

>>And you, Shelflife- does your name refer to a love of books?

Ah, no... though hubby and I are AVID, AVID readers.

ShelfLife is an online name I use because one of the things I do is design t-shirts and my shop is ShelfLifeShop with the tag line "limited life t-shirts".

BINGO Shelf Life! You got it! And they come highly recommended by me (duh). They are soooooo comfortable- they are like walking on marsmallows. I wear a size 6 1/2 to 7 women's and I found that the children's size 4m 6w fit me best. They never stink, my feet never sweat, they're slip proof- I could go on and on. There is just one problem- I bought them for gardening and now I wear them everywhere and if I could have gotten away with wearing them out to the fancy restaurant hubby took me to for our anniversary, I would have! And this is very pathetic because I have a shoe problem- I own maybe 50 pair of heels!

I am going to go snoop around your tee shirt shop...

Croclover, darn - I was picture a lovely meadow of crocus!!! LOL

My feet are my only real health problem (I am one lucky 61 year old!) and I have orthotics so have to wear shoes that can handle them.

And when our feet hurt, everything hurts, and nothing gets done, right???!!!

That's right Murmur- or for me when my feet hurt, I just press on in my pumps- fashion before comfort! That used to be my philosophy until I found crocs and now I just can't stop wearing them and will find a way to make them fashionable with a boho skirt.

Oh, yes - I was fashion before comfort for years and years - thought I only looked good in 3" or 4" heels! For a number of years I was an executive assistant to two guys who were both 6' 4" so it just doubled my desire to wear heels!

Nowadays they would have to just put up with my 5' 3" (not that they cared, of course, that was just me - they both had tall wives and got a kick out of "little me"!). I did like the way heels made me feel feminine, but forget it now. I'll put on some makeup (after I was the garden dirt off) and smile pretty. LOL - that'll do it!

Well, and I have lime green crocs and I paint my toe nails hot pink and they look oh-so-cute peeking through the holes of my crocs!

Perfect! However, wouldn't work for me as my poor old feet just aren't pretty anymore!

The sizing thing is the main reason I haven't ordered (I haven't found anyone who carries them locally, so can't try them on)... I wear a 7-1/2, but I have VERY wide feet... my dad wore a EEEE width -- yes, 4E -- and while I've not been THAT blessed, I do have a problem with getting shoes wide enough.

So I was thinking of going with the 8-9... is there a particular style of croc you recommend? Looking at their web site, I liked the ... "land rover" -- I think that was the name -- military green with an orange heel strap... also liked the "beach" model.

And yes, I was once a "4 inch heel or die" woman ... but I gave that up about 20 years ago, lol. With my short fat feet, shoes are problematic enough without the added stress of a heel.

I'm ALL about comfort. ;)

Crocs are nice and wide- the goal is to have no part of your foot touching the front sides or back of the shoe. I do believe I have the Cayman style- the ones with the holes in toes. I like those because you can just hose the dirt out of your shoes while you're still wearing them. I would try the womwn's 7 8. My frind wears a size 8 and her 7 8's fit her great.

My poor feet show the results of those lovely high heels - bunions, hammer toe (well, almost anyway), nasty toenails, etc., etc. Not all that can be blamed on the heels, of course, but a lot of it sure can!!

Sigh . . . I miss them, though. Sometimes when I go to church I wear a pair that is about 1.5" and for two hours or so I can deal with it. And feel like a girl. LOL

Hmmmmmmm . . . we've gone from handwatering to high heels . . . well, to bring it back to topic, I do NOT wear high heels when I am handwatering.

They look really comfy, but I have the opposite problem from ShelfLife: skinny feet. I'd be afraid I'd walk right out of them. Also, if they don't touch your feet anywhere except the sole, why don't they rub blisters? I'm wondering if maybe I could wear the flipflops. I've never really looked for them in stores (I hate shoe shopping even though I love shoes. ShelfLife probably doesn't like shoe shopping for the same reason I don't).

Murmur, I saw on the Croc website that they have shoes especially for diabetics. Maybe you'd find those comfortable with your foot problems. Have you considered surgery for the bunions? I have a friend who had the surgery and isn't in pain anymore. She's not even 40 yet and thought she'd better get it done before they got really bad.

I don't wear heels for watering either! lol I've thought about starting a thread asking what kind of shoes people wear for gardening. I think it might depend on where you live.

I wear the Beach Style Crocs, not Caymans. I have gardened in high heels. I will be on my way to dinner or a party or something and next thing you know, I spot a weed, so I pull it up. Then I notice that something needs water, so I get the hose, next thing you know, I'm deadheading in heels and I'm late for an important date!

Biv, a friend of mine is about to have bunion surgery on one of her feet so I will be watching her results!!! Mine aren't painful at this time, but affect what shoes I can wear. This friend's feet really look like mine (the poor gal). She's eight or nine years older than I so I am indeed curious as to how she does. Quite likely will be in my future.

THEN I can water in high heels, right? Good grief.

Croc, I have ruined many a decent pair of shoes doing just that!!!!

Well, just try not to garden in suede pumps- not good. But...if you have a pair of summer heels and you walk on your tippee toes you can get across the grass without sinking your heels in!

I garden in Reefs' flipflops...does anyone wear those? I've ruined some of mine, so this year I bought a new pair of black and brown that I TRY not to wear outside, but if I do, I just hose them off, and they are suede, but washable suede.

OK, all:

For some reason, you forgot the Benny Hill rule, and
assumed I was casting aspersions on Calvin's manhood.
No way. Just commenting on the backwards spelling of
his name, but I did wonder where Hobbs was.

Connie: I don't eat ham. Time was, when you were ill,
the first thing the doctor told you to do was not eat pork.
Too hard to digest, puts a strain on the system of a sick
person. Don't know why they don't do that these days.
Has the Pork Lobby gotten to them???

Croclover: Although I have 53 pairs of shoes, mostly high
heels, which I rarely wear but cannot part with, I would never
have guessed what your name stands for. I assumed it was
some type of rare clover, like Medicagolupulina - which is
a black clover. Yep, you read that right.
Now, as for your "crocs" with your toes peeking out,
where's the proof? Photos, please.

High heels are very useful for aerating the soil, and much
more stylish than those spikes you can buy, which look
quite sinister. How threatening can a pair of pink
sling-back heels look to an earthworm?

ShelfLife: One of my friends has wide feet and she had the
worst time finding wide shoes, until she discovered Roman's
catalog. They carry a selection of wide shoes at a reasonable
price. I am NOT asserting that the following is true; however,
this is what she was told to me: I report, you decide:
When she told the girl who was taking her order several years
ago that she was amazed at the large and wide sizes available,
she was told that it was due to the many MEN who were their
customers in the women's shoe department. I'm not saying
anything here more than you are reading into it , OK?

>>she was told that it was due to the many MEN who were their customers in the women's shoe department

Having had a drag queen friend or two, I'm not surprised. ;) Though my friend who wore a size 13 (men's) shoe did have a pickle of a time finding fashionable heels.

>> until she discovered Roman's catalog

I don't know them -- do you have a link?

Oh, sorry, I had misspelled it. Googled it for you.

www.Roamans.com

Hope it works for you.