The yard is our Memorial Day mistress, always calling to us from outside: weed me, feed me, give me flowers! And so, we awoke bright and early with many a hope to shop at the wholesale florist down the street from where I work. My job has a wholesale account there and I had huge plans of stocking up on pots and plants for the weekend…only the jerks were closed for Memorial Day weekend. Even though their phone message said they would be open Saturday morning, 6am-10am. AAARG! I was so disappointed.

Josh and I made up for it by getting coffee at Bulldog News, buying the new Star Wars stamps while at the post office, and hitting the best farmer’s market ever in the U District. I bought another tomato plant start and woefully commented on my lack of pot for the plant. I bought some little lettuce starts in the hopes that maybe the ancient compost garden behind the house near the alleyway is actually decent planting soil. I bought overpriced tomatoes just cuz I was so excited to see them…and Fuji apples. The musician tent held a single solitary girl strumming a guitar and she sang, I’m not kidding, Puff the Magic Dragon over and over again.

We went to Nordstrom and I am officially trying out the new seamless panty by Felina. That’s right, zero lines. It sort of hovers on you, in a weird way, and while I’m not sure I can dance in them I think they’ll work great for my usual day to day. I realized that I have to wear dance pants M-F. I usually bring them to work and change into them. With all the fancy new svelte fabrics being used it’s almost impossible to avoid underwear lines. We’ll see if Felina can prove that wrong.

On our way to Trader Joe’s I spotted a ‘garage sale’ on the grass median near an apartment complex. I found a big red terra cotta planter! And a baby planter too! Hurrah! I bought both planters for $1.50. Now my tomato start has a home! The world works in mysterious ways.

When we got home, (and after I potted my tomato plant) I cheerfully went to work on a patch of grass next to the house near one of my gutters. The soil was fabulously rich and full of worms. I am determined to grow bulbs–a few in the front have survived and the joy of watching them grow is pretty exciting for this novice gardener. My shovel scraped the side of the house and a piece of it broke off! Now granted, it was crappy wood board put up to cover the fact that our house sits on stilts. Frantically I tried to prop the piece back where it was in the attempt to hide the evidence. It broke in my hands. I sadly called Josh outside to survey the five inch hole in the house. He was a good sport. We put a piece of wood over the hole and casually dumped potting soil against it. I planted my bulbs (hopefully they’ll turn into lilies!). The hole is hidden. It’s our secret.

We continued to attack at the patch near the alleyway. The ivy is dying on the tree and yet it still grows throughout this old compost pile. Josh took the shovel and uprooted all this old garbage, bleh. The fantasy of having something really beautiful back here is wavering. Now we just need a nice plant that will reproduce fast and hold its own against ivy, rocks, and candy wrappers. Later that day Josh gingerly went through another patch of ivy in the front of the house next to the sidewalk. He found an ancient pair of panties. That’s right: PANTIES. I’m not sure if this is worse then the enormous used condom or the rolled up maxi pad I found last month. Either way we’re trying not to think about it…