 so far. I've added a lot more than what I'm about to show, but these are just the big additions. The first thing I was excited about was to have a compost bin again!! One of the things you miss when you're in an apartment is simple things like being able to compost and having access to recycling. It's so nice to have those things back again!
Here's the first of the two raised beds, cleaned up and fixed up! I tore out everything except for a bunch of cucumber plants that they had in there and a tomato bush that's producing well!. The cucumbers were not doing so well because they were so cluttered and covered. So I took some of the PVC pipe and cut it and secured it into the ground and then gave it extra support with a cinder block and then put a 6 foot piece of lattice laying against each piece of PVC pipe with a nail in it to stop it from sliding down. Now I have something for the cucumbers to climb up with bonus room underneath the lattice to plant more stuff :D I'm thinking I'll plant watermelons or something that climbs along the ground here.
Here's the main garden bed that's about 10 feet long. I should've left space to plant more stuff, but with all of the room I have in the yard, I'm fine. If anything, I'll get a better yield since the plants have so much room now! I have two bell peppers there, two eggplant and 6 more tomatoes. I'd like to get more of all of these!
And finally, here's ONE little peek inside the house to show you a couple of my indoor plants :p On the console table is my indoor lemon tree that was just about dead at my apartment. Though it does have two lemons on it! It is going to LOVE this room!!!  And my fiddle leaf fig is back there in the corner though I don't know if it's going to stay there. It needs to be repotted too!
Ok...that's it for today! That's enough, sheesh!! I'm sure I put everyone to sleep :p It felt really good to write this though and to be gardening again and getting back to things I love. This year has been one of, if not THE, most testing years of my life, yet it's also been the most rewarding, fulfilling, and personally gratifying years of my life as well. When my dad was diagnosed with cancer, I didn't see anything but a giant black cloud on the horizon. Oddly enough, despite the many dark days that have been involved, I've been able to find more opportunities for personal growth during this than at any other point in my life. I think my dad has too. I think I'm finally ready to start talking about that and sharing it now :) I missed you guys! Hope you are all well and look forward to catching up!
This Is Going To Be THAT Post...
Hey everyone...I wanted to take the time to wish everyone a happy new year! I started this blog on this date in 2007. So I'm turning 9 today and starting my 10th year of blogging which is a bit mind boggling and overwhelming when I think of all that blogging has given me over the past 9 years and all of the ways that it's changed my life and continues to do so. I've made the absolute most amazing friends that I will forever cherish. That's certainly the number one way blogging has affected me and it's something that I NEVER expected when I started book blogging. It's also allowed me to read differently, become even more passionate about books than I already was (which I didn't think was possible :p), read outside of my comfort zone, and discover things I would've never discovered.
This goes beyond books though. Books have evolved into relationships with people where I've gotten music recommendations that have changed my life. TV recommendations that have changed my life. And then going back to those friends I've made....without them, there are personal accomplishments I've made and hurdles that I've jumped over that I don't know that I would have had it not been for the people that I've met. It's been amazing.
Somewhere along the way, something changed here. This is the classic "it's not you, it's me" :p That's so cliche, but sadly, the truth here and something that I thought it was only fair to write about here. For right now, I most likely won't be around on this blog for awhile. That's no surprise to anyone, I'm sure. I haven't posted here in months! I keep in touch with a lot of people from this blog on instagram, twitter or email (though I've sucked even at email lately!), though I know there are others who have read this blog that I don't talk to as often, and I just wanted to say A. I'm ok and B. I'll probably be back here eventually, I'm just not sure how long that eventually will be.
What it boils down to is that this blog started to get associated with commitments and responsibility to me and though that was completely SELF IMPOSED, it was still there. And for some reason or another, I couldn't separate the two. Reading, talking with my friends...that should never feel like a commitment or a responsibility. I knew I needed some time away and it's made a big difference. This past year has been a rough one and it looks like that will continue through this coming year. Without going into detail, my dad was diagnosed with cancer this year and I've become one of his main caretakers. It's opened my eyes quite a bit to focusing on the things that are most important to you and I've had to redefine my online presence a little bit.
I am still writing online...it's at a different place and in a different way. It's VERY sporadic. I may write multiple days in a row and then not at all for a month or so. And it's much more personal, intentionally. I created it as a place mainly for myself. But if you want to know where it is if you haven't found it already, you're more than welcome to email me at chrisa511(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll send you the link.
The blog has been calling my name, so I'm finally answering it. I wanted to thank everyone for the wonderful responses to my last post. It wasn't just the comments and the emails of support that I got that made me happy, but just knowing that there are amazing people like all of you out there makes the world a much better place to be in. A world of acceptance is a wonderful thing and I think the more we're verbal about our acceptance of others for who they are, that can only be a good thing. It lets others know that it's ok to be you, brush those insecurities aside. The few negative people and the negative media out there casts enough judgement...I like that we counteract that by accepting and creating an environment of acceptance to balance the internalizing fear of the negativity.
What I've been reading: I don't have enough room here to tell you ALL of what I've been reading, but I'll tell you about a few things that I've especially loved. This has been the year of comics for me. I don't know what's come over me but I've been a comics reading machine lately! And thanks to Marvel Unlimited I've been reading a lot of Marvel Stuff! My two latest Marvel obsessions are Nova and Young Avengers. Young Avengers you can read in one sitting...and you'll want to because it's SO GOOD!! The whole series run (by Gillen) consists of 15 issues and it's AMAZING. Not only does it have one of the best teenage gay couples I've read in ages, but it also features a bisexual character which sadly is so rarely represented in literature, much less, comics. Also KATE BISHOP for the Hawkeye lovers. I went into this series expecting to really enjoy it, but didn't know how head over heels in love I'd fall for it. Thanks Debs, Memory and Ana for recommending this one!
Nova is SO GOOD!!! I've really come to love Marvel's cosmic universe...I've never read any Nova prior to this, but after reading Guardians of the Galaxy, Legendary Star Lord and Rocket Raccoon, I was all caught up with Marvel's current stuff and going through cosmic withdrawals...which left me with Nova. I'm so glad I read it because it's my favorite now of all of the cosmic stuff. Once again, it comes down to the characters and the story. It's more than just a superhero story, it's a story with heart and I love Sam Alexander so much. I love how this series ties into so many other Marvel series as well without you having to know much about other Marvel series, yet still makes those tie ins that much more enjoyable if you do follow them.
Right now I'm reading Bone Gap by Laura Ruby and I instantly fell for this book from page 1. I knew I'd love this one just from Ana's review of it and from the cover :p Yes, I do judge books by the cover. The fact that it's magical realism is something that doesn't hurt either. I've had a special place in my heart for all things magical realism ever since reading The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender years ago, which made me fall in love with the style. Ruby's writing is beautiful and wistful and she paints scenes that just etch themselves into your mind and momentarily take your breath away. I love it when an author is able to do that and too few authors do it. I'm looking forward to where this book goes, though I'm fearful of where