Anita ( figs) Spring in full bloom ( Thread #4)

April showers have certainly brought an array of May flowers :)

My rating system

1 = Very Very bad. Either I could not finish the novel, or the plot was ill-conceived

2= Still bad. I managed to finish the book. It was probably boring, unoriginal or poorly written (D)

3= Solid. There was character development, the pace was probably slow or parts of the book were well thought out. Still had the ability to make me think or at the very least want to continue reading, however, something was missing or could have been further developed. Slightly better than average. (C+ or B- or B+)

Subdivided into: Shaky ( barely got there), loose ( average) and solid ( just not quite there for a 3.5 or 4) ( B+)

4= Excellent read. I probably couldn't put the book down till it was finished. The Pace was spot on, complex characters, made me think in a different way and so on ( A -)

5= Absolutely perfect!

Books Read in January

Books Read In February

Books Read in March

Books Read In April

Books Read In May

Stats For April

Come in...I dare you :)

Happy new thread, Anita! Hoping to see garden pics fill in your blanks! lol

Happy new thread, Anita. Great to see your threads zapping along this year again.

Happy new one, Anita! Beautiful flowers....

>11 jessibud2: You have been quite patient. The garden is beginning to take shape. Some things have been planted and for other things it is too early. Most of the three gardens are 2/3 empty for now. Here are some pics of the vegetable and fruit garden. The raspberries and strawberries are happy with the new structure and transplanting.

>12 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! I am a little behind these days but will try and do better with visiting

>13 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie. Spring is quite a vivacious season!

Happy new thread Anita!

Your garden looks very promising.

As some of you may have been following from my previous thread, I have been quite busy felling, trimming and planting trees. All my limbs are still accounted for and no major injuries happened while using the chainsaw and axe :)


Many wood piles ( 6 in total) were made and are now happily stacked and drying for the next season. I am crossing my fingers that none of them fall over.



All in all 40 small cedar trees were planted.


Now whats left is to mulch the leftover "stuff"

>16 quondame: Thanks!

>1 figsfromthistle: The flowers are lovely, Anita!

Happy new thread! Have a wonderful weekend!

>19 alcottacre: Thank you! Most of the daffodils are finished blooming however, it is nice to see other flowers beginning to bud. The peonies, morning glory and honeysuckle are just forming now.

>1 figsfromthistle: What a beautiful garden! Happy new thread, Anita.

>21 atozgrl: Nice to see you! Thanks :)

Happy new thread, Anita!

>1 figsfromthistle: Love it when the colors come back in this time of year. It is pleasing the eye and makes me happy. My garden is way smaller, but the effect is similair.

>14 figsfromthistle: >17 figsfromthistle: That was a lot of work!

>20 figsfromthistle: My irises have not yet begun to bloom. I always love it when they do!

Happy new thread, Anita. I love the topper. I wish you a wonderful weekend.

WOW! You have done an amazing job, everywhere! My daffodils are also done for now but the perennials are waking up. My brunnera has exploded, as it does this time of year. The lilac is about to pop, its buds appearing last week. We have had a lot of rain, which I suppose is good for most things.

Your place looks beautiful. Thanks for the photos.

>14 figsfromthistle: I'm probably going to change yard services next year. When I do, I'm probably going to move my raised beds and maybe even add a couple so I can grow more of my own food.

Garden and woods looking great Anita.

Happy New Thread, Anita!
And thank you for the wonderful pictures, You did a great job.

Happy new thread, Anita!
The garden looks promising (and adorable in the early stages. I love it). And I'm impressed at your work with the wood and trees!

>23 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita! Nice to see you :)

>24 alcottacre: Irises are quite the showy flower. Lots of different types of them out there.

>25 Ameise1: Thank you. Good weekend wishes heartily returned.

>26 jessibud2: The pictures just show a portion of the gardens and flower beds. It is a labour of love and really helps keep me balanced.

I do love lilacs. The scent is quite fantastic. I have seen them in the area just beginning to pop. Do you have one in your yard?

>27 thornton37814: Your raised garden beds sound wonderful. They are great for vegetables as you can control the water drainage and the beds can be easily converted into a covered greenhouse to extend the season. What are some of the go to vegetables that you enjoy planting and harvesting?

>28 Caroline_McElwee: Thank you :)

>29 SirThomas: Hi Thomas! Spring is always busy...so many things hitting all at once but it is beginning to get into shape.

>30 Ravenwoodwitch: The trees have been something that I did not really plan on doing this season. It had to be done eventually and I have to admit, I really enjoy working in the forest. I hope at one point I will be able to get to the creative part designing a walkway with hidden seating areas and such.

>32 figsfromthistle: - I do have a lilac tree. A friend gave it to me when I moved to this house, 23 years ago. She brought it from her parents' farm and it was just a small shrub then. It is now a tree and I love it.

39. Chinua Achebe: There Was A Country

A memoir that centres around the Nigerian Biafran war.

Highly recommended read.

Happy new thread!

Great photos, Anita.

I remember loving There Was a Country.

Happy new thread.

Happy new thread, Anita, your flowers and gardening are looking great. Things are getting green here in Minnesota. We certainly had the April showers so now it's time for the flowers.

>36 drneutron: Thanks!

>37 BLBera: It was a good read and an interesting one. Before, I knew very little about the cause of the war. Nigeria's ethnic and political identities are quite complex.

>38 Kristelh: Hi Kristel. Glad things are getting greener in Minnesota.

Happy Sunday, Anita. Happy New Thread. Love the spring topper. Good luck with the wood and brush clean-up. Big job. I love the trees around your place.

>35 figsfromthistle: I've only read Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche's novel of the Biafran war Half of a Yellow Sun, which I have read twice.

Will put this one on my list Anita. Sounds like it was very impactful.

Wow! Look at that garden, Anita! And I was proud of my tomatoes and watermelon. Lol

>40 msf59: Thanks, Mark!

>41 Caroline_McElwee: I hope it is one that works for you. It was insightful for me as a perspective from Achebe who experienced the war from the perspective of an Igbo man.

>42 The_Hibernator: You should be proud of your tomatoes and watermelon! Speaking of which, did you plant them yet? I just planted some tomato plants today after work. I was concerned that it would be too early but I am taking a chance.

A new week.....

Day off today and it was spent mostly planting the garden. Just have a few more things to plant ( cabbage and celery root). Otherwise everything else is in!

I also bought a new/low cost BBQ as the old one was not in great shape. I put it together and only had one tiny part leftover ;)

Long day at work tomorrow which will be a nice change of pace.

Anita, I am enjoying all the images you posted. Thanks for taking the time to do all this. Happy Spring to you.

Happy New Thread, Anita! Lovely pictures from your garden and yard. I really liked Half of A Yellow Sun too. If you need a good book about the Sri Lankan Civil war, I recently finished Brotherless Night and can very much recommend it.

>45 Whisper1: I am glad you enjoy the pictures! Hopefully, they brought a bit of cheer.

>46 vancouverdeb: Hi Deborah. Thank you! I will write Brotherless Night on my list. Thanks for the recommendation.

HI Anita, Love the pictures of your flowers and wow, you have been very busy, chopping and stacking. Have you ever seen the Lars Mytting book about wood stacking? Norwegian Wood. It's fun to read!

>48 mdoris: I have not heard about Lars Mytting's book about wood stacking. I will have to look out for that one although, I may end up regretting it if my wood stacking is incorrect ;)

Hope your week is humming along nicely so far.

Oh I don't think there is any incorrect but he is a bit of a fuss pot! Yes the week is going well, lots of time i the garden (bad weeds!) and the weather is superb! Have you read any of Lars Mytting fiction? Hope you are having a wonderful week. Really loved the pics of your property. It looks so beautiful!

I would love to have been able to give my Dad a copy of that book on wood-stacking, mostly to hear him find fault with the methods! He made some beautiful woodpiles in his time, and his motto was "He who splits his own wood warms himself twice."

>50 mdoris: No, I have not read any fiction by Myting. Glad you are enjoying the wonderful weather.

>51 laytonwoman3rd: I like his motto. It is so true. all my life growing up I remember piling wood. Sometimes in round hives ( which I preferred) or in organized stacks.

Love the garden pictures, Anita!

>53 curioussquared: Glad you like them :)

40. Anthony Horowitz: Close to Death

Anthony Horowitz is feeling pressure from his publishing agent to start another book. The problem is that Hawthorne is not really working on any "interesting" cases. Anthony decides with great resistance from Hawthorne to write about an old case. A gated and close knit community begins to unravel when a new and annoying neighbour is killed with a cross bow. Who is to blame?

As Horowitz is warned " the story doesn't end the way you think it's going to"

Fifth in the series and a little different than the other four.

3.5/5 ( Solid B+)

I think I decided to leave that one for our June lease book order. There were lots of good options for May because of all the "beach reads" coming out, and it's harder to find that kind of book that checks out well later in the year. (I did save one or two of those for the June order.) I've got the May order ready to go, and I'll order it after my week off. It's at the top of the pile so I'll do it first! They should arrive the next week so I can get them on the shelves before I'm off for a month. I'll order the June books when I get back. I love only having to work four weeks in summer!

Beautiful flowers!

>56 thornton37814: Oh wow! Four weeks work in the summer and the rest off is a great deal! Plenty of time to read all those beach reads :)

>57 Tess_W: Thanks! Lots of different flowers are blooming now that the tulips are beginning to fizzle out. I hope you are having a good weekend.

Tuesday....

It's been quite a few busy days at work. Today is looking to be chaotic but you never know how the day will play out. Perhaps things will turn around and be awesome :)

I have been playing wordle but can't keep track of stats without creating an account...

The garden is looking better. I have lettuce that is getting should be ready to harvest in two weeks time but some animal keeps on picking/eating it! It's probably the bunny I saw earlier.

I put up my humming bird and oriole feeder. So far I have seen quite a few orchard orioles but no hummingbirds yet.

I am having problems with the local company I hired to chip up the branches. It is a job that takes three hour max and the company said they would come and get rid of the stuff in two days. Then they phoned and said that the machine does not work and would come on a Friday. Chipper still does not work. Then the company said that if I don't mind, not having the mulch they will load it up and get rid of it. I said sure. Company comes well past 3pm on a Saturday, loads up one load, leaves and comes back the next day after it had rained with the wood chipper. No phone call, just randomly showed up. The chipper still would not work, they unhooked it and now it is on my front lawn - again no communication as what's going on, when they will be back.

Now the problem is that I told them to be careful with the flower beds and the driveway. The owner drove through the flower beds, ruined the ground and edging. The holes are quite deep and to make things worse my asphalt driveway is broken/cracked. I am curious to see if they show up.I have this ugly big rusty wood chipper on my front lawn. Why leave it there or even bring it if it does not work? How long will all this crap sit on my lawn? My parents will be on the lookout but I am not pleased. Had they continued with one more load driving the stuff away, I would have no branches, and no damage. Now I am going to have to approach them after the work is done and get them to fix what they damaged. Being a local company in a small community it could become a little awkward.

>59 figsfromthistle: - Being a local company in a small community should make it awkward for them, not you. If they care at all about their reputation, you'd think they would take more care, not less. Word of mouth is a powerful thing and could make or break a small company. You might remind them of that. In this day and age of social media, I'd be scared if I were them. Anita, take photos of the crap they left on your property AND the damage they did. Then give them the ultimatum of removing and repairing everything in, say, 24 or 48 hours, or it goes public. Even if you don't follow through, they don't have to know that initially. I have found from personal experience that that is something that often works. It shouldn't have to take threats to make people do the right thing but sadly, it does.

>59 figsfromthistle: How frustrating! I definitely agree with >60 jessibud2: that you should take lots and lots of photos. If you don't end up needing them you can just delete them later.

>60 jessibud2: Unfortunately things happen but I was quite accommodating to the situation. I wanted the mulch and agreed that it was ok if they drive the debris away instead because they were having problems with the equipment. Today my parents were on the lookout and they started mulching without removing the branches on the trees where they were mulching into the forest. The sheer force would rip all the branches off the good trees. The mulcher stopped after 5 minutes and they left. My dad spent an hour binding the branches back ( which they should have done) so the pathway is clear to direct the wood chips into. After all that, they came back with a trailer to load the debris up. They left one guy there with no chainsaw or helper. My dad was upset because they did not communicate that they would not be chipping the debris so the work he did binding the tree branches back was a waste of time.

The owner sent his helper to collect the money and my parents informed him that they need to speak with the owner who was sitting in the truck. the damage was shown to him and he apparently said that he did not realize that there was damage done and said "was that from us?". He then was quite frustrated with my mom and unprofessional. Trying to say there was no other way and that he is already not making money on this job because of the problems with his workers and machine and such. We told him that the damage to the lawn is repairable but the damage to the new driveway is a different thing. He said to keep the money because he can't spend another minute here as he cannot afford to lose more money.

The chipper is still here and his mechanic is supposed to pick it up. It is parked in such a way that more damage will probably be made. The sheer lack of respect is astonishing. A normal business man would say I am sorry sometimes accidents happen and try to remedy the situation at least by either saying a) let me find someone to fix the driveway for you or b) provide an estimate and I will deduct it off your bill. Now he thinks that by "gifting" me the labor cost that he is doing me a favour. With such small jobs, it is difficult to find anyone to repair things these days. I am not sure how to proceed but will decide when the chipper is off my land. A three hour job that has turned into a massive headache.

*sigh*

>61 norabelle414: I took photos but it is one of those things that probably won't help.....

>62 figsfromthistle: That sounds like a pain, Anita.
I hope that everything gets settled satisfactorily in the end.

>62 figsfromthistle:, sounds like a nightmare.

Hi, Anita. Just checking in. Sorry to hear about the chipper, landscaping issues. What a pain in the butt. I hope everything gets cleared up.

He is not making money? Boo hoo. Maybe he should work on his customer service skills. No wonder. Sheesh.

So sorry you have had to go through this, Anita. They probably aren't listed or registered or whatever the terminology is but google the Better Business Bureau and let them know. If nothing else, maybe it can help prevent others from using this company and having to go through what you and your parents did.

Hi Anita--Love your thread toppers! Beautiful spring flowers. : ) My garden took a hit with a winter ice storm, but my kids got me some new plants for MOther's day. Just planted them. Most of them should start blooming soon. Yay!

>62 figsfromthistle: Dang. I am so sorry. Yes, you should probably report him.

>63 PaulCranswick: So far no, Paul. I just finished with a police officer now...long story and I am exhausted as I need to be up at 5 AM.

>64 Kristelh: Turned into one for sure.

>65 msf59: Hi Mark! good to see you :)

>66 jessibud2: I don't think that he is registered with the BBB.

>67 Berly: Oh no! Ice storms are awful but I am glad that you were able to get some new flowers.

I am so sorry to hear about all the trouble with the company you hired :(

>69 curioussquared: Thank you. I have never had such an incident before when hiring someone. The guy went completely nuts to a point that the police had to be called to remove him from the property. I did get most of it on video though.

Happy Thursday!

I am tired as heck but only have a 8 hour shift today. After work I will probably have to pick my parents up as their car is in the shop and should be finished today.

I am slowly making headway with a few books. This month seems to be flying by! I think I finally managed to get my vacation sorted out. I am really looking forward to it.

Health wise the back of my neck has really been giving me extreme pain. Stiff and hurts when I move it. The pain just radiates to the front of my head. It is the second day I am taking pain meds and has little effect. Hopefully this goes away soon.

I missed Jeopardy yesterday but did watch some the Jeopardy masters tournament on Monday.

>35 figsfromthistle: The only book by Achebe that I have ever read is Things Fall Apart. Sounds like I need to read this one too. Thanks for the recommendation, Anita!

>55 figsfromthistle: No, no, no, not getting pulled into another series. . .I remember reading the first book in the series and thinking it was OK.

>62 figsfromthistle: Wow! Talk about someone needing people skills.

>71 figsfromthistle: Yay for getting your vacation sorted out! I hope you have a wonderful time!

>71 figsfromthistle:. I watch Jeopardy and Jeopardy Masters too, Anita. I record them so I can watch them if I miss their regular program times.

Hope your pain is gone soon.

Glad your vacation is coming together.

ETA: I didn’t catch that you had to call the police. That man does not belong in business.

I had no idea Jeopardy Masters was even on. What time?

Yikes, to the police having to get involved. I hope that is the end of it and this ugly episode can fade into the rear view mirror.

Feel better soon. I am sure the added stress of the last few days didn't help this at all. Pace yourself.

Sorry to read you had so much trouble with the company you hired to help, Anita.
I hope you feel better soon, having to call the police doesn't improve your health :-(

Increasingly I'm seeing friends who will only hire licensed and insured workers for things like this. After reading your fiasco, I think I know why!

Sorry to hear about your neck Anita. I hope you get that looked at soon.

Glad your holiday plans are coming together.

>72 alcottacre: It's not a bad series if you like cozy mystery, midsummer murder and Sherlock Homes style mysteries.

Thanks regarding the vacation. Now all I have to do is find a flight and book :)

>73 Kristelh: The pain has remained and it is quite bad. I hope it goes aways soon as well.

>74 jessibud2: Jeopardy masters is on CTV and airs at 8PM. Game 2 was on Wednesday. Semi final will be on Friday.

As for the whole business with the company hired, I have decided to call it a wash. I will deduct a nominal amount from the total and mail a cheque. I don't want him on my property at all. His behaviour is unpredictable. From calling me yelling/screaming on the phone every obscene word he knows, to sending random people to the door, vandalism to property and violence. The cost to me to fix greater than what I will deduct and is more than fair.

>75 FAMeulstee: Stress does make things worse for my health condition, Anita. There is nothing I can do but let it go and forget about it.

>76 thornton37814: Yes, this seems to be the way to go. Although his flyer did say that he is fully bonded and insured ( which I highly doubt to be accurate now).

>77 Caroline_McElwee: I am looking forward to my vacation. Perhaps I will find more time to read :)

>78 figsfromthistle: - Yikes. What did the police have to say about it all? Did they warn him and make him stay away? At least they are officially aware of it and what happened, and that is a good thing.

>80 jessibud2: They did warn him. While the police were at my place, the guy came to the property and the police forced him to leave. They spoke to him and took statements and made me submit video for evidence. It was quite a scary situation ( reasons I won't get into here) but the police were able to see the heightened state he was in.

Hopefully you'll have your peace from this nutcase.
All the best to you and have a wonderful weekend.

>82 SirThomas: Hi Thomas. It is nice to see you. It is a holiday weekend here. Hope you have a great weekend!

Hi Anita. So sorry to read about your situation with this guy. You don’t need that kind of stress. Hope your weekend is relaxing.

I must say, from your pictures, you have been doing a wonderful job!

>84 EllaTim: Hi Ella!

I can't take all the credit for the work around the place. My parents and I work on it together which makes it a little more manageable. It is interesting though, we have separate vegetable gardens. It always seems to get a bit competitive as to who has the first lettuce ready for harvest ;)

Today after work I did the traditional thing and braved the crowds at the garden centre :)

Happy May 2-4, Anita!

>87 jessibud2: Thank you! For some reason I thought that the holiday was next weekend. so it caught me by surprise. I am working most of it but have Monday off.

Hope you are able to enjoy the warmer weather

I think it's kind of arbitrary when the long weekend falls since obviously, the 24th isn't always going to be on a weekend. But I think, regardless, it's usually the 3rd weekend in May, if I am not mistaken. I hope you get some time to relax. Has the pain subsided enough to stop being a factor?

>89 jessibud2: I do have Monday off. To be honest, the pain has remained. Without heavy pain medication, it seems to be coming back 2x stronger. I will have to see the doctor if it persists over the week.

Happy Victoria Day weekend, even though you’re working. Enjoy your Monday!

Happy Sunday!
>59 figsfromthistle: And that whole business sounds awful, I'm so sorry! They're being so careless with your property and hard work.
>62 figsfromthistle: And Jesus, the owner is an ass on top of that. I'm so sorry.
>71 figsfromthistle: I hope your neck feels better. Keep an eye on that.

Have a happy vacation!

>91 Kristelh: thanks!

>92 Ravenwoodwitch: my vacation starts on the 15th Of June. Now I just have to find a flight :)

41. Jesse Wente: Unreconciled

For years, Canadians have heard a lot of politicians speak about truth and reconciliation. However, for most politicians, the idea behind it is a way to grab new voters and not try to acknowledge the injustices served to the Indigenous people. It takes more than words and empty rhetoric to mend a relationship.

Wente, tells his personal story, his truth and thoughts about reconciliation.

Highly recommended.

42. Malala Yousafzai: We are Displaced

Series of short stories told by younger women from various countries who were displaced from home for various reasons ( war, inequality, religious minority)

Many may be familiar with Yousafzai's memoir I am Malala

>95 figsfromthistle: - I read this one a few years ago and thought it was excellent.

>97 jessibud2: It's been on my shelf for a while and I am sorry I did not read it sooner.

Hi Anita my dear, a belated Happy New Thread dear friend.

>99 johnsimpson: Nice to see you, John. Thanks :)

Anita, what a nightmare from trying to have the yard situation rectified. And, I hope your pain is better, or gone!

I've added Malala Yousafzai: We are Displaced to my TBR pile, as well as Jesse Wente: Unreconciled.

>95 figsfromthistle: On to my list it goes. Thank you Anita!