Hodgepodge
An assortment of things:

THE BEST SORT OF GARDEN SUCCESS
Last fall Rob threw some honeydew melon seeds in a pot. It was a store bought melon from who knows where, but he thought "what the hell." It was fall so I expected nothing to come of this. But it grew a bit, then winter came and since we had a really mild winter it stuck around. Then in February it started growing again and continued growing all through the weird, very wet summer we had here. We gave it absolutely no attention - no watering, no fertilizer, no pest control, no tending at all. And lo and behold the other day I spotted a softball sized melon. The powers of nature are just amazing - to think that we can throw some seeds in a pot, ignore them for a year and end up with a melon...

BIRTHDAY BLUES
Yesterday was my birthday. It's the first one where I've ever felt *old*. And for reasons I still haven't figured out entirely, I was sad. I know some of it had to do with my work situation - something I hadn't thought about all week, but was on my mind when I woke up yesterday morning. I'm sure there was more to it than that, but I couldn't put my finger on exactly what was bothering me. Either way, the mood has passed and I'm not going to waste time figuring out what it was all about unless it returns. Maybe one just has to get the blues once in a while, no specific reason needed.

CHILLIN' IN DRIPPIN'
We spent the afternoon today out at Bill's place near Dripping Springs. The weather was perfect, the company fabulous (always a treat to hang out with Micki and Bill) and I felt much more birthday-ish than yesterday. I can't think of a better way to spend an afternoon than hanging out with people you love in an idyllic setting.

THE END IS NEAR
My vacation is quickly coming to a close, but it's not entirely over so I was a bit annoyed when work contacted me this morning to see if I would come in today because no one else was scheduled. Jeez, it's not like I needed a reminder of just how utterly clueless this company is. And I'm going back to this place? Well, I suppose it is better than nothing. But just barely. Pizza delivery is staring to look more attractive and I've long suspected I might have a career in dry-cleaning since there's an old radio commercial for a dry cleaners that has been stuck in my head since the 60's. "One hour Martinizing, the world's most popular dry-cleaning..."
Them: "Why are you applying for this job?"
Me: "Because your jingle has been running through my head for 40 years!"