Disjointed

- I'm down to 147!! Progress is being made. This is the first time I've been under 150 in at least a year. I've been working out here and there, but I wanted to see the number go down before it plateaued or came back up.

- Garden planning is still spinning around in my head. I need to measure how large I want the bed to be in order to make lumber or seedling determinations. Also, in order to see some harvest before June, I'm going to try an early crop of lettuce and spinach until planting the less cold hardy things in April.

- I've also got a few starter ideas for the yard/flower beds. We're going to put in edger blocks to keep the mulch in and, hopefully, the dogs out. Then I'd like to pull out the bedraggled mini boxwoods that are in there and put in some creeping phlox (which is evergreen in this area and blooms at least twice a year) in the front and something mid-size in the middle, maybe some azalea bushes or something. I would like to put a shrub that blooms through the summer, though, so maybe I'll mix and match (I don't really care for Encores). Also, the next few weeks are prime tree planting time, and I am so looking foward to putting in a Japanese Magnolia in the front yard. It will take some precision, though, as we have to judge the right distance from both the field lines of the septic system and the power lines.

- Is anybody that drops by here from the Great Plains area? I am going to training the first week in February and have absolutely no idea what to expect or what to pack. I don't have a parka, I don't own a scarf or snow boots, and I've never driven in snow. Am I completely up a creek?