Hump Day

Fleta brought Astrid Aunt Helen’s crocheted rug. She placed it in the front entry. Her house is decorated vintage country. Helen wanted to make a rug and I gave her a big hook and helped her get started. She used some white sheets but dyed them. After she mastered this one, she made a big one for her dining room. 

Greta played volleyball last evening where I went to high school. She’s making a strong hit at the net in the picture. It was videoed and I got to watch her play. She had a great game and they won. She’s on Jr. Varsity, only a sophomore. Greta's a great athlete. This reminded me of my high school years. There were no sports for girls….none. Long before my time a girl on a team got pregnant and they blamed that on sports. Boys had sports and we had none. Title 9 corrected that but we are moving backwards again. 

Ada will not be playing many sports I don’t think. The PE teacher said for the class to run a certain amount of laps. Ada told him she couldn’t run as her leg hurt. She said she had “growing pains”. He said run one. She ran and fell down and bloodied both knees. She came home walking stiff legged wearing two big band aides. The picture of Ada is by the gym for my old high school. It’s new. We used one of the old WPA built gyms.

I grabbed my stick before 7 and walked my minutes. Since last September when I sprayed Pop’s Pond and injured my knee, I’ve been unable to take my morning walks. I’m not as fast as I once was and I have to carry a stick along but being in God’s garden again is invigorating! This morning finally felt like fall.

The star of my ambling along was the Goldenrod. I spied Boneset and Blue mist too.  Goldenrod flowers are a magnet for flies, beetles, wasps and butterflies. Goldfinches and sparrows love goldenrod seeds. Cattle and horses aren’t fond of it. Pioneers used it as a yellow dye. It’s pollinated by insects and does NOT cause hay fever. The pollen does float through the air…that’s ragweed. Goldenrod contains latex. During World War I the price of rubber soared and Henry Ford asked his friend Thomas Edison to see if any native plants could be used as a source of rubber. Of the plants Edison tested, he found several goldenrod species contained latex compounds. One species had over 6 percent in the leaves. But synthetic rubber was produced in the lab and both Ford and Edison passed during World War II, so nothing ever came of making rubber from goldenrod. There’s a multitude of other medicinal and health uses. It acts as a mild diuretic and astringent to help flush the kidneys and bladder, supporting recovery from minor urinary tract infections or passing small stones. Goldenrod can dry up excess mucus, easing symptoms from seasonal hay fever, sinusitis, and postnasal drip. When applied topically as a wash, poultice, or infused oil to soothe skin irritations and minor cuts. Herbal teas and tinctures are made from the yellow flowers. Seeping the leaves fresh or dried creates Goldenrod Tea and soaking them in alcohol makes Goldenrod Tincture.

After I finished walking, I used my dolly and put rocks around the Lantana astrid gifted me forMother’s Day. I’ve moved it in ground but I couldn’t get the hole I planted it in very deep. I’m going to build up around it with mulch and donkey poop when winter gets closer. I filled in behind it with monkey grass. The rocks were big but I was extremely careful and my knee didn’t twist out of place.

I weed eated around several areas. I can’t get close with my mower. My mower is diesel and I need some. I’m trying to let the price drop but it’s going up instead. 

Heart Doc today at 1:30. 🤞