For someone who’s never mowed a lawn before, my little house came with an awful lot of grassy ground. I had a vision of transforming my front yard into a butterfly garden which would not only cut down on my “mowable” real estate but would be good for pollinators.

So, when my local Lowe’s had plants on sale for half price yesterday I loaded up! Excitedly, I crammed 20 plants and associated bags of soil amendments into my ever capable car.

The fun began this morning…I had to dig up the top 6″ of grassy soil in order to remove all the roots, loosen the remaining soil to a depth of 15″, mix in fertilizer, and then insert new plant. Thankfully, the weather was perfect for a day of yard work (sunny but cool, we barely topped 60 today).

Sadly, I ran out of daylight before I could plant them all. The last of this batch will go in tomorrow.

Standing back and admiring my work I realized my yard actually looks like a minefield (once the grass clumps dry out I will remove them). Which brought to mind that classic 80s movie, Caddyshack.

I took these photos almost a month ago on the Treasure Island beach. These are just a few of the amazing creations completed as part of the Sanding Ovations Sand Sculpture competition.

The artists certainly had fun with the Sandhenge theme as most of the pieces were quite humorous.

Though I didn’t capture it in the third photo, there was even a robed researcher ready to diligently record the results as the first crash test dummy took a ride on the wheel.

“There Goes Peatcasso, Showing Off in Art Class Again” was the title for the piece in the last photo.

The sand sculptures had held up remarkably well over the past month but I suspect that this afternoon’s thunderstorm will have disintegrated them back into beach.

As usual, my straightforward remodeling project took a myriad of twists and turns. To begin with, the boxes of cabinets that the old owner had left behind, were not, as I had hoped, the set of uppers for the south side of the kitchen (the north ones were previously installed and look quite nice). Instead, they were a mismatched jumble of doors and a few shelves.

A trip to IKEA (the purveyor of said cabinets) proved entirely pointless because they no longer carry that style. Not only that, they don’t make anything even remarkably similar. Grrr!

Back to the drawing board. As luck would have it, there were four shelves (and the remainder from when I cut the linen closet shelves was just the right size for the top display piece). Good thing open shelves are popular nowadays!

Of course, before I could install my latest inspiration I had to patch the wall and cover up the weird paint job. Annoyingly, three coats of paint weren’t enough. Frustrated, I took a break and worked on an electrical repair in hopes of being electrocuted so I wouldn’t have to do anymore painting. No such luck!

After yet another trip to the hardware store I was finally able to install the shelves. I think they turned out pretty well, considering.

Now all I have left to replace are the bottom cabinets, the sink, and the countertop. Piece of cake, right? 🙄

My friend Robert is a fellow jetty bum who also loves to take photos (he actually does it for a living while I merely dabble in the field). We met a few months back when he shared this photo he snapped.

That’s me in the background, perched on my favorite sunset-watching spot. As someone who is usually behind the camera I appreciated the picture.

So, I was happy to be able to reciprocate a couple weeks ago. Robert was standing on a nearby bench, angling for the perfect image of a fishing boat returning from a day out at sea. The sun even decided to add a little pizzazz. As you can imagine, he was pleased to have the snap!

Anyone who knows me will know why I really dislike that banal expression. However, in this case, the intent of the phrase actually fits.

The previous owners left behind quite a few random objects: assorted bricks, two used, dual-pane, vinyl windows, chainlink sections of a large dog run, and five pieces of chopped up telephone pole.

The bricks I have yet to decide upon but I’ve sold the windows and am in the process of selling the dog run. Disposal of the pole sections had me stymied until I saw this ad in my neighborhood online media.

Light bulb moment! Not only could I repurpose my poles but I could use them to prop up my mailbox, which has a Tower of Pisa complex. Over the past few weeks I snapped up brightly colored “oops” paint whenever I found it (and considering I’m at the home improvement store roughly every other day, I had a lot of opportunities).

This week I hauled my poles out of the backyard, washed them off, drenched them in two coats of paint, and this afternoon, installed them. I think they turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself.

Enjoyed a mellow evening on the beach yesterday. Had a bit of company but she didn’t have much to say…

I was pleasantly rewarded with a lively cetacean show during a jaunt down to Fort De Soto Park earlier this week. It was a beautiful, sunny morning and conditions for fishing were supposedly excellent (according to the helpful and informative tides4fishing.com).

As a result, the pier was lined with hopeful anglers. I watched schools of bait fish glinting in the shallows but the show was stolen by a pod of speedy dolphins. Dashing, spinning, and even jumping out of the water as they searched for food.

I was excited when one man’s reel started spinning, I felt certain that I’d get to see him haul in big one. However, his line quickly went slack and as he brought up his empty hook I heard him mutter, “Damn dolphin!”

Apparently, the ever intelligent creatures have figured out how to successfully remove bait from a hook without getting caught. Admittedly, it is much easier than chasing down a fish in the open water!

When I asked him what he’s trying to catch, he replied, “Whatever the dolphins let me.” He was not a happy camper! Come on down, the fishing is free, after you pay the dolphin…

For the first time in my life I have a lawn to mow. And since I bought a corner lot on a cul-de-sac with a utility easement attached, I have more grass than most of my neighbors. Not really complaining, I enjoy the additional privacy (one of the benefits of only sharing one lot line).

Unfortunately, the property wasn’t very well-cared for (part of the reason I was able to afford it). As a result, the weed-filled grass was uneven and overgrown. I devised a plan to level the ground, reduce mowable area, and make the yard easier to care for.

To that end, last week 8 cubic yards of crushed shell were delivered. Now all I have to do is: remove sod, line ground with cardboard (to prevent regrowth), and dump in loads of shell. I’ve completed three small areas so far with three long walkways ahead of me.

Not to overstate the obvious, but if you remove 12 wheelbarrows full of sod, you will need 12 wheelbarrows full of shell. I won’t be joining a gym any time soon!

Final note, I am piling the removed sod against the outside of my fence as a buffer from potential flooding. During Tropical Storm Eta, water gushed out of the storm sewers and flowed down the street. Thankfully, the storm surge and high tide were off by a few hours or I would’ve had a bit of a problem.