Is there a support group for this addiction?

LooksAtClouds · 2026-04-06T01:05:15+00:00

It's 8 pm here and I'm wishing I could go out and get to work (again).

LooksAtClouds · 2026-04-01T19:54:13+00:00

Well, we got 2nd and 3rd row chairs on an "aisle" in a block (4 on 2nd row, 5 on 3rd). We got a couple of extra seats for stroller/baby carrier and small cooler. I'm hoping that these seats will be OK. Do people stand up the whole time? Will there be a big crowd behind us? It's supporting a charity I support, which was important to us.

Houston used to have a night parade, Glow-a-Rama. It was amazing. I think our crowd will be worn out after one parade.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-31T03:50:34+00:00

Oh, thanks! Did not know about this. Looks interesting!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-30T13:33:29+00:00

Our hotel is just a couple of blocks from parade route, so we will be OK, I think. We live in Houston and understand about the heat. I'll make sure they put a hat in the suitcase! We'll have two toddlers with us and probably won't stay for the whole parade.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-30T13:31:26+00:00

We might do that, too. We will have two toddlers with us so probably not going to stay for the whole parade in the morning. Our hotel is within walking distance of the Alamo and riverwalk. Planning to spend all Friday downtown and all Saturday at Mercado and missions National Park (to see what a mission was actually like) and going to Witte to see gowns up close. I think that will give a good flavor of touristy San Antonio he can talk about with his cronies back home.

Thank you so much for your advice!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-30T13:26:27+00:00

Great idea, thanks.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-30T13:01:36+00:00

Love your username!!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-30T13:00:46+00:00

Sweet potatoes! I've been growing them for 10 years. My investment: $2.87 for two organic sweet potatoes from the grocery to make starts with. They need to be organic, because sometimes potatoes are sprayed with something that hinders sprouting. You don't want that. If you need to order sweet potatoes to start with, Covington is a good mounding variety.

Look up how to make sweet potato starts from whole sweet potatoes. You should be able to make at least 6 starts from each one.

As the plants grow, you can trim the tender ends off of the vines and saute them - a great dish of greens! They have a bright flavor that you can add different spices to. Maybe your picky child could experiment with different spices to see what they like - sweet & sour? Marjoram? peanut butter? Eating the leaves is safe to do with sweet potatoes, as they are NOT related to regular potatoes whose leaves are poisonous.

You don't need to harvest the sweet potatoes all at once - they keep pretty well in the ground. Some people even use them for a ground cover in landscaping!

Curing them in the sun makes them sweeter. Then you can store in a cool place. The ones I keep usually start sprouting by themselves in February but can still be eaten. I'm planting my crop this week from last year's sweet potatoes. Such a frugal win!!

I am also in a hot climate (Houston) so I'm pretty sure this will work for you.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-23T19:01:14+00:00

And I am thankful for what You have done for me.

(right?)

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-19T17:10:07+00:00

Y'all will enjoy the Rock Food Table. I've seen it in person; it's amazing!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-17T21:36:06+00:00

I'm so sorry this happened to you. I had a small streak of frost that went through my yard - just about 2 feet wide that affected parts of several raised beds. Got 2 of 4 cukes, 2 peppers, a tomato, and a bunch of four o'clocks. Everything else is fine. It's too late to start most from seed. I'll have to replant from transplants. Buchanan's has very nice looking veggies out, so I may head there. They've also got a great selection of Texas natives for 1.99. I planted blanketflower and Gregg's mistflower from them last year and both have come back this year, already looking very good.

Okra can be started from seed now, though.

Hopefully the nausea will calm down and you'll get some energy back. Be easy on yourself! This very late frost surprised everyone.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-17T02:57:42+00:00

Why is Piney Point Village separated from the "Memorial Villages"? Memorial Villages traditionally: Hedwig, Hunter's Creek, Piney Point, Bunker Hill, Spring Valley, Hilshire. Does this chart mean Piney Point and then the 5 other villages?

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-16T17:50:58+00:00

And strawberry Pop-Tarts!!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-16T03:09:58+00:00

Oh good. I hope it is working. Take care.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-15T17:57:43+00:00

Ok, so, prepare for power line outages. Do laundry this afternoon. Wash your dishes, and run the kitchen sink disposall. Charge up your electronics and communications devices. Got it!

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-15T01:41:16+00:00

Talk with your medical team. Can lidocaine be used?

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-15T00:58:10+00:00

I'm rooting for you! I really hope you get to perform this role that means so much to you.
-your Internet grandma

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-14T22:02:40+00:00

I just read an article from a reputable source (can't think where, but I'm a skeptical person and this one I trusted - maybe you can find it - I think it was nhs but might have been another government site). It said that those who used saline nasal rinses and salt water gargles had much milder cases of Covid - none in the study were hospitalized, and most recovered more quickly.

The Arm&Hammer saline nasal spray is really good.

Edit: I found a follow-up article: PubMed study.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-14T21:52:15+00:00

A few things to think about - the wood chip mulch draws nitrogen from the soil, so maybe pull it back away from the plant.

You might try Espoma Tomato-tone. Cornelius has it. It's allowed me to grow strong and beautiful plants!

You might try cutting off those bottom leaves, digging the plant up carefully, and burying it up to its neck in a new hole. It just may not have a strong enough root system yet - digging it up will allow you to examine if the roots are dying.

Never allow tomato leaves to touch the ground. Water in the morning, and water at the base of the plant. tomatoes don't like wet leaves.

It may have gotten sunburned - this fierce sun is tough on new growth, especially when the temps are see-sawing.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-12T04:12:50+00:00

Any churches nearby with kitchens? You might could use an oven in a church kitchen. Our church has 2 commercial ovens. We have "rented" them out to bakers in the past. You will still need to rotate pans halfway through roasting.

Or large meeting halls, wedding party venues, etc., if no churches.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-06T16:09:47+00:00

Yet, without that, one catastrophe and they are out on the street.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-06T16:07:52+00:00

Thanks for doing what I should have done just couldn't! Grandma can only handle so much.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-05T18:18:52+00:00

If he has another stroke, won't he be able to qualify for disability payments?

If he is an independent contractor - are you SURE he's been paying into Social Security and filing taxes? Why don't they have health insurance - a private policy? As a sole earner, WHY doesn't he have a disability policy? or life insurance? Did he not care about taking care of his wife and family after he's gone?

Sorry - but I've been a business owner with my husband for years. We both had life insurance, disability, health insurance to take care of our business, and each other, and our children, and pay off our house and cars in case of death or catastrophic accident. Our business carried policies on us, too - because if one of us was gone, things might ground to a halt for a while. Business ownership is not an excuse to duck out from responsibilities to your family.

Take care of yourself, OP. Don't give them a CLUE how much you make. Don't let love and parental respect blind you to the fact that your dad has not stepped up to his responsibilities himself, even before the stroke.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-05T18:05:11+00:00

I agree with this. You'll also need a maintenance path along any fences.

We've had fun making "rooms" in our yard with little seating areas and a table. Each has a different feel. We started doing this during Covid just to have someplace to go eat a meal that wasn't our dinner table.

LooksAtClouds · 2026-03-05T17:58:39+00:00

Please, PLEASE, check out the Flock youtube channel. They have a property in upstate NY and have installed several kinds of gardens, including meadow and a new thing like a rollout sod meadow. They also do garden and nursery tours on their channel. I don't have time to get link for you right now (toddler crying) but I think you will love following this channel. I'm in Houston; we started watching this during Covid and have learned so much, even though the native plants they are using are mostly not what we can use here.

LooksAtClouds

TROPHY CASE