Love the rubber band idea! I’d need it, too  

Fresh summer fruits are the best! I had canned pineapple today. Not quite as tasty. I’m hoping to get some herbs going this summer. I have rosemary and sage already, but would love basil and thyme. I have a small greenhouse with orchids in it. I’m going to try moving the basil there in the winter and see if it can make it through the winter. It’ll be a fun experiment, if nothing else.

I have a few plants starting to bloom out there. I used to go in there to smoke, so it was nice to walk out there today, just to look at the plants. I have 12 with the beginnings of flowers on them! Orchids can take forever to grow, so it’ll be a couple months or more before I see some of the flowers. 3 have flowers right now, though. I was hit with a wonderful smell when I opened the door. I’d forgotten one has a delicious scent to it. It made me smile to realize how much better it smelled than when I had a container of butts in there that smelled awful. I’ll take the flowers, please!

Jenny

Hi Jenny!

Yay I found the January 2023 space again, I was looking under the wrong tab.

Gotta say thinking about your greenhouse makes me miss California a bit.  Lived in San Diego for 12 years then moved to MN in 2017.  I always planted my outdoor veggie garden around this time of year in Cali.  Now I have an indoor garden under purple LED plant lamps in my basement rec room!  So the winter here in MN is rough but on a positive note the summer is beautiful and there is a lake in my urban neighborhood where we can swim!  I couldn't believe it when I came to MN--urban fresh water swimming????  There's just so much woods and water here.  I love it.  Half the year.  LOL.

Anyhoo, the observation you made about how much more enjoyable your lovely orchid greenhouse is now that it no longer serves as your smoking sanctuary . . . right on, sister.  All of the positive aspects of being non-smokers are really adding up for both of us.  I love it, I feel so happy and relieved.  I noticed that I am in a much better mood these days.  I think before I quit I was always stressed in between cigs--stressed and sort of low key grouchy.  

Fruit, flowers, sanity!  So glad you're here.  

I love your positivity.  It is down right beautiful and inspiring.  Thank you for sharing it with us.