Addressing Your Concerns

Were you worried the boxwood I planted last fall would not survive a New Mexico winter? Did you fret that the leaves would brown, as boxwood does when it's cold and dry in winter?

It came through just fine, not a speck of browning on any leaves, and it is even putting out the small, greenish white flowers typical of boxwoods. It did well this winter.

Were you concerned when I trimmed back the viburnum last summer that I cut off all the next year's blooms?

Well, no fears, I didn't. There are lots of tight buds forming and getting ready for an early spring bloom. I hope they are fragrant, they're supposed to be but it's subtle.

Have you been stewing over the fact that my gardens have yet to fill out and are still so skimpy looking? Is that bothering you?

Me too. I don't know why my gardens don't look anything like the picture above. It's from High Country Gardens, where I buy many plants, and I have bought and planted much of the ones you see in the picture. But my garden will never look like this. It's a concern.

Are you disturbed about my potting bench and its state of disrepair and disorganization? Are you thinking it should look like this?

Well, mine doesn't. How is this spotless potting bench vignette even real? It looks like fine living room furniture tidily designed to be "rustic", not the workspace of a real garden person. Mine looks like a home for single gloves and mismatched used pots, all decorated with last years decayed aspen leaves and spilled potting soil.

And finally, our health:

Jim isn't dire enough to need hospitalization or even close, but he's been miserable for a long time. It's not classic Covid19 symptoms, since he has no fever, no chest constriction, but he does have awful night sweats that soak the bed at night, and he's congested, with painful swollen glands and a bad cough.

In any other era we'd think it was regular flu, although he got a flu shot. It's been 14 days of symptoms. We isolate, we sanitize, and we stay home. He's tired. The doctor can't qualify him for Covid19 testing without known contact or a fever, but says he could go to the hospital and get a flu test to see if that should be ruled out or not. He's not up for it.

Last night I developed a sore throat, stuffy nose and congestion.
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