For “Jeepy” was a Jolly Good Fellow

My first car when I was 18 was a black 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee Sport. A boxy little thing with more rust than paint, which was so bad that we joked it was a grey-and-rust colored Jeep instead of black. My brother Anton and I swapped cars when I left for university (since Jeepy was unreliable for longer distances at the time) and thus Jeepy and Anton became bros.

Anton started rebuilding Jeepy, added a smooth new coat of paint, and eventually had no intention of switching back with me (I didn’t mind; Jeepy looked great!). With Anton, the new and improved Jeepy drove from Orlando, FL, to Texas, Arizona, Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee, a music festival in Michigan, California (twice) and a bunch of other places.

With great sadness, I report that Jeepy was clobbered by a truck and the damage wasn’t worth repairing.

Jeepy, the Humble Adventurer. He looked stunning in black and had seen more forests, parks, beaches, mountain ranges, islands, deserts, and eaten up more open roads in the last 5 years than I have in my lifetime (Well done, Buddy. We’ll miss you).

Rabbit Wisdom 

Last year I acquired a 2 lb purebred Polish rabbit named Loki from my best friend Megan. At 7 years of age, he’s a bossy little punk who likes to play chase (but only when he feels like it) and will not allow me to sleep in peace if his bowl does not contain at least one snack.

He also recently figured out how a pet bed works (it took him 9 months but he’s well on his way to mastering the art of lounging).

Gardening for a Year

I am determined to have a green thumb one day even if I have to paint it green.

The first round of attempted gardening in May of 2018 used sunflowers (my favorite), a single monstrous blanket flower bush (which cannot be killed or convinced to quit flowering), and other things I thought had a chance of surviving both me and brutal Florida summer.

Blanket Flower

Young blanket flower bud

Oh all the sunflowers, how they make me smile.

Seedlings

Good morning, sunshine

My first garden is looking good

Little tangled garden

Black eyed susan

A yellow-ish blanket flower

Love this one

Sunflower in morning light

Fall of 2018 brought mammoth dill, basil (all immediately got sick and died), thyme and chrysanthemums (dill made the whole yard smell like pickles; I should’ve gone with lavender or rosemary). I’m most proud of the thyme.

Aww, baby dill are cute

Ah, the short-lived basil

I have a new fondness for marigolds

The dill are beginning to take over

Taking over the world with the smell of pickles

Dill: Pickle Scented World Domination (these things belong in a sci-fi movie, geez)

My lovely thyme

For Spring of 2019, I decided to challenge myself: pinto beans, black beans, tomatoes watermelon, even some pigeon peas. (This group is in progress.)

Pinto and black beans grew so quickly

For a while, my kitchen table was used for plants instead of meals

Marigolds, which I now like very much

The gandules! (Pigeon peas)

I bought these like this–sorry

Pinto beans happy in the sun

The tomatoes aren’t dead yet! I’m shocked!

Look! BEAN PODS!!!

Tomato plant flowers (I am ridicuously excited and would be thrilled if I grew only a single tomato fruit)

My mother has entrusted me with the two Norfolk pine trees she bought over the Christmas season for holiday decoration. Since I seem to be able to grow some things, now my parents give me plants they like (like the trees) and expect it to become a forest or meadow.

My Dad: (with a hand on my shoulder and mock sincerity) “Don’t kill the trees, Duri.”

I know nothing of tree care (I may need some luck on this one).