Thanks for your well wishes – they seem to have helped because I am much, much better today. In fact, I feel better than I have been in months, so I must be careful not to go crazy and overdo it in the garden!

During my down time, I created a new Etsy shop. There won’t be anything for sale in it until after I get back from vacation (so, late July, early August) but I’m excited about it. I’ve looked seriously at three different shop sites and I ended up coming back to Etsy because it seems to be the most attractive and user-friendly. I’ll post a link here when I’ve tested it and loaded some items for sale.

I guess I’ll need to renew my North Carolina sales tax license since I think that the state gov is about to crack down on Internet sales tax.

Bought a new carry-on bag at Target. I decided that it was time for me to get one with wheels instead of dealing with a worn-out duffel bag for a change. It’s purple with polka dots. It cried out for me to take it home, I swear.

Dug up some tiny new Yukon Gold potatoes in the Back Forty, to go with the few green beans I’ve picked. The Green Zebra tomatoes are leading the way with the first tomato. The dill is going to seed now. It is so good to have fresh dill with egg salad, or green beans, or fish, or anything, really.

The Violetto artichokes are blooming. I just can’t bring myself to pick them because they are so beautiful. I’ll have to plant some more ordinary ones for eating next year.

We put down pine needles on the paths where the wood chip mulch washed away in the flood earlier this month. I’m not sure that this will be helpful for the Ph of the soil, but it is certainly much easier and will be less likely to wash away. There is the added bonus that this seems to make my husband much happier, and he seldom takes any interest in the yard or garden.